The German financial services authority (BaFin) has issued an operating license to LaSalle Vermögensverwaltungs GmbH, founded by LaSalle Gmbh, whose headquarters are located in Munich (see Newsmanagers of 20 September 2010), which operates the LaSalle Investment Management Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH (LaSalle KAG) brand.The firm, which is 100% controlled by LaSalle GmbH, will aim to create German-registered institutional investment funds (Spezialfonds) for German, Austrian and Swiss institutional investors.Claus Thomas, CEO of LaSalle GmbH, says the new German management firm opens access for the group to Spezialfonds, and allows it to offer custom vehicles for separate accounts.The co-CEOs of LaSalle KAG are Martin Jochem and Ulrich Nach.
Following an increase of 34.9% in January-September (see Newsmanagers of 26 November 2010), DekaBank, the central asset management firm for the German savings banks, on 2 March announced record “economic” profits (profits by IFRS accounting standards before taxes, plus the results of valuation of financial instruments) of EUR925.1m, compared with EUR661.8m in 2009, representing an increase of 39.8%.The asset management/capital markets (AMK) division in 2010 saw net outflows of EUR0.8bn, compared with EUR2.5bn the previous year, largely due to net outflows of EUR7bn from money market and bond funds. However, due to positive market effects, assets increased by EUR132.5bn as of the end of December, compared with EUR130.1bn twelve months previously. The AMK division contributed EUR428m, compared with EUR316.6m, to economic profits in the period.The asset management/real estate (AMI) division, for its part, posted net subscriptions of EUR1.7bn, compared with EUR2.5bn, of which EUR1.5bn, compared with EUR2.2bn, went to open-ended real estate funds. Assets in the AMI division increased to EUR22.8bn as of the end of 2010, compared with EUR21.1bn as of the end of 2009. Economic profits for the division increased to EUR88.3m, from EUR57m, but with one-time elements taken into account, they came to EUR55.1m compared with EUR19.4m.
State Street Corporation on 22 March announced the appointment of robert Rushe as head of services for ETP products in Ireland. Rushe, who previously worked at Bank of Ireland Securities Services, will be in charge of the team dedicated to the ETP range, which includes ETF, ETN and ETC (exchange-traded certificates). State Street, which entered Ireland in 1996, has about 2,000 employees in the country, with offices in Dublin, Drogheda, Kilkenny and Naas.
Craig Aspinall has joined Standard Life Investments as chief investment officer, with the mission of developing the activities of Standard Life in Australia. He previously worked at Macquarie Global Investments. Standard Life Investments has also recruited Diana Ryan, previously at AMP Capital, as client representative, with responsibility for deploying development strategies in the region.
In the week following the Japanese disaster of 11 March, ETFs based on Japanese equities posted net inflows of EUR1.2bn, the largest volume ever observed, according to data from TrimTabs Investment Research. Initially, investors pulled out of equities, taking their profits on a three-month rally, but buyers nearly immediately appeared in flocks, attracted by very low valuations. For the month of March as a whole, net inflows may top USD1.5bn, a higher level than the previous monthly record of USD1.1bn, in November 2005.
JP Morgan has announced that it has been retained by Invesco PowerShares to offer 17 of its US-registered ETFs on the Mexican stock exchange, the Bolsa Mexicana de Valores. The ETFs will be listed in Mexican pesos. They include the following ETFs:• PowerShares MENA Frontier Countries Portfolio • PowerShares VRDO Tax-Free Weekly Portfolio • PowerShares Build America Bond Portfolio• PowerShares Insured National Municipal Bond Portfolio • PowerShares International Dividend Achievers™ Portfolio • PowerShares Fundamental High Yield® Corporate Bond Portfolio • PowerShares DWA Emerging Markets Technical Leaders Portfolio • PowerShares DWA Technical Leaders Portfolio • PowerShares 1-30 Laddered Treasury Portfolio • PowerShares Dividend Achievers™ Portfolio • PowerShares CEF Income Composite Portfolio • PowerShares High Yield Equity Dividend Achievers™ Portfolio • PowerShares DWA Developed Markets Technical Leaders Portfolio • PowerShares Zacks Micro Cap Portfolio • PowerShares Emerging Markets Sovereign Debt Portfolio • PowerShares Dynamic Large Cap Value Portfolio • PowerShares S&P 500 High Quality Portfolio
Together with Swiss Hedge Capital, Swiss & Global Asset Management is launching the first single-manager hedge fund in Switzerland regulated by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA), Swiss Hedge Trading Fund. Reto Barbarits, who is in charge of the Swiss Hedge Trading Fund project at Swiss & Global Asset Management, says: “Launching a hedge fund in an onshore environment is an innovation here in Switzerland. This move reflects the trend toward greater transparency and regulation in the interest of the investors. We see a lot of market potential here for the future as well.” The fund is a long/short equity fund and follows an active trading strategy. It focuses on the current market themes as well as the general trend on the stock markets, and invests predominantly in European blue chips. Swiss & Global Asset Management is in charge of the administration of the product, with Swiss Hedge Capital being responsible for fund management.
Partners Group on 23 March announced that it has completed its Global Infrastructure 2009 investment program, with a total of EUR500m in assets, the target volume. The investors include public and private pension funds, insurers, financial institutions and private individuals, the group says in a statement. As of the end of 2010, 17 investments had been made as part of the program, including in the Australian coal-exporting terminal of Newcastle Coal Infrastructure Group, and in Italian solar installations by Rovigo. Investments have also been made in the UK, India, the Netherlands, France, Sweden, and Brazil. Investments are diversified by sector of activity, phase of financing and type of investment, a statement says.
Wolfgang Sawazki, who was CEO of VM Vermögens-Management GmbH, an affiliate of the August von Finck group, after previusly serving 8 years as head of Oppenheim Research GmbH until 20009, is returning to Sal. Oppenheim. On 1 April, he will become operational head of the portfolio management team in the strategic clients division (i.e. clients with complex wealth structures), led by Stefan Jenssen. Sawarzki will also coordinate private wealth management on the investment policy committee, which is chaired by CIO Wolfgang Leoni.
The head of the private banking division at the Contonal Bank of Geneva, Jean-Louis Platteau, has resigned, the bank announced in a statement on 23 March. He has informed the bank of his plans to reorient his professional activities. Platteau had been a member of the management since 2008.
Les dirigeants de l’Union européenne appuieront vendredi des mesures de sécurité nucléaires plus strictes. Selon un projet de déclaration finale du sommet européen qui se tient jeudi et vendredi à Bruxelles, et dont Reuters s’est procuré une copie, les chefs d’Etat et de gouvernement européens déclarent que «la sécurité des centrales nucléaires de l’UE doit être revue, sur la base d’une évaluation des risques et de la sécurité transparente et complète (stress tests)».
Le comité de politique monétaire de la Banque d’Angleterre (BoE) est resté tiraillé entre partisans du statu quo et ceux d’un durcissement, montrent les minutes de la réunion de mars. Le nombre de partisans d’une hausse des taux est resté bloqué à 3 membres, les 6 autres étant partisans du statu quo.
Le Fonds stratégique d’investissement s’intéresse au dossier Delachaux, une société spécialisée dans les équipements ferroviaires et dont certains actionnaires familiaux souhaitent vendre leurs parts, a indiqué à Reuters une source proche du FSI. Le magazine Challenges a indiqué mercredi que Rothschild avait été mandatée pour conseiller Delachaux sur une possible restructuration de son capital. La société capitalise environ 850 millions d’euros en Bourse.
Les ventes de logements neufs ont reculé de 16,9% contre toute attente au mois de février pour ressortir à un niveau sans précédent depuis 1963, montrent des chiffres publiés jeudi par le département du Commerce et qui laissent entendre que la glissade de l’immobilier se poursuit. En rythme annuel, les ventes sont ressorties à 250.000 unités alors que les analystes tablaient sur 284.000. Comparées à février 2010, elles ont plongé de 28%.
L’Allemagne va chercher à modifier le système de contribution au futur Mécanisme européen de stabilité (MES) lors du sommet de l’Union européenne jeudi et vendredi à Bruxelles, a déclaré mercredi un responsable du gouvernement allemand. Les règles de fonctionnement de l’actuel Fonds européen de stabilité financière (FESF), que le MES devra remplacer, doivent être finalisées d’ici le mois de juin.
Dubai World a signé mercredi un accord définitif avec ses créanciers sur la restructuration de ses 24,9 milliards de dollars de dettes. Le conglomérat contrôlé par l'émirat de Dubaï a précisé avoir conclu un accord avec 80 créanciers. Il remboursera ses obligations sur une période de cinq à huit ans.
SGX, l’opérateur de la Bourse de Singapour, a demandé aux entreprises basées en Chine et cotées sur son marché de prendre davantage de contrôle sur leurs entités de Chine continentale. L’opérateur souhaite que les sociétés soient capables de recruter et de licencier librement les patrons de leurs activités en Chine continentale.
Juergen Stark, membre du comité de politique monétaire de la BCE, a estimé dans un entretien au journal que «les taux d’inflation ont accéléré d’une manière nettement plus rapide qu’anticipé depuis leurs plus bas niveaux de début 2009». Prenant acte de l’impact de la situation au Japon, il estime néanmoins que «les marchés financiers ne peuvent s’attendre à ce que la politique monétaire soit obligée de réagir en mettant genou à terre à chaque situation exceptionnelle».
Le coût de la dette portugaise est en hausse ce matin avant le vote sur les nouvelles mesures d’austérité proposées par le gouvernement portugais. Le Premier ministre socialiste a besoin du soutien d’une partie de l’opposition pour faire adopter son projet et a menacé de démissionner en cas de rejet du texte. L’assurance contre un défaut de la dette souveraine portugaise coûtait plus cher sur le marché des CDS tandis que l'écart de rendement entre les obligations d’Etat portugaises et allemandes se creusait. Le spread entre le papier portugais à dix ans et le Bund allemand de même échéance est à 452 points de base en matinée, en hausse de neuf points. Le spread sur les titres à deux ans augmente de 16 points de base à 507 points. Le rendement sur le papier obligataire portugais à cinq ans se situe à plus de 8%
NewAlpha Asset Management annonce avoir achevé un premier closing de 105 millions d’euros levés pour le fonds NewAlpha Genesis 4 auprès d’une dizaine d’investisseurs institutionnels. Le fonds, dont l’objectif final de collecte est fixé à 150 millions d’euros, pourra accepter des souscriptions supplémentaires jusqu'à fin juillet 2011.