Nomura Holdings a lancé dimanche ses activités en Arabie Saoudite après avoir obtenu de la Capital Market Authority du Royaume une «commencement letter», rapporte The Wall Street Journal. Le groupe nippon est habilité à offrir des services de finance d’entreprise, de marché des capitaux et de gestion de fortune à des clients saoudiens et il pourra aussi faire fonction d’agent pour des valeurs mobilières étrangères.

Oswald Grübel, CEO du géant bancaire suisse UBS, a décidé de ne plus céder ses activités de courtage et de gestion de fortune aux Etats-Unis, composés en majorité de sa filiale Paine Webber, courtier et gestionnaire de fortune américain racheté il y a huit ans à peine pour environ 10,8 milliards de dollars.Pour donner un coup de fouet à son activité de courtage, UBS cherche un nouveau patron pour les activités américaines, précise le Financial Times.

Selon une notification à la SEC, Warren Buffett a offert des actions de son holding Berkshire Hathaway pour environ 1,5 milliard de dollars à des organisations caritatives, dont 1,25 milliard de dollars à la Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, rapporte la Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.

Dans son sondage mensuel, l’association américaine des petits porteurs (AAII) a constaté en juin que la part dédiée aux actions atteignait 50%, contre 41% au printemps. Mais il s’agit, selon Le Temps, d’un retour à défaut de mieux. Les placements monétaires ne rapportent quasiment rien, les matières premières sont redevenues chères et les obligations sont soit trop difficiles d’accès en raison d’un marché capté par les investisseurs institutionnels, soit trop risquées, analyse le quotidien.

Depuis la disparition de l’icône de la pop music Michael Jackson, le fonds de pension néerlandais ABP se frotte les mains. Chaque fois que passe sur les ondes radiophoniques le succès «You Are Not Alone», le fonds engrange des redevances de licence, souligne Fonds professionnell. Au travers de sa maison d'édition musicale Imagem, ABP détient les droits intégraux ou au moins partiels de plus d’une douzaine de «tubes» de l’idole disparue. L’entreprise dispose par ailleurs des droits sur quelque 100.000 titres, dont ceux de Madonna, de Britney Spears, des Spice Girls ou encore de Daft Punk, le catalogue étant également riche en musique de jazz et en musique classique. Une classe d’actifs manifestement lucrative qui, jusqu’ici en tout cas, a généré un rendement de l’ordre de 8% par an.

Depuis la disparition de l’icône de la pop music Michael Jackson, lefonds de pension néerlandais ABP se frotte les mains. Chaque fois que passe sur les ondes radiophoniques le succès «You Are Not Alone», le fonds engrange des redevances de licence, souligne Fonds professionnell. Au travers de sa maison d'édition musicale Imagem, ABP détient les droits intégraux ou au moins partiels de plus d’une douzaine de «tubes» de l’idole disparue. L’entreprise dispose par ailleurs des droits sur quelque 100.000 titres, dont ceux de Madonna, de Britney Spears, des Spice Girls ou encore de Daft Punk, le catalogue étant également riche en musique de jazz et en musique classique. Une classe d’actifs manifestement lucrative qui, jusqu’ici en tout cas, a généré un rendement de l’ordre de 8% par an.

Bank Julius Bär (Deutschland) a annoncé lundi matin qu’elle ouvrira une succursale à Munich le 1er octobre 2009, ce qui coïncidera avec le 20ème anniversaire de l’implantation de la banque sur le marché allemand. Bank Julius Bär est déjà présente à Francfort, Hambourg, Düsseldorf et Stuttgart.La nouvelle agence sera dirigée par Volker Rützel, qui quitte UBS Munich. Il sera assisté de directeurs de clientèle (relationship managers) Jürgen Wörl et Stefan Hansen.

Selon la Tribune, Northern Rock, la banque nationalisée britannique, va être divisée en deux entités : d’un côté, les agences et les comptes courante, de l’autre, le portefeuille de prêts immobiliers « toxiques », de façon à préparer une vente de la partie saine du groupe. L’empressement de Downing Street à céder la banque nationalisée fait débat. En outre, la réalité économique rend la situation délicate. D’un coté, la banque est invitée à rembourser au plus vite l’aide de l'État, mais aussi à augmenter ses prêts aux ménages afin de relancer l'économie. Elle doit aussi se montrer souple avec ceux qui n’arrivaient pas à rembourser leurs prêts. Résultat, son niveau de capital vient de passer sous le minimum réglementaire et que l'État pourrait être obligé de remettre la main à la poche.

L’assemblée générale de Marks & Spencer (M&S) promet d'être animée, mercredi, indique The Sunday Times. Les dirigeants du groupe de distribution refusent de prendre en considération une résolution imposée par le Local Authority Pension Fund Forum (LAPFF) qui prévoit le recrutement d’ici à juillet 2010 d’un président indépendant susceptible de limiter les pouvoirs du CEO, Sir Stuart Rose, actuellement président et CEO.

Jeudi, Standard & Poor’s a placé les notes de contrepartie long terme BBB- et court terme A-3 de F&C Asset Management sous surveillance avec implication négative, mesure qui s’applique également au BB de la dette suboronnée. La mesure s’explique par la détérioration des paramètres de service de la dette, avec l’ebitda susceptible de tomber en-dessous des trois fois et demi le montant de la dette.

F&C Asset Management devient une société de gestion cotée totalement indépendante pour la première fois de son histoire de 140 années, après la distribution par Friends Provident de ses 52 % aux actionnaires, souligne le Financial Times. Alors que F&C était considérée comme une cible lorsque Friends cherchait à se défaire de sa participation, la société de gestion britannique se trouve maintenant en position d’acquéreur. Selon Alain Grisay, directeur général, F&C peut agir vite s’il trouve la perle rare. Le dirigeant pense que plus de 15 banques européennes ne considèrent plus la gestion d’actifs comme un actif stratégique.

CEO chez Threadneedle Investments Crispin Henderson est revenu sur la bonne santé de sa société et a confié que celle-ci aimerait renforcer son activité de gestion immobilière et de taux.

Selon Les Echos, la hiérarchie a sensiblement évolué au palmarès des plus grandes capitalisations bancaires européennes. La britannique HSBC reste le premier groupe bancaire devant l’espagnole Santander mais derrière, BNP Paribas, Credit Suisse et Barclays apparaissent comme les grands vainqueurs de ce premier semestre boursier, volant la vedette à Intesa Sanpaolo, BBVA et à UBS.

La banque d’investissement du groupe Royal Bank of Canada vient de procéder à plusieurs recrutements en Europe, selon Hedge Week. Carmine Meoli a été nommé responsable de la vente pour le private banking alors que Arif Hussein and Peter Drewienkiewicz rejoignent RBC Capital Markets au sein des équipes ventes et trading. Carmine Meoli était précédemment chez ABN Amro et Deutsche Bank. Arif Hussein et Peter Drewienkiewicz étaient auparavant chez UBS.

La Tribune reports that Northern Rock, the British bank nationalised last year, will be split into two entities: one which will include branches and current accounts, and one which will contain loans and toxic assets, in preparation for a sale of the healthy portion of the group. Downing Street’s effort to sell the nationalised bank have been controversial. The current economic situation renders these efforts more vexed. On the one hand, the bank is being encouraged to refund the government aid it has received as soon as possible, but it is also being encouraged to increase lending to households in order to restart the ecnomy. The government must also be flexible with those financial firms which are not able to repay their debts. The result is that the bank’s capital reserves have fallen below the minimum level, and the government may be required to reach into its pockets once again.

Credit Suisse has applied to the CNMV for a license to sell an “active and flexible” fund of funds with assets invested predominantly in equities. The CS Global Fondos Gestión Activa will invest 30% to 75% of its assets in equities funds, and will not be allowed to acquire shares in bond assets rated below BB- by S&P, Funds People reports. Maximal exposure to currency risks will by 30%, and the management team will be able to invest up to 10% in alternative assets (hedge funds, real estate, etc). Management fees will be 1.5%.

The European Commission has issued a statement on the security of derivatives markets and simultaneously launched a consultation on the subject, which will conclude with a public hearing on 25 September. Depending on the results of the consultation, the Commission will draw operational conclusions, and will then propose appropriate measures, including legislation if necessary, by the end of the year to increase transparency and financial security. The statement, which points out the considerable diversity of OTC derivative markets, mentions some tools which may be used to maintain financial stability, including, among others, standardisation which may reduce operational risks, databases which increase transparency, and operational efficiency. On this last point, the Committee of European Securities Regulators (CESR) has launched a feasibility study on the possibility of creating data center locations in the European Union. Another potential measure is compensation by central counterparties (CCPs). The industry has agreed to set up a central compensation service for CDS by 31 July. If CCPs do not honour their commitments, the Commission says that it will consider other measures to push for centralised compensation. The Commission has also published two working documents. The first of these analyses OTC derivatives markets, while the second is a consultation instrument which includes a detailed questionnaire to be returned by 31 July.

As part of a process to develop regulations governing ratings agencies, the Committee of European Securities Regulators (CESR) has been mandated by the European Commission to evaluate regulatory regimes in effect in Canada, Japan and the United States, and solutions to consider if there are manifest disparities with European regulations to govern ratings agencies, recently passed by the European Parliament and the European Commission. The terms of the regulations will be published in the Official Journal of the European Communities by the end of September, to come into effect 20 days later, in mid-October. The CESR will publish its findings by 15 February 2010.

Bernard Madoff, prisoner 1727-054, has engaged the services of Herb Hoelter, a specialist consultant at the National Centre for Institutions and Alternatives, to help him to find the best prison possible to serve his 150-year prison sentence in, the Times reports. Among the illustrious clients of Hoelter are the former president of Sotheby’s, Alfred Taubman, and the financiers Michael Milken and Ivan Boesky.

The investment bank of the Royal Bank of Canada group is made a series of recruitments in Europe, Hedge Week reports. Carmine Meoli has been appointed head of sales for private bakning, while Arif Hussein and Peter Drewienkiewicz joins RBC Capital Markets as part of the sales and trading team. Meoli was previously at ABM Amro and Deutsche Bank, while Hussein and Drewienkiewicz were previously at UBS.

L’Agefi Switzerland reports that Brian Singer, former head of the Global Investment Solutions division of UBS, who managed USD200bn in assets before his departure from the Swiss bank in 2007, has founded Singer Partners. To launch his firm, he is reforming a team which worked together for a decade. It promises to deliver a transparent, liquid and consistent asset management approach, which will rely on “Global Opportunity” strategy, inherited from Brinson Partners. Winger is also president of the “Free to Choose” think tank, inspired by the thought of Milton Friedman.

The European Commission on 3 July launched a large public consultation on the function of the depository for UCITS funds. The consultation will occupy a significant place in the choice and definition of measures the European Union is to take to remedy the insufficiencies observed in the UCITS depository sector, and to improve the level of protection for investors in UCITS funds. “The Madoff affair has shown that the terms of the UCITS directive have been interpreted in widely divergent ways, which created inequalities in the protection afforded to small investors. The proposed directive for alternative investment fund managers recently presented by the Commission increases the obligations for depositories and their responsibilities. Regulations which aim to protect small investors could not be allowed to be any less strict than they are for professional investors. This is why requirements for UCITS funds need to be harmonised and strengthened,” explains Commissioner McCreevy in a statement. The consultation will aim to collect opinions and information on the obligations of depositories, their area of responsibility, organizational requirements and admissibility and monitoring criteria. In the area of responsibility, particularly when a depository does not satisfy its responsibilities or becomes insolvent, the Commission will make an effort to determine what risks are likely to emerge. It considers that the burden of proof should rest with the depositor. It is also proposing to impose new requirements when a sub-depository network is used for asset custodial services. Participants are invited to submit contributions until 15 September. Information about the consultation is available at the following address: http://ec.europa.eu/internal_market/investment/depositary_fr.htm

Bank of America (BofA), after its acquisition of Marrill Lynch, has overtaken UBS as the largest private bank in the world, the Financial Times reports. Scorpio Partnership reports that the US firm has USD1.5trn in assets, just ahead of the Swiss bank, whose assets fell to USD1.9trn in 2007 and USD1.5trn last year. Thanks to its merger with Wachovia, Wells Fargo (USD1trn) has also entered the top 10 largest private banks in the world, as has Goldman Sachs. Scorpio reports that private banks manage USD14.5trn (-16.7% compared with 2007), and their profits have fallen by an average of 32.9%, while their cost-income ratio last year deteriorated to 72.4% from 63.7%.

Since the passing of the pop music icon Michael Jackson, the Dutch pension fund ABP has been rubbing its hands together. Every time the singer’s single “You Are Not Alone” is broadcast on the airwaves, the fund receives a sun in royalties, Fondsprofessionell reports. Via its music publishing firm Imagem, ABP owns the complete or partial rights to more than 12 hits by the dead pop idol. The firm also owns rights to about 100,000 titles by Madonna, Britney Spears, the Spice Girls and Daft Punk among others. The catalogue also includes a considerable amount of jazz and classical music. This demonstrably lucrative asset class has generated returns of about 8% per year for the pension fund.

The management team at Quality Funds, the third-party fund platform from BBVA, is now complete, Funds People reports. The CEO Juan Pablo Jimeno will be assisted by José Luís Segimón for traditional fund analysis and selection, while José Martín de Cabiedes is quitting as treasurer of BBVA and BBVA & Partners to become head of alternative investment selection. Richard Gutiérrez becomes head of operational risk, while Inés Castro, formerly head of analysis at Quality Funds, will take over as director of Fund Solutions.

Following the announced departure of Jean-Louis Laurens for Rothschild & Cie Gestion, Robeco is reorganizing its two entities in France “continuing the reorganization already conducted in December 2008.” Michel Maillard is appointed as chairman of the board at Banque Robeco, while Ali Ould-Rouis becomes chairman of Robeco Gestions. The two men have worked at Robeco for several years. Maillard, 60, who has been a part of the group since 1995, has been a board member since 1997, and CEO of Robeco Gestions since 2004. Ali Ould-Rouis, 44, joined Groupe Robeco France in November 2000, and has also been CEO and compliance officer at Banque Robeco since 2006.

From 1 July, Aberdeen has become the financial advisor to most of the traditional funds of the Credit Suisse range. This means that Aberdeen is now in charge of the financial management of its funds, following its own investment processes, although the range itself will continue to be administrated by Credit Suisse, according to a letter sent to Credit Suisse clients in France. “Credit Suisse is planning to transfer all operational tasks related to its fund range to teams at Aberdeen in 2010. To express Aberdeen’s role in the management of these funds, some of them will adopt the name ‘Aberdeen’ from today.”

According to a notification to the SEC, Warrenn Buffett has offered shares in his holding company Berkshire Hathaway worth about USD1.5bn to charities, including USD1.25bn for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports.

According to statistics from EPFR Global, emerging markets equities funds posted net subscriptions in second quarter of Usd26.5bn, of which USD972m were in the week to 1 July, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports. Investors were impressed by the size and liely impact of Chinese stimulus initiatives and by the fact that conjuncture in industrialised countries did not have as large a negative impact as expected. The MSCI emerging markets index gained 34% in April-June.

In its monthly survey, the American Association of Individual Investors (AAII) has found that in June, the proportion of investors’ assets dedicated to equities was 50%, up from 41% in spring. But, Le Temps reports, this is an increase for lack of a better alternative. Money market investments are returning virtually nothing, commodities have become overpriced again, and bonds are too difficult to access due to a market overcrowded by institutional investors, or they involve too much risk, the newspaper analyzes.