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04/10/2010

Axa IM recruits for sales

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } René Kappaun on 1 October joined Axa Investment Managers (Axa IM) as senior sales manager IFA. He joins from KanAM Grund, will report to Selina Sezen, and will be in charge of developing distribution of open-ended funds to independent financial services providers such as broker pools, IFA networks and wealth management providers.
04/10/2010

BNY Mellon gives itself three years to become the leading custodian in Germany

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Thomas Brand, country executive Germany at BNY Mellon, has announced that the US group aspires to become the top custody provider in Germany in the next three years (the current leader is State Street), Börsen-Zeitung reports. Currently, BNY Mellon is the number two in the sector.Brand estimates that there is an opportunity for external growth due to the financial situation of several Landesbanken, which will be required to sell off this activity to reduce costs. Since its acquisition of BHF Asset Servicing, assets under custody at BNY Mellon Germany have totalled EUR569bn, of which EUR122bn were as a depository bank for management firms.
04/10/2010

DragonBack Capital becomes an alternative platform

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Hong Kong-based firm DragonBack Capital, which has recently liquidated its two hedge funds, Asia Pacific Multi-Strategy and VolAsia, has decided to reposition itself as an alternative platform, which will be known as DragonBack Management Platform, Hedge Week reports.
04/10/2010

Pimco Europe (AGI) dominates subscriptions

For open-ended securities funds, net subscriptions in Germany have totalled EUR12.76bn in the first eight months of the year. Of this total, EUR11.75bn went to Pimco Europe, an affiliate of Allianz Global Investors, which has taken on a total of EUR11.71bn (thus less than Pimco).Among the major firms, the DWS/DB Advisors and DB Gruppe family also shows net subscriptions, but of only EUR847.5m, and only due to EUR1.8874bn in inflows to db x-trackers, the ETF affiliate. At the outset, two other ETF specialists show net subscriptions: BlackRock, with iShares, has attracted EUR698.4m, and ComStage (Commerzbank) has attracted EUR565.1m. However, ETFlab Investment (Deka Group) shows net outflows of EUR338.6m. Deka (savings banks) has seen net outflows of nearly EUR4.36bn, while Union Investment (co-operative banks) has seen net outflows of nearly EUR2.66bn.
04/10/2010

Strong increase in net subscriptions in Germany

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } In August, German funds covered by statistics from the BVI association of investment funds show net subscriptions of EUR7.95bn, as net outflows from mandates of EUR2.44bn were more than offset by net inflows of EUR2.77bn for open-ended funds, and of EUR7.68bn for institutional funds. In the first eight months of the year, net inflows to open-ended funds totalled EUR15.33bn, compared with net redemptions of EUR273.2m for the corresponding period of last year, while institutional funds had EUR36.22bn, compared with EUR6.41bn. However, mandates showed net outflows of EUR130.7m, compared with net inflows of EUR15.93bn. Total assets as of the end of August were EUR1.79412trn, compared with EUR1.76771trn as of the end of July, and EUR1.62537trn twelve months previously.
04/10/2010

Nomura to release six more funds in Germany

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } As of 1 October, Nomura Asset Management Deutschland KAG (NAM Deutschland) has put six Irish-registered funds on sale, each available in A and I shares. The funds are the Japan Strategic Value Fund, India Equity Fund, Asia Pacific ex Japan Fund, Global Emerging Markets Fund, and US High Yield Bond Fund. The funds already have total assets of over USD1bn.
04/10/2010

Aberdeen still planning to reopen Degi Europa

On 1 October, Aberdeen Immobilien KAG announced that it had sold the CB16 skyscraper at La Défense in Paris “slightly below the most recent independent expert valuation,” to an “international institutional investor” who did not wish for the sale price to be disclosed. The property was in the portfolio of the open-ended real estate fund DEGI Europa, whose redemptions have been frozen for the last two years (see Newsmanagers of 26 October 2009).The sale increases the liquidity levels for the DEGI Europa fund by about 4 percentage points, to 33%. According to Hartmut Leser, CEO of Aberdeen Germany, this means that it may be possible to reopen redemptions from the fund by 30 October 2010, with adequate liquidity.
04/10/2010

Schroders extends range of funds with set quarterly distribution

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } In fourth quarter 2010, the British management firm Schroders will release shares with a fixed quarterly distribution of 4% in the Schroder ISF1 Asian Equity Yield, and of 3% in the Schroder ISF Global Corporate Bond and Schroder ISF US Dollar Bond funds. Previously, the Asian Equity Yield fund served variable quarterly distributions, while the other two paid coupons on a variable annual and quarterly basis.
04/10/2010

Investors flock to emerging market funds

@font-face { font-family: «Arial"; }@font-face { font-family: «Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: «Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; } Emerging market bond and equity funds are set for a record level of inflows in 2010, says the Financial Times. According to EPFR, about USD40bn of investors’ money has flowed into emerging markets debt funds in the first nine months of the year. Equity funds in emerging markets have seen subscriptions of USD50bn.
04/10/2010

Gutenberg bank opens for business

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Gutenberg private bank opened its doors on 1 October 2010. The institution will offer financial services to private clients in Switzerland and abroad, to wealth managers, and to institutional clients, the bank announced in a statement. The Swiss federal financial market surveillance authority Finma on 3 September 2010 authorised the firm to practice as a bank in addition to its brokerage license. The bank will primarily serve as a savings institutional for independent wealth managers, but will also provide banking services to private high net worth clients in Switzerland and abroad, as well as to small and mid-sized institutions. The Banque Gutenberg AG is 100% owned by Cat Group AG. The group is specialised in the areas of wealth management, funds, and banking services. The firm, founded in 1988, has about 60 employees, and its headquarters are in Zurich. As of 30 June, assets under management by Cat Group totalled CHF1.6bn.
04/10/2010

Paulson and the Bulls rebound

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } As equities have seen a difficult year, managers of long-bias hedge funds have been naïve optimists, but they were reparded in September, the Wall Street Journal reports. The largest fund from Paulson earned 12.5% in September, and at least two other funds from the firm saw double-digit gains. And all its funds (US32bn) are in positive territory for 2010. Joshua Fink, who was also seen as overly pessimistic in the summer, has seen his USD200m hedge fund at Enco Capital gain 14.5% in September, and shows returns of 25% YTD.
04/10/2010

John Hancock sticks to safe stocks

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Wall Street Journal reports that Christopher Arbuthnot, a portfolio manager at MFC Global, has selected inexpensive shares in businesses which dominate their respective markets for the John Hancock Global Opportunities Fund (JGPAX), instead of focusing on the macroeconomic environment. Whatever happens, the Chinese middle class will continue to buy cars from BYD, Indians will continue to seek treatment at the Bumrungrad hospital, and Americans will continue to subscribe to Sirius XM Radio satellite services. As a result, the fund (USD886m) has generated average annual performance of 14.5% over five years, and this year it has already earned 20%.
04/10/2010

Quarterly net profits at MSCI down by half

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } For the quarter to the end of August 2010, operating revenues at MSCI have increased 86.2%, compared with the corresponding period of 2009, to USD202.73m, but the increase is only 38.7% for the nine months to the end of August, at USD449.58m. The quarter was marked by the acquisition of RiskMetrics on 1 June, and of Measurisk on 30 July. Net profits in June-August totalled USD10.32, down 50.7% compared with the three months to the end of August 2009, due to an increase in interest costs related to credit refinancing for the acquisition of RiskMetrics and a higher overall debt level, which more than wiped out the positive effect of the increase in earnings. In the nine months to the end of August, net profits are still up 8.1%, to USD61.9m.
04/10/2010

Natixis Global AM confirms interest in Pioneer

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } At a press conference in New York, John T. Hailer, CEO of Natixis Global Asset Mangement for the United States and Asia, confirmed that his firm is interested in a potential acquisition of Pioneer. «We’re always looking to strengthen ourselves. We’ll evaluate any idea,» he said. Talks with Pioneer are at a “preliminary” stage, he added.
04/10/2010

TIAA-CREF buys an agriculture specialist firm

@font-face { font-family: «Arial"; }@font-face { font-family: «Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: «Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; } TIAA-CREF has taken a controlling stake in @font-face { font-family: «Arial"; }@font-face { font-family: «Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: «Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; } Westchester, which manages about USD1bn in assets and nearly 320,000 acres of farm land, as well as acquiring land on behalf of large clients, says the Financial Times. The US pension fund is thus ramping up its exposure to agriculture.
04/10/2010

As bonds boom, some managers turn to equities

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Returns on bonds are now nearing their lowest levels ever, and managers of some asset allocation mutual funds are beginning to seek alternatives, the Wall Street Journal reports. According to Morningstar, US investors subscribed for a net total of USD168.4bn in bonds funds in January-August, while US equities funds saw net outflows of EUR42.2bn. The BlackRock Global Allocation Fund (USD43.7bn) increased its exposure to equities to nearly 60%, compared with an average of 50% over its 21-year history. The Franklin Income fund (USD52bn) has gone from an allocation of 70% bonds/30% equities to a 60/40 distribution. The Capital Income Builder Fund from American Funds has also increased its exposure to equities, and even Pimco, the bond specialist, has increased allocation to equities for its Global Multi-Asset Fund (USD2.4bn) to 48.5% in August, compared with 43.7% in July. Of course, there is still a danger that businesses in the future will decide to pay no dividends, or to pay a dividend lower than the returns on their bonds. In addition, as the tax breaks of the Bush era could not be extended next year, the maximal tax rate for dividends may increase from 15% to 39.6%.
04/10/2010

Newedge plans to recruit 50 in Asia

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Newedge has confirmed to Newsmanagers that it plans to add to its sales force in Asia. In the wake of the financial crisis, the joint venture of Société Générale and Crédit Agricole CIB had scaled back its ambitions, like many other firms, but this period appears to be at an end. The head of Newedge for the Asia-Pacific region, Laurent Cunin, has told the Bloomberg agency that the firm is planning to recruit 50 people, particularly as additions to its activities in India and China. “My objective is to increase the proportion of revenues coming from Asia, which currently amount to 10% to 15% of the group total,” Cunin told the news agency.
04/10/2010

Fund outflows continue in September

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } According to various estimates from the Spanish management firm association Inverco, VDOS Stochastics and Ahorro Corporación, Spanish securities funds saw further total net outflows in September of EUR1.5bn to EUR2.2bn, bringing the total in the first nine months of the year to about EUR17bn, Expansión reports. At this rate, 2010 is likely to go down in history as the worst year ever for Spanish funds, after 2008, when net redemptions totalled EUR57nb. Assets have fallen to their lowest levels in 13 years, at EUR146.5bn. The two management firms worst affected by these outflows are BBVA Asset Management, with outflows of EUR7.5bn, and Santander AM, with EUR3.1bn. They were victims of competition from savings accounts which offered interest rates of 4% to 5%. The same trend affected InverCaixa, which underwent net outflows of EUR239m in September, following net inflows of EUR1.6bn from June to August.
04/10/2010

HSBC adds to equities ETF range in Spain

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Mark Rodino, director of ETF sales at HSBC for the EMEA region, has announced that the British group is planning to register its full range of equities ETFs, consisting of 11 products, in Spain. Ten of the funds, which replicate the FTSE 100, Euro Stoxx 50, CAC 40, S&P 500, MSCI Europe, MSCI Japan, MSCI USA, MSCI Brazil, MSCI EM Far East and MSCI Pacific ex-Japan indices, have already been registered with the CMNV, Funds People reports. The objective is to attract retail as well as institutional clients. Depending on how well-received the physical replication ETFs prove, HSBC may also subsequently list these products on the Madrid stock exchange. By the end of 2011, HSBC is hoping to have 50 ETFs, including funds replicating corporate bond, real estate and emerging markets indices.
04/10/2010

Fund managers fight pressure on commissions

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Money market funds guarantee the full amount of the principal to investors, but with short-term rates of near zero, as many have not managed to earn enough on investments to cover management fees, the Wall Street Journal reports. Now, the phenomenon is no longer limited to money market funds. The Schwab Total Bond Market Fund charges commissions of 0.55%, while returns on 5-year Treasurys is only 1.47%. If frustrated investors leave the funds, what can asset management firms do? One solution is to increase assets enough to be able to increase commissions, but the problem is that the bond market has already seen a very strong rally, while equities markets have no relief in sight. The other apparent solution would be to lower commissions, while according to Morningstar, they have remained roughly stable since 2005. Managers have managed to hold out so far, but their colleagues in private equity have caved in in recent years as returns have fallen. However, the Wall Street Journal continues, Schwab and T. Rowe Price are still trading at 25 and 23 times their expected profits for 2010.
04/10/2010

Efama creates a position for a deputy chairman

The European asset management association (EFAMA) has announced the appointment from 1 October of Jarkko Syyrilä to the newly-created position of deputy chairman. Syyrilä, who has been a member of the professional association since 2008, will take over the regulated activities of Efama.Syyrilä has worked with the Committee of European Securities Regulators (CESR), and was the first reporter for the CESR expert group for asset management. Efama says in a statement that the appointment comes as part of a drive to increase representation from the asset management sector.
04/10/2010

Alter Domus opens two offices in Belgium and Malta

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Alter Domus, which offers services to alternative management firms, announced at the end of September that it is opening offices in Belgium and Malta. The Brussels team is led by Catherine Baudhuin, with particular attention to firms specialised in real estate and private clients. In Malta, activities are led by Chris Casapinta, and focus on fund administration services.
04/10/2010

BlackRock to merge two bond funds

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } An extraordinary meeting of shareholders in the Government Securities fund from BlackRock will be held on 13 October. Shareholders in the fund, with only GBP43m in assets, will vote on a proposition to be merged into the tracker fund UK Gilts All Stocks Tracker (GBP680m, TER of 0.45%). The Government Securities fund (which charges 1%) does not have sufficient size to allow for effective and profitable operation.
04/10/2010

Brenda Reed (Fidelity) joins George Weiss Associates

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Fund Strategy reports that Brenda Reed, portfolio manager of the Fidelity Global Focus fund (GBP334m in assets) since 2003, will be leaving Fidelity after 18 years to join the New York hedge fund firm George Weiss Associates. The Global Focus fund will now be managed by Amit Lodha, who will also be responsible for the Luxembourg Sicav, while retaining responsibility for the FF Global Industrial and FF Real Asset Securities funds.
04/10/2010

Baillie Gifford prepares for a generational change

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Scottish management firm Baillie Gifford has announced that Grant Walker will succeed Ken Edwards, head of intermediary sales, who will be retiring in February. Walker will report to James Budden, marketing director, and will also be in charge of retail and sales marketing. John Wilson and Kirsten Fraser will replace Chris Fletcher, head of retail investments, and Jim McGhie, head of retail administration, in April, as the latter will also be retiring. Their replacements have long been their deputies in those positions.
04/10/2010

Hedge fund exodus hits UK revenues

@font-face { font-family: «Arial"; }@font-face { font-family: «Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: «Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; } Britain will lose hundreds of millions of pounds in tax revenues each year as a result of hedge fund managers moving overseas, writes the Financial Times. Based on a conservative 28 per cent tax rate paid by the 1,000 or so hedge fund managers that Kinetic said had left, the UK will have forgone nearly GBP500m in taxes, according to the FT. But it could be much more, adds the newspaper.
04/10/2010

Record number of IPOs delayed

Global postponed IPO activity reached USD69.7billion in value so far this year, up 6% when compared to full year 2009, the largest level of activity on record, according to Thomson Reuters Deals Insight. Global postponed IPOs by number of issues reached 151 year to date the largest number since 2008 with 275.Asia Pacific has the most postponed activity regionally year to date with 41% of the activity, with Americas (36%) and Europe (23%) coming 2nd and 3rd respectively. The most volatile industries are real estate 34%, financials 21%, and materials 13%, says Thomson Reuters. Finally, the largest postponed IPO so far this year is the US offering from American Life Insurance worth USD5billion withdrawn March this year. This is followed by Casa de Pedra Mines’ Brazilian IPO worth USD3.5billion postponed in June of this year.

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