La société de gestion fermera demain son fonds obligataire daté, après une performance de 11,5% en un an, difficile à maintenir

Le quotidien cite un rapport confidentiel du Trésor italien selon lequel le pays pourrait devoir faire face à des milliards d’euros de pertes issues de contrats de produits dérivés restructurés au plus fort de la crise, en l’occurrence 8 contrats avec des banques étrangères d’un montant notionnel cumulé de quelque 31,7 milliards d’euros.

La Commission européenne admet ouvertement que le calendrier initial, avec une mise en oeuvre le 1er janvier 2014, n'est plus tenable

Une commission bipartisane du Sénat souhaite remplacer les deux organismes par un nouveau réassureur public ayant une garantie du secteur privé

La confiance des consommateurs américains s’est nettement améliorée ces dernières semaines pour atteindre son plus haut niveau depuis janvier 2008, montre l’enquête mensuelle du Conference Board publiée mardi. L’indice de confiance est remonté à 81,4 contre 74,3 (révisé) en mai. Les économistes interrogés par Reuters prévoyaient en moyenne un chiffre de seulement 75,4.

Les prix des logements individuels dans les 20 principales agglomérations des Etats-Unis ont enregistré en avril une hausse supérieure aux attentes, la plus importante sur un an depuis mars 2006, montre l’enquête S&P/Case-Shiller. L’indice corrigé des variations saisonnières a gagné sur cette période 1,7% par rapport au mois précédent. Le panel Reuters prévoyait une progression moyenne de 1,2%.

Le département du Commerce a fait état mardi d’une hausse de 3,6% des commandes de biens durables le mois dernier après une progression de même ampleur en avril. Les économistes interrogés par Reuters prévoyaient en moyenne une progression de 3% seulement en mai. Hors transports, les commandes ont progressé de 0,7% après une hausse de 1,7% le mois précédent.

Selon Marta Fernandez Curras, secrétaire d’Etat au Trésor, le déficit public espagnol a représenté 1,19% du produit intérieur brut au premier trimestre. Madrid vise un déficit public inférieur à 6,5% du PIB pour l’ensemble de l’année et la Commission Européenne lui a donné jusqu'à 2016 pour le ramener sous la barre des 3%. En 2012, il a atteint 7%.

Une politique monétaire «accommodante» reste appropriée pour la Banque centrale européenne (BCE), dont le dispositif d’ «opérations monétaires sur titres» (OMT) continue de jouer un rôle clé alors que les politiques monétaires évoluent ailleurs dans le monde, a déclaré mardi le président de l’institution, Mario Draghi.

Le fonds alternatif a envoyé une lettre au conseil d’administration de Tim Hortons, une chaîne canadienne de restauration rapide, lui demandant instamment d’optimiser sa structure de fonds propres et de modifier son approche du marché américain. Un fonds américain, Highfields Capital, a déjà fait une demande en ce sens plus tôt dans l’année.

La banque centrale chinoise s’est employée mardi à calmer les craintes sur une possible crise du crédit en se déclarant prête à fournir des liquidités aux banques qui en auraient besoin et à piloter les taux interbancaires vers des niveaux «raisonnables». Elle a par ailleurs estimé qu’il n’y avait pas de pénurie globale de liquidités et que le resserrement actuel s’estomperait progressivement.

Klaus Mühlbauer a quitté fin mai Fidelity Allemagne au bout de huit ans, rapporte Das Investment. L’intéressé était directeur de la distribution et la société lui cherche un successeur.

Le néerlandais Kempen Capital Management (KCM) a obtenu de la BaFin l’agrément de commercialisation en Allemagne pour sept compartiments de la sicav luxembourgeoise Kempen International.Il s’agit des fonds Kempen (Lux) European Small Cap Fund, Kempen (Lux) Euro Credit Fund, Kempen (Lux) Euro Non-Financial Credit Fund, Kempen (Lux) European High Dividend Fund, Kempen (Lux) Global High Dividend Fund, Kempen (Lux) Global Sovereign Fundamental Index Fund et Kempen (Lux) Global Property Fundamental Index Fund.Ces produits sont disponibles tant pour les investisseurs institutionnels (classes de parts I et D) que pour les particuliers (classes de parts A, B et AD).

Le hambourgeois Aquila Capital (4,2 milliards d’euros d’encours) a annoncé le 24 juin la commercialisation en Allemagne de son fonds obligataire à parité de risque ACQ – Risk Parity Bond Funds, qui est confié à la plate-forme luxembourgeoise Alceda Fund Management (lire Newsmanagers du 25 avril). Le fonds, qui vise une performance supérieure de 300 points de base au taux monétaire, avec une volatilité ex ante de 3 %.quel que soit l’environnement de marché, peut investir en obligations souveraines, en obligations d’entreprises, en obligations indexées sur l’inflation et en devises émergentes.Le gérant principal du fonds est DTorsten von Bartenwerffer, senior fund manager dans l'équipe «quant» d’Aquila Capital.CaractéristiquesDénomination : ACQ – Risk Parity Bond FundCodes Isin : Parts institutionnelles : EUR A (LU0891409947) / EUR C (LU0891410101)Parts «wholesale» : EUR B (LU0891410010) / EUR D (LU0891410283)Souscription minimimale :50.000 euros (parts institutionnelles)1.000 euros (parts wholesale)Frais courants : gestion 0,45 % + distribution 0,30 %

Dans une interview à la Börsen-Zeitung, Jörg Knaf, directeur général pour l’Europe du Nord chez Natixis Global Asset Management (NGAM), reconnaît que l’entrelacs de sociétés de gestion d’actifs dans le groupe peut être un peu difficile à comprendre non seulement pour les particuliers mais aussi pour les futurs partenaires de distribution.Chaque filiale met en œuvre sa propre stratégie d’investissement, largement indépendante de celle du groupe. NGAM remporte néanmoins des succès auprès des investisseurs institutionnels, notamment les caisses de retraite, avec des fonds Loomis Sayles d’actions et d’obligations de petites et moyennes entreprises ou avec les ETF d’Ossiam.Depuis son arrivée sur le marché allemand en 2008, NGAM a dépassé les 2 milliards d’euros d’encours, sans compter les actifs immobiliers.

Le Handelsblatt rapporte que la banque privée de Düsseldorf HSBC Trinkaus & Burkhardt (T+B) a décidé de fermer ses deux filiales luxembourgeoises, une banque privée et HSBC Trinkaus Investment Managers, laquelle gère des fonds institutionnels (Spezialfonds).Les dirigeants n’ont pas encore déterminé si ces filiales, qui génèrent environ 20 millions d’euros de bénéfice avant impôt (environ un dixième du bénéfice de T+B) vont être vendues ou liquidées.Cela affectera 200 collaborateurs, dont une partie pourrait être transférée en Allemagne et une autre mutée dans d’autres filiales de HSBC.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Hamburg-based Aquila Capital on 24 June announced the release in Germany of its risk parity bond fund ACQ – Risk Parity Bond Funds, whch is managed by the Luxembourg platform Alceda Fund Management (see Newsmanagers of 25 April). The fund, which aims for performance more than 300 basis points higher than the money market rate, with ex ante volatility of 3% regardless of the market environment, may invest in government bonds, corporate bonds, inflation-linked bonds and emerging market currencies. The lead manager of the fund is Torsten von Bartenwerffer, senior portfolio manager in the Aquila Capital quant team.CharacteristicsName: ACQ – Risk Parity Bond FundISIN codes:Institutional share classes: EUR A (LU0891409947) / EUR C (LU0891410101)Wholesale share classes: EUR B (LU0891410010) / EUR D (LU0891410283)Minimal subscription:EUR50,000 (institutional share classes)EUR1,000 (wholesale share classes)Ongoing fees: management 0.45% + distribution 0.30%

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Netherlands-based Kempen Capital Management (KCM) has obtained a sales license for Germany for seven sub-funds of its Luxembourg Sicav Kempen International.They are the Kempen (Lux) European Small Cap Fund, Kempen (Lux) Euro Credit Fund, Kempen (Lux) Euro Non-Financial Credit Fund, Kempen (Lux) European High Dividend Fund, Kempen (Lux) Global High Dividend Fund, Kempen (Lux) Global Sovereign Fundamental Index Fund and Kempen (Lux) Global Property Fundamental Index Fund.These products are available both to institutional investors (I and D share classes) and for retail investors (A, B and AD share classes).

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The US-based asset management firm Horizons ETFs Management has announced that NYSE Arca has admitted the Horizons S&P 500(R) Covered Call ETF to trading with the ticker HSPX. The fund, which charges fees of 0.65%, will offer monthly liquidity. It will employ a physical replication strategy and while selling call options on the same eligible securities, a technique known as “covered call writing.”Horizons USA, which is an affiliate of the South Korean Mirae, has also announced that Adam Felesky has been promoted to head of the Americas for the group’s ETF business in the United States, Canada, and Latin America. He had previously been CEO of Horizons ETFs Management (Canada) Inc.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } BlackRock is planning to shorten its product range by 250 funds in order to concentrate on products which represent a larger percentage of revenues, FTfm reports. BlackRock points out that the 50 largest funds at BlackRock account for 99% of revenues from funds.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Wall Street Journal reports that the hedge fund manager Bridgewater Associates, which built up an empire of USD150bn in assets with its hedge funds, has been hit by recent market reversals.The All Weather Fund (USD70bn) has lost 6% since the beginning of the month, and 8.5% since the beginning of the year, according to sources familiar with the matter. The group’s flagship product, the Pure Alpha Fund (a risk parity product with about USD80bn), has lost money in June and remains flat since 1 January, while the S&P 500 has gained 10.3%.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) on 24 June published its final report on principles for ETF regulations. The report lays out nine major principles to guide regulations of ETFs and to promote better practices in the use of these products.Assets managed in ETF structured totalled about USD1.9trn as of the end of January 2013, equivalent to roughly 7% of the global mutual fund market, IOSCO notes, adding that the growing importance of the market has drawn the attention of regulators and even raised large-scale debate in 2008-2009.IOSCO concentrated its recommendations primarily on ETFs which are structured as collective securities investment organisms. The document deals with classification of ETFs, in order to correctly evaluate similarities and differences with other products. It encourages the publication of information on fees and commissions, including the potential impact of securities lending as well as the potential use of complex strategies that may involve the use of leverage.The IOSCO document also deals with the structuring of ETFs, including potential management of conflicts of interest and counterparty risks related to the two major replication methods: physical and synthetic. IOSCO encourages regulators to impose requirements that ETFs handle risks related to exposure to counterparties and management of collateral appropriately.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Beyond governance in the strict sense, institutional investors are putting the priority on issues related to objectives and strategy at businesses when they have an engagement policy, according to the most recent report by the British Investment Management Association (IMA) on the application of the Financial Reporting Council’s (FRC) Stewardship Code by asset owners, asset managers and service providers.According to Liz Murrall, director of the IMA for reporting and corporate strategy, “institutional investors are engaged over a wide range of issues related to strategy and long-term objectives of businesses. Case studies concerning the acquisition planned by G45 and the Xstrata/Glencore merger are examples of the ways that investors have succeeded in engaging and contributing to the management of businesses to protect or create value for shareholders, the real end clients.”The report also notes that the number of signatories of the FRC governance code is growing, from 75 in 2010 to 241 in 2012.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The ETP provider Source has announced that Faisal El-Hakim, Philippe Secnazi, Dennis Bergot and Gemma Steel are joining the firm, bringing new expertise to sales, marketing and legal teams.El-Hakim will be responsible for institutional investors in the Middle East and North African region. Secnazi will be in charge of institutional investors in France, Luxembourg, Belgium and Monaco. Bergot joins the marketing team as an analyst, with a particuar focus on content in the German language.Steel joins the legal department, and will assist in cases concerning the launch and oversight of products, as well as general and compliance questions. These additions to the teams at Source reflect needs related to an extension of their client base.Before joining Source, El-Hakim was executive director of an investment firm specialised in vestments and commercial relations between the Middle East and the Far East.Secnazi was previously for more than two years responsible for institutional clients, including private banks and funds of funds, in France and Monaco, for Robeco in Paris.Before joining Source, Bergot worked as a product manager for publicly-traded structured investment products at Westpac Banking Corporate in Sydney, where he began his career.Steel previously worked at Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management, where she was responsible for legal questions concerning asset management, distribution, the development and launch of products, lending, and new regulations.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } About 60% of advisers estimate that RDR regulations have resulted in an increase in outsourcing of management of their portfolios, according to a survey undertaken by FundsNetwork, the Fidelity investment services platform in the United Kingdom dedicated to advisers and their clients, FundWeb reports. The survey states that 51% of advisers are planning to increase their use of template portfolios, and 47% prefer managed funds. Custom portfolios are no longer popular, as more than one third of advisers say they use them less in the post-RDR environment.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The European Fund and Asset Management Association (EFAMA) has elected Christian Dargnat as chairman of the professional association for a term of two years, according to a statement released on 24 June.Dargnat, CEO of BNP Paribas Asset Management and CIO of BNP Paribas Investment Partners, and vice chairman of EFAMA since June 2011, succeeds, Claude Kremer, chairman since 2011.The vice-chairmanship of the organisation goes to Alexander Schindler, a member of the executive board at Union Asset Management Holding AG.The mission of EFAMA in the next two years will be to support the confidence of investors and confidence in asset management, by promoting governance standards, integrity,professionalism and performance throughout the sector, the statement says.EFAMA will also work to improve the functioning of the single market in the asset management sector and to promote a harmonized framework for the distribution of savings and investment products, strengthen the competitiveness of the sector in terms of cost and quality, and to promote the sector and the UCITS brand throught Europe and the world.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Henderson Global Investors and TIAA-CREF, a provider of financial services, are joining forces in real estate investment. The two firms are merging their European and Asian real estate activities as a new asset management firm which will be known as TIAA Henderson Global Real Estate. The firm will include he European real estate activity of TIAA-CREF, the real estate activities of Henderson GI in Europe and Asia-Pacific, and a new global distribution and customer service organisation.TIAA Henderson Global Real Estate will launch a real estate investment platform which will also allow access to bond markets and “increase its capacity to develop and offer new products,” a statement says.TIAA-CREF will control 60% of the new firm, while Henderson GI will have 40%. The firm, with EUR63bn in assets under management, will officially be created in first quarter 2014, pending regulatory approval. Tom Garbutt, head of global real estate at TIAA-CREF, will become chairman of the board of directors at the new firm, while James Darkins, CEO for real estate at Henderson, will become chairman and CEO. The firm will be headquartered in London. In France, the firm will have total real estate AUM of about EUR1.7bn. “The strategy for France is to double assets under management by 2015, largely distributing investments between the office and retail sectors”, according to a press release. The French office will continue to be led by Peter Winstanley and Thibault Ancely. Alongside the merger of European and Asian activities of the two firms, TIAA-CREF is acquiring 100% of the real estate activities of Henderson in the United States.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } On 24 June, BNY Mellon Asset Servicing has announced that its BNY Mellon Beta & Transition Management unit has created a registered investment advisor to offer transition management services to key investors, such as insurers, who use external management services for all or part of their investment strategies.BNY Mellon has already been offering transition management services to pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, foundations and other institutional clients since 1983.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } On 10 June, the Netherlands-registered Robeco as announced (see Newsmanagers of 7 March) completed the transfer to Luxembourg of its Rorento NV fund (ISIN code: ANN757371433), registered in Curaçao. Its ISIN code now becomes LU0934195610. Shares in Rorento DH Eur Shares are now again available on NYSE Euronext Paris. Assets in the bond fund (government and corporate bonds) total about EUR1.5bn.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } iShares on 24 June announced that it is adding to its product range on the European corporate bond segment with the launch of a new bond ETF dedicated to financial sector securities. The iShares Euro Corporate Bond Financials UCITS ETF (ISIN code: IE00B87RLX93) fund comes as an addition to the existing range of iShares European corporate bond Etfs, and allows investors to adopt a more targeted approach to their bond allocation.Financial sector securities represent the largest sector in the European investment grade universe, accounting for 47% of the Barclays Euro-Aggregate Corporates index as of the end of April 2013. The new fund offers targeted and diversified exposure in a single product to this European investment grade corporate bond segment, along with potential for higher returns than those on the European corporate bond market overall. The Barclays Euro-Aggregate Financial index offers returns of 2.06%, compared with 1.94% for the Barclays Euro-Aggregate Corporates.The iShares Euro Corporate Bond Financials UCITS ETF offers exposure to fixed interest rate investment grade bonds denominted in euros and issued by financial sector businesses. The fund replicates the Barclays Euro-Aggregate: Financial index, holding physical bonds. It is managed with a sampling technique, which allows investors efficient and liquid exposure to the performance of the underlying index. Total management fees for the fund are 0.20%. Barclays uses issuer and issue ratings from three agencies – Moody’s Investors Service, Standard & Poor’s Ratings Group and Fitch Ratings – to determine whether the bond in question is investment grade, and can therefore be included in the index.Including the new fund with fees of 0.20%, iShares now offers 13 corporate bond ETFs, including the iShares Markit iBoxx Euro Corporate Bond, iShares Barclays Euro Corporate Bond ex-Financials et iShares Markit iBoxx Euro High Yield Bond.