Crispin Odey, the famous London-based hedge fund manager specialised in taking stakes in undervalued businesses, has bought a 5% stake in his rival Man Group, the Financial Times reports. He thus becomes the second-largest shareholder in the hedge fund group, after BlackRock, which owns 9%. Shares in Man have lost 40% of their value this year.

Schroders has announced that Philipp Mallinckrodt, group head of private banking, has taken the position of CEO of Schroders Private Bank, left vacant by the resignation of Rupert Robinson, effective immediately, Fundweb reports.Investment Europe reports, meanwhile, that Klaus Oestergaard has left the hedge fund management firm Brevan Howard (USD36.7bn), where he was a partner.

The central asset management firm for the German savings banks, DekaBank, on 25 October announced the launch of an “immediate retirement solution” for retirement planning for those in the 60-67 age group. The Deka-RenteDirekt wrapper allows, with a single payment of at least EUR10,000, for a guaranteed minimum payment, combined with more flexible investment.Investments will continue until the 85th birthday of the saver into Deka Investment funds, while benefits will follow a redemption plan initially, and will then roll over into a life annuity from Öffentliche Versicherung Braunschweig, from the 85th birthday.Costs for the plan are EUR10 per year. At the start of the redemption plan, subscribers will pay a fee which will depend on the various funds used. On the basis of the initial allocation (1/3 Deka ZukunftsPlan I and 2/3 RenditDeka bonds), the front-end fee is 2.7%. Management fees may vary depending on asset allocation from 0.48% to 0.52% per year.

Andreas Dahl has left Cheuvreux to join the team managing the hedge fund Carve at the Swedish firm Brummer & Partners, Realtid.se reports. Carve is managed by four managers, led by Per Josefsson.

AXA Investment Managers (AXA IM) has appointed Qi Sun as an economist specialised in Asian emerging markets. Qi, based in Hong Kong, will report to Franz Wenzel, chief strategist at AXA IM in Paris, and will be responsible for analysis of markets and economic research in the emerging Asia region. As a member of the Research and Investment Strategy team, led by Eric Chaney, head of Research at Axa IM and chief economist for the AXA group, he will send global analyses to clients based in Asia, a statement says. Qi had previously been an economist at the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, and was specialised in economic and financial reforms in China.

The US bond team at Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (SWIP) in New York, focused on high yield, has been reinforced with the recruitment of three investment grade analysts. The new arrivals will report to Neil Murray, global head of credit.The new recruits are C. Ryan Miller, who had most recently been vice president & senior credit analyst at JPMorgan Chase Bank, Justin Ziegler (formerly of Keefe, Bruyette and Woods), and finally Martin McCudden, who has been transferred from the SWIP credit team in Edinburgh.

Janus Capital Group reports third quarter net income of USD25.1m vs USD23.4m in Q2; it is however down from USD27.4m for July-September 2011.As of September, 30th, AUM reached USD158.2bn from USD152.4bn three months earlier and USD141bn on September, 30th, 2011.The company states that the increase in assets during the third quart 2012 primarily reflects net market appreciation of USD7.8bn offsetby long-term net outflows of USD2bn. Fixed income and mathematical equity (managed by Intech) long-term net inflows totaled USD1bn and USD0.3bn respectively, while fundamental equity long-term net outflows totaled USD3.3bn

Bruno Vanier and Michel Audeban on 25 October officially launched their asset management firm, Gemway Assets, of which they are president and CEO, respectively, as Newsmanagers reported earlier this month. The presentation took place in the presence of Didier Le Menestrel, chairman of Financière de l’Echiquier, which controls 33.34% of capital, alongside BMVA, the holding company of Bruno Vanier and Michel Audeban (51.66%), and a group of 12 wealth management advisers to family offices (15%). Most of the presentation was dedicated to the first fund from Gemway Assets, GemEquity, which is managed by Vanier with Gerlel Majoros, formerly of Deka in Frankfurt, an then of UniCredito in London, until a third person can be recruited, which is expected during next year. With emerging markets as his chosen terrain, Vanier allies stock-picking mangement for two thirds of the portfolio with top-down management, with the help of two independent research organisations. In detail, the head limits the weight of cyclical stocks to one third of the fund, compared to 2/3 in indices, while the remaining two thirds are dedicated to investment in non-cyclical businesses. “This way,” says Vanier, “volatility is structurally lower.” For distribution, Gemway Assets is placing the emphasis on independent financial advisers, and is now listed on 20 platforms. However, the asset management firm is planning to approach institutional investors, and to enter international markets, where the firm can count on several investor “friends.” GemEquity currently has assets of EUR50m, of which EUR10m are from Financière de l’Echiquier, and has set an objective of EUR100m by the end of next year. Characteristics ISIN code: FR0011268705 (R share class)/FR0011274984 Front-end fee: maximum 3% Performance commission: 15% of positive performance exceeding the MSCI Emerging Markets NR index Size of shares: EUR100

Jean-François Tilquin has joined Convictions Asset Management as head of fixed income. More particularly, he is manager of the Convictions Classic fund, a new fund in the product range from the French asset management firm. Tilquin previously worked at the consulting firm CII Finance, where he was an investment and asset allocation adviser. Between July 2002 and 2008, he was chief investment officer at the Scor group. He has also been head of bond and diversified management business at Axa IM in Tokyo.

For the fiscal year to September, 30th, 2012, Raymond James Financial reached a record USD295.87m net income vs USD278.35m, which includes 6 month of Morgan Keegan operations, a company that has been acquired on April 2nd, 2012. Excluding pre-tax, acquisition-related charges of USD59m, net income would have been USD334.2m.As of end-September, the company achieved record assets under management of USD42.8bn vs USD32.1bn and record assets under administration at USD390.3bn vs USD255.7bn

For the first nine months of this year, T. Rowe Price Group declares a net profit of USD647.8m, of which USD247.3m for Q3, versus USD584.8m and USD185.5m for the corresponding periods of 2011.As of September, 30th, AUM reached a record USD574.4bn, of which USD 342,9bn in US mutual funds. The USD84.9bn increase from USD489.5bn at end-2011 comes from USD.21.4 net new money and USD63.5bn in market appreciation. .

Franklin Resources (Franklin Templeton Investments) has reported an operating margin of 35.4% for the fiscal year to September, 30th, 2012, compared to 37.3% for 2010-2011, but its net income rose to USD1.9314bn vs USD1.9236bn.At end-September, AUM landed at USD749.9bn vs USD659.9bn twelve months before, the USD90bjn increase (14%) coming from USD96.4bn of market appreciation, minus mainly USD2.3bn in net outflows (vs USD34bn in net inflows for the preceding fiscal year).

Ameriprise Financial’s asset management operation delivered USD155m in pre-tax earnings for Q3, 2012, vs USD119m in the corresponding periode last year and assets under management as of September, 30th, reached USD461bn vs USD417bn. At Columbia Asset Management, AUM was USD340bn vs USD325bn while UK-based Threadneedle recorded a 28% rise to USD124bn.However, the group once again suffered net outflows, of USD3.5bn vs USD5.2bn, which is attributable to institutional investors for USD2bn (of which USD1.1bn at Threadneedle), just like for Q3, 2011, and to alternatives, mainly hedge funds, with outflows of USD1.6bn vs 0.1bn in July-September 2011. Retail net flows were slightly positive, with USD.0.1bn, as strong net inflows at Threadneedle were offset by net outflows at Columbia. Ameriprise Financial declared USD174m in net income for the quarter under review vs USD322m for Q3, 2011, while operating earnings remained unchanged at USD289m.

The Italian asset management firm Arca SGR, with EUR16bn in assets under management, has signed a distribution agreement with the Italian bank Cassa di Risparmio di Ferrara. Under the agreement, funds will be offered for sale at the 137 branches of the affiliate establishment in Italy. The agreement has been signed for a period of 10 years.

Invesco has posted net inflows in September of EUR301m in Italy, Bluerating reports, citing Assogestioni. The US firm thus becomes the largest foreign actor in terms of net inflows for the second time in three months. Sergio Trezzi, managing director of Invesco for Italy, and co-head of European retail activities in Europe, estimates that the Italian market offers great opportunities for asset management firms able to stand out due to the quality of their products, their global product range and their independence.

The Additional public function retirement establishment (ERAFP) has awarded two asset management mandated and four stand-by manager mandates under its policy to extend its investment universe, in line with its SRI charter. The ERAFP in February 2012 launched a restricted request for proposals, composed of two lots, with the objective of awarding convertible bond management mandates for the European region, with the ability to invest up to 20% outside Europe, in the Global region. Following the selection procedure, the ERAFP has decided to award the first lot, Convertible bonds in the European region – non-benchmarked SRI management, to the Schelcher Prince Gestion company. Acropole Am and Natixis Asset Management are the stand-by managers. Lot no. 2, Convertible bonds in the Global region – non-benchmarked SRI management, has been awarded to the Lombard Odier Gestion company. BNP Paribas Asset Management and Fisch Asset Management are the stand-by managers.

In third quarter, investment funds managed by ABC Arbitrage attracted a net total of EUR21.5m in net subscriptions, bringing the total in the first nine months of the year to EUR250m. Assets as of the end of September totalled EUR450m.The firm states that the funds “have posted attractive returns in light of the context, but below the group’s profitability objectives.”

A new asset management firm has been created in Paris. Cedrus Asset Management specialises in multi-managed responsible and sustainable investment. Cedrus AM is planning to offer a range of actively-managed funds of funds which will be based on its expertise in responsible and sustainable investment. The asset management firm, specialised in SRI since 2004, has taken over the institutional advising mandates for sustainable investment of Cedrus Partners within the structure, which now has a total of EUR300m in assets under management. The new structure, led by Benoit Magnier, is 80% controlled by Cedrus Partners, an investment advising firm aimed at institutional investors. The remaining 20% are controlled by NexT AM, the stakeholding arm of La Française AM. The team has a total of five professionals, including the director of management and research, Annie Martinet-Villalon, former head of fund of fund management for European and global equities at Amundi. The first product of the range, the fund of funds Cedrus Sustainable Opportunities, has received its license. It will be officially launched in early November. The profile of the fund is “balanced,” and will combine equity management with money market management. Exposure to equities may vary from 0% to 100%, with an ambition to expose itself strongly to the equity markets when the market environment permits it. For risk management within the product, Cedrus AM has formed a partnership with the financial engineering firm Active Asset Allocation International Consulting (AAAIC). Together, the two firms will determine a model portfolio each month, to manage allocation to equity markets. The ambition of Cedrus AM is to “hit hard,” says Magnier at a presentation of the asset management firm. With EUR15m in seed capital from the NExT Invest FCP, Cedrus Sustainable Opportunities is expected to receive investments from several French institutional investors in the next few weeks. Magnier expects assets in the fund of funds to reach EUR100m by the end of the year. Cedrus AM is concentrating on French institutionals for the moment. “But in a few quarters, we will attack the foreign markets,” Magnier adds. The range is also expected to grow, as the new asset management firm’s ambition is to launch three mutual funds in the next three years.

The ratings agency Standard & Poor’s on 25 October lowered its rating of BNP Paribas by one notch, from AA- to A+, and placed it on a negative ratings watch, alongside other businesses such as BPCE, Crédit Agricole, Société Générale and Crédit Mutuel, among the major French brands. Standard & Poor’s explains that it took the measures due to a deterioration of conjuncture in France. In addition to BNP Paribas, the agency has cut its ratings for Banque Solfea, an affiliate of the energy group GDF Suez dedicated to financing housing renovations, from A+ to A, and for Cofidis, a consumer credit affiliate of Crédit Mutuel, from A- to BBB+.

A regulatory requirement for all constant net asset value European money market funds to switch to a partial variable net asset value model would have little impact on fund ratings, Fitch Ratings says. Fitch thinks a move to partial variable net asset value (VNAV) funds - where assets with a residual maturity of less than three months continue to be priced on an amortised cost basis - along with new rules to combat liquidity risk, are among the most likely outcomes of the reviews of MMF regulation taking place in Europe. Liquidity risks could also be subject to new rules. The main uncertainty would be the reaction of investors and whether the switch could lead to significant disruption or outflows from a EUR500bn market segment. Fitch will be conducting a survey of investors in the coming weeks to identify the main implications of any regulatory changes.

In 12 months, assets in funds at Banco Sabadell have increased by 4.2%, to a total of EUR8.56bn as of September, while pension funds have gained 32.2% to EUR3.58bn. Funds People reports that these gains are due to the integration of the savings bank CAM, and are not due to any deliberate actions; to the contrary.Sabadell has in fact been encouraging its clients to move to liability-side products, like savings deposits. Management commission levels have fallen in the first nine months of the year by 15.9%, to EUR76.1m, for precisely this reason, deputy director Jaime Guardiola explains.The Sabadell group has posted a decline of 56.3% in its net profits in January-September, to EUR90.6m, due to provisions related to real estate.

According to the quarterly report from the Santander group, net profits in the asset management unit from investment funds have totalled EUR48m in the first nine months of the year, 49.9% more than in January-September 2011, while profits from pension funds have totalled EUR7m, up 7.6%.Assets as of 30 September totalled EUR140.1bn, 1% more than at the end of 2011, of which EUR103bn are in investment and pension funds. Traditional management represented a volume of EUR137bn, while alternative management accounted for the remaining roughly EUR3bn.Over the Santander group as a whole, net profits in the first three quarters are down 66% to EUR1.804bn, after EUR3.475bn in provisions to cover real estate risks in Spain.

The British firm Barclays has recruited Adeline Chien as managing director and head of ultra high net worth (UHNW) clients in Hong Kong, Asian Investor reports. Chien had previously worked at EFG Bank, where she was head of a team in charge of high net worth clients in China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. She has also worked for UBS and Goldman Sachs.

The Global Multi Asset unit of JP Morgan has announced the launch of a new series of target date funds, with a passive management component. The ten new strategies offered by JP Morgan in the SmartRetirement Blend range use the same allocation models as its reference target date funds, the SmartRetirement range, whose assets under management total over USD12bn. The latter funds are managed actively, while the new funds will use ETFs based on indices to allocate to certain asset classes, such as US equities.

Acropole Asset Management this summer launched Acropole Patrimoine, a fund of funds developed on the basis of eight funds of its product range, with three allocations, to convertibles, credit and absolute returns. The asset management firm specialised in convertible bonds is planning to use the product as a bridgehead to retail clients, via private banks and independent financial advisers. Virtually all of its assets have hitherto come from institutional clients, who are more familiar with this relatively technical asset class. Acropole AM now holds a 7% market share in convertible bonds. But with the arrival of new competitors in this asset class, which is largely a province of institutional investors, the asset management firm needs to turn to new sales outlets for its products. It is hoping to bring in up to EUR50m for Acropole Patrimoine in the next 18 to 24 months. After a first foray into the French retail market, Acropole AM will next attach the European retail market, with this fund as the advance guard. Acropole AM currently has slightly under EUR800m in assets under management. “Net inflows have totalled EUR50m since the beginning of the year, while market effects have also come to EUR50m,” says Jacques Joakimides, chairman of the asset management firm. Characteristics of the fund ISIN code: I-class shares (minimal subscription: EUR100,000) FR0011263524, R-class shares FR0011263532 Management fees: I-class shares: 0.3%; R-class shares: 1.2% Variable management fees: 10% on performance exceeding the capitalised Eonia Subscription commission: Maximum 1%, not paid into the fund

Since 25 October, the listings on the XTF segment of the Xetra electronic platform (Deutsche Börse) include a 1,006th ETF, following the admission to trading of the SPDR Dow Jones Global Real Estate ETF from State Street Global Advisors (SSgA).The Irish-registered product replicates the Dow Jones Global Select Real Estate Securities Index. It is an ETF of equities in realty firms worldwide, and the 43rd ETF from SPDR to be listed in Europe, marking the opening of this range to a new asset class. It is a physical replication fund, which is also licensed for sale in Ireland, Italy, France, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.CharacteristicsName: SPDR Dow Jones Global Real Estate ETFISIN code: IE00B8GF1M35TER: 0.40%

EFG Financial Products, which has recently been admitted to trading, has announced that on 19 October it was notified that the sovereign fund Government of Singapore Investment Corporation Pte. Ltd (GIC) and JPMorgan Chase, via JPMorgan Asset Management and JPMorgan Investment Management, have passed the 3% threshold in its capital, and now control 3.38% and 3.24% of shares in circulation, respectively.

Standard Life Investments has launched its Emerging Market Debt OEIC Fund, aimed at both retail and institutional investors. Benchmarked against the JP Morgan EMBI Global Diversified Index, the fund will aim to provide income, with some capital growth, over the long term by investing primarily in US dollar denominated emerging market debt. The EMD team, led by Richard House, will invest by taking a research driven, top-down view and using detailed country analysis to build a portfolio of their best investment ideas.

MAM funds is planning to offer all of its funds under the brand name Milton by the end of the year, Money Marketing reports. The website states, however, that the final decision has not yet been taken. The firm currently offers its funds under three brand names: Milton, Midas and Acuim, following several mergers in the past five years.

A l’occasion d’un petit-déjeuner organisé par BNP Paribas Securities Services, Odette Cesari, directeur des investissements d’Axa France est revenue sur la stratégie obligataire de l’assureur français. La principale difficulté consiste à trouver du rendement, de façon différente, sur les obligations qui pèsent 80% des encours d’Axa France. Cela est impossible sur les obligations d’Etats de la zone euro notés A, qui ne rapportent plus rien aujourd’hui. Nous avions démarré notre diversification en nous tournant vers le marché de la dette privée US , car le retour sur investissement en euros était intéressant, ce qui n’est plus le cas aujourd’hui en raison du coût de la couverture de change. En terme de couverture de nos engagements et de respect des contraintes réglementaires, nous recherchons la bonne diversification et structure juridique. Nous privilégions les mid caps loans sur des maturités comprises entre 4 et 7 ans, l’immobilier commercial avec des maturités de 5 à 8 ans (à la fois sur le marché primaire et secondaire) et des maturités plus longues sur les infrastructures. Dans Solvabilité II, la maturité coûte très cher. Sur le crédit, nous devons appliquer un système de notation de nos sous-jacents pour pallier aux carences de la formule standard. On fabrique dès lors une note sur chaque émetteur dans le cadre de notre modèle interne, ce qui suppose d’avoir une opinion sur chaque sous-jacent, en se mettant dans l’hypothèse d’une détention en direct des titres. Depuis 2005, nous apportons également des financements au secteur immobilier au travers de véhicules de dette qui représentent aujourd’hui 2 milliards d’euros d’actifs sous gestion. Nous sommes prêts à abandonner de la liquidité pour obtenir un meilleur rendement, sur des opérations à 300 points de base comme les mid caps loans par exemple. Dans le cadre de nos partenariats avec les banques (SG CIB et CA CIB), nous nous assurons qu’il y a un alignement d’intérêts à chaque fois, qui doit être matérialisé par le fait que la banque conserve une partie de chaque créance dans son bilan. Dans ce cas, nous nous positionnons en refinancement des banques par le rachat de crédits. Récemment, nous avons réalisé deux opérations de mid caps caps loans pour des montants de 200 millions d’euros investis, ce qui peut paraître encore faible au regard de nos encours globaux et des efforts de recrutements d’analystes pour faire fonctionner cette activité. Cependant, nous visons à terme un objectif de 5% de notre allocation d’actifs sous forme de placements privés.