Liontrust Asset Management (GBP1.9bn as of 23 March) on Tuesday announced the recruitment of five partners from the European bonds team at Ilex Asset Management, and the takeover of a long/short credit fund from Ilex (Ilex Credit Fund, GBP41m), domiciled in the Cayman Islands. The firm’s CIO, Simon Thorp, senior portfolio manager James Sclater, the co-heads of research, Paul Owens and Quentin Peacock, and the COO, Gareth Roblin, will all join Liontrust.Liontrust has also announced that Jeremy Lang and William Pattisson, who managed three funds, will be leaving the firm on 15 April. They will be replaced by Gary West, James Inglis-Jones, Anthony Cross, and Julian Fosh, who were recruited by Lang and Pattisson (whose B-class shares in the firm will be repurchased by Liontrust). West and Inglis-Jones will take over the management of the Liontrust First Income and Liontrust First Large Cap funds, while Cross and Fosh will manage the Liontrust First Growth Fund. The appointments will take effect on 25 March.

Satisfaction all round. The Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA) has welcomed the initiative by the International Organisation of Securities Commissions (IOSC) to create an improved framework and harmonize regulations governing short-selling activities. The professional association is particularly pleased with the IOSC’s recognition of the role played by short-selling in capital markets. It also agrees that it is necessary to introduce some discipline in the settlement of short-selling transactions, particularly in the case of uncompleted transactions.

Dedicated funds have become significantly less popular since last autumn. For the year 2008 as a whole, net inflows were down 25% to EUR8.32bn, according to data reported by the professional federation for closed funds (VGF, for Verband Geschlossene Fonds). Though funds invested in life insurance or private equity are down by 58% to EUR359m and 60% to EUR742m, funds invested in aerospace are up 165% to EUR703m. The two largest positions, real estate and maritime, are down by 26% to EUR3.05bn, and 22% to EUR2.48bn, respectively. IFA networks and banks last year accumulated a market share of 81% in the distribution of dedicated funds.

Prudential Asset Management has announced that it has reduced its staff by slightly under one quarter in Hong Kong, while Singapore staff has been reduced by 8%. The manager disputes reports in Asian Investor, which cited rumours that the firm had cut 10 out of 20 jobs in Hong Kong, and that one third of staff had been laid off on 20 March (which would amount to more than 20 layoffs).

Schroders announced on Tuesday that it has ?relaunched? a treasury, or ?liquidity? fund in Germany, under the name Euro Government Liquidity. The product is a sub-fund of the Luxembourg Sicav Schroder ISF, which was previously not available on the German market, where the SISF Global Government Bond platform is not available.Management commissions have been reduced to 0.15% for institutionals and 0.40% for retail investors, while front-end fees now total a maximum of 3% and 5%, respectively. As of 28 February, assets in the product total EUR9.7m. In its new form, the compartment was launched on 19 December 2008.The fund is managed by David Scammell, head of UK & European interest rate strategies.

On Tuesday, Deutsche Börse announced the addition of six new ETF funds, based on the Eurogov German government bond indexes (see Newsmanagers of 24 March), bringing the number of products listed on the XTF segment of the Xetra electronic trading platform to 426. The management firm also states that, in order to be included in the composition of the Eurogov indexes, bond issues must measure at least EUR4bn.The Eurogov indexes are calculated by the Market Data & Analytics division, which produces a total of more than 2,600 indexes, which serve as the underlying for assets totalling approximately EUR12.8bn.

Mandarine Gestin, the management firm founded by Marc Renaud, is launching a socially responsible investment fund, Mandarine Engagements. It is managed by Patrick Savadoux, a specialist in SRI management, who has recently joined the firm, after spending several years at Natixis AM.The new fund invests in Euro zone businesses of all cap sizes which satisfy environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria. Savadoux’s method is to apply an SRI filter beforehand. In other words, the 700 companies in the investment universe are filtered for selected ESG criteria, to leave only 150. Financial analysis comes as a second phase after this. Lastly, Savadoux chooses 50 businesses for his portfolio (currently 40).?This is not a best in class fund,? says Savadoux, who claims that method is nothing but index-based management in disguise. Some sectors are absent from the portfolio, such as the automotive sector at present, for ?social? reasons. The Mandarine manager no longer invests in some sectors by conviction, such as tobacco and nuclear, although these areas are not subject to a systematic exclusion.On the other hand, certain themes may be preferred at certain times. Currently, the environment is one such theme. The manager says 2009 will be the year of governance and social awareness. However, the fund remains ?generalist,? and maintains an equal weighting of its six ESG criteria: human rights, social engagement, environment, governance, client/supplier relations, and human resources.The fund is aimed at all types of clients: institutionals, of course, and employee savings, but also independent financial advisors, in whom Renaud sees a growing appetite for SRI.Currently, the fund has assets of EUR1.85m. The goal is to bring in EUR50m to EUR100m for this SRI theme, once equities, now close to zero, bounce back, says Renaud. When the horizon brightens somewhat, an employee partnership fund will also be launched.Mandarine Engagements joins three other funds from Mandarine, each managed by a different specialist. The firm is neglecting to integrate SRI into the management of its other products even though Renaud admits that ESG criteria are gradually gaining importance in the analysis of businesses.As of 31 December, Mandarine managed EUR251m, slightly more than the seed money it received at launch (EUR270m), even though the firm has received investments of EUR170m. ?The year 2008 was frustrating,? admits Renaud, ?but we are not worried about the future, thanks to owners’ equity of EUR4.8m.?

Aon Consulting on Tuesday announced that it will be extending its range of services for trustees and employers, to offer an integrated retirement solution, Aon Pension Solution, which combines asset and liability management for pension funds. The product will be launched in July 2009, and has been developed in cooperation with Russell Investments.

Mellon Transition Management (MTM), an affiliate of BNY Mellon, on Tuesday announced the recruitment of Tim Wilkinson and the team of six people he leads. The seven new arrivals, who all join the firm from Citi Transition Management, the transition management activity from Citigroup Markets, will be based in London, and will strengthen an operation which already has 50 employees worldwide.Tim Wilkinson was managing director at Citi, where he was responsible for Asia-Pacific and the Europe-Middle East-Africa (EMEA) region. At MTM, he becomes managing director for the EMEA region.

Frank Dornseifer, legal director of the German alternative investment association (BAI), says the G20 summit in London will result in stricter regulation of hedge funds in the EU, but, even if the proposals of the European Commission are adopted, German chancellor Angela Merkel will not obtain complete and systematic control of all the financial markets, products and market actors, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports. Dornseifer points out that not all hedge funds are alike, and that one third of them use no leverage.

On Wall Street, shares in management firms gained ground after the announcement of the Geithner toxic asset buyback program, from which these firms would be the primary beneficiaries. Two management firms specialised in bonds, Pimco (Allianz group) and BlackRock, have already announced that they will participate in the plan, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports. Bill Gross, one of the heads of strategy at Pimco, says this is the first political initiative to remedy the crisis which will benefit all parties concerned. Laurence Fink, CEO of BlackRock, states that although the Geithner plan is not a panacea, it will at least have the positive effect of removing some excess supply from the market.

A spokesperson for Legg Mason has confirmed to Pensions & Investments that its affiliate, Western Asset Management (Wamco) has reduced its personnel by about 100 people, or 10%. The job cuts are largely in administrative services and operations. As of 31 December, assets at Wamco were down 13% compared with the end of September, at USD513bn, and down 19% over one year.

French authorities are investigating funds with ties to the Madoff fraud case, the International Herald Tribune reports on 22 March. The Journal du Dimanche reports that one of these investigations concerns BNP Paribas. According to the French newspaper, the investigations are seeking to determine whether the bank deceived some investors with the subscription documentation for the fund.

The government plan to buy up toxic assets from banks will require companies such as Citigroup, Bank of America and Wells Fargo to write down large amounts on their loans, which will require them to raise more capital, according to directors in the sector and analysts cited by the Financial Times.

High net worth investors in guaranteed hedge funds from Man Group are paying commissions of 8.5% per year, according to a UBS study cited by the Financial Times. The bank is not sure that the management firm will be able to maintain its current fee levels, given falling returns.

Bob Diamond, the chairman of Barclays, is one of a number of directors who would make millions of pounds if the bank sells iShares for GBP6.5bn, the Financial Times reveals. Diamond, who is also chairman of Barclays Global Investors, is part of a virtual employee incitement program, in which he and 200 other directors own 4.5% of BGI Holdings.

From 48.2 in December, the global index of investor confidence calculated by State Street Global Markets rose to 72.7 in February (adjusted from a previously-announced level of 72.9). In March, the index is down to 70, due to a fall of 4.8 points to 59.4 for confidence of institutional investors in the United States, and of 3.2 points to 64.5 for European institutional investor confidence. However, the Asian index is up 2.5 points, to 86.6.From 26 May 2009, the index will provide additional information about the level of institutional investors’ appetite for risk. The base level of the index will be recalculated, so that a level of over 100 indicates a stronger exposure to high-risk assets, while a figure below 100 will indicate a lesser exposure to these assets.

The sale of iShares by Barclays comes at a time when the ETF firm’s influence in the US market is beginning to weaken, the Wall Street Journal claims. The newspaper considers that several other ETF firms made far more impressive gains than iShares in 2008.

Mediolanum has finished 2008 with net profits of EUR23.6m, compared with EUR212m in 2007. Pro forma, i.e. excluding the effects of the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy, profits are down 38% to EUR131m. Assets under management are down 15% to EUR29.5bn, while net inflows were positive to the tune of EUR2.49bn.

Banco Popolare de Milano is reported to have finished the year 2008 with losses of EUR330m, Il Sole - 24 Ore reports. The bank has applied for government aid totalling EUR500m, and announced an issue of convertible bonds for EUR700m.

According to reports in Il Sole - 24 Ore, Banca Monte dei Paschi may request EUR2bn from the Italian government in the form of bonds.

According to CercleFinance.com, Philippe Brosse, who was previously CEO of SGAM Alternative Investments, is joining DB Alternative Investments, as chairman of the strategic committee.

Two big names in analysis are leaving Merrill Lynch, the Financial Times reports. David Rosenberg, the North American economist for Merrill, will be leaving in May, and will return to Toronto, where he will join the firm Gluskin Shef & Associates. Richard Bernstein, chief investment strategist and head of the investment research committee for global private clients, is also leaving the company.

Près de 8,2 milliards de dollars d'ABS de prêts automobiles et cartes de crédit éligibles au dispositif de la Fed ont été émis la semaine dernière

Les risques de surproduction sont importants en Ile-de-France d’après le Crédit Foncier. Dans ce contexte, les loyers sont attendus en repli

Selon L"Agefi suisse, Banque Jacob Safra Suisse (BJSS) a renoncé à l"évaluation de la qualité de son crédit par l"agence Standard & Poor"s. La banque avait reçu le 11 mars dernier une perspective à long terme négative. Les rappels de note ne sont pas fréquents en Suisse chez S&P. Pour rappel, celui de Lehman Brothers Finance SA (15 septembre 2008) était dicté par les circonstances du grand naufrage. Celui de Banca del Gottardo (9 août 2006) s"est fait à la demande de la banque. First Boston (2005) a demandé le sien lors de la fusion avec Credit Suisse.

Dans un entretien avec la Börsen-Zeitung, Reinhard Berben, directeur général pour l’Allemagne, reconnaît que Franklin Templeton Investment Services, plus connu pour sa gestion actions, a un besoin de rattrapage sur le marché allemand tant dans l’obligataire qu'à l'échelon de la clientèle institutionnelle. Franklin Templeton entend donc se diversifier davantage et veut atteindre sur l’institutionnel la même part de marché que sur le retail. En outre, Reinhard Berben veut résister à la mode des ETF et des fonds garantis.

Comme nous l’avions annoncé précédemment, BNY Mellon Asset Management ouvre une succursale à Paris. Jusqu'à présent, et depuis quatre ans, la société de gestion couvrait le marché français depuis le siège européen de Londres.Le bureau, qui sera aussi en charge du Benelux, sera dirigé par Anne-Laure Frischlander. Elle sera entourée d"une équipe de 5 professionnels.

Crédit Agricole Asset Management veut être leader sur le marché français de l’investissement socialement responsable à horizon 2010. Actuellement, selon les dernières statistiques de Novethic, la société de gestion se positionne en huitième position, avec un milliard d’euros gérés dans des OPCVM ouverts. A cela s’ajoutent 1,4 milliard d’actifs gérés pour le compte d’institutionnels et dans le cadre de mandats ainsi que 0,3 milliard en épargne salariale, ce qui aboutit à un total de 2,7 milliards d’euros.Pour atteindre son objectif, CAAM a décidé d’intégrer progressivement les critères environnementaux, sociaux et de gouvernance (ESG) dans sa gestion. Concrètement, la société a #rapatrié# en interne la gestion des fonds ISR, autrefois dévolue à sa filiale spécialisée, Ideam. Ainsi, les gérants de cette dernière font partie, depuis le quatrième trimestre 2008, des équipes actions et taux de CAAM. Une nouvelle organisation qui est censée permettre de diffuser l’ISR à l’ensemble de la gestion de CAAM. Et qui devrait conduire à terme à la transformation d’OPCVM #traditionnels# en produits ISR.Ce processus ne se fera pas avant la fusion avec Société Générale Asset Management, précise Yves Perrier, directeur général de CAAM Group. Un rapprochement qui devrait d’ailleurs permettre à CAAM d’atteindre son objectif de leadership plus rapidement, SGAM se classant cinquième sur le marché français de l’ISR selon Novethic. En tout cas, #l’ISR sera une marque de fabrique de l’ensemble formé par CAAM et SGAM#, affirme Yves Perrier.En attendant, CAAM continuera à s’appuyer sur Ideam, qui ne disparaît pas, mais devient le centre de recherche extra-financière du groupe, avec 6 analystes et une personne dédiée à la recherche. S’y ajoutent aussi deux gérants qui conservent la gestion des fonds éthiques et de partage. Cette recherche a aussi vocation à être diffusée dans l’ensemble du groupe.

Selon le site internet du figaro, citant l’AFP, la Maison Blanche a annoncé lundi la nomination de Neal S. Wolin comme secrétaire adjoint au Trésor et de Lael Brainard en tant que sous-secrétaire au Trésor pour les affaires internationales