The ETF promoter of the DekaBank group (German savings banks), ETFlab, has announced in the most recent issue of its newsletter that effective immediately, comdirect bank (Commerzbank), DAB-bank (UniCredit) and Sparkassen Broker (savings banks) are offering investors ETFlab products at cut-rate prices for orders and savings plans.Subscriptions may be made at a competitive rate, and savings plans are exempt from commissions on orders. It is also possible to directly access cut-price model portfolios composed of selected ETFs directly.
The hedge fund indices calculated by the Edhec-Risk Institute have nearly all finished the month of January in positive territory, with the notable but not altogether surprising exception of the short-selling strategy, which has lost 6.85% for the month. The emerging markets strategy shows the best returns for January, with gains of 4.55%, where it had finished last year with losses of 10.8%. Other winning strategies for the month include long/short equity (3.36%), distressed securities (3.28%), event-driven (2.95%), convertibles arbitrage (2.22%), and bond arbitrage (1.33%). After an annus horribilis last year, funds of funds have started the year on a positive note, with gains of 1.65%.
Uncertainty about Greece and tensions in the Middle East have recently dampened investors’ appetite for risk. In the week ending on 15 February, emerging markets equity funds took in less than half their previous weeks total and emerging markets bond funds less than a third while Europe bond funds posted outflows for the first time in six weeks, according to estimates by EPFR Global. Overall, EPFR global-tracked equity funds recorded collective outflows during the week ending February 15 of USD1.7 billion -- their worst showing since the first week of January -- as redemptions from developed market equity funds more than offset the USD2.2 billion committed to emerging markets equity funds. Flows into bond funds totaled USD7.03 billion while USD6.3 billion flowed out of money market funds.As of 15 February, inflows to high yield, US, emerging markets and global bond funds totalled 190%, 57%, 27%, and 20% of total net subscriptions registered in 2011, respectively.
Since the beginning of this year, the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) initiative has registered about 60 new members (see attached list), including banks such as Santander, BBVA, Banesto, Westpac, Monte dei Pashi, and Lloyds Banking Group. The new members also include asset management firms such as Union Investment Privatfonds, Neuberger Berman, Henderson Global Investors, Investec, Jupiter Am and Erste AM.Rabobank, Axa IM and Aviva Investors are among the largest new members in 2011.The CDP started in 2002 with the support of 35 institutional investors. Now, the initiative has more than 655 signatories, with total assets of about USD78trn.
Portfolio managers are not able to make money, even when they invest in the industry they know best: their own, according to a university study cited by Financial Times Fund Management (Squandering Home Field Advantage? Financial Institutions’ Investing in their Own Industries). David Stolin, one of the authors of the study, says this apparent inability for managers to profit from their sectoral proximity may be due to overconfidence, or merely to an inability to step back and take a global view of things.
The Frenchman Christophe Bernard has been appointed head of the new Balanced/Multi Asset Class boutique in the asset management unit of Vontobel, a structure which includes 20 investment professionals, with assets currently totalling CHF10bn. Bernard will begin in his new position on 1 March. He will also be the new chief strategist at the Zurich-based group.The new boutique will allow Vontobel to offer allocation to a full range of assets, adjusted according to investment objectives and risk budgets of institutional and retail clients.Bernard will be leaving a similar position at the Geneva-based Union Bancaire Privée (UBP), and replaces chief strategist Thomas Steineman, who has decided to leave the group after 11 years, due to the new structural orientation adopted by Vontobel.
The boards of directors at Oddo Asset Management and the Sicav Orsay Euribor Plus have decided to rationalise their money market product range, merging the Orsay Euribor Plus Sicav (FR0000288243) with the FCP Oddo Trésorerie 3-6 mois (FR0010583310), Fondsweb reports.
First Eagle Investment Management has added to its product range with the launch of the high yield bond fund First Eagle High Yield Fund. This is actually a relaunch by the US asset management firm of the Old Mutual High Yield Fund. The fund, which was initially managed by an affiliate of Old Mutual, Dwight Asset Management, had previously been managed by Edward Miegs and Sean Slein. In October, First Eagle became the investment adviser to the fund, and then recruited the two managers. The First Eagle High Yield Fund has total assets of USD48.2m.
The hedge fund manager First Trust Advisors has announced that it is launching nine new ETF funds in the AlphaDEX range. They include two trans-regional ETFs and seven country ETFs: First Trust Germany AlphaDEX Fund (NYSE: FGM) First Trust Canada AlphaDEX Fund (NYSE: FCAN) First Trust Australia AlphaDEX Fund (NYSE: FAUS) First Trust United Kingdom AlphaDEX Fund (NYSE: FKU) First Trust Taiwan AlphaDEX Fund (NYSE: FTW) First Trust Hong Kong AlphaDEX Fund (NYSE: FHK) First Trust Switzerland AlphaDEX Fund (NYSE: FSZ) First Trust Developed Markets ex-U.S. Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund (NYSE: FDTS) First Trust Emerging Markets Small Cap AlphaDEX Fund (NYSE: FEMS)
The alternative asset management firm Bridgewater has taken on the pension fund for Texas teachers as an investor in its capital, according to Pensions & Investments magazine. The Texan pension fund invested USD250m in Bridgewater. As of 30 June last year, the pension fund had invested USD4.3bn in 30 funds, including products from Bridgewater, Tudor, AQR and Blue Trend, out of total assets of USD106.7bn.
The second-largest Canadian pension fund, the Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board, has recruited a former Goldman Sachs chief, Mark Machin, as regional head for Asia, a newly-created position, Asian Investor reports. Machin, who will be based in Hong Kong, will begin in his new position on 19 March. He will work to develop the pension fund’s activities in China. The Chinese portfolio of the fund now totals CAD3.5bn. As of 31 December, assets under management in the Asia-Pacific region totalled CAD13.1bn, about 8.5% of total assets under management.
The equity portfolio of the Swedish pension fund AP1 (Första AP-fonden) fell 9.8% in 2011, while total assets under management, SEK213.3bn (about EUR24bn), finished the year down 1.7% (or 1.9% after costs), according to the fund’s annual report, the website IPE reports. The fund says that it is working to reduce the volatility of its equity portfolio, by increasing geographical diversification. The current portfolio includes only Swedish and European shares. In the past twelve months, equity allocations fell from over 60% to less than 50% (most recently 49.2% at the end of 2011), in favour of bonds (40.9% as of the end of December 2011) and alternative management (9.3% as of the end of December).
Assogestioni, the Italian association of asset managers, has renamed its money market fund category, and modified the investment limits for the products, in order to bring them into line with CESR guidelines. The “fondi di liquidità” category will now be known as “fondi di mercato monetario” (money market funds). In terms of new limits, for instruments issued by sovereign issuers, an investment grade rating will be sufficient. Asset management firms will be required to comply with the new criteria by 31 December 2012.
Rupert Dyson, former manager of the hedge fund firm Sloane Robinson, has founded Edale Capital, and is preparing to launch a European long/short equity fund in the next few months, Financial News reports.
The British bank Lloyds Banking Group will be taking back a portion of the bonuses paid to 13 of its managers or former managers, including five directors. The BBC reports that the amount to be reclaimed is equivalent to GBP2m. The unprecedented decision is motivated by the enormous bill that Lloyds had to pay last year for selling payment protection insurance products to retail borrowers. It is apparent that many of the private individuals to whom the borrowers’ insurance was sold were not eligible for it, and Lloyds has been forced to write down GBP3.2bn to reimburse them.
Pimco has recruited three people for its LDI (liability-driven investment) team in the United Kingdom, Financial News reports. They are Hannah Simons, Janki Tanna and Tina Adatia.
Financial Times Deutschland understands that Borsa Italiana is planning to introduce a new charge applicable to high-frequency dealers who place a large number of orders and cancel them before execution. The stock market company decision is in line with a recommendation by the Italian regulator, Consob, which is seeking to forestall large price fluctuations. Borsa Italiana declined to comment.
La société spécialisée dans la gestion d’actifs immobiliers a constitué une SPPICAV RFA EL pour le compte du Groupement Système U. Elle est destinée aux entités du groupement et à ses associés afin, principalement, d’accompagner l’expansion du réseau pour l’acquisition de nouveaux emplacements et magasins.
Le courtier en pétrole genevois est entré en discussions exclusives avec la société américaine de private equity Addax & Oryx Group en vue de la cession de ses activités aval (approvisionnement, stockage et distribution) en Afrique.
La Belgique, les Pays-Bas et la République tchèque ont cessé d’importer du pétrole en provenance d’Iran tandis que la Grèce, l’Espagne et l’Italie ont réduit leurs achats, a annoncé la Commission européenne. L’embargo voté le mois dernier par les Vingt-Sept doit entrer en vigueur le 1er juillet, un délai permettant de trouver des solutions d’approvisionnement alternatives.
Le marché boursier transalpin, détenu par le London Stock Exchange, devrait introduite de nouveaux frais afin de décourager les traders d’envoyer des ordres excessifs, alors que les régulateurs européens tentent de répondre au trading à haute fréquence. Selon Bloomberg, la nouvelle grille tarifaire devrait être dévoilée d’ici la fin du mois.
Le quotidien croit savoir que le Fonds stratégique d’investissement pourrait faire son entrée au capital du spécialiste finistérien de la volaille, numéro un européen en la matière. Détenu à 80% par la famille Doux et avec un chiffre d’affaires de 1,4 milliard d’euros en 2010, le groupe ne fait pas mystère de discussions avec un certain nombre d’investisseurs afin de renforcer ses fonds propres.