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25/09/2012

Steep fall in AAA-rated, euro-denominated money market fund assets

Assets in AAA-rated money market funds denominated in euros have fallen to their lowest level in three years. According to statistics from Standard & Poor’s, assets fell by 1% in July and 5.6% in August, to a total of EUR124.3bn, their lowest level since 2009. The decline in rates is largely a result of this development. AAA-rated money market funds denominated in pounds sterling, which continue to show returns of about 40 basis points, have gained 9.7% 6o GBP155bn. According to Emelyne Uchiyama, an analyst at Standard & Poor’s, a further reduction in rates by the European Central Bank could very severely compromise the money market fund market in euros, and even the entirety of the money markets.
25/09/2012

Aberdeen releases an asset allocation fund

Effective immediately, Aberdeen Asset Management is releasing the dynamic management multi-asset class fund Aberdeen Global II Dynamic Allocation Multi-Asset Fund in Germany, Austria and the three Benelux countries, Das Investment reports. The Luxembourg-registered, low-risk product will invest in a variable manner in equity and bond funds from Aberdeen. If necessary, the entire portfolio may be invested in cash, and allocation to equities is limited to 50%.
25/09/2012

AIMA gets a new president

Kathleen Casey, former SEC commissioner (2006-2011), and a former representative of the SEC to IOSCO and the Financial Stability Board (FSB), has been appointed for two years as non-executive president of the Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA). Casey replaces Tom Groome, who has been in the role since the beginning of 2009, and whose term is now ending. The CEO of the AIMA remains Andrew Baker.
25/09/2012

Creation of value: Asians lead

Emerging market businesses, especially Asian ones, stand out in the rankings of the groups that create the most value, according to a study by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), which takes into account market performance and dividends, Les Echos reports. In the top 10 groups that create the most value by BCG covering the years from 2007 to 2011, 9 businesses hail from emerging countries. Asian businesses in particular are well-placed. The Chinese search engine Baidu takes top place in the rankings of global large caps in terms of total returns over five years. European countries lag far behind, and French firms even further behind those.
25/09/2012

Oddo AM creates a customized product for Banca Generali

Oddo Asset Management is making its debut on the Italian retail market, with the launch of Oddo Expertise Europe, a fund of funds created exclusively for Banca Generali, the Italian website Bluerating reports. The product, which will be an addition to the Luxembourg Sicav from BG Selection, will bring together various funds from the French asset management firm in a single sub-fund. It will be exposed to European equities and convertible bonds in particular. The funds included in the portfolio are the following: Oddo Generation Europe/Oddo Generation, aOddo Funds Large Cap Europe et Oddo Avenir Europe/Oddo Avenir, Oddo Valeurs Rendement, Oddo Immobilier, Oddo European Banks, Oddo Active Equities €, Oddo Convertibles, Oddo Convertibles Taux, Oddo Commodities Convertibles.
25/09/2012

Finra fines Fidelity

The US regulator, Finra, has fined Fidelity USD375,000, according to Mutual Fund Wire. The asset management firm is accused of distributing unbalanced and misleading sales materials, which contain unwarranted assertions, and which do not provide a solid basis to evaluate the risks associated with funds. Fidelity has accepted the fine without admitting or denying the charges it has been notified of. The funds concerned were invested in subprime debt as well as instruments related to credit card and automotive debts.
25/09/2012

MAM Funds returns to profitability

With the announcement of pre-tax profits of GBP0.5bn for first half, compared with losses of GBP0.2bn in the corresponding period of 2011, MAM Funds reports that its assets have increased by 3.% as of the end of June, to a total of GBP1.7bn, compared with GBP1.6bn one year earlier, Fundweb reports. The firm has also announced the launch of a British small cap fund, which will be managed by Gervais Williams and Martin Turner, and has also announced that it is preparing a fund of US equities, which will be managed by Nick Ford, who has recently been recruited from Scottish Widows.
25/09/2012

Barclays looking for good citizens

Agefi reports that Reuters cites the new CEO of the British bank Barclays as saying that the firm will develop a new employee evaluation grid in the next six to twelve months. The new evaluation system will include good citizenship criteria. Behaviour towards “society” will be a factor in determining remuneration.
25/09/2012

Skandia plans to buy stakes in consulting firms

Old Mutual Wealth, which includes the activities of Skandia which will soon be renamed, is planning to buy stakes in consulting funds, due to restrictions related to the forthcoming introduction of RDR regulations, Investment Week reports. The transactions, which will target consulting firms which don’t wish to remain independent as a top priority, will allow Old Mutual Wealth to create its own network of consultants to distribute its fund range.
25/09/2012

Man Group changes structure

The alternative management firm Man Group on 24 September unveiled plans to create a holding company in order to improve the financial flexibility of the group and maintain its dividend policy. Man Group will on 17 October consult its shareholders over plans to create a new holding company, Man Strategic Holdings, or “New Man,” which will issue ordinary shares to Man shareholders with a proportion of one to one. The new equities will be listed on the London stock exchange in the same way as existing ordinary Man shares, which will be withdrawn from trading. The British firm is advised by Merrill Lynch.
25/09/2012

Former BlackRock head joins Deborah Fuhr

Feargal Dempsey, former head of products at iShares, the ETF platform from BlackRock, has joined the research boutique founded by Deborah Fuhr ETFGI, Financial News reports.
25/09/2012

Canaccord Financial soon to acquire wealth management at Eden Financial

The Canadian firm Canaccord Financial is about to acquire the wealth management activities of Eden Financial for a total of GBP12.8m, Money Marketing reports. The transaction will allow Canaccord to bring its wealth management activities in the United Kingdom, Collins Stewart Wealth Management, to GBP9bn. Eden Financial is also reportedly about to sell its asset management activities.
25/09/2012

SRI funds are not more sustainable than others

Socially responsible investment (SRI) funds are not more sustainable than their peers, a study by the Frankfurt-based firm AfU Investor Research and the Zurich-based RepRisk finds, in the areas of environmental, social and governance (ESG) for European funds. The study analysed the ESG performance of the portfolios of 166 European equity funds, of which 12 were “explicitly” SRI. For the study, EfU and RepRisk relied on a new methodology which assigns a “sustainability” value to each fund, using the reputational risk index from RepRisk (RRI) as a basis, which is constructed from controversy data collected from the media and other sources about the ESG performance of the companies concerned. The results are then added to a weighted value and aggregated for each business into the portfolio analysed. Ultimately, the study funds that in sustainable development, the average performance of traditional funds is not worse than specialist funds, and that there is no significant difference in the performance of the two types of funds either.
25/09/2012

Robeco wooed by private equity firms

Permira has teamed up with Affiliated Managers Group to make an offer to acquire Robeco, the asset management firm from Rabobank, according to reports in Financial News and Private Equity News. They are rivalling a joint offer from Advent International and CVC Capital Partners, according to sources familiar with the matter.
25/09/2012

BBVA sells an affiliate to Bolivian government

Funds People reports that the Spanish firm BBVA is about to conclude the sale of Previsión, its local pension fund management affiliate, with assets of USD2bn, to the Bolivian government. Negotiations began a year ago when the government of Evo Morales passed a law to nationalise the pension system, cancelling agreements with the private businesses operating in the country, BBVA and Zurich Financial Services. The law will take effect in October. Previsión contributed only USD5m to the BBVA group’s profits.
25/09/2012

Henderson offers a range of multi-asset class funds

The British firm Henderson Global Investors (HGI) on 24 September announced the launch of its new Core Solutions range, which will include muti-asset class income funds managed according to the degree of risk. The team in charge of these products is led by Bill McQuaker. The portfolios will be instead in a wide range of active and passive components to provide wealth management advisers with a low-cost range which aims to satisfy the specific needs of their clients. Initially, the range will consist of two products: the Henderson Core 3 Income Fund, a low-risk fund, and the Henderson Core 5 Income Fund, a low/moderate risk fund, which currently have a performance objective of 4% in the former case, and 5% in the latter. Earnings will be distributed monthly, from November. Minimal subscription and management commission are set at GBP1,000 and 1.2%, respectively. The multi-asset class team manages a total of GBP2.5bn in retail products (as of 30 June).
25/09/2012

Union Investment invests in Glasgow

The German firm Union Investment has announced that it has acquired the G1 office building (12,200 square metres) in Glasgow for an undisclosed amount for the open-ended real estate fund UniImmo: Deutschland. Overall, open-ended real estate funds from Union Investment own five properties (hotels and offices) in Cardiff, Glasgow, Manchester and Stansted, representing an investment of EUR310m. The proportion of “regional cities” in the British portfolio (EUR1.1bn) is thus about 30%.
25/09/2012

Berenberg plans to strengthen position in European institutional segment

The German Berenberg group, which has recently announced a desire to develop its investment banking activities, also has plans to grow in asset management. In an interview with the Börsen-Zeitung, the head of Berenberg, Hans Walter Peters, has announced that the firm is planning to develop its activities serving European institutional investors. Berenberg is hoping to win international mandates to serve pension funds.
25/09/2012

MACSF and Monceau pull out of La Française AM

The institutional investors MACSF and Monceau have sold their stakes of 3.30% and 1.70%, respectively, in the La Française AM group to Crédit Mutuel Nord Europe, a press statement dated 24 September announced. The development comes “three years after the merger of La Française des Placements and the UFG Group, and in the logic of existing shareholder pacts,” La Française AM explains. As a result, the CMNE is now an 85.9% shareholder in the La Française group, alongside management and employees, with more than 14% of capital.
25/09/2012

Japanese teachers' pension fund moves into alternative management

The pension fund for Japanese teachers, whose assets under management total about JPY600bn, or about USD7.6bn, is planning to invest in real estate and hedge funds, to diversify its risks and improve its performance, the news agency Bloomberg reports. During the fiscal year to the end of March 2013, the fund plans to invest about JPY100bn, in Japanese and international REITs and hedge funds, among other investments. In the year to the end of March 2012, the fund earned returns of 0.8%, compared with 0.5% the previous year. By comparison, the pension funds for the Japanese government earned returns of 2.3% in the year to the end of March 2012.
25/09/2012

MACSF et Monceau sortent de La Française AM

Les investisseurs institutionnels MACSF et Monceau ont cédé leur participation, de respectivement 3,30 % et 1,70 %, dans le groupe La Française AM au Crédit Mutuel Nord Europe, annonce un communiqué de presse en date du 24 septembre. Cette évolution intervient «trois ans après le rapprochement entre La Française des Placements et le Groupe UFG, et dans la logique des pactes d’actionnaires existants», explique La Française AM. Résultat, le CMNE est désormais actionnaire à hauteur de 85,9% du Groupe La Française au côté des dirigeants et salariés qui détiennent plus de 14% du capital.
25/09/2012
Fonds

L'assurance vie voit sortir 5 milliards depuis le début de l'année

Depuis le début de l’année, les contrats d’assurance vie ont subi des rachats nets atteignant au total 5 milliards d’euros, selon les derniers chiffres de l’Association Française de l’Assurance. Le mois d’août enregistre des sorties nettes de 0,8 milliard d’euros.L’encours des contrats d’assurance vie (provisions mathématiques + provisions pour participation aux bénéfices) s’élève à fin août à 1.371,5 milliards d’euros.Le montant des cotisations collectées par les sociétés d’assurances au cours des huit premiers mois de 2012 est de 75,8 milliards d’euros (88,7 milliards sur les huit premiers mois de 2011).Les prestations versées par les sociétés d’assurances au cours des huit premiers mois de 2012 s’élèvent à 80,8 milliards d’euros (70,6 milliards sur les huit premiers mois de 2011).
Fonds
25/09/2012

Metropol Partners accueille un ancien de la Banque Privée Edmond de Rothschild

Le gestionnaire de fortune zurichois Metropol Partners va accueillir Guy Wais au poste de président du conseil d’administration. Il prendra ses fonctions à compter du premier octobre, rapporte Finews. L’intéressé était jusqu’en avril membre du conseil de la Banque Privée Edmond de Rothschild. Christian Brunner, l’actuel président du conseil de Metropol Partners, continuera de siéger au conseil de la société, précise Finews.
25/09/2012

Société Générale Securities Services mandaté par BankMuscat AM

Société Générale Securities Services (SGSS) a été mandaté par BankMuscat (SAOG), principal fournisseur de services financiers à Oman, afin de fournir à sa division asset management au Luxembourg les services d’administration de fonds, d’agent de transfert et de tenue de compte ainsi que les services de domiciliation et de conservation.
24/09/2012

Lisbonne planche sur de nouvelles mesures fiscales

Le gouvernement portugais travaille sur de nouvelles mesures pour remplacer le projet de hausse des cotisations salariales auquel il a renoncé face à une vague de protestation. Le Premier ministre, Pedro Passos Coelho, a également déclaré à l’issue d’une réunion avec les syndicats et le patronat qu’il poursuivrait les discussions avec les partenaires sociaux autour de nouvelles mesures touchant à l’impôt sur le revenu et à la taxation du capital.
24/09/2012

Le Parlement égyptien ne se prononcera pas sur l’aide du FMI

L’Egypte a fait savoir lundi que le prêt de 4,8 milliards de dollars qu’elle négocie avec le Fonds monétaire international n’aurait pas à être approuvé par le parlement, dont la Cour constitutionnelle a ordonné en juin la dissolution. Tout retard dans le versement des fonds affecterait la confiance des investisseurs, qui attendent désespérément le redémarrage d’une économie au ralenti depuis la révolution qui a renversé Hosni Moubarak en février 2011.
24/09/2012

La CFTC plaide pour une réforme du Libor

Appelé à s’exprimer devant le Parlement européen, le président de la Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) a plaidé en faveur d’un remplacement ou d’une révision des taux Libor, précisant que tout futur benchmark devrait être basé sur des taux de marché réels plutôt que sur des estimations. Il a ainsi jugé vital que les taux benchmark reposent «sur des transactions observables».
24/09/2012

Le gouvernement italien veut stimuler les exportations

Selon le ministre italien de l’Industrie, Corrado Passera, le gouvernement va chercher dans les prochaines semaines des moyens d’aider le secteur manufacturier à relancer ses exportations. Fiat est sous le feu des critiques après avoir annoncé un gel de ses investissements sur le marché italien, dans l’attente d’un retournement des ventes. La part de marché déclinante de Fiat en Europe «suggère que ses décisions d’investissement pourraient être inadéquates», estime le dirigeant.
24/09/2012

Rendement au plus bas pour une émission belge

La Belgique a levé sur le marché obligataire plus que la somme maximale prévue et en versant un rendement proche d’un plus bas record. Le Trésor belge a émis pour 3,014 milliards d’euros d’obligations. Pour le papier à 10 ans, le rendement moyen s’est établi à 2,609%, soit un niveau légèrement supérieur au plus bas record depuis la création de la zone euro de 2,584% touché lors d’une opération intervenue plus tôt dans le mois. Le rendement du papier à sept ans s’est établi à 1,997% contre 2,004% précédemment.
24/09/2012

Les Pays-Bas en légère croissance

Le PIB des Pays-Bas a été en croissance de 0,2% au deuxième trimestre à la faveur d’une augmentation des exportations, mais les dépenses publiques et la consommation, tout comme les investissements publics et privés, ont reculé. L’indice du climat des affaires, publié en même temps par l’agence de statistiques du gouvernement, est ressorti à -6,7 points en septembre, contre -4,6 points en août.

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