13/11/2013
Lyxor launches China ETF in Sweden
Lyxor has launched the Lyxor UCITS ETF CSI 300 A Shares ETF in Sweden, Fondbranschen reports. The fund charges fees of 0.40%.
13/11/2013
Further increase in assets for Legg, Invesco, Franklin and AllianceBernstein
After an increase of USD71.5bn in September, assets under management by Legg Mason, Invesco, Franklin Templeton and AllianceBernstein posted further gains of USD57.5bn in October, for a total of EUR2.7487trn. Overall, that represents an increase of 2.14% month on month.In detail, Franklin Templeton has posted gains of USD24.2bn in its assets in one month, to USD868.9bn, while at Invesco total assets under management as of the end of October totalled USD763.9bn, an increase of USD18.4bn compared with 30 September.At Legg Mason, the increase totalled USD13.9bn, for a total of USD669.9bn as of 31 October. Lastly, AllianceBernstein has posted gains of USD1bn to its assets, to USD446bn.
13/11/2013
Atos joins Dow Jones Sustainability Index global rankings
Atos has entered the close circle of the Dow Jones Sustainability Index World (DJSI), which from the 2,500 largest companies in the world, selects the 10% which are recognised as the best performers in terms of corporate responsibility, both from a governance and from an environmental and social point of view. This recognition represents a further step by Atos in terms of corporate responsibility. For three years, after a rating of A+ from the Global Reporting Initiative for its sustainable development report and the recognition awarded by the “Great Place to Work” institute to several of its affiliates, Atos would like to become a point of reference for the IT services industry.
13/11/2013
Murielle Didier joins JPMAM
Murielle Didier, head of multi-management clients and private banks for France and Monaco at ING Investment Management, after serving as a senior salesperson for these clients at BNP Paribas Investment Partners (initially Fortis IM), is joining JPMorgan Asset Management (JPMAM) in Paris, in the position of senior head of sales for the multi-management and distributor client segment. Her arrival brings personnel on the dedicated team to four.
13/11/2013
BNP Paribas IP plans corporate HY fund dedicated to China
BNP Paribas Investment Partners is planning to launch a high yield corporate bond fund denominated in RMB via its joint venture HFT Investment Management, a joint venture with Haitong Securities, Citywire reports.The new strategy, HFT (HK) China High Yield Bond fund, allows the joint venture to buy shares in Chinese companies for up to RMB800m, or about EUR98m.
13/11/2013
Crédit Agricole Switzerland recruits local head of Barclays
finews reports that Crédit Agricole Switzerland has recruited Patrick Ramsey, who will be head of the new Swiss private banking division as well as for Abu Dhabi, Beirut, Dubai, Hong Kong and Singapore, as its new head of the private clients division. He will report to Hervé Catala, CEO of Crédit Agricole Switzerland.Ramsey was CEO of Barclays Bank (Switzerland), head of wealth management Switzerland and country manager at Barclays Group for Switzerland. Before that, he was CEO of Merrill Lynch for Switzerland.Crédit Agricole Suisse has also recruited Hans Diederen as director of private banking for Asia, who will report to Ramsey, along with Youssef Dib, who has been appointed as head of ultra-high net worth investors (UHNWI). Diederen was previously at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, while for his part, Dib was global coordinator at BNP Paribas Private Banking.
13/11/2013
Solactive recruits head of PR & Marketing
The index provider Solactive AG on 12 November announced the appointment of Barbara Mahe as head of public relations (PR) and marketing, from 1 November 2013.Mahe, who will be based in London, previously worked for S&P Dow Jones Indices, as PR manager.
13/11/2013
Union Investment's CFO resigns
Ulrich Köhne has decided “for personal reasons” to resign from his position as a managing board member at Union Investment Asset Management Holding, effective from 30 November, the group announced on 12 November. Köhne was chief financial officer since 2003.In the interim until a successor can be appointed, the responsibilities of the outgoing man will be distributed among other managing board members.
13/11/2013
Christopher Macklin joins James Hambro & Partners
The British boutique James Hambro & Partners has recruited Christopher Macklin, a former portfolio manager from Schroders Private Bank, as business development manager, Fundweb reports.Macklin, whose primary mission will be to develop activities with clients, will report directly to Tim Broughton.Assets under management and advised by Hambro & Partners total GBP1.2bn.
13/11/2013
Towards a record year for equity inflows in the United Kingdom
Net inflows to equity funds are on track to reach their highest levels since 2000, according to the most recent edition of the Pridham Report. According to statistics from the British investment management association (IMA), net inflows to equity funs have already topped GBP8bn in the first nine months of the year. In third quarter, Standard Life Investments tops the rankings for sales with net inflows of GBP819.9m. It is followed by Schroders with GBP622.1m, Artemis (GBP498.5m), Henderson (GBP481.9m) and BlackRock (GBP471.8m).
13/11/2013
Pioneer posts inflows of EUR7.7bn since the beginning of the year
The asset management unit at UniCredit, housed at Pioneer, recorded net inflows of EUR7.7bn in the first nine months of the year. Captive and non-captive clients both contributed to inflows, the Italian bank says. As of the end of September, assets under management totalled USD168.9bn, up 7% since the beginning of the year (+EUR11bn), also due to positive currency effects (+EUR3.3bn).
13/11/2013
ETF activities at NYSE Euronext down in October
Last month, the daily trading volume of on-book trades on ETFs on the European markets on NYSE Euronext fell to EUR192.4m in September, after an increase of 14.2% in August. Compared with October 2012, it has fallen by 13.5%.The median spread last month totalled 25.3 basis points, compared with 28.1 basis points in September 2013, and 29 basis points in October 2012.As of the end of October, the European markets of NYSE Euronext listed 557 ETFs 645 times. Three new funds were added to trading in October, two from Lyxor and one from EasyETF.
13/11/2013
London-based employees of SAC looking for new jobs
Fund managers and analysts at SAC Capital Advisors are in talks with competing hedge fund firms, including Moore Capital Management, to join these companies as SAC prepares to close its London office, the Wall Street Journal reports, citing sources familiar with the matter. In addition to Moore, SAC employees have been in talks with Millennium Management, BlueCrest Capital Management and Balyazny Asset Management.
13/11/2013
Schroders brings expertise in convertible bonds in-house
Schroders on 13 November announced its decision to bring its convertible bond management in-house, which since the beginning of 2008 has been outsourced to an external partner, the Swiss firm Fisch Asset Management.Peter Reinmuth, manager of the current “star” funds of the range, Schroder ISF Convertible Bond and Schroder ISF Asian Convertible Bond, will join the British asset management firm on 29 November 2013. he will be accompanied by two other experts from Fisch AM (including a member of the trading team), as well as an external manager, all of whom will join the British group by the end of Npvember to manage existing vehicles. The management team will be distributed between Zurich and Singapore, and will be placed under the responsibility of the Frenchman Philippe Lespinard, CIO Fixed Income at Schroders.Schroders has a volume of assets under management of nearly EUR1.5bn in convertible bonds, and as of 2013 has posted net inflows of over EUR500m to this asset class.
13/11/2013
Domenico Siniscalco resigns chairmanship of Assogestioni
Domenico Siniscalco has resigned from the chairmanship of Assogestioni, the Italian association of asset managers, Il Sole – 24 Ore reports. The decision was taken in order to avoid a “potential conflict of interests” between his position as chairman of the association of asset management firms, and his role as head of Morgan Stanley, at the time of the reorganization at Telecom Italia. Morgan Stanley is advising the telecommunications firm on its sales of assets, and for an issue of convertible bonds, but these operations are contested by minority shareholders in Telecom Italia.Domenico Siniscalco will be replaced by his vice chairman at Assogestioni, Giordano Lombardo, president of Pioneer, until the convocation of a general assembly.
13/11/2013
F&C Investments launches new targeted risk fund
The British firm F&C Investments on 11 November announced plans to launch a new fund for its multi-asset class targeted risk fund, which already includes four products. The F&C MM Lifestyle Foundation Fund will be the least risky of the range, with an allocation to cash/fixed income of 64.3%, a proportion of equities of 27.7%, and a proportion of real estate of 8%. Each fund invests in a basket of 35 to 40 funds or instruments, and the range currently weighs about GBP435m.
13/11/2013
M&G to launch multi-asset class income fund
M&G Investments is planning to launch a new income fund as an addition to its multi-asset class range, Citywire reports. The fund, M&G Income Allocation fund, is still pending permission from the authorities. It will be managed by Steven Andrew.
13/11/2013
BNY Mellon grows in Asia
BNY Mellon has been awarded a Capital Markets Services licence by the Monetary Authority of Singapore for its new dedicated Singapore-based subsidiary to provide fund management services in Singapore. The licence was approved on 11, November 2013.With the new licence, the Singapore subsidiary, BNY Mellon Investment Management Singapore Pte. Limited, will be able to conduct a full range of investment management activities, including research, portfolio management, marketing and sales of collective investment schemes. BNY Mellon Investment Management has been offering global investment solutions to institutional investors in the region through its investment boutiques.BNY Mellon employs over 450 people in the city.
13/11/2013
ESMA clarifiies its positions on role of shareholders in takeover bids
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published a statement on practices governed by the Takeover Bid Directive (TBD), focused on shareholder cooperation issues relating to acting in concert and the appointment of board members. The statement contains a White List of activities that shareholders can cooperate on without the presumption of acting in concert.The statement is in response to a request by the European Commission for clarity on these issues.
Les 130/30 font leur retour
Le regain d’intérêt pour les actions européennes a donné un coup de fouet inattendu à un segment longtemps délaissé : les fonds 130/30, rapporte le Financial Times fund management. Par exemple, le fonds Europe Equity Plus de JPMorgan, lancé en 2007, a vu ses encours bondir à 1,25 milliard de dollars, alors qu’il n’était qu’à 24 millions de dollars en décembre 2012.
13/11/2013
AMG recrute pour le Benelux un dirigeant de F&C
Rob Geeraets, directeur des ventes institutionnelles chez F&C après avoir travaillé pour Lombard Odier et Kas Bank, a été recruté comme directeur au poste nouvellement créé de head of distribution d’Affiliated Managers Group (AMG) pour le Benelux, rapporte Fonds Nieuws.Le nouvel arrivant sera subordonné à Jenny Segel, directrice de la distribution d’AMG pour l’Europe.
Lazard AM lance une version Ucits de sa stratégie Global Hexagon
Lazard Asset Management vient de lancer une version Ucits de sa stratégie actions Global Hexagon, rapporte Fundweb. Ce fonds long/short, Lazard Global Hexagon Equity, investit dans le monde entier, y compris les marchés émergents.Le gérant de portefeuille Jean-Daniel Malan pilotera le fonds.
13/11/2013
3i boucle l'acquisition des activités infrastructures de Barclays
Le capital-investisseur européen 3i a annoncé le 11 novembre qu’il avait bouclé l’acquisition auprès du groupe Barclays de l’activité infrastructures du groupe britannique logée dans Barclays Infrastructure Funds Management.Cette activité regroupe deux fonds non cotés qui investissent dans des PPP britanniques et européens ainsi que dans des projets énergétiques et qui ont des actifs sous gestion de 780 millions de livres.L’entité de Barclays sera renommée 3i BIFM et intégrée dans l’activité infrastructures de 3i pilotée par Cressida Hogg. L'équipe dédiée aux infrastructures sera basée dans les bureaux de 3i à Londres et- à Paris.
13/11/2013
BlackFin Capital Partners achète le site HyperAssur
Cinquième acquisition en moins de deux ans dans le secteur de la comparaison de produits financiers sur Internet pour BlackFin Capital Partners. Le fonds de capital investissement vient d’annoncer l’acquisition d’HyperAssur, un site de comparaison en ligne de produits financiers de polices d’assurance (auto, moto, santé, habitation, vie, emprunteur, obsèques,…) au meilleur prix.L’acquisition d’HyperAssur permet notamment à Comparadise de renforcer significativement sa position sur le marché de l’assurance auto, promis à un fort développement du fait de la loi Hamon autorisant la résiliation à tout moment des contrats après la première année.L’objectif de BlackFin est de faire de Comparadise le premier comparateur en ligne de produits financiers dédiés aux particuliers et aux PME en France, indique un communiqué.
Muzinich sort son fonds de dette émergente à duration courte
Comme annoncé récemment à Newsmanagers par George Muzinich, le gestionnaire new-yorkais Muzinich & Co (25 milliards de dollars d’encours) a lancé son Emerging Markets Short Duration Bond Fund qui, comme son nom l’indique investit dans un portefeuille diversifié d’obligations d’entreprises catégorie investissement et catégorie spéculaztive à duration courte, émises par des sociétés axées sur les marchés émergents.Géré par Warren Hyland et Christina Bastin qui privilégient les obligations en devises «dures», ce nouveau fonds de droit luxembourgeois dont pour l’instant seule la part S superinstitutionnelle (*) avec une souscription minimale de 100 millions de dollars a été lancée. Cette part est chargée à 0,5 % mais les parts A en dollars, euros et livres sont chargées à 0,8 %. L’encours se situe actuellement aux alentours de 60 millions de dollars.(*) IE00BCCW0T67
13/11/2013
La banque privée de Banque Havilland acquiert celle de Banque Pasche Monaco
La banque privée Banque Havilland SA a annoncé, mardi 12 novembre, l’acquisition de l’activité de banque privée de la Banque Pasche Monaco SAM. Cette acquisition doit renforcer la position de la banque à Monaco et doit concourir à faire de l'établissement un acteur majeur dans le secteur de la banque privée de la Principauté, indique un communiqué.A travers sa filiale Banque Havilland (Monaco) SAM, l'établissement a acquis l’intégralité du portefeuille de clients de Banque Pasche qui se situe, outre à Monaco, sur des marchés à fort potentiel de croissance comme l’Amérique latine et la Russie. Cette acquisition va également voir le personnel de la Banque Pasche Monaco SAM transféré à la Banque Havilland (Monaco) S.A.M.
La production industrielle baisse de 0,5% en zone euro en septembre
La production industrielle a reculé de 0,5% en septembre dans la zone euro, plus que le repli de 0,3% attendu par le consensus Reuters. Eurostat a révisé à la baisse les chiffres d’août, à -1,1% contre -1,9% annoncé le mois dernier.
La Russie abaisse une nouvelle fois ses prévisions de croissance
Le produit intérieur brut russe devrait enregistrer en 2013 une croissance comprise entre 1,5 et 1,6%, en-dessous de la prévision officielle de 1,8% qui constituait déjà une révision à la baisse, a annoncé Alexeï Oulioukaïev, le ministre de l’Economie. Malgré ce ralentissement, l’inflation se maintient au-dessus de l’objectif de la banque centrale, fixé entre 5 et 6%, ce qui l’a conduit à maintenir vendredi dernier son taux directeur inchangé.
La Banque d'Angleterre restera accommodante malgré la baisse rapide du chômage
Le taux de chômage en Grande-Bretagne devrait baisser plus rapidement que prévu en raison d’une accélération de la reprise économique, a déclaré la Banque d’Angleterre dans son rapport trimestriel sur l’inflation (BoE) mais cela ne la conduira pas pour autant à accélérer la remontée de ses taux d’intérêt. Selon la BoE, le taux de chômage pourrait tomber à 7,0% au cours des trois derniers trimestres de 2014, soit deux ans plus tôt que ce qui avait prévu cet été. «L’intention du comité de politique monétaire est de maintenir en l'état une politique monétaire extrêmement accommodante jusqu'à ce que les faiblesses de l'économie soient suffisamment corrigées», a précisé la BoE. A son arrivée, le gouverneur de la BoE, Mark Carney, avait indiqué que le taux directeur ne sera pas relevé tant que le chômage ne sera pas revenu sous les 7%.
S&P abaisse la note d'entités liées à l'Etat français
L’agence a abaissé à AA la note de crédit de huit entités liées à l’Etat français, désormais assortie d’une perspective stable, après avoir fait de même avec la note souveraine vendredi dernier. Les entités concernées sont l’Agence française de développement, l’Assistance publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, la Caisse centrale de réassurance, la Caisse des dépôts et consignations, la Caisse nationale des autoroutes, la Société anonyme de gestion de stocks de sécurité, la Société de financement local et l’Unedic. S&P a également abaissé à AA la note de dettes senior de Natixis garanties par la CDC.