UniCredit will launch a real estate fund, which will be managed by Torre SGR, a firm which is 62.5% controlled by Fortress and 37.5% by Pioneer Investments, the asset management firm of the banking group, Investment Europe reports. The fund has initial capital of EUR100m, and will invest primarily in private real estate and commercial and luxury properties in Milan and Rome.
A few days after the announcement of the launch of the PowerShares China A Share Portfolio (ticker: CHNA, see Newsmanagers of 14 October) by Invesco PowerShres, two other providers, DeAWM and KraneShares, have launched their own ETFs of Chinese A-class shares listed in continental China, in Shanghai and Shenzhen, on the US market.Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management (DeAWM) with Harvest Global Investors is offering the db x-trackers Harvets CSI 300 China A Shares Fund (ASHR), listed on NYSE (see Newsmanagers of 5 November), which charges 1.08%, listed on NYSE Arca. The fund replciates the China Securities Index 300.On the same platform, KraneShares, in partnership with the Chinese Bosera Asset Management, has launched the KraneShares Bosera MSCI China A Share ETF (KBA), which replicates the MSCI China A index, and which charges 1.10%.
Lazard Asset Management has launched a strategy dedicated to emerging market equities, the Lazard Emerging Markets Core Equity Portfolio, which aims to earn returns with reduced volatility. The strategy comes in addition to the emerging market equity range, which includes relative value, relative growth, debt and multi-asset strategies. The portfolio is managed by Stephen Russell, Thomas Boyle and Paul Rogers, who have been working on emerging market strategies for more than 10 years. The team use a flexible approach, which allows for firms with different capital structures to be systematically evaluated. The portfolio is managed on the basis of an existing strategy launched in 2009. As of 30 September, assets under management at Lazard Asset Management and affiliated companies totalled USD176bn.
Miton Asset Management would like to close its Miton UK Multi-Cap Income fund, whose assets under management total slightly over GBP182m, Fundweb reports.The strategy, co-managed by Gervais Williams and Martin Turner, will be withdrawn from the Novia platform from 29 November. The move comes as part of plans to manage about GBP550m in another fund, the Miton Diverse Income Trust 9GBP345.5m), also managed by Williams.
Arderova Asset Management, the firm founded by former fund managers from Liontrust, is launching a global long-only equity fund as an addition to its long/short strategy.
BlackRock now controls 5.004% of capital in the Italian asset management firm Azimut, as part of its third-party management, Bluerating reports. The capital is controlled via 12 different vehicles.
With the Longevity Experience Options (LEO) fund, Deutsche Bank has launched a longevity index which aims to allow insurance companies and pension funds cover their longevity risks, Health Insurance & Protection Daily reports. The new tool, which initially covers positions in the England, Wales and the Netherlands, integrates longevity figures from demographic data published by national statistical institutions.This is used as the basis for a tradeable product which covers five-year tranches by age and sex, to facilitate the creation of standardized products by subcribers on the basis of their liabilities. The LEO fund will also improve liquidity and facilitate price formation in this new asset class.
According to sources familiar with the matter cited by the Wall Street Journal, the Financial Stability Oversight Board (FSOB) has undertaken an analysis of the risks run by the asset management selector, and particularly the largest actors in this area, BlackRock and Fidelity Investments. The objective is to determine whether institutions of this type could be considered “systemically important”, but the Board is not close to have reached a verdict on this point.
Das Investment reports that Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management (DeAWM), has mandated Aladdin Enterprise Investment System under a contract to update its entire IT system for investment processes, from securities analysis through to execution and settlement, including portfolio and risk management.
The German financial services provider MLP (EUR22bn in assets) on 6 November announced that, due to a downturn in activities in retirement insurance and health insurance, earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) for 2013 will be lower than the projected EUR65m. For 2012, they totalled EUR74.1m, compared with EUR17.3m in 2011.The corridor of EUR65-78m for EBIT in 2014 and 2015 has not been modified.In January-September, EBIT fell to EUR12.3m, from EUR26.4m in the corresponding period of 2012.
Oliver Bolitho, chairman of Goldman Sachs Asset Management in Asia-Pacific, will be retiring at the end of the year, after 15 years at the firm, according to an internal memo seen by Financial News. After his resignation, he will become an advising director.
Cogefi Gestion has recruited Côme Simon de Tinguy as representative for external distribution. The new recruit, who will aim to strengthen the development of the professional client base, will be more specifically resopnsible for sales of the fund range to private bankers, multi-managers, family offices and online brokers. De Tinguy had since 2008 been head of sales to portfolio management firms at Financière de Champlain.
BNY Mellon Asset Servicing has announced that it won a global custody mandate for USD6.5bn from the New Hampshire Retirement System (NHRS). The investor services unit at BNY Mellon will provide custody, accounting, currency, cash management and risk services.NHRS has about 85,000 members, and works for 475 employers, the State of New Hampshire, municipal governments, school districts, counties, etc.
M&G Investments in early October recruited Nicola Mutinelli for its Italian team as sales manager, Milano Finanza reports. He will report to Matteo Astolfi, director. He had previously worked at Anima SGR as relationship manager. At the same time, Lorna Neri has been promoted to business development manager. As of 30 June, M&G had assets in Italy of EUR6.6bn.
Natixis, which on Wednesday, 6 November unveiled its results for third quarter, has posted strong growth in revenues for core professions, up 10% compared with third quarter last year, to EUR.597bn. In the Spain unit, asset management has posted record net inflows of EUR11.2bn, driven mostly by the United States, and life insurance activities, which were dynamic.
The new large clients and investor solutions (GBIS) unit at the Société Générale group, which includes financing and investment banking and the private banking, asset management and investor services unit, has posted growth in its revenues of 7.2% in third quarter. Asstes under management at the private bank total EUR83.9bn as of the end of Sepember, due to net inflows of EUR0l8bn for the quarter, largely driven by France and Asia, a market effect of EUR0.7bn, and a currency effect of EUR0.1bn. However, the sale of activities in Japan on 1 October generated a perimeter effect of -EUR2.2bn. Investor Services activities have seen their assets under custody rise 7.7% to EUR3.609trn compared with the end of September 2012, and their assets under administration are up 11.6% in the same period, to EUR500bn. In finance and investment banking activities, “Lyxor has posted an incrase in its assets under management, thanks to significant inflows in the quarter as part of an extension of its product range.”
In the first nine months of 2013, Amundi has recorded net inflows of EUR1.1bn, according to financial results published this Thursday by its shareholder Crédit Agricole, which will soon increase its stake to 80% from 75% currently. The stake will be sold by Societe Generale for EUR337.5m. Over the first nine months, new inflows were pushed up by distributors, institutional and corporate customers (+7.5 billion euros), the international branch networks (+2.3 billion euros) and employee savings management (+0.9 billion euros)., the bank says in a statement. However, French networks have seen redemptions of EUR9.6bn. Amundi also notes that long term inflows total EUR5.7bn, indicating that net redemptions from money markets were high (EUR4.6bn).Including 100% of the joint ventures in Asia and Smith Breeden, recently acquired (impact: +4.7 billion euros), assets under management amounted to 759 billion euros at end-September 2013 (up 2.6% on end-December 2012). They benefited from a favourable market effect of +13.5 billion euros. Average assets under management were 756 billion euros, up 9% year-on-year in the first nine months of 2013. Amundi delivered a 1.3% increase in gross operating income in the first nine months of 2013 by comparison with 2012. Revenues rose by 1.8% year-on-year over the first nine months and by 0.5% over the third quarter of 2013, due to resilient commissions and fee income. Operating expenses increased by 1.4% year-on-year over the first nine months of 2013 excluding the impact of tax measures. The cost/income ratio stabilised at 55.3% at 30 September 2013. Amundi’s net income Group share came to 233 million euros for the first nine months of 2013, up 4.6% year-on- year, and to 73 million euros for the third quarter.
Choi Chong-suk, chairman and CEO of the Korean sovereign wealth fund, the Korea Investment Corporation (KIC), has resigned from his position for personal reasons, Asian Investor reports. The chief investment officer, Lee Donk-ik, will replace him for the interim. A replacement for Choi, who had been in office since July 2011, will be found by the end of the year, Asian Investor predicts. As of 31 March, the sovereign wealth fund had assets of USD61.6bn.
Fabrice Cuchet, a member of the executive board and head of alternative management at Dexia Asset Management, on 6 November announced that the asset management firm “has chosen a double UCITS/AIFM license for its asset management firms based in France, Belgium and Luxembourg, and will submit AIFM applications to this effect in the first few months of 2014.” The decision is being taken for practical reasons, since moving to AIFM now would require reporting from early next year, which would represent a disproportionate workload.For Dexia AM, there will be about 200 UCITS funds and 100 AIFM funds. Clearing partners will have to be selected by second half next year and existing ISDA contracts will have to be updated with 15 counterparties.The conclusion of the transaction by which New York Life acquires Dexia AM is expected to come by the end of the year, and the European asset management firm will change names.Cuchet also says that net subscriptions totalled about EUR300m for alternative management at Dexia AM since the beginning of the year, with acceleration once news of the sale got out. Inflows were primarily concentrated on long/short credit, global macro and CTA strategies. Alternative assets as of the end of October totalled about EUR4.5bn.
For an undisclosed sum, private equity investor 3i has sold its majority stake in the private client investment group Bestinvest, whose assets total GBP5bn, to funds from Permira. The transaction is expected to be completed in first quarter 2014.Peter Hall, CEO of Bestinvest, says that Permira is willing to support the growth strategy of management, and that the introduction of RDR regulation offers Bestinvest excellent opportunities for both organic and external growth.
Mark Little, associate director of the discretionary sales team at Henderson Global Investors, will be leaving the firm at the end of the year, Investment week reports. His clients will be taken over by Matthew Frost and William Hamilton, with the assistance of Simon Hillenbrand. Little had previously been at New Star, a firm which was acquired by Henderson.
Old Mutual Global Investors has posted net subscriptions of GBP300m in third quarter, due to strong inflows to Old Mutual UK Alpha funds, managed by the fund star Richard Buxton, Fund Web reports. The firm now has GBP15.2bn in assets under management, an increase of 10% compared with the beginning of the year.
Max Nardulli, head of international sales and distribution at Cheyne Capital, one of the oldest hedge funds in London, has left the firm after four years, Financial News has learned. He had been responsible for sales of the Cheyne product range abroad.
The British Royal London group has reported growth in its assets under management of 48% in the first nine months of the year, compared with the end of December 2012, to GBP73.5bn, according to figures released by the firm. This development is related largely to the acquisition in August this year of The Cooperative Asset Management, which represents assets under management of GBP20.4bn. Inflows at Royal London Asset Management, for their part, totalled GBP1.45bn in nine months. Retirement activities also contributed, with growth of 28% in nine months, to GBP2.2bn.
Skanska Property Poland, the Polish affiliate of the Skanska group, has sold the office property Atrium 1 in Warsaw for about EUR94m to the German firm Deka Immobilien.The property, with 18,000 square metres, which is slated for completion in spring 2014, is already 75% leased, to Zachodni WBK bank, among others. It will be added to the portfolio of the open-ended real estate fund Deka-ImmobilienGlobal, for which it represents the first investment in Poland, although over the long term most of the portfolio is expected to be placed in properties outside Europe.
Oliver Bolitho, le président de Goldman Sachs Asset Management en Asie-Pacifique, va partir à la retraite à la fin de l’année après avoir passé 15 ans dans la société, selon une note interne lue par Financial News. Après sa démission, il deviendra un administrateur conseil.
MFS Investment Management est actif en Europe du Nord depuis plus de dix ans, rapporte Fondbranschen, qui a interrogé Per Künow, managing director et responsable pour les ventes institutionnelles de la région nordique. Les fonds Meridian Funds sont agréés à la vente dans les pays nordiques.
M&G Investments a recruté début octobre Nicola Mutinelli dans son équipe italienne en tant que sales manager, rapporte Milano Finanza. Il travaillera sous la direction de Matteo Astolfi, directeur. Il travaillait précédemment chez Anima SGR en tant que relationship manager.Dans le même temps, Lorna Neri a été promue business development manager. Au 30 juin, M&G affichait en Italie un encours de 6,6 milliards d’euros.
UniCredit va lancer un fonds immobilier qui sera géré par Torre SGR, une société détenue à 62,5 % par Fortress et 37,5 % par Pioneer Investments, la société de gestion du groupe bancaire, rapporte Investment Europe. Le fonds a un capital de départ de 100 millions d’euros et investira principalement dans l’immobilier privé et dans les biens commerciaux et les biens de luxe à Milan et à Rome.
Credit Suisse vend son activité DLJ Investment Partners (DLJIP) à Portfolio Advisors. L'équipe de DLJIP autour d’Igor DaCosta et Charles Harper passe aussi chez le nouveau propriétaire, a précisé Credit Suisse le 6 novembre dans un communiqué. L’opération fait partie des plans de cession déjà annoncés et devrait être bouclée d’ici à fin 2013.Les modalités financières de la transaction n’ont pas été divulguées. Depuis sa création en 1995, DLJIP a exécuté 75 transactions de financement pour un montant total de 3,6 milliards de dollars.