Dexia is reaping the rewards of its reorganisation, undertaken in 2009, and its client-centred approach. In first quarter 2011, net inflows totalled EUR400m, more than half of which went to alternative management, Naïm Abou-Jaoudé, chairman of the executive board at Dexia AM, announced at a press conference on 7 July.Assets under management held stable at EUR86.3bn, compared with EUR86.4bn as of the end of 2010. At the height of the financial crisis, assets under management fell to EUR73bn, and then rose back to EUR79bn at the end of 2009. For the year 2011 as a whole, inflow objectives have been set at about EUR5bn, of which about EUR4bn are to come from net inflows, and EUR1bn from market effects.According to Abou-Jaoudé, in addition to the benefits of diversification in terms of clients and asset classes, “our approach of creating alpha for clients, which we introduced nearly two years ago, is paying off. By being even closer to our clients and more responsive to their needs, we are continuing to generate added value by transposing our expertise and our convictions to high-performance, innovative solutions which create alpha.”From this point of view, the head of Dexia AM says he is “reasonably optimistic” about the future, and adds that he is planning to continue to develop Dexia primarily through organic growth. Dexia AM is planning to open an office in London by the end of the year, to accelerate its distribution in the United Kingdom, which is currently handled from Brussels. The firm is also considering opening a second branch office in the Middle East, in Dubai, to complement its office in Bahrain. Asia is also an area under consideration, but no decisions have been taken so far.As a part of Dexia AM’s autonomous development, Abou-Jaoudé says that he is planning to increase the percentage of non-captive assets, from 45% of the total currently to about 60% in the next three years.

Edmond de Rothschild Investment Managers (EDRIM) announced on Thursday, 7 July that it is adding to its sales team, with the arrival of Audrey Walter. Walter, 29, will participate in the sale of structured products to French institutional investors, and will report to Jérôme Kelif, head of this activity.Walter began his career in 2003 at Dexia Asset Management, in the Risk department, and then joined Lyxor in 2005 as a product specialist, and then as a salesperson for structured products. In 2008, she joined Amundi, and dealt with sales of strucured products in the international sales team.

Melissa Reagen will begin on 20 July as head of property research, Americas, at the UK based Aberdeen Asset Management. She will report to Andrew Allen, director of global research – property, who is head of a team that now includes 13 people in eight countries.Since 2005, Reagen had been at LaSalle Investment Management as lead strategist for the multifamily portfolio of LaSalle in the United States. She also advised the LaSalle US Property Fund (USD2bn).

In first half, Financière de l’Echiquier has seen an increase in its assets of nearly EUR1bn, while the level of inflows in the same period have topped EUR700m, and EUR452m have been invested in funds from the management firm, putting it in second place, behind Rothschild 7 Cie Gestion, in the rankings of firms with the largest inflows this year.Between France and other countries, inflows are distributed relatively evenly, with France nonetheless still representing a majority (56% and 44%, respectively). Stéphane Toullieux, CEO of Financière de l’Echiquier, has focused particularly this year on institutional investor clients and key accounts (see Newsmanagers of 02/05/2011), and this strategy appears to be succeeding, as actors of this type were responsible for 60% of inflows, compared with 35% for distributors.In the product range, Agressor, the flagship fund from the management firm, has posted the largest net inflows (more than EUR270m). For its part, the ARTY fund has topped EUR100m in inflows. The Echiquier Major and Echiquier Patrimoine funds, for their part, have posted subscriptions of EUR40m each.Financière de l’Echiquier now manages EUR5.7bn in assets, of which 13% are from private management, 46% from distributors, and 41% form institutional investors and key accounts.

The French asset management firm DNCA Finance announced in Germany on 7 July that it has posted net subscriptions of EUR943m in the first six months of this year. As of 30 June, its assets totalled EUR5.9bn, or 21.5% more than as of the end of December (EUR4.9bn). About 60% of net inflows went to wealth management type diversified funds, such as DNCA Invest Eurose (ISIN: LU0284394235) and Evolutif (ISIN: LU0284394664), which alone attracted EUR566m. With the defensive fund Eurose, at EUR451m, these represent nearly three quarters of net inflows to diversified funds, while the flexible fund Evolutif attracted EUR115m, says Philippe Chamigneulle, manager of the Eurose fund.DNCA states that the funds are available in France, Germany, Luxembourg, Belgium, Italy, and Switerland, and that they are particularly well-suited to wealth managers and private banks.

“Tobacco bonds” issued by US states are bonds guaranteed by revenues from penalties paid by tobacco companies under settlements reached in the late 1990s. The bonds thus fall into the “municipal bonds” category, which Standard & Poor’s started downgrading in November, the Wall Street Journal reports. That has meant that funds specialised in muni-bonds, which are not allowed to have securities in their portfolios of less than investment grade, have been required to sell off the bonds at heavy losses.Several hedge funds, including Brigade Capital, GoldenTree Asset Management, Venor Capital Management and Foxhill Capital Partners, appeared to buy up the securities at low prices, and tobacco bonds gained 10% in June, and some gained as much as 60% !

Pimco has announced the recruitment of two former managers at Western Asset management, to take advantage of “multiple opportunities” in the municipal bond sector.Joe Dane will become director of the team specialised in municipal bonds, while Julie Callahan is joining Pimco as an analyst specialised in municipal bonds.

Amy Lo, head of Asian operations at UBS, on Thursday announced that the Swiss group is aiming for growth in the next three to five years of 10-20% in assets under management in Asia for high net worth clients (those with over USD50m in assets), Handelsblatt reports.To achieve that goal, the bank will recruit client advisers to increase their total numbers by one third, to 1,200 advisers, at a time when staff reductions will be ongoing in other regions.As of the end of 2010, 22% of CHF768bn in assets in UBS’ wealth management division came from Asia.

Money Marketing reports that HSBC is considering launching a low-cost actively-managed fund, to rival products of this type from Schroders and JP Morgan.According to the firm’s head of external distribution for the UK, Phil Reid, investors keep a close eye on the ratio of costs to returns, and it is therefore essential to offer them viable options which fall between active and passive management.

With the ETF iShares MSCI Japan Monthly EUR Hedged, iShares MSCI World Monthly EUR Hedged and iShares S&P500 Monthly EUR Hedged, BlackRock has increased the number of its ETFs registered with the CNMV in Spain to 96, including the iShares MSCI Poland and iShares MSCI USA sub-funds of its iShares V Public Ltd. Sicav. The three physical replication funds named above have been listed on the London Stock Exchange since October, and are hedged for currency risks.

Assets under management at Man Group as of 30 June 2011 totalled USD71bn, compared with USD69.1bn as of 31 March 2011, the group announced in a statement on 7 July.Gross inflows in second quarter totalled a record USD9bn. Redemptions totalled USD5.3bn, a moderate level historically, Man Group observes, while net infllows totalled USD3.7bn.Net inflows to hedge funds totalled USD4.1bn, while long-only funds saw outflows of USD400m (USD1.5bn in subscriptions, and Usd1.9bn in redemptions).Guaranteed products saw their highest inflows in two years, at USD500m, due to the launch of ManIP 220 GLG, the largest FCP vehicle to combine AHL and GLG strategies. Redemptions from guaranteed products totalled USD600m.In terms of performance, difficult market conditions contributed to a negative market effect of USD1.1bn in second quarter. In the GLG range, negative performance impacted positive results, with positive returns for European long/shoirt and European distressed strategies, but negative performance for global macro and other long/short strategies.

The British asset management firm Ignis Asset Management has announced a few changes in its team dedicated to British equities.Ignis had recruited Mark Holden as manager for the Ignis UK Focus fund, whose assets under management total GBP112m. Holden, who had previously been a partner at Vestra Wealth, will report to Mark Lovett, chief investment officer at Ignis for the equities unit, who joined the firm in October 2010 from Allianz RCM.Ralph Brook-Fox, currently manager of the UK Focus fund, will take over the Ignis Balanced Growth fund (GBP173m), effective immediately. He will also work on institutional mandates, in collaboration with Lovett.Ignis has also recruited an analyst, Bilal Raja, for the UK equities team. Other analysts will soon join the team.

Following months of speculation, Lloyds Banking Group has announced that it will retain its majority stake of 60% in the management firm St James’s Place, Money Marketing reports. Assets under management at St James’s Place as of 31 March totalled GBP28bn, compared with GBP27bn as of the end of 2010, and GBP21.4bn as of the end of March 2010.

The opposition party Partido Popular has obtained support from all other groups in the Senate to propose that the Senate economy and finance commission pass a motion calling on the Spanish government to introduce a limit on commissions charged by banks to retirement savings plans, and to set up a variable commission which would depend on performance, Cinco Días reports. The argument is that banks run no risks with these savings plans.

Agefi Switzerland reports that the Geneva-based private bank Mirabaud is extending its range of services for onshore clients, developing its advising activities and consolidating its team dedicated to financial planning. Mirabaud is planning to extend its base of clients invited to make use of these services, which had previously been limited to ultra high net worth individuals. “We are currently adding to our team of financial planning advisers, so as to offer services to a wider range of clients and meet the needs of onshore clients in Switzerland, as well as in France and Spain,” Cédric Anker, head of domestic clients, explains.

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) on 7 July published its conclusions about the application by various regulatory authorities in member states of the union of the Transparency directive (which includes dispositions regarding the publication of financial balance sheets, language of communication, information storage, publication of sanctions, and other areas). Overall, it appears that a vast majority of member states have integrated the added requirements into their respective legislation.

According to Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf, director of the Swiss federal finance department, Switzerland and Germany are already close to reaching an agreement on the terms of an agreement to normalise wealth which German citizens have stashed in Swiss banks, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports. Almost all political issues are resolved. The legalisation will involve two components: a payment on taxes which were unpaid in the past, and an anonymous, flat withholding tax in the future. According to estimates, recuperation of back taxes could bring in EUR20bn for the German state’s coffers.

On 7 July, JPMorgan Chase & Co announced that it has reached a settlement with regulators (SEC, IRS, antitrust division of the Department of Justice, Comptroller of the Currency, the New York Fed and a group of attorneys general from several states), to end suits against several former employees of the municipal bond derivatives desk, an activity which the bank discontinued in September 2008.Under the agreement, the bank will pay a total of USD211.2m, and, according to reports in the press, a gross total of USD228m to settle the legal proceedings, which accused the bank of bid-rigging.

Il s’agit de sélectionner une société de gestion qui va accompagner l’Ircantec (Institution de retraite complémentaire des agents non titulaires de l'État et des collectivités publiques) dans la création et la gestion d’un organisme de placement collectif immobilier. Le marché sera conclu pour une durée de 4 ans à compter de sa notification, expressément reconductible pour une durée identique. Pour lire l’avis complet: cliquez ici

La CPRSNCF a décidé d’avoir une liquidité totale de ses placements, en passant de 85% à 100% d’investissements en fonds monétaires. La CPRSNCF s’est ainsi désengagée des BMTN, EMTN, crédits court terme et autres produits structurés. Cette décision s’explique par l’horizon très court terme de la CPRSNCF.

Avec les ETF iShares MSCI Japan Monthly EUR Hedged, iShares MSCI World Monthly EUR Hedged et iShares S&P500 Monthly EUR Hedged, BlackRock vient de porter à 96 le nombre de ses ETF enregistrés en Espagne par la CNMV, en comptant aussi les compartiments iShares MSCI Poland et iShares MSCI USA de sa sicav iShares V Public Ltd.Les trois fonds nommés en premier, à réplication physique, sont cotés sur le London Stock Exchange depuis octobre et présentent la particularité d'être couverts du risque de change.

La première banque allemande Deutsche Bank a annoncé le 7 juillet être en négociations exclusives avec la société de services financiers belge RHJ International pour lui céder sa filiale BHF Bank. Deutsche Bank, qui avait acquis BHF Bank dans le cadre de l’acquisition du groupe Sal. Oppenheim en 2009, avait pourtant assuré en avril dernier qu’elle renonçait à se séparer de cette entité, après avoir tenté en vain de la vendre à l'établissement liechtensteinois LGT.La Deutsche Bank rappelle dans un communiqué que BHF Bank est «l’une des marques les plus connues de la finance allemande, dotée d’une longue tradition dans la gestion d’actifs, la gestion de fortune, les marchés financiers et la banque d’entreprises».Deutsche Bank estime que l’opération envisagée permettrait à la holding belge de compléter l’offre de sa filiale Kleinwort Benson. Cette dernière, active dans les îles britanniques, a des activités similaires à celles de BHF Bank. Fin 2010, BHF Bank gérait quelque 43 milliards d’euros d’actifs. Elle employait environ 1.500 salariés dans le monde. Elle est surtout présente en Allemagne, mais aussi au Luxembourg et en Suisse. Elle dispose par ailleurs de représentations à Abou Dhabi, en Egypte et au Vietnam.

Plusieurs gestionnaires étrangers ont annoncé ces jours derniers des recrutements pour leur force de vente en Allemagne. L'équipe de distribution du britannique Schroders reçoit à son tour un renfort avec l’arrivée d’un directeur de la distribution pour les particuliers, les intermédiaires et les banques régionales du centre de l’Allemagne. Alexander Wiss vient de la caisse d'épargne Südliche Weinstrasse, où il était chargé du conseil en placements pour la clientèle haut de gamme. Il est placé sous l’autorité de Melanie Stahl, qui dirige toute la distribution de Schroder Investment Management (Schroders Allemagne).

Quelques jours après l’annonce de l’ouverture de succursales à Francfort et Milan (lire notre article du 27 juin), le gestionnaire helvétique Swisscanto (57,6 milliards de francs suisses d’actifs sous gestion fin mars) a indiqué le 7 juillet avoir recruté à compter du 1er août Karsten Marzinzik comme senior account manager. Il sera chargé du suivi et du recrutement des clients institutionnels (fonds de fonds, gestionnaires de fortune, banques…)Jusqu'à présent, Karsten Marzinzik était senior sales managers chez Fidelity Allemagne, en charge du suivi et du recrutement de partenaires de distribution.

La Deutsche Börse a annoncé le 7 juillet avoir admis à la négociation sur le segment XTF de sa plate-forme électronique Xetra quatre nouveaux ETF de droit irlandais d’UBS Global Asset Management. En réalité, il s’agit de deux fois deux fonds d’actions utilisant par paires le même indice, mais en classe de part A (retail) et I (institutionnels).Pour le UBS ETFs plc – MSCI Emerging Markets TRN INDEX SF – (USD) A-acc (IE00B3Z3FS74) et pour le UBS ETFs plc – MSCI Emerging Markets TRN INDEX SF – (USD) I-acc (IE00B3P9PD09), les commissions se situent respectivement à 0,62 % et 0,45 %De leur côté, le fonds UBS ETFs plc – MSCI EMU TRN INDEX SF – (EUR) A-acc (IE00B5B1MZ58) est chargé à 0,17 % tandis qu’UBS Globam AM ne facture pas de commission pour le fonds UBS ETFs plc – MSCI EMU TRN INDEX SF – (EUR) I-acc (IE00B5M9BT58).Ces produits portent à 823 le nombre des ETF cotés sur Xetra.

Le suisse Clariden Leu (groupe Credit Suisse) a obtenu pour l’Allemagne et l’Autriche de la BaFin et de la FMA l’agrément de commercialisation du fonds luxembourgeois non benchmarké Clariden Leu Global High Yield Bond lancé le 29 avril et géré par l’américain Oaktree Capital Management.Il s’agit comme son nom l’indique d’un fonds d’obligations à haut rendement avec une sensibilité plus faible aux variations de taux d’intérêt que des émissions mieux notées. Le fonds est disponible en parts B USD (LU0614322484), H EUR B (LU0614322641) et H CHF B (LU0614322997). La commission de gestion est fixée à 1,2 % et l’encours se situe actuellement pour l’ensemble des classes de parts à 267,8 millions de dollars.

Amy Lo, qui dirige les activités asiatiques d’UBS, a déclaré jeudi que le groupe helvétique vise pour les trois à cinq prochaines années un gonflement de 10-20 % des encours gérés sur le continent pour le compte de très grandes fortunes (au-dessus de 50 millions de dollars), rapporte le Handelsblatt.Pour y parvenir, la banque va recruter des conseillers clientèle et en augmenter le nombre d’un tiers, à 1.200 personnes, alors que les réductions d’effectifs se poursuivront dans d’autres régions.A fin 2010, 22 % des encours de 768 milliards de francs de la division gestion de fortune provenaient d’Asie.

Les actifs sous gestion de Man Group s’inscrivaient au 30 juin 2011 à 71 milliards de dollars contre 69,1 milliards de dollars au 31 mars 2011, a annoncé le groupe le 7 juillet dans un communiqué.La collecte brute s’est élevée au deuxième trimestre au niveau record de 9 milliards de dollars. Les rachats ont totalisé 5,3 milliards de dollars, un montant historiquement moyen, observe Man Group, si bien que la collecte nette a atteint 3,7 milliards de dollars. La collecte nette des fonds alternatifs s’inscrit à 4,1 milliards de dollars, les fonds long/only ayant subi une décollecte de 400 millions de dollars (1,5 milliard de souscriptions et 1,9 milliard de rachats). Les produits garantis ont enregistré leur plus forte collecte depuis deux ans, à 500 millions de dollars, grâce au lancement de ManIP 220 GLG, le premier véhicule garanti commun combinant les stratégies AHL et GLG. Les rachats sur les produits garantis se sont inscrits à 600 millions de dollars. En termes de performances, les conditions difficiles de marché ont contribué à un effet négatif de 1,1 milliard de dollars au deuxième trimestre. Au sein de la gamme de GLG, les performances négatives l’ont emporté sur les résultats positifs, avec des gains pour les stratégies European long short et European distressed mais des pertes pour la stratégie global macro et d’autres stratégies long/short.

Après des mois de spéculation, Lloyds Banking Group a indiqué qu’il garderait sa participation majoritaire de 60% dans la société de gestion St James’s Place, rapporte Money Marketing.Les actifs sous gestion de st James’s Place s'élevaient au 31 mars à 28 milliards de livres, contre 27 milliards de livres fin 2010 et 21,4 milliards de livres fin mars 2010.

Le britannique Ignis Asset Management a annoncé un certain nombre de changements au sein de son équipe dédiée aux actions britanniques. Ignis a notamment recruté Mark Holden en qualité de gérant du fonds Ignis UK Focus dont les actifs sous gestion s'élèvent à 112 millions de livres. Mark Holden, qui était précédemment associé de Vestra Wealth, sera rattaché à Mark Lovett, le chief investment officer d’Ignis pour le pôle actions qui a rejoint la société en octobre 2010 en provenance de Allianz RCM. Ralph Brook-Fox, l’actuel gérant du UK Focus, prendra la responsabilité de Ignis Balanced Growth fund (173 millions de livres) avec effet immédiat. Il travaillera également sur les mandats institutionnels en collaboration avec Mark Lovett. En outre, Ignis a recruté un analyste, Bilal Raja, pour l'équipe actions britanniques. D’autres analystes devraient prochainement rejoindre l'équipe.