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03/05/2012

Barings recrute chez HSBC Global AM

Depuis le 2 mai, Sean Chang est devenu head of Asian debt chez Baring Asset Management à Hong-Kong. Il est subordonné à Alan Wilde, head of fixed income and currency et à Wilfred Sit, CIO, Asia. Sous réserve d’un agrément du régulateur, Sean Chang deviendra gérant du Baring Asian Debt fund ainsi que de plusieurs portefeuilles de dette asiatique.Depuis 2007, l’impétrant était investment director chez HSBC Global Asset Management où il avait la responsabilité des portefeuilles de dette asiatique tant pour la clientèle retail que pour les investisseurs institutionnel. Durant ses seize ans de carrière dans le domaine obligataire en Asie, il a aussi travaillé chez Mirae Global Investment Management, Hang Seng Investment Management et Invesco Asia.
03/05/2012

SWIP : Malcolm Naish part à la retraite

Malcolm Naish, directeur de l’immobilier chez SWIP, partira à la retraite à la fin du mois de juin, annonce un communiqué de la société de gestion. Il occupait cette fonction depuis octobre 2007. La société n’a pas encore annoncé le nom de la personne qui remplacera Malcolm Naish.
03/05/2012
Fonds

Jyske Invest reprofile sa gamme

Le danois Jyske Invest a annoncé que l’encours de ses fonds Jyske Invest Swedish Equities et Jyske Invest Global Real Estate Equities a tellement fondu que ces produits seront liquidés le 23 août 2012, sous réserve d’un accord de l’assemblée générale extrordinaire du 14 mai.D’autre part, si l’assemblée générale extraordinaire des porteurs du 14 mai l’approuve, le fonds Jyske Invest Eastern European Equities sera transformé le 10 juin 2012 en Jyske Invest Russian Equities. Cela ne bouleversera pas vraiment la stratégie d’investissement dans la mesure où dès à présent plus des deux tiers du portefeuille son placés en actions russes.
Fonds
03/05/2012
Fonds

Progression de 0,64% du patrimoine des OPC luxembourgeois

Au 31 mars 2012, le patrimoine global net des organismes de placement collectif et des fonds d’investissement spécialisés s’est élevé à 2.217,206 milliards d’euros contre 2.203,159 milliards d’euros au 29 février 2012, soit une augmentation de 0,64% sur un mois, selon les statistiques communiquées par la Commission de surveillance du secteur financier (CSSF). Considéré sur la période des douze derniers mois écoulés, le volume des actifs nets est en augmentation de 1,20%. L’augmentation de 14,04 milliards d’euros observée le mois dernier représente le solde des émissions nettes positives à concurrence de 18,102 milliards d’euros (+0,82%) et de l’évolution défavorable des marchés financiers à concurrence de -4,055 milliards d’euros (-0,18%).
Fonds
03/05/2012

Barings recruits from HSBC Global AM

Since 2 May, Sean Chang has become head of Asian debt at Baring Asset Management in Hong Kong. He reports to Alain Wilde, head of fixed income and currency, and Wilfred Sit, CIO for Asia. Pending permission from the regulator, Chang will become manager of the Baring Asian Debt fund, and several Asian debt portfolios.Since 2007, Chang had been investment director at HSBC Global Asset Management, where he was responsible for Asian debt portfolios for retail and institutional investor clients. In his 16-year career in the area of fixed income in Asia, he has also worked at Mirae Global Investment Management, Hang Seng Investment Management and Invesco Asia.
03/05/2012

HSBC scandal: Stolen bank data was trafficked

Stolen banking information from the bank HSBC were handled by the French police before being returned to Switzerland. Modifications were introduced when the files were obtained by France, and subsequently returned to the Swiss authorities, the Nouvel Observateur reports. “An analysis of the files by the Swiss federal judiciary police found that the data had been modified, as there were differences between the contents of various files transmitted by the French authorities, though they were similar in all respects,” the Swiss Confederation public minister (MPC) states, confirming the reports in the Nouvel Observateur. The MPC had demanded a complete “forensic” copy of the information seized in France. Contrary to standard practice in IT, the authorities received a simple copy of the hard disks seized, without a serial number which would attest to the integrity of the data, an MPC spokesperson states. The list was leaked in 2007 by Hervé Falciani, who was then employed in IT at HSBC Private Bank in Geneva. He submitted the files to the French tax authorities, and to the public prosecutor in Nice, Eric de Montgolfier. The French courts seized the data in January 2009, but the scandal did not break until December 2009, when it provoked a crisis in relations between Switzerland and France. The French government ultimately agreed to return the documents.
03/05/2012

Skandia Investment Group closes its Paris office

Skandia Investment Group has closed its Paris office, according to information received by Newsmanagers. The British asset management firm has also dismissed Bogdan Popescu, who had been head of the office since its opening in May 2008. Popescu has not been a member of staff at Skandia for a month, and the communications firm which had worked with the firm in France has also not been working with the firm for a month. The closure may be related to a reorganization at Skandia Investment Group, as France no longer represents a core target market, although inflows in 2011 were good. French clients are reportedly now being redirected to Spain. The move comes at a time when the Skandia group has announced a merger betweem Skandia Investment Group and Old Mutual Asset Managers UK. Skandia Investment Group (which was then known as Skandia Global Funds) opened an office in Paris, France in 2008, with the intention of releasing its Best Ideas fund to institutional investors. The fund invests in the best investment ideas of several managers, and funds whose management had been outsourced to other asset management firms.
03/05/2012

Philippe Aurain becomes head of Fédéris Gestion d'Actifs

Fédéris Gestion d’Actifs, an asset management firm of the Malakoff Médéric Group, has appointed Philppe Aurain as CEO and head of management. Aurain had previously been CFO of the French national pension fund, the Fonds de Réserve pour les Retraites (FRR), after serving as chief investment officer, assistant head of delegated management and assistant CFO. Fédéris Gestion d’Actifs has assets under management of EUR25.2bn. Its securities management activities are undertaken as part of general mutual fund management mandates, and employee savings funds, a statement says.
03/05/2012

Inflows to TCW in first quarter

TCW, the US asset management company partly owned by Société Générale, enjoyed an inflow of EUR 1.7 billion in Q1. After taking into account a “market” effect of EUR +4.5 billion, a “currency” impact of EUR -2.8 billion and a “structure” effect of EUR +1.4 billion, assets under management totalled EUR 95.9 billion at end-March (vs. EUR 91 billion at end-December 2011). At EUR 85 million, revenues were down -7.6% (-4.5% in absolute terms) vs. Q1 11, due to a decline in performance commissions. Gross operating income came to EUR 1 million in Q1 12 vs. EUR 11 million in Q1 11. The asset management business line’s contribution to Société Générale Group net income was EUR 37 million (vs. EUR 40 million in Q1 11), including a EUR 37 million contribution from Amundi.
03/05/2012

Schroders recruits four for emerging market debt

Schroders is expanding its fixed income team by appointing four senior professionals to develop its capabilities in the emerging market debt (EMD) relative return sector. James Barrineau has joined the New York office this week as head of Latin American fixed income and co-head of EMD relative (with Rajeev de Mello, head of Asian fixed income), Fernando Grisales as a senior portfolio manager and Alec Moseley as a senior portfolio manager and sovereign research analyst. James Barrineau will report to Karl Dasher, global head of fixed income and Fernando Grisales and Alec Moseley will report to James. These new appointments join from Ice Canyon, a California-based global investment management firm specialising in emerging markets and global credit investment strategies. Previously, they worked together at Alliance Bernstein where they shared responsibility for managing more than USD15 Billion in EMD relative return strategies. In addition, Chris Tackney will join next month as senior portfolio manager, emerging market corporate bond, reporting to Wes Sparks, head of US fixed income. Prior to joining Schroders he was an Asia credit trader at Credit Suisse, portfolio manager in the emerging market credit fund at Black River Asset Management and emerging markets portfolio manager at BlackRock Advisors.
03/05/2012

Carlyle to debut on Nasdaq at a lower share price than its initial range

According to the financial TV network CNBC, due to a cautious attitude on the part of investors ahead of an IPO for the private equity firm Carlyle on the Nasdaq stock exchange, the firm is preparing to set a price range for its IPO of USD22 to USD23 per share, down from an initially planned price range of USD23 to UDS25, Les Echos reports. The operation values the firm at USD6.7bn to USD7.5bn, down from an initial objective of USD8bn. The caution of directors is largely due to the poor outcome for its California-based rival Oaktree Capital, which held its IPO in early April and was not able to sell all the shares on offer.
03/05/2012

Strong increase in assets at Franklin Templeton

As of the end of March, total assets in the Franklin Resources group (Franklin Templeton Investments) totalled USd725.7bn, compared with USD670.3bn as of the end of 2011, and USD703.5bn one year previously. In the first three months of this year, assets under management increased 8%, or USD55.4bn, of which USD5.6bn was due to net subscriptions, following USD15.6bn of net outflows in October-December and USD8.4bn in net inflows in January-March 2011.As of 31 March, assets were distributed with USD299.9bn in equity products, USD103.5bn in hybrid products, USD316.6bn in bond products and USD5.7bn in money market products.In January-March 2012, Franklin Templeton earned net profits of USD503.2m, compared with USD480.8m in October-December and USD503.1m in the corresponding period of last year, putting net profits for the first six months of the fiscal year ending on 30 September at USD981.5m, compared with USD985.68m.
03/05/2012

All-time high AUM at T. Rowe Price

In first quarter 2012, T. Rowe Price has announced net profits of USD197.5m, compared with USD191.6m in October-December, and USD194.6m in the corresponding period of last year.Assets as of 31 March set an all-time record at USD554.8bn, USD65.3bn more than the USD489.5bn recorded at the end of December. USD12.4bn of this increase is due to net subscriptions, of which USD4.2bn are for target-date funds, and USd52.9bn are due to positive market effects.As of the end of March, assets under management included USD325.4bn for mutual funds on sale in the United States, and USD229.4bn for “other managed investment portfolios.” Target-date funds had assets of USD78.8bn.
03/05/2012

Profits down at Raymond James

In the half ending on 31 March, Raymond James Financial has posted net profits of USD136.2m, down 16% compared with USD162.6m in October 2010-March 2011.Net profits in the asset management unit have nonetheless increased to USD32.4m, compared with USD30.8m (+5%).
03/05/2012

State Street creates standardised reporting of hedge fund risks

State Street Corporation has created a protocol to standardise collection and transfer of risk information concerning hedge funds, entitled Open Protocol Enabling Risk Aggregation (OPERA). In combination with the TruView risk management platform, OPERA allows institutional investors to analyse their risks more exhaustively and to have a stable reporting framework for each of their hedge fund investments.The new protocol was developed in cooperation with a working group in which major hedge fund managers and institutional investors were represented.State Street states that as of 31 March, it had about USD895bn in alternative assets under administration.
03/05/2012

Assets under management up 3.2% at AllianceBernstein in first quarter

Assets under management at AllianceBernstein (Axa group) as of 31 March 2012 totalled USD419bn, up 3.2% compared with 31 December 2012, the firm announced in a statement on 2 May. Compared with 31 March 2011, assets under management were down 12.2%, or USd58.2bn. In first quarter 2012, the sale of Canadian and Australian activities at Axa resulted in outflows of USD5.8bn, following outflows of USD3.7bn in fourth quarter 2011. Total outflows in the quarter totalled USD12.1bn. However, positive market effects more than offset this development. The institutional unit (USD222.43bn in assets) finished the quarter with net outflows of USD12.9bn, but the retail unit (USD124.2bn in assets under management) posted net inflows of USD2.3bn.
03/05/2012

Barclays to recruit up to 30 people in Zurich

According to Le Temps, the Swiss affiliate of Barclays has announced that it is planning to open a wealth management office in Zurich. The emphasis will be placed on high net worth private clients from Russia and former CIS countries, and other international markets, as well as Switzerland. Barclays Bank (Switzerland) is planning to recruit 20 to 30 people in the next 12 months.
03/05/2012

Partners Group acquires an Asian firm

The Swiss investment firm Partners Group on 2 May announced the acquisition of the Asian firm Trimco International Holdings, specialised in labels for clothing. The Trimco company, based in Hong Kong, has activities in China, India, Thailand and Singapore. Just before completing the acquisition, Trimco completed the acqusition of a provider of labels in the United Kingdom.
03/05/2012

State Street creates standardised reporting of hedge fund risks

State Street Corporation has created a protocol to standardise collection and transfer of risk information concerning hedge funds, entitled Open Protocol Enabling Risk Aggregation (OPERA). In combinatino with the TruView risk management platform, OPERA allows institutional investors to analyse their risks more exhaustively and to have a stable reporting framework for each of their hedge fund investments. The new protocol was developed in concert with a working group in which major hedge fund managers and institutional investors were represented. State Street states that as of 31 March, it had about USD895bn in alternative assets under management.
03/05/2012

Lyxor lists nine more ETFs in Frankfurt

The French asset management firm Lyxor Asset Management (Société Générale group) has listed nine new French-registered ETFs replicating sectoral indicces of the S&P 500 on the XTF segment of the Xetra electronic trading platform (Deutsche Börse), bringing the total number of ETFs listed in Frankfurt to 965.All of these products charge 0.20%.A list of these funds is available as an attachment.
03/05/2012

Lupus alpha launches a volatility fund

The Frankfurt-based independent asset management firm Lupus alpha, continuing the development of its absolute return activities, has appointed Alexander Raviol, the head of its 9-member absolute return team, and Stephen Steiger, to manage the new Luxembourg-registered fund Lupus alpha Volatility Opportunities, a second volatility product, which was launched on 29 February. Lupus alpha already manages over EUR1bn in funds of this type.The Volatility Opportunities fund aims to generate returns on the long term 450 basis points higher than the Eonia, using several strategies such as long/short vega (mean reversion), implied-realized spread, and relative value. The new fund will aim to offer institutional investors a product which provides stable revenues, even in difficult market periods.Ralph Lochmuller, managing partner and CEO, says that a third volatility strategy will be launched by the end of the year.CharacteristicsName: Lupus alpha Volatility OpportunitiesISIN code: LU0670235364Front-end fee: maximum 5%Management commission: 1%Performance commission: 20% of performance exceeding the Eonia hurdle rate + 350 basis points, with high watermarkMinimal subscription: EUR7,500
03/05/2012

Sparinvest launches two emerging market funds

Sparinvest has announced the launch of two funds specialised in emerging markets. The two sub-funds of the Luxembourg Sicav, Sparinvest Emerging Markets Value and Sparinvest Ethical Emerging Markets Value, are co-managed by Kasper Billy Jacobsen and David Orr. The ethical fund Sparinvest Ethical Emerging Markets Value allows investors to exclude firms which violate United Nations standards in areas such as human rights, the environment, labour conditions, corruption, ro controversial sectors such as alcohol, gaming, tobacco, pornography, and weapons, Sparinvest states. Characteristics Sparinvest Emerging Markets Value ISIN code: R share class: LU0760140946 I share class: LU0760183672 Management fees: R share class (private clients): 1.75% I share class (institutional clients): 0.925% Front-end fee: Maximum 3% (for the institutional share class: 0%) Withdrawal penalty: 0% Sparinvest Ethical Emerging Markets Value ISIN code: R share class: LU0760183912 I share class: LU0760184134 Management fee: R share class (private clients): 1.75% I share class (institutional clients): 0.925% Front-end fee: Maximum 3% (for the institutional share class: 0%) Withdrawal penalty: 0%
03/05/2012

Most funds in Europe have the same synthetic risk indicator

Since 1 July, asset management companies are required to publish a synthetic risk and reward indicator (SRRI) in the key investor information document (KIID) for funds, which ranges from 1 for the lowest risk funds, and 7, for the most volatile ones. Lipper has calculated the figure, based on a volatility calculation, for over 21,400 funds or share classes in Europe, over a five-year period to the end of 2012. The finding is that in Europe, most funds, in the equity and bond categories, come out with one of only two SRRI levels. 94.5% of equity funds have an indicator of 6 or 7 (58.5% and 35.7% respectively). For bond funds, 74.4% measure a 3 or 4. Within the realm of equity funds, there is a distinct contrast between UK equities (93.1% in band 6) and Emerging Market or Asia Pacific equities (73.2% and 66.5% respectively in band 7). The SRRI is intended to allow investors to compare funds in a similar risk scale.
03/05/2012

Pictet AM releases Agora fund

In London, Pictet Asset Management has announced the creation of shares denominated in US dollars and euros, available to external investors, in its long/short equity fund Agora (USD100m), based in the Cayman islands, and managed by Elif Aktug and Benoît Capiod. The product was launched in April 2011, and relies on 20 to 25 strategies.
03/05/2012

Jyske Invest overhauls product range

The Danish fund manager Jyske Invest has announced that asstes in its Jyske Invest Swedish Equities and Jyske Invest Global Real Estate Equities funds have fallen to a level at which the products will be liquidated on 23 August 2012, pending agreement from an extranordinary shareholders’ meeting on 14 May.Meanwhile, if an extraordinary general shareholders’ meeting on 14 May approves the move, the Jyske Invest Eastern European Equities fund will be converted into the Jyske Invest Russian Equities fund on 10 June 2012. The change will not alter the investment strategy too much, insofar as two thirds of the fund are already invested in Russian equities.
03/05/2012

Belgian regulator issues warning

Last week, the Belgian financial markets and services authority (FSMA) issued a public warning over the activities of Micron Associates, a firm which claims to offer investment services. “Micron Associates has no license in Belgium as an investment firm. It is therefore not authorised to furnish investment services in Belgium or from Belgian territory,” the regulator states. The authority advises against giving any money to the firm. Micron Associates claims to be based in Spain, at Moll de Barcelona s/n, edificio Este 8 planta, World Trade Center Barcelona.
03/05/2012

Assets in Luxembourg OPC funds up 0.64%

As of 31 March 2012, overall net assets in collective investment organisms and specialised investment funds registered in Luxembourg totalled EUR2.217206trn, compared with EUR2.203159trn as of 29 February 2012, an increase of 0.64% month on month, according to statistics from the financial sector surveillance commission (CSSF). Over the past twelve months, net asset volumes have increased 1.20%. An increase of EUR14.04bn observed last month represents the remainder of positive net issues for EUR18.102bn (+0.82%), and unfavourable evolution of financial markets, for -EUR4.055bn (-0.18%).
03/05/2012

S&P raises Greece's credit rating

The financial ratings agency Standard & Poor’s has raised its rating of Greece to CCC, following a debt exchange operation which allowed the country to cancel about EUR105bn in debt, according to a statement released on 2 May. The firm had already issued a rating of CCC for new bonds issued by Greece, following the debt exchange, which was finalised on 25 April. The rating has a stable outlook. The ratings agency estimates that it an economic recovery in Greece is possible, if planned reforms are fully enacted, if a contraction in revenues turns around, and if investor appetite for the country gradually recovers. However, despite the raised rating, S&P estimates that Greek debt levels “remain high” and that the structural reform programme involves risks as to its enactment, “particularly” following legislative elections on 6 May. The agency estimates that there is a 30% to 50% probability of bonds issued by Greece being paid back, which was already the case before the country’s rating was raised.
03/05/2012

Pimco releases a second actively-managed ETF

As announced, the US-based asset management firm Pimco (Allianz group) on 30 April created the Pimco Global Advantage Inflation-Linked Bond Strategy Fund, its second actively-managed ETF, following the ETF version of its Total Return Fund (see Newsmanagers of 27 April).The new product, whose stock market acronym is ILB, has a TER capped to 0.60%. The manager of the inflation-linked bond fund is Mihir P. Worah.The portfolio currently includes 38 holdings with an average effective maturity of 11.18 years, and an effective duration of 7.01 years.
03/05/2012

Four banks fined for selling inverse and leveraged ETFs

The US Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) on Wednesday announced that it has sanctioned Citigroup Global Markets, Morgan Stanley, UBS Financial Services, and Wells Fargo Advisors a total of more than USD9.1 million for selling leveraged and inverse exchange-traded funds (ETFs) «without reasonable supervision and for not having a reasonable basis for recommending the securities», according to a statement. The firms were fined more than USD7.3 million and are required to pay a total of USD1.8 million in restitution to certain customers who made unsuitable leveraged and inverse ETF purchases.FINRA found that from January 2008 through June 2009, the firms «did not have adequate supervisory systems in place to monitor the sale of leveraged and inverse ETFs, and failed to conduct adequate due diligence regarding the risks and features of the ETFs. As a result, the firms did not have a reasonable basis to recommend the ETFs to their retail customers. The firms’ registered representatives also made unsuitable recommendations of leveraged and inverse ETFs to some customers with conservative investment objectives and/or risk profiles. Each of the four firms sold billions of dollars of these ETFs to customers, some of whom held them for extended periods when the markets were volatile».FINRA sanctioned the following firms: Wells Fargo – USD2.1 million fine and USD641,489 in restitutionCitigroup – USD2 million fine and USD146,431 in restitutionMorgan Stanley – USD1.75 million fine and USD604,584 in restitutionUBS – USD1.5 million fine and USD431,488 in restitution

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