La faible activité du marché du capital investissement conduit les gérants de nombreux fonds de capital investissement à solliciter leurs investisseurs en vue d'étendre la durée de vie de leur véhicule, rapporte L’Agefi. Le marché bloqué en termes de sorties tend mécaniquement à rallonger un peu plus encore la durée de vie globale du véhicule (de l’ordre de huit ans en règle générale, prorogeable de deux fois un an). Ces prolongations soulèvent la question des commissions versées dont le taux est en général dégradé, voire nul lors de la période de prolongation du fonds, note le quotidien.

BNY Mellon Asset Management a jusqu’à présent fait une «bonne» année, avec des rentrées nettes de 500 millions de dollars a indiqué à Newsmanagers Anne-Laure Frischlander, directeur général du bureau de Paris. En revanche, le volume d’encours annoncé reste stable à 3 milliards de dollars.Les produits qui ont le plus contribué à la collecte nette sont la dette émergente et les obligations zone euro, le fonds Global Return et les produits de performance absolue de la boutique Insight.En outre, Anne-Laure Frischlander discerne une timide reprise sur les actions pour les produits de niche comme ceux de la boutique Walter Scott ou bien les actions internationales et le Brésil.

Au mois d’octobre, les souscriptions nettes de l’assurance vie se sont élevées à 1,7 milliard d’euros, selon les derniers chiffres de l’Association Française de l’Assurance. Un flux d'épargne qui n’est pas la résultante d’une ponction sur les livrets défiscalisés, la Caisse des dépôts ayant indiqué hier que la collecte nette sur les Livret A et Livret de développement durable (LDD) avait atteint un montant record de 21,29 milliards d’euros en octobre, en lien avec le relèvement des plafonds des deux livrets.Depuis le début de l’année, l’assurance-vie enregistre des rachats nets de 3,4 milliards d’euros. Le montant des cotisations collectées par les sociétés d’assurances au cours des dix premiers mois de 2012 est de 94,8 milliards d’euros, contre 106,4 milliards sur les dix premiers mois de l’année 2011. L’encours des contrats d’assurance vie s’élève à 1.379,3 milliards d’euros, soit une progression de 2 % sur un an.

The head of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) have suggested for the first time that they are planning to increase the limit of USD1bn set for the quota allocated to qualified foreign institutional investors (QFII), Asian Investor reports. The Qatari sovereign fund QIA, which has submitted an application for USD5bn, may be the first to receive a quota of over USD1bn.

Argentina has angrily criticised a decision by a US court, which awarded creditor hedge funds over USD1.3bn, the Financial Times reports. Judges on Wednesday ordered Argentina to pay hedge funds creditors (led by Elliott Associates and Aurelius Capital) by mid-December. Unlike most creditors to the country, hedge funds had not agreed to debt exchange deals in 2005 and 2010, instead choosing the legal avenue. If it is confirmed, the decision

A growing number of asset management firms are developing products dedicated to emerging markets, according to Cerulli Associates. The latest trend analysis in the mutual fund and ETF sector («The Cerulli Edge-U.S. Monthly Product Trends») finds that diversified funds dedicated to emerging markets are beginning to appear on the market. According to a Cerulli survey, 38% of international and global product development has bee dedicated to bond and equity strategies on emerging markets in the past twelve months. In terms of inflows, emerging market bond funds were in fifth place in 2012, while they stood at tenth place in 2010.

The European securities markets authority (ESMA) early this week published a non-binding but steering position which would limit the instruments in which UCITS-compliant funds are authorised to invest.ESMA found it useful to state its interpretation of article 50(2)(a) of the UCITS directive, which deals with the famous trash ratio that allows UCITS funds to invest up to 10% of their net assets in securities or money market instruments, other than the eligible assets listed in article 50(1). Some national regulators, such as the Irish central bank, have interpreted article 50(2)(a) as leaving the door open to investment in unregulated investment funds, including hedge funds.From ESMA’s perspective, the article refers only to securities and money market instruments or UCITS-compliant funds which invest in other UCITS funds which are subject to supervision equivalent to those of UCITS funds, and which provide protection equivalent to that of UCITS funds.From this point of view, UCITS funds which invested in hedge funds should consider redeeming the assets in the best interest of investors by 31 December 2013, ESMA states.

About 40% are not prepared for the impact of the AIFM directive, which will come into effect in July 2013, according to a survey recently undertaken by the fund sector service provider Kneip, Hedgeweek reports. Fund management firms place the AIFM directive at the top of their concerns, ahead of UCITS IV, Solvency II and the MiFID directive.

The European securities markets authority (ESMA) early this week published a non-binding but steering position which would limit the instruments in which UCITS-compliant funds are authorised to invest. ESMA found it useful to state its interpretation of article 50(2)(a) of the UCITS directive, which deals with the famous wastebasket ratio that allows UCITS funds to invest up to 10% of their net assets in securities or money market instruments, other than the eligible assets listed in article 50(1). Some national regulators, such as the Irish central bank, have interpreted article 50(2)(a) as leaving the door open to investment in unregulated investment funds, including hedge funds. From ESMA’s perspective, the article refers only to securities and money market instruments or UCITS-compliant funds which invest in other UCITS funds which are subject to supervision equivalent to those of UCITS funds, and which provide protection equivalent to that of UCITS funds. From this point of view, UCITS funds which invested in hedge funds should consider redeeming the assets in the best interest of investors by 31 December 2013, ESMA states.

Standard Life Investments is planning to launch a fund of emerging market debt denominated in local currencies, and an inflation-linked emerging market debt fund for Richard House and his team, Citywire reports. A first emerging market debt fund was launched in October.

The alternative asset management firm Matterhorn Investment Management, based in London, is planning to launch a hedge fund dedicated to emerging markets next year, Investment Europe reports. Matterhorn is hoping to raise USD30m initially for the new fund, which will invest as a top priority in investment opportunities in banking, the consumer sector and infrastructure in Indonesia and the Philippines. Assets under management at Matterhorn total about USD400m.

VDOS Stochastics estimates that as of the end of October, assets in guaranteed funds in Spain totalled EUR51.747m, or 0.04% less than at the end of December. They thus account for 40.55% of total assets in Spanish funds, Cotizalia reports. The guaranteed fund with the most assets under management is the Fon-Plazo 2012 E from BBVA Asset Management, with EUR226m, while the fund with the best performance is the Rentas 3 from Caixanova, with gains of 12.61%. In the fourth quarter of 2012, 41 guaranteed funds (25 equity and 16 bond funds) either matured or are maturing, with assets of EUR1.915trn, of which 16 were worth EUR1.031bn in November. Twelve will me maturing in December for EUR574m.

After a consultation with 65 asset management professionals, Morningstar has decided not to alter the track records for the various fund share classes after the transition to the new RDR regime, following the introduction of new RDR regulations in the United Kingdom, Investment Week reports.In its White Paper Presentation of Past Performance Post-RDR, Morningstar said: «Whilst this approach sacrifices any accounting for the performance boost that would be provided by the lower costs on the new class, it does remove any risk of overstating the performance the RDR share class might have achieved had it existed».

Handelsblatt reports that on Thursday, a Stuttgart court sentenced the asset management firm Debi Select Verwaltungs GmbH to repay all of the EUR12,000 invested by a client in the Debi Select Flex Fonds. The verdict is largely due to the point that the prospectus was full of irregularities, particularly as it did not mention that the fund had EUR115m inveted in Teldafax, a alternative energy provider in the energy sector which went bankrupt.Direct creditors of Teldafax, for their part, have been waiting for their money since August 2011. According to the firm, the value of the assets has depreciated by 90%.

At the request of the issuer, from 18 February, 24 ETFs from iShares (BlackRock group) will be withdrawn from ETF Plus, the segment of the Italian stock exchange dedicated to ETFs, FondiOnline reports. These include the iShares Dow Jones Eurozone Sustainability Screened, the iShares Stoxx Europe Large 200, the iShares Stoxx Europe Mid 200, the iShares Stoxx Europe Small 200 and the iShares Stoxx EU Enlarged 15, as well as an entire series of sector ETFs based on the Stoxx Europe 600.

The Russian firm Sberbank Asset Management (a result of the merger of the asset management activities of Troika Dialog and Sberbank), will release two UCITS funds in Germany via the Frankfurt-based Accelerando Associates, Das Investment reports.The initial product range includes two institutional products, Sberbank Russian Equity and Sberbank Russian Fixed Income, which have not yet received sales licenses from BaFin.

Per Sommerlou joins the Stockholm office of Ethix SRI Advisors, advisor to institutional investors in the area of sustainable and responsible investment (SRI), on 26 November as chief client officer. He will be responsible for the overall relationship between Ethix and its clients. Per Sommerlou has prior experience from private banks and asset managers such as Erik Penser Bank, HQ Bank and SEB.

Talks have been held with banks and brokers over a sale of the brokerage firm Newedge, co-owned by Société Générale and Crédit Agricole according to market sources cited by the newspaper Les Echos on Friday. A sale in several parts could be a possibility. Separating clearing and restructuring is a possibility which could be under study, the newspaper adds. Among the suitors, the US group BGC Partners, owner of the Aurel broker in France, is reported by the newspaper to be interested in the intermediation portion of the business. “But it is not alone. The names of BNP Paribas and State Street are also circulating on the market. A buyout by the management of Newedge has also been contemplated, but without results for the moment,” the newspaper adds.

The pension fund Ohio Public Employees Retirement System is planning to invest USD440m in three hedge funds, Pension & Investments reports. The pension fund, whose assets under management total USD76.4bn, has dedicated USD160m to the Brigade Leveraged Capital Structures Fund, a credit fund, USD160m to the relative value strategy from Saba Capital Partners, and USd120m to the KLS Diversified Fund.

Following an exceptional year in 2011, with USD1.4bn in net inflows as of 15 September, BNY Mellon Asset Management has had a “good” year so far, with net inflows of USD500m since the beginning of the year, Anne-Laure Frischlander, CEO of the Paris office, has told Newsmanagers. However, the declared asset volume remains stable at USD3bn.The products whih contributed the most to net inflows were emerging market debt and euro zone bonds, the Global Return fund and absolute return products from the boutique Insight.Frischlander also sees a timid recovery in demend for equity funds in niche products such as those of the boutique Walter Scott, international equities, and Brazil.

Carmignac Gestion has launched a mobile website (http://mobile.carmignac.com), available for all types of smartphone. Clients of the asset management firm may monitor the performance and characteristics of funds of the range, and read materials from the asset management firm (news, monthly newsletter, editorial). The site also provides immediate and personalised access to a selection of 5 funds selected by the client.

After receiving sales licenses in Spain and France, the Henderson Horizon Euro High Yield Bond Fund (LU0828815570) has now received a license for Germany. The high yield bond fund is managed by Stephen Thariyan and Chris Bullock, the two managers of the Henderson Horizon Euro Corporate Bond fund, which has increased from EUR100m to EUR1bn in eleven months (see Newsmanagers of 19 and 21 November).

Myra Capital, a recently-founded Austrian asset management firm, is planning to launch a multi-asset class fund in January dedicated to the German market, Citywire reports. The fund, domiciled in Luxembourg, will have a strategy similar to the one used by the founder of Myra, Gökhan Kula, at his former employer, Walser Private Bank, where he initiated the use of passive strategies in multi-asset class allocation, in order to minimise risks of loss. The new fund will not take into account projected results, but will automatically adjust its exposure depending on market trends. The fund will have initial allocations of 45% to the DAX index, 45% to German government bonds, and 10% to gold ETFs.

The Axa WF Universal Inflation Bond sub-fund of the Luxembourg Sicav Axa Funds Management, created on 17 July 2012, is now open to French investors, after receiving a license from the French financial market regulator, the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF), on 5 November. The product, launched in July, has also received a sales license for the United Kingdom. The fund, whose assets total USD63m, invests in government debt, 70% of which is issued by developed countries, and the remainder in debt from emerging countries denominated in local currencies. The release for sale in France, which follows the recently-announced launch in Germany, comes at a time when Jonathan Baltora, the manager of the fund, explained at a press conference yesterday that the markets of developed economies are not anticipating enough inflation, and that it is also possible to capture it on emerging markets.

Net subscriptions to non-money market mutual fund shares in the euro zone totalled EUR75bn in third quarter 2012, while net redemption from money market mutual fund shares totalled EUR24bn, according to statistics from the European Central Bank (ECB). Assets in securities issued by non-money market mutual funds in the euro zone were up, to EUR6.338trn as of September 2012, compared with EUR6.069trn in June 2012. This increase of EUR269bn quarter on quarter is largely due to an increase in the value of shares. In the same period, assets in shares issued by euro zone money market mutual funds fell, from EUR969bn to EUR942bn. Net subscriptions to non-money market mutual fund shares in the euro zone totalled EUR75bn in third quarter 2012, while net redemptions from money market mutual fund shares totalled EUR24bn. In terms of ventilation by investment strategy, the annual rate of growth for shares issued by bond funds totalled 8.7% in September 2012, and net subscriptions totalled EUR53bn in third quarter 2012. In the case of equity fund, the annual rate of growth totalled -1.7%, and net redemptions totalled EUR1bn in the same period. For mixed funds, the rate of growth totalled1.3%, and net subscriptions totalled EUR25bn.

According to the UCITS Alternative Index Global, calculated by the Swiss-based Alix Capital, UCITS-compliant hedge funds in October saw losses of 0.17%, following gains of 0.29% in September. Since the beginning of the year, returns have fallen to 0.81% from 0.98% as of 30 September. UCITS-compliant funds of hedge funds lost as much as 0.54%, following gains of 0.11% in September; they have seen losses in the first ten months of 2012 of 1.90%.Of the six strategies (out of eleven) which show losses in October, three show significant losses: CTA (-2.85%), commodities (-1.95%), and event-driven (-1.53%). These are also the strategies which show the largest losses in the first ten months of the year: CTA has lost 4.65%, commodities, 1.90%, and event-driven, 2.01%. However, the fixed income strategy has gained 4.19%, and emerging markets have gained 3.25% in ten months.As of 31 October, assets in UCITS hedge funds totalled EUR137bn, for about 870 funds and funds of funds.

Selon nos informations, le FRR ne communiquera qu’en décembre prochain le résultat final de l’appel d’offres marché public portant sur le renouvellement des mandats « Actions Europe ISR » constitués en 2006 et arrivés à échéance en décembre 2011. Un appel d’offres qui comporte deux lots : un mandat de gestion active ISR investi en small caps européennes pour 200 millions d’euros et un mandat de 150 millions portant sur des fonds collectifs thématiques. Ce dernier lot, pour lequel 10 candidats seraient encore en lice, demande une analyse plus approfondie et explique la longueur du processus de décision, d’après des sources internes au FRR.

René Zagolin, Directeur de la Caisse de Pension du Comité International de la Croix-Rouge lors d’une table ronde organisée par amLeague et Newsmanagers : « Une caisse de pension suisse est sensée faire de la gestion actif-passif et déterminer le risque qu’elle peut supporter. Pour notre part, notre allocation est composée d’obligations francs suisses (22%), d’obligations monde « hedged » et non couvertes contre le risque de change. La poche actions est exposée à 15 % de titres suisses, à 26 % d’actions monde. Enfin, nous avons de l’immobilier suisse pour 12%. L’encours total de notre caisse est de 900 millions de francs suisses, dont environ 10% qui sont gérés en immobilier direct en Suisse et France voisine, le reste étant réparti entre 5 mandats balancés actifs rigoureusement identiques dans les guidelines. Nous accordons généralement des périodes de 5 ans, avec des mesures très étroites de performances et de frais. Nous consacrons beaucoup d'énergie au controlling et peu d'énergie à la gestion car nous ne sommes pas compétents. Chacun son métier. Dans les mandats balancés, le gérant peut recourir dans une certaine mesure aux produits qu’il souhaite, pour autant qu’ils soient cotés et liquides. Mais il faut que ce soient des produits fiables, liquides et cotés comme les ETF. Jusqu'à présent, nous avons pu supporter une certaine volatilité du fait surtout de la structure de nos engagements. Mais maintenant, la Caisse et donc les engagements évoluant, il est clair que nous sommes de plus en plus sensibles à cette problématique. Nous devons mettre en place un certain nombre de moyens pour la réduire progressivement. De fait, au départ nous avions cinq mandats balancés actifs que nous sommes en train de faire évoluer. Après avoir retenu les meilleurs gérants, il est possible que certains mandats soient transformés en mandats passifs. En tous cas, d’instruments passifs, ou de véhicules passifs, avec une asset allocation légèrement active, voire même peut-être un mandat qui soit plutôt orienté « risque » (performance absolue). Nous avons un système de watching list de nos gérants, avec l’idée de ne faire que les changements absolument indispensables. Si nous voyons qu’un ou deux gérants sous-performent pendant une certaine période, nous procédons a des changements. Mais nous limitons au minimum nécessaire, car les changements coutent très cher.

L’agence de la dette irlandaise prévoit d'émettre l’an prochain environ 10 milliards d’euros d’obligations avant l’expiration, fin 2013, de son programme d’aide international de 85 milliards d’euros, a indiqué son directeur général. Dublin a déjà fait son retour sur le marché des capitaux au cours des derniers mois, sans pour autant émettre un nouveau titre de dette de référence à 10 ans.

Le crédit d’impôt pour la compétitivité et l’emploi (CICE) sera inclus dans le collectif budgétaire de fin d’année (PLFR) appelé à être voté le mois prochain, a rapporté Reuters de source gouvernementale. Le PLFR intègrera aussi bien la partie dépenses du CICE ; un crédit d’impôt de 20 milliards d’euros pour les entreprises prévu à partir de 2014 mais mobilisable dès l’an prochain pour les PME, que la partie recettes ; des hausses de deux taux de TVA qui entreront en vigueur le 1er janvier 2014.