Société Générale a publié pour la dernière fois les résultats annuels de son pôle gestion d’actifs et services aux investisseurs tel qu’il existe actuellement puisque la banque est en train de se désengager de l’asset management, l’une des activités de cet ensemble. Les résultats peu favorables en 2008 de la ligne métier gestion d’actifs de Société Générale expliquent sans doute en partie cette restructutation. Elle accuse des rachats nets de 26,5 milliards d’euros, dont 8,6 milliards au quatrième trimestre. SGAM AI a particulièrement souffert avec des retraits de 15,5 milliards d’euros. TCW, la filiale américaine dont 20 % seront apportés à l’union avec CAAM, n’est pas en reste avec des rachats de 13,9 milliards. SGAM et SGAM UK réalisent des collectes de respectivement 2,6 milliards et 0,3 milliard d’euros.Par classes d’actifs, le mouvement de décollecte a concerné les fonds monétaires dynamiques (-9,3 milliards d’euros), les CDO (-8,2 milliards), les actions et actifs diversifés (-11,8 milliards) et les produits alternatifs (-4,1 milliards). Les fonds monétaires réguliers et les produits obligataires ont en revanche bénéficié de souscriptions nettes de respectivement 5,9 milliards d’euros et 1 milliard d’euros sur l’année.A fin 2008, les actifs du métier reviennent à 269,2 milliards d’euros, dont 164,5 milliards gérés par SGAM, l’entité apportée dans le cadre du rapprochement avec CAAM. SGAM AI ne représente plus que 24,5 milliards d’euros, tandis que les encours de Lyxor AM, avec qui elle va fusionner, s'élèvent à 60,6 milliards. Le produit net bancaire de SGAM chute de 63,1 % à 409 millions d’euros. Les encours totaux du pôle gestion d’actifs et services aux investisseurs reculent de 22,7 % à 336,1 milliards d’euros. A terme, Société Générale Asset Management va ainsi être fusionné avec Crédit Agricole Asset Management. De plus, un projet de rapprochement entre SGAM AI (la partie alternative) et Lyxor Asset Management est à l'étude, tandis que la cession de SGAM UK a été annoncée en décembre dernier.

Mercredi matin, la Commerzbank a annoncé avoir enregistré un bénéfice net de 3 millions d’euros pour 2008 contre 1,9 milliard pour 2007. Son résultat d’exploitation a été négatif de 378 millions d’euros contre un bénéfice de 2,5 milliards.

Pour 2008, le bénéfice net de M.M. Warburg a diminué à 48 millions d’euros contre 63 millions, et la banque privée affecte 14,2 millions d’euros au renforcement de ses fonds propres, lesquels augmentent ainsi à 314 millions d’euros. Les actifs sous gestion sont ressortis fin décembre à 29,2 milliards d’euros pour le groupe, contre 30,5 milliards un an plus tôt, les apports nets des particuliers n’ayant pu compenser les retraits nets des investisseurs institutionnels.

Selon les informations du Handelsblatt recueillies dans les milieux financiers, la Commerzbank aurait accusé une très légère perte nette pour 2008, un remboursement d’impôts ayant compensé une perte «nettement plus forte» avant impôt.

Selon La Tribune, miné par le recul des valeurs bancaires et pétrolières, le Dow Jones a perdu 3,79% à l’issue de la séance du mardi 17 février, le Nasdaq reculant pour sa part de 4,15%. Certains investisseurs doutent de l’efficacité du plan de relance Obama de 787 milliards de dollars alors que les signes inquiétants pour l'économie US s’enchaînent, analyse La Tribune.

Les souscripteurs des fonds immobiliers espagnols ont demandé le remboursement de 4,5 milliards d’euros sur le total de 9 milliards d’encours atteint dans le courant de l’an dernier. Les rachats ont porté sur 2,6 milliards d’euros pour le seul Santander Banif Inmobiliario, ce qui a incité Santander Real Estate à geler les sorties pendant deux ans, rappelle Expansión. Deux des neuf fonds immobiliers, Habitat Patrimonio et Segurfondo Terciario (Inverseguros) ont déjà entamé leur procédure de liquidation et le BBVA a annoncé fin 2008 qu’il fermera le hedge fund immobilier BBVA Propriedad Global. D’autre part, le Segurfondo Inversón (Inverseguros) et le Madrid Patrimonio Inmobiliario (Caja Madrid) affichent moins de 2 % de liquidités et risquent des difficultés. Sabadell Inmobiliario présente 10 % de liquidités, comme le Banif Inmobiliario en septembre 2008. Les fonds d’Ahorro Corporación et de Caixa Catalunya sont mieux armés pour faire face à une avalanche de remboursements, parce que leur ratio de cash se situe respectivement à 26 et 80 %.

Selon l’Agefi, les étrangers ont acheté pour 22,4 milliards de dollars d’actifs américains en décembre. «Après avoir liquidé un record de 56 milliards de dollars en novembre, les étrangers se sont repositionnés sur les actifs américains allant des titres du Trésor aux dettes corporate (?)», observe le quotidien numérique, en relevant notamment 15 milliards de dollars d’achat sur les Treasuries.

Selon l’Agefi, les étrangers ont acheté pour 22,4 milliards de dollars d’actifs américains en décembre. «Après avoir liquidé un record de 56 milliards de dollars en novembre, les étrangers se sont repositionnés sur les actifs américains allant des titres du Trésor aux dettes corporate (?)», observe le quotidien numérique, en relevant notamment 15 milliards de dollars d’achat sur les Treasuries.

De nombreux cabinets d’experts comptables n’ont pas découvert la fraude chez Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities lorsqu’ils ont audité les comptes de la société ou ceux des fonds nourriciers. Ils sont à présent vulnérables sur le plan judiciaire, indique The Wall Street Journal. Cela concerne des cabinets comme Friehling & Horowitz, qui n’avait qu’un seul expert comptable, et qui était chargé d’auditer la société de Bernard Madoff. Une plainte a aussi été déposée dans le Connecticut par le Maxam Absolute Return Fund (un nourricier de Madoff) contre son propre cabinet d’audit, McGladrey & Pullen. KPMG est mis en cause par le Tomchin Family Charitable Trust tandis que la branche irlandaise de PricewaterhouseCoopers fait l’objet d’un procès intenté à Miami par les souscripteurs d’un fonds commercialisé par le Banco Santander. Plusieurs sinistrés de Madoff se penchent aussi sur le rôle joué par le cabinet comptable Sosnik Bell & Co, qui a été recommandé à des centaines de particulier par la société de Bernard Madoff ou par Cohmad Securities.

Intech Investment Management LLC, an affiliate of Janus Capital Group, has announced the launch of its ?market neutral? strategy. ?The strategy is constructed following the same volatility capture strategy in use at the firm since 1987, which aims for absolute returns higher than the Libor,? says a statement.Intech, led by its chairman and CEO Robert Garvy, was founded in 1987, following research by Dr. E. Robert Fernholz, chief investment officer at the firm, and the publication in 1982 of his article on mathematic investment processes, entitled ?Stochastic Portfolio Theory and Stock Market Equilibrium.? As of 31 December 2008, Intech managed about USD42.4bn in assets.

Lyxor Asset Management Germany is planning to make an official announcement on 4 March of a new partnership with the new Munich-based management firm Avana Invest and Société Générale Securities Services. The partnership will allow Avana, founded by the former head of Indexchange, Götz J. Kirchhoff, to offer institutional clients a range of products based on ETFs from Lyxor, whose Frankfurt office is directed by another former head of Indexchange, Thomas Meyer zu Drewer. To complete the framework and to add credibility to the operation, particularly for small pension funds and charities, the two partners have also brought in a big name in settlement, Société Générale Securities Services, one of whose directors used to work at Pioneer (formerly known as Activest). Activest and Indexchange were both affiliates of HypoVereinsbank (HVB) before that group was acquired by UniCredit.

The private equity investor Candover has announced on its website that it has entered negotiations to restructure its latest fund, Candover 2008, which will primarily be achieved through a reduction of assets (EUR3bn), Cinco Días reports. Permira and TPG have announced similar measures this year. Since 1980, Candover has invested EUR34bn in 128 deals.

From the beginning of the year until 12 February, mutual funds specialized in health care have posted returns of 2.8%, according to Morningstar. These and tech funds are the only types in positive territory, the Wall Street Journal notes. Consumer staples have been penalised by households’ reduced spending on brand-name goods, while telecoms are suffering from competition from cable operators. In the 12 months to 12 February, losses for health care funds have been limited to 16.8%, compared with an average of 36.5% for the S&P 500 and a 31.4% plunge for their nearest competitor, utilities funds. Some sub-sectors have been less vulnerable to the recession than others. For example, the Nasdaq Biotech index lost 12.5% in 2008, while the Healthcare Providers index from Morgan Stanley was down 32%.

As of the end of 2008, assets under management at DWS (Deutsche Bank) were down by EUR31bn compared with one year previously, for a net total of EUR121.7bn on the German market. EUR25.9bn of this decrease is due to net redemptions, of which EUR13.9bn came from money market funds, EUR9bn from bond funds (and diversified funds primarily invested in bonds), and EUR3bn from equities funds (and diversified funds primarily invested in equities). For equities funds, one of the major specialities of DWS, assets were down to EUR45.6bn from EUR77.7bn, with negative market effects of EUR29.1bn, nearly ten times more than net redemptions of EUR3bn.As of the end of December, DWS still retained its leading position in the German market by volume of assets under management, followed by Deka in second place with EUR102.7bn, Union Investment (co-operative banks) in third place with EUR76bn, and Allianz Global Investors (AGI) in fourth place with EUR47.5bn. Market share for DWS came in at 23.4%, compared with 20.9% for Deka, 15.5% for Union, 9.7% for AGI, 5% for cominvest, and 3.4% for BGI.The management firm states that more than 77% of its assets are managed in Germany, compared with 71% one year earlier. The proportion of assets under management in Europe fell in corresponding proportions to 23% of the total. DWS also reports that 21% of its assets under management were intermediated by IFAs, compared with 17% one year previously.

La Française des Placements (LFP) has appointed Gerardo Duplat as head of Spanish clients, whom he will serve from Paris. He will report to Jean-Philippe Besse, director of international clients. Duplat joins the firm from ADI.

Since January, the bond team at Petercam, led by Johnny Debuysscher, managing partner and CIO for bonds, has two new managers: Carl Vermassen and Peter De Coensel. Vermassen has spent nearly 10 years managing several Sicavs at Banque Nagelmackers. De Coensel, for his part, was in charge of bond management at Capital at Work.Assets under management in bonds at Petercam total nearly EUR5bn. In addition to that, there are EUR2.5bn in money markets.

Many accountancy firms failed to detect the fraud at Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities when they audited het accounts of the firm or its feeder funds. They are now legally vulnerable, the Wall Street Journal reports. This is true of agencies such as Friehling & Horowitz, which had only one accountant, and which was in charge of auditing Bernard Madoff’s company. A lawsuit has also been filed in Connecticut by the Maxam Absolute Return Fund (a feeder fund for Madoff) against its own auditor, McGladrey & Pullen. KPMG is being sued by the Tomchin family Charitable Trust, while the Irish branch of PricewaterhouseCoopers is named in a suit filed in Miami by subscribers to a fund sold by Banco Santander. Several Madoff victims are also focusing on the role played by the accountancy firm Sosnik Bell & Co, which was recommended to hundreds of retail clients by either Bernard Madoff or Cohmad Securities.

Asset management professionals are predicting the end of boutiques, Ignites Europe reports in its 17 February edition. They estimate that only diversified structures will survive the crisis, the online news source reports. For example, Cristobal Mendez de Vigo, head of distribution and development at F&C, says size will matter in 2009.

On Wednesday morning, the Paris appeals court will consider appeals by the depository banks Société Générale and RBC Dexia Investor Services Bank against injunctions by the French financial regulator, the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF), which requires them to refund assets which were placed with Lehman Brothers to certain French alternative management funds.The AMF claims that the obligation of the depository to refund assets remains applicable even if the assets are outsourced.The amounts in question are not large (EUR30m), but the case will have a significant influence on the credibility of the Paris financial markets, particularly since France was highly critical of Luxembourg for the role of its depositories in the Madoff scandal.

Les Echos reports that on Tuesday in Madrid, 34 law firms from 21 countries representing private or institutional plaintiffs in the Madoff affair teamed up in an initiative led by the Spanish law firm Cremades & Calvo Sotelo. Their objective is to share all the information they have and to act in a co-ordinated manner.

Aletti Gestielle, Vegaest and Carmignac are the three management firms which have received awards in the 2009 edition of Premio Alto Rendimento, which are given to the best-performing management firms. Carmignac is awarded the title of best foreign management firm, Il Sole - 24 Ore reports.

Société Générale has published the last annual results for its asset management and investor services unit as it now exists, as the bank is in the process of discontinuing its activities in asset management, one of the activities within this unit.The unfavourable results for asset management activities at Société Générale in 2008 are undoubtedly partly due to this restructuring. The firm has seen net redemptions of EUR26.5bn, of which EUR8.6bn were in fourth quarter. SGAM AI suffered particularly, with redemptions of EUR15.5bn. TCW, the group’s US affiliate, in which a 20% stake will be included in the merger with CAAM, has not been spared, with redemptions of EUR13.9bn. SGAM and SGAM UK have posted inflows fo EUR2.6bn and EUR0.3bn, respectively.By asset class, outflows affected dynamic money market funds (-EUR9.3bn), CDOs (-EUR8.2bn), equities and diversified (-EUR11.8bn), and alternative products (-EUR4.1bn). Regular money market funds and bond products, meanwhile, have benefited from net subscriptions of EUR5.9bn and EUR1bn, respectively, for the year.As of the end of 2008, assets in the profession totalled EUR269.2bn, of which EUR164.5bn are managed by SGAM, the entity which will be involved in the merger with CAAM. SGAM AI represents only EUR24.5bn in assets, while assets at Lyxor AM, with which it will be merged, total EUR60.6bn.Total assets in the asset management and investor services unit are down 22.7% to EUR336.1bn. At the conclusion of the merger operation, Société Générale Asset Management will be merged with Crédit Agricole Asset Management. In addition, the possibility of a merger between SGAM AI (the alternative management portion of activities) and Lyxor Asset Management is under study, while the sale of SGAM UK was announced in December of last year.

BNP Paribas Investment Partners, the asset management unit of BNP Paribas, on Tuesday confirmed that it has signed an agreement with Northern Lights Ventures, an independent venture capital firm based in the United States which invests in asset management firms.BNPP IP will apparently acquire a minority stake in the entity, while the management of Northern Lights will retain the majority. The asset management unit of BNPP IP will also invest in the Northern Lights Capital Partners fund. ?BNP Paribas Investment Partners and Northern Lights will work in close collaboration to identify institutional asset management firms, to invest in them, and to support their growth, primarily in the United States, but also in Asia and Europe,? a statement says.

Subscribers to Spanish real estate funds have requested redemptions of EUR4.5bn, out of a total of EUR9bn in assets at their peak last year. Redemptions have totalled EUR2.6bn for the Santander Banif Inmobiliario fund alone, which led Santander Real Estate to freeze redemptions from the fund for two years, Expansión reports. Two of the nine real estate funds in Spain, Habitat Patrimonio and Segurfondo Terciario (Inverseguros), have already begun liquidation procedures, and BBVA announced at the end of 2008 that it will be closing the real estate hedge fund BBVA Propriedad Global. Meanwhile, Segurfondo Inversón (Inverseguros) and Madrid Patrimonio Inmobiliario (Caja Madrid) have liquidity levels of less than 2%, and are in danger of encountering difficulties. Sabadell Immobiliario has liquidity of 10%, like the Banif Inmobiliario in September 2008. Funds from Ahorro Corporación and Caixa Catalunya are better equipped to confront an avalanche of redemptions, as their cash ratios are 26% and 80%, respectively.

Bolsas y Mercados Españoles (BME) announced on Tuesday that it will be launching the ?Ibex 35 Inverso? index in May, which will replicate the Ibex 35 index inversely, with dividends reinvested. The index may serve as a basis for new ETF funds, Cinco Días reports.

While other categories of funds posted net redemptions of USD495.1bn, ETFs in 2008 posted net subscriptions of USD76.5bn, according to statistics from Lipper Feri, Barclays Global Investors (BGI) states. At the end of January, the European ETF sector included 633 products, with a total of 1,553 products added to trading by 29 providers on 20 stock markets. Assets totalled USD135.72bn, a 5% decrease in one month, while the MSCI Europe index in US dollars was down by 11.4%.

Mercer announced on Tuesday that it has acquired the consulting firm Callan Associates for an undisclosed amount, and that it is planning to merge the investment consulting operations of the two entities. The new division will employ about 1,100 people in 41 offices worldwide.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has filed a suit in a Dallas federal court against Robert Allen Stanford and three of his companies, for orchestrating a ?massive? fraud around a USD8bn deposit certificate program.The suit names Stanford International Bank (SIB, Antigua), the broker-dealer/investment consultant Stanford Group Company (SGC, Houston), and the investment consultant Stanford Capital Management. In addition, the SEC has filed a suit against the chief financial officer of SIB, James Davis, and the chief investment officer of SFG, Laura Pendergest-Holt.Stanford is accused, along with his immediate family and close friends, of making ?unlikely? promises of returns, and of producing a falsified performance track record with double-digit returns over the past 15 years. In addition, to comfort investors, SIB falsely claimed to have no direct or indirect exposure to Madoff.

In 2008, DWS has posted a 20 % decline in its assets to EUR121.7bn as of the end of 2008. However, this amount for the first time (since June) includes ETFs from Deutsche Bank (db x-trackers), the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung points out. Excluding the EUR17.2bn in assets under management in these products, DWS in fact lost nearly one third of its assets last year.Klaus Kaldemorgen, CEO, has announecd that DWS was profitable in 2008, but that its profits were noticeably lower than in 2007.

Stefan Kunze, head of European activities at DWS, has announced that the management firm is betting on horizon funds in the area of bonds: the DWS Renten Direkt 2013, launched at the end of January, has already attracted about EUR600m in subscriptions. Meanwhile, the management firm of the Deutsche Bank group is planning to lower management commissions for its bond funds by up to 20%.