La semaine dernière, RBS, la Société Générale et UniCredit sont venues sur le marché primaire émettre des titres compatibles avec les normes Bâle 3

Selon Eurostat, l'inflation est tombée en mars au plus bas niveau atteint depuis la fin de 2009

Selon Eurostat, l'inflation est tombée en mars au plus bas niveau atteint depuis la fin de 2009

Le gouvernement avait promis de ramener le déficit en dessous des 3% du PIB en 2015 mais le déficit 2013 est déjà supérieur aux attentes

Faible croissance, désendettement et gains de compétitivité sont autant de facteurs déflationnistes en zone euro

La Banque européenne d’investissement (BEI), le Groupe BPCE et les Caisses régionales de Crédit Agricole ainsi que Crédit Agricole Leasing & Factoring annoncent qu’ils engagent 250 millions d’euros en faveur du développement de la biomasse et de la valorisation des déchets en France. L’accord de financement a été signé ce vendredi 21 mars 2014 à Paris par MM. Philippe de Fontaine Vive, Vice-Président de la BEI, Roland Charbonnel, Directeur des Emissions et de la Communication Financière du groupe BPCE, Xavier Malherbet, Directeur des Marchés et des Offres du Pôle Caisses régionales de Crédit Agricole S.A en présence de M. Sébastien Chapelet, Directeur Général des services du SYndicat Mixte d’Elimination et de VAlorisation des Déchets (SYMEVAD) et M. Bernard Duparay, Président du SMET71. Cet accord de financement est d’importance décisive pour le développement des énergies renouvelables en France : il permettra de valoriser la biomasse d’origine forestière, agricole ou l’utilisation de déchets ménagers et assimilés pour la production d'électricité, du biogaz et de chaleur en France. Seront ainsi financés, sur l’ensemble des territoires, de nouvelles installations de cogénération à la biomasse, notamment des chaudières à production de chaleur seule et des installations de production combinée de chaleur et d'électricité, ainsi que des installations de traitement de déchets ménagers et assimilés produisant du biogaz et de l'électricité. Cet accord permettra également de soutenir les travaux de rénovation et d’extension des réseaux de chauffage urbain, dans un double objectif de performance et d’efficacité énergétique. Les habitants en seront les premiers bénéficiaires. Dans le cadre de cet accord, deux projets ont d’ores et déjà été identifiés pour recevoir un financement en 2014 : il s’agit de l’opération « Tri-méthanisation compostage » du SMET 71 et l’opération « Valorisation Matière Energie » du SYMEVAD. Le soutien apporté au projet du SMET 71 permettra de réaliser une unité de tri-méthanisation compostage qui traitera environ 73 000 tonnes de déchets par an produits dans le bassin Est du Département de Saône-et-Loire. L’opération « Valorisation Matière Energie » sera quant à elle axée sur la réalisation d’unité de traitement de déchets ménagers résiduels d’une capacité totale de 100 000 t/an, générés dans les agglomérations de Hénin-Carvin, d’Osartis et de Douaisis. Cette signature qui témoigne de la forte mobilisation de la BEI sur le secteur clef de la biomasse et de la cogénération en France s’inscrit dans la droite ligne de la Stratégie 2020 de l’Union européenne dont l’objectif est de développer une énergie sûre, compétitive et durable, laquelle contribue également aux objectifs européens de croissance durable et de création d’emploi. La BEI a consacré en 2013, 19 milliards d’euros soit 26 % de l’ensemble de ses prêts pour l’action en faveur du climat, à l’appui de solutions plus économes en ressources et résistant mieux aux changements climatiques. La France figure parmi les premiers pays bénéficiaires de cet effort avec un peu plus d'1 milliard de financements nouveaux dans ce domaine en 2013. Un effort qui se poursuit activement en 2014.

La recherche de rendement n’est pas toujours synonyme avec placement en actions, surtout chez les institutionnels, comme les mutuelles, qui ont tendance à s’intéresser davantage aux obligations convertibles. Ce fut notamment le cas de la MACSF. Marcel Kahn, directeur général de la MACSF explique pourquoi dans le numéro d’Option Finance n°1261. « Nous détenions l’an dernier 15% d’obligations convertibles, une classe d’actifs intéressante pour jouer la reprises des marchés actions tout en assurant une certaine protection contre les phases de corrections, assure-t-il. Aujourd’hui, nous n’en possédons plus que 11% car nous avons désormais plus de difficultés à trouver des papiers à des conditions satisfaisantes. »

Dans un entretien au journal australien, le PDG de BlackRock Larry Fink table sur un gain d’environ 8% des actions américaines cette année, grâce à une politique monétaire toujours accommodante de la Réserve fédérale. Il ajoute que les investisseurs devront néanmoins s’habituer à une volatilité plus élevée des marchés de capitaux mondiaux.

Selon le journal allemand, qui se réfère à une recommandation de la Troïka (Commission européenne, Banque centrale européenne, Fonds monétaire international) présentée ce mardi aux ministres des Finances de la zone euro, la Grèce recevra d’ici l’été de nouveaux crédits à hauteur de 11,8 milliards d’euros au total. Le fonds de sauvetage devrait fournir à Athènes 8,3 milliards d’euros, dont 6,3 milliards d’euros débloqués au mois d’avril et deux tranches supplémentaires d’un milliard d’euros chacune versées en juin et en juillet. Le reste de l’aide, soit 3,5 milliards d’euros, proviendrait du FMI et serait mis à la disposition du pays au mois de mai.

Primonial a annoncé lundi la nomination de Stéphane Vidal, 41 ans, en tant que directeur général du groupe de gestion de patrimoine indépendant à compter du 31 mars 2014. Stéphane Vidal était depuis 2012 directeur général délégué, en charge du développement. Primonial, où le Crédit Mutuel Arkéa prévoit de prendre une participation minoritaire, «poursuivra sa politique de développement organique et de croissance externe, dans le cadre du plan stratégique 2018», précise un communiqué.

La présidente de la Réserve fédérale Janet Yellen a annoncé lundi que l’engagement de la banque centrale à soutenir l'économie américaine, notamment un marché de l’emploi qui reste poussif, continuerait à s’imposer pour quelque temps. «Je pense que cet engagement exceptionnel s’impose et s’imposera pour quelque temps et je crois que ce point de vue est largement partagé par mes collègues de la Fed», a-t-elle dit à la National Interagency Community Reinvestment Conference de Chicago. La présidente de la Fed a ajouté que l'économie américaine restait «largement en-deçà» des objectifs de la Fed de plein emploi et d’une inflation stabilisée à 2%.

The hedge fund from billionaire John Paulson has purchased a 4.5% stake in the Netherlands-based operator Royal KPN NV (KPN), whose largest shareholder is the group of Carlos Slim, America Movil SAB de CV, Bloomberg reports. According to statistics compiled by the agency, Paulson & Co is reported to have purchased the stake on 24 March this year. America Movil previously reduced its stake to 26.7%, compared with about 30% previously.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; direction: ltr; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); }P.western { font-family: «Times New Roman»,serif; font-size: 12pt; }P.cjk { font-family: «WenQuanYi Micro Hei"; font-size: 12pt; }P.ctl { font-family: «Lohit Hindi"; font-size: 12pt; } There has been a serious setback for Kleinwort Benson Wealth Management. The private bank, an affiliate of Kleinwort Benson Group, controlled by RHJ International, has seen a net loss of EUR16.8m in 2013, after profits of EUR1.1m in 2012. This heavy loss is “imputable to a context of challenging low interest rate and tight credit spread environment, our cautious approach to balance sheet management, as well as our programme of investment in banker hires and systems infrastructure enhancements,” RHJ International says in a statement. The only good news for Kleinwort Benson Wealth Management is that total assets under management from savings activities, discretionary investments and investment advising rose 14% in 2013, to a total of GBP5.9bn (EUR7.1bn), compared with GBP5.2bn in 2012 (EUR6.4bn). More than half of this growth is due to net inflows of GBP399m in 2013, while positive market effects brought in a further GBP321m in assets under management. For its part, Kleinwort Benson Investors (KBI), an affiliate of the Kleinwort Benson group dedicated to asset management for institutional investors, has earned “very good returns in 2013,” largely supported by “a substantial rise in net sales in North America and Europe,” RHJ International announces. Last year, KBI earned net profits of EUR2m, compared with EUR0.2m in 2012. Its assets under management rose 49% compared with 2012, to a total of EUR5.4bn, largely thanks to EUR1.4bn in net capital inflows (+350% compared with 2012). At the publication of its results, RHJ International announced that it has finalised the acquisition of the German private bank BHF, for a total of EUR340m. The operation sets the Kleinwort Benson group ahead in the European private banking and asset management market. In private banking, the merger will result in an increase of 270% in total assets under mangement, from EUR7.1bn to EUR26.3bn, and a growth in total revenue of 125% to EUR147.9m, compared with EUR65.8m. In asset management, assets will be multiplied by 4, from EUR5.4bn to EUR22bn, while earnings will triple to over EUR47m (compared with EUR15.6m). The acquisition has led to a recomposition of the shareholder structure of Kleinwort Benson Group (KBG). The stake held by RHJ Intenational has fallen from 100% to 65.78%. Meanwhile, the Chinese investor Fosun becomes the second-largest shareholder in KBG, with 19.18% of capital, after an investment of EUR98.5m. APTON, the investment vehicle of the German entrepreneur Stefan Quandt, for its part, controls 12.4% of KBG, in exchange for a cash contribution of EUR63.7m. Lastly, Windmere and Collins Trust, entities controlled by Timothy Collins, now controls a 2.65% stake, after a cash investment of EUR13.6m.

BNP Paribas Investment Partners (BNPP IP) announced on March 28 that it has appointed three experienced professionals in London to its Institutional business line. Marc Fleury becomes head of sales for the corporate & endowments segment. He joined BNP Paribas in 2007 where he has, among other things, headed the sales team at Theam, BNPP IP’s Partner specialising in indexed and systematic investment solutions. Marc Fleury will be responsible for driving BNPP IP’s sales activity with corporates and endowments in Europe and the Middle East. Anne Dille‐Weibel becomes head of sales for the insurance segment. She has led BNPP IP’s sales activities related to banks and insurance companies in France since 2007, and for the past two years has been responsible for co‐ordinating the company’s sales to insurance companies around the world. Finally, Katherine Simons joins the company as head of global RFP (request for proposal). She has been leading and developing RFP, due diligence and marketing activities since 2000 with GAM, Franklin Templeton Investments and Old Mutual Global Investors. At Franklin Templeton she ran the firm’s global RFP activity, managing an integrated team of writers across the United States, Europe and Asia.

Some financial advisers are largely using ETFs in the portfolios of their clients, won over by their low cost, flexible use and tax advantages, the Financial Times reports. In fact, 16.5%, or 66 out of 400 advisers surveyed by the newspaper allocate 20% or more of their total assets to ETFs.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; direction: ltr; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); }P.western { font-family: «Times New Roman»,serif; font-size: 12pt; }P.cjk { font-family: «WenQuanYi Micro Hei"; font-size: 12pt; }P.ctl { font-family: «Lohit Hindi"; font-size: 12pt; } The investment advising firm Koris International, which is already known for its expertise in risk management techniques, is launching a vast transparency operation concerning the quality of ETFs. More precisely, Koris is proposing to review key elements and to take into account the valuation of an ETF, and also to share its allocation experience. On a monthly basis, Koris will publish a detailed analysis of a given top index, and the largest ETFs replicating the index. “Rather than discerning what is expected to be a good or bad ETF, good operational or legal structure, or the appropriate commission level, we have decided to share our experience related to the evaluation of risks and the performance of ETFs,” Jean-René Giraud, CEO of Koris International, explains to Newsmanagers. The choice of ETFs has clearly been dictated by the strong expansion of the type of instrument worldwide, firstly in the United States, and also in Europe in recent years. “ETFs are not an asset class as some may claim, but they very clearly serve as incontrovertible bricks in the construction of a portfolio for most investors, says Giraud. Hence the initiative by Koris, whose first experience has already made it possible to draw some conclusions. Initially, the collection of information has already proven much more complicated than expected. “Public data is not necessarily accurate, we are also facing outdated information, heterogeneous elements concerning legal and operational frameworks, many elements that have kept us very busy in the past few months,” explains Giraud. Then, the first study carried out by Koris made it possible to conclude that standard deviation models are not necessarily a panacea, and that new exams do not represent an appropriate indicator either to measure the quality of an ETF. Trading volumes on regulated markets are limited to small operations. And now we know that although no statistics are available, the over-the-counter market represents more than 55% of total transactions concerning ETFs. This situation complicates the job for institutionals in a practical way, since this means analysing market spreads. Koris has chosen to start with one of the indices which is probably one of the most difficult to replicate in the equity universe: the MSCI Emerging Market Index, which covers multiple markets, multiple time zones, multipe currencies and sometimes very small markets. Giraud concludes with the observation that “rising returns from an index are an experiment in complex management, which is too often judged too hastily by investors. The quality of an ETF cannot really be limited to the analysis of fees, tracking error, or physical or synthetic format.” From his point of view, “the future of this tool in the institutional world will involve a much less rigorous selection approach. Our study provides a basis for analysis which the investor can rely on. We are also planning to extend our investigation to the difficult conditions in which these instruments are traded off-market.”

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; direction: ltr; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); }P.western { font-family: «Times New Roman»,serif; font-size: 12pt; }P.cjk { font-family: «WenQuanYi Micro Hei"; font-size: 12pt; }P.ctl { font-family: «Lohit Hindi"; font-size: 12pt; } Three former employees of the inter-bank broker Icap have been charged in the United Kingdom for their presumed role in the Libor inter-bank lending scandal, the British serious fraud office (SFO) announced on 28 March. The new charges bring the number of people charged in the UK by the SFO in the case of nine, as in January the agency sought a budgetary extension to complete the investigation. The three people are suspected by the SFO of manipulating rates in a concerted manner “between 8 August 2006 and 7 September 2010.” Icap is one of the groups sanctioned by the British and US authorities as part of the Libor scandal which brokeout in 2012 as Barclays was fined. In addition to Barclays and Icap, many firms worldwide have been caught up in the scandal. UBS and Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) also faced fines.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; direction: ltr; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); }P.western { font-family: «Times New Roman»,serif; font-size: 12pt; }P.cjk { font-family: «WenQuanYi Micro Hei"; font-size: 12pt; }P.ctl { font-family: «Lohit Hindi"; font-size: 12pt; } Regulations are continuing to cause difficulties for asset managers. According to a survey by the investment consulting firm Investit, presented in London, which suveyed 60 members of the general management at 24 investment service and portfolio management providers, planned regulatory changes remain the top priority for 93% of respondents, Funds Europe reports. In the top 3 priorities, this issue is far out in front, followed by data management in second place for 66% of respondents, and front-office systems, the third priority for 52% of managers. Unsurprisingly, the Alternative Investment Fund Manager (AIFM) directive is subject to the most concerns, followed by expected changes in the composition of the European Market Infrastructure Regulation (EMIR) and the application of Dodd-Frank.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; direction: ltr; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); }P.western { font-family: «Times New Roman»,serif; font-size: 12pt; }P.cjk { font-family: «WenQuanYi Micro Hei"; font-size: 12pt; }P.ctl { font-family: «Lohit Hindi"; font-size: 12pt; } Slowly but surely, assets in Spanish investment funds are rising. On 21 March 2014, assets under management totalled EUR169bn, up by EUR2.35bn, or 1.41%, according to data compiled by VDOS Stochastics. In the first three weeks of the month of March, net subscriptions totalled EUR2.36bn. Santander AM retains its place as the top player in the market, with EUR30.45bn in assets under management as of 21 March. The firm places ahead of BBVA AM, which has a total of EUR23.68bn in assets. Santander AM has also won the prize for the best monthly inflows, with EUR435m in net subscriptions. Santander AM places ahead of Invercaixa Gestion (EUR284m in inflows), BanSabadell Inversion (EUR282m), BBVA AM (EUR231m), and lastly, Kutxabank Gestion (EUR220m).

Heading into the final days of the first quarter of 2014, emerging markets equity funds came within USD12 million of posting inflows for the first time since mid-October as institutional investors went looking for value at the country level. Flows into Thailand, Chile, Brazil, India and Russia Equity Funds ended in positive territory.This narrower focus was also evident in Europe equity fund flows, with four country fund groups taking in over USD100 million headed by Italy Equity Funds’ record setting USD342 million during the week ending March 25, according to EPFR’s data. Investors declined to chase the latest surges by US and Japanese equity markets. As a result, redemptions from developed markets equity funds accounted for the bulk of the USD8.3 billion that flowed out of all equity funds during the week. Bond Funds took in another USD4.4 billion while USD10.3 billion was pulled out of money market funds with Europe money market funds accounting for the biggest share of that total.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; direction: ltr; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); }P.western { font-family: «Times New Roman»,serif; font-size: 12pt; }P.cjk { font-family: «WenQuanYi Micro Hei"; font-size: 12pt; }P.ctl { font-family: «Lohit Hindi"; font-size: 12pt; } The US investment group Blackstone on 28 March announced that it has raised USD7bn (EUR5.1bn) to invest in European real estate. The fund is the largest ever constructed for European real estate, a statement from Blackstone says. The investment fund explains that it collected the sum in only six months, from investors whose identities have not been revealed. Blackstone does not state what type of real estate assets it will invest in, nor what European countries it is interested in. Investment activities by Blackstone in real estate, which began in 1991, total over USD79bn.

Generation Investment Management, the asset management firm founded by David Blood, the former head of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, and the former US vice president Al Gore, has recruited a former Pimco executive, Tammie Arnold, Financial News reports. Arnold joined the firm specialised in responsible investment this month, in a newly-created position as head of the client team. Arnold spent 20 years at Pimco, most recently as head of the ETF platform.

The Italian banking group Intesa Sanpaolo on Friday, as part of its 2014-2017 strategic plan, announced the integration of Fideuram Asset Management Ireland into the asset management firm Eurizon Capital. This will create “one of the largest banking asset managers in Euorpe, with a presence in Central and Eastern Europe and China,” the firm says, adding that this may make it possible to sign partnerships with top tier international asset management firms.Intesa Sanpaolo is projecting assets of EUR295bn for its asset management unit in 2017, compared with EUR221bn in 2013, and a degree of fund client penetration of 25%, up from 17%.Intesa Sanpolo has also announced the merger of Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking, Fideuram Investimenti and Banca Fideuram, to “create one of the largest private banking entities in Europe, and to be prepared to grow abroad, especially as part of partnerships.” As of the end of 2013, the group had 5,700 private bankers and 164bn in assets.

Anima Holding, the parent company of the Italian asset management firm Anima SGR, has announced that on Thursday it received approval from the Italian stock market regulator Consob for an information prospectus for its IPO, as well as approval from the Milan stock exchange, Bluerating reports. The overall offer is for a maximum of 164,892,260 shares in the company, corresponding to 55% of social capital. The shares have been put up for sale by the shareholders Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena, Banca Popolare di Milano, Lauro Quarantadue and Prima Holding 2.MPS and BPM will remain as shareholders in the firm, following its IPO, with 9.9% and 14.72%, while Lauro 42 will have an 8% stake.The public takeover bid and investment by institutionals in shares will take place on 31 March, and will be completed on 10 April.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; direction: ltr; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); }P.western { font-family: «Times New Roman»,serif; font-size: 12pt; }P.cjk { font-family: «WenQuanYi Micro Hei"; font-size: 12pt; }P.ctl { font-family: «Lohit Hindi"; font-size: 12pt; } Industrial & Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), the largest Chinese bank, is weighing a bid of EUR2bn on the asset management firm Pioneer, currently an affiliate of UniCredit, the Sunday Times reports. The Chinese bank is seeking to acquire a European asset management firm, according to City sources. It is reported to have considered a move for Ignis, an affiliate of Phoenix, which was sold to Standard Life last week.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; direction: ltr; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); }P.western { font-family: «Times New Roman»,serif; font-size: 12pt; }P.cjk { font-family: «WenQuanYi Micro Hei"; font-size: 12pt; }P.ctl { font-family: «Lohit Hindi"; font-size: 12pt; } Swiss & Global Asset Management has launched the JP Emerging Markets Opportunities Bond Fund, fondsweb reports. The fund provides investors access to emerging market debt denominated in local or hard currencies. The strategy aims for returns of about 6% to 10% per year, with total volatility of 5% to 7%. For local currencies, the fund is currently invested in Brazil, Mexico and Poland, while for hard currencies, it is invested in Indonesian debt and debt from some eastern European countries, including Slovenia and Croatia.

The California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) before the weekend named Tom McDonagh acting senior investment officer (SIO) for real assets, effective April 1, 2014.McDonagh will take over the position vacated by Ted Eliopoulos, who has been named interim chief investment officer upon the passing of Joe Dear, CalPERS chief investment officer. McDonagh is currently a senior portfolio manager in the Global Fixed Income asset class.As acting SIO of Real Assets, McDonagh will be responsible for implementation and management of investment strategy and policy for the pension fund’s USD27.8 billion portfolio in real assets worldwide.

The FRR launched on the 17th may 2013 a request for proposals to select new managers for actively managed equities mandates. Following the selection process concerning lot 1 - « European small capitalisations » and lot 2 - « French small and medium capitalisations » the FRR has decided to accept the following proposals from these investment service providers: Lot 1 - « European Small capitalisations » - Fidelity Gestion - Montanaro Asset Management Limited - Standard Life Investments Limited - Threadneedle Asset Management Limited Lot 2 - « French Small and Medium capitalisations » - CM-CIC Asset Management - CPR Asset Management - Generali Investments Europe - ODDO Asset Management - Sycomore Asset Management The mandates are granted for a duration of four years with the option of a further year for an indicative amount of 500 million Euro for the lot 1 and 300 million Euro for the lot 2.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; direction: ltr; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); }P.western { font-family: «Times New Roman»,serif; font-size: 12pt; }P.cjk { font-family: «WenQuanYi Micro Hei"; font-size: 12pt; }P.ctl { font-family: «Lohit Hindi"; font-size: 12pt; } Parametric Portfolio Associates has launched the Paramatric Dividend Income Fund, a strategy which will be co-managed by David M. Stein, chief investment officer at Parametric, and Thomas Seto, managing director. The fund is advised by Eaton Vance Management and sub-advised by Parametric. Following a “top-down, disciplined and systematic” approach, the strategy seeks quality companies that have regular income and reduced levels of volatility on a sectoral bases, a statement says. Assets under management at Parametric totalled USD116.5bn as of the end of January 2014 for institutional investors, HNW clients and US and international investors.

ING Investment Mangement will in April launch two funds which will give UK and European investors larger access to its debt strategies, Investment Week reports. One of them will be an Asian high return corporate bond fund, which will replicate a fund dedicated to Japanese investors. It will be managed by Joep Huntjens, head of Asian debt at ING IM. The firm is also creating a European version of its ABS fund based in the Netherlands. The product will meet the requirements of the AIFM directive, and will be managed by Calvin Davies and Annemieke Aoldeweijer. It will receive a capital contribution of EUR250m from the Netherlands fund.