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26/04/2011

RCM recruits a new head of RIFA from Volksbanker Immo

From 1 August, Andreas Witzani, a board member at the real estate fund management firm Volksbanken Immo, will become CEO of the Raiffeisen International Fund Advisory (RIFA), an affiliate of Raiffeisen Capital Management (RCM, EUR31.5bn in assets, of which USD29bn are under management) founded in 1998. He will oversee coordination of institutional and international distribution (outside central and eastern Europe), which corresponds to assets of EUR21bn. Currently, the two CEOs of RIFA are Matthias Bauer and Gerhard Aigner, directors of RCM.
26/04/2011

BlackRock manages the equivalent of Germany's entire annual GDP

In a long article dedicated to Rob Kapito, chairman of BlackRock, Die Welt observes that outside the finance industry, few know the US management firm which became the largest shareholder in Dax companies at the time of its acquisition of Barclays Global Investors and its iShares ETF brand. With assets of USD3.6trn, BlackRock manages the equivalent of Germany’s gross domestic product for one year.Though fate would have it that the acquisition of the Irish firm NTR (see Newsmanagers of 1 March) was announced shortly before the Fukushima disaster, Kapito says that demand for renewable energy is set to increase strongly at any rate.
26/04/2011

Eurazeo acquires OFI Private Equity from Macif

Eurazeo and OFI Private Equity Capital on 26 April announced that they have concluded a final agreement for the acquisition of OFI Private Equity Capital, a French investment firm specialised in majority investments in SMBs, listed on NYSE Euronext, by Eurazeo. By the terms of the agreement, Macif, Olivier Millet and other major shareholders in OFI Private Equity Capital have agreed to sell the entirety of their stakes in OFI Private Equity Capital (totalling 75% of shares nad 79% of subscription warrants), its management firm and its general counterparty partner for the issuance of new Eurazeo shares.The acquisition is a sign of Eurazeo’s ambition to be a powerful player in investment in businesses with significant potential for transformation. The deal allows the firm to consolidate its position on the private equity market in France and Europe, to now cover virtually all segments. The development of a genuine expertise in the SMB segment “represents a new pillar for us for long-term value creation, and will allow us to intervene even more profoundly in the dynamisation of the fabric of Frecnh SMBs,” the chairman of Eurazio, Patrick Sayer, says in a statement.OFI Private Equity invests in majority stakes in SMBs whose total value is less than EUR150m-EUR200m. The firm currently holds a portfolio of 10 firms, in which it acts as a long-term shareholder in the development of each of its participations.
26/04/2011

Sustainalytics sets up shop in Paris

Netherlands-based Sustainalytics has opened an office in Paris, Agefi reports. The group, a specialist in extra-financial analysis for socially responsible investment (SRI) which monitors 150 French shares, has appointed Antonio Celeste to handle relations with clients in France, Belgium, Switzerland and Italy.SRI analysis in France continues to be strong, the newspaper reports. According to Novethic, assets in SRI mutual funds on sale in France rose 42% in 2010, to EUR48bn.
26/04/2011

Neuberger Berman preparing two equities funds

In a notification to the SEC (form N-1A) dated 15 April, Neuberger Berman has announced plans to launch two equities funds by third quarter: the Neuberger Berman Global Equity Fund, which will charge 1.51% (A class shares), and the Berman Global Thematic Opportnities Fund (1.61% Ter for A shares). The highly diversified Global Equity Fund will be managed by Benjamin Segal, and will invest primarily in global large caps, with at least 80% invested in equities under normal conditions. Anthony Gleason, Alexandra Pomeroy, William Hunter and Richard Levine will manage the Global Thematic Fund, and will first select promising themes, and then undervalued shares likely to profit from those themes.
26/04/2011

Allianz closes its large small caps value fund for a little longer

Since April 2009, the Allianz NFJ Small Cap Value Fund has been closed to new investors, the Wall Street Journal reports. Since the fund is continuing to grow, and now has USD8.2bn in assets, making it the largest value small caps fund, Allianz Global Investors Distributors has notified the SEC that it plans to close the fund as soon as possible to subscriptions from retirement savings plans (401(k), 457s, 403(b), profit-sharing schemes, defined contribution plans, and 529s).The fund has earned returns of nearly 20% in the 12 months to 21 April, compared with an average of 14.3% for value small caps funds, according to Morningstar. And in the five years to 21 April, the fund has generated returns of nearly 7% per year, compared with 3% for others in its class.
26/04/2011

ETFs based on silver to be used with caution

Since the beginning of this year, the four major physical silver ETFs, iShares Silver Trust, Sprott Physical Silver Trust, ETFS Physical Silver Shares and PowerShares DB Silver Fund, have posted total returns of 50% to 59%. The iShares product has tripled its volume in the past 12 months, to USD16.6bn, and controls about one third of all supplies of the metal on Earth, the Wall Street Journal reports.Investors following in the wake of a booming price for the metal (+160% in one year) are in danger of neglecting some major risks and particularities associated with these products. For example, the fund from the Canadian management firm Sprott, a closed fund of funds which is trading at a 22% markup over the price of silver, has the advantage that its metal is held in ingots stored in the vaults of the Royal Canadian Mint, so that its shares may be redeemed in physical metal, and the tax rate for capital gains may be limited to 15%, if the investor has 8621 status from the IRS.Sprott has already notified the SEC that it may sell the 10% of shares which were been locked in in November 2010, and that redemption in physical metal will only be possible for investors with the equivalent of USD600,000 or more in shares. The preferential tax regime is applicable only to investors who have obtained the 8621 application. For iShares and PowerShares products, the tax rate for capital gains is 28% and 23%, respectively.
26/04/2011

ETC inflows set records this year

In the space of one year, exchange-traded commodities (ETC) have doubled in volume to USD174bn as of the end of March; these products attracted Usd3.5bn in net subscriptions in first quarter 2011, Expansión reports. The phenomenon is due to the fact that investors use ETC funds to protect themselves against inflation and to profit from speculative movements such as those which have been driven by the crises in North Africa and the Middle East.
26/04/2011

F&C adds to Investment Solutions team

Following the creation of its integrated Investment Solutions business in December 2010, F&C has further strengthened the team with the appointment of Nabil Owadally as a derivatives fund manager. At F&C, he reports to Alex Soulsby, head of derivative fund management.Nabil has joined F&C from Towers Watson where he worked as a consultant focused on providing derivative based investment strategy solutions to UK pension schemes. Prior to Towers Watson, he was an analyst at Aon Hewitt.
26/04/2011

Edhec outsources its indices and benchmarks activities

Hedge Week reports that the Edhec-Risk Institute has spun off its Indices & Benchmark activities, with the aim of becoming one of the major designers of beta intelligent indices for the asset management sector. The operation will have offices in London, New York, Nice and Singapore. Two experienced specialists have been recruited to develop the activity in Europe and North America. The new structure will house the existing range of indices and benchmarks from the Edhec-Risk Institute, including the FTSE EDHEC-Risk Efficient Index, EDHEC-Risk Alternative Indexes and EDHEC IEIF Commercial Property (France) Index.
26/04/2011

Hedge funds had strong inflows in February, according to Morningstar

The Morningstar index of 1,000 hedge funds in March shows an 0.1% increase, which brings its returns to 2.1% in first quarter, while funds of hedge funds gained 0.3% in March and 1.6% in January-March.The US agency announced on 25 April that hedge funds in its database in February posted net subscriptions of USD5.2bn, their highest levels since August 2009. Most of these subscriptions went to European equities hedge funds (USD872m), US equities (USD1.1bn), and global trend funds (USD1.6bn).Funds of hedge funds posted net inflows of USD669m in February, after five consecutive months of significant net outflows.
26/04/2011

Strong rise in pay for CAC 40 heads in 2010

According to the 2011 rankings of the salaries of heads of CAC 40 businesses established by Les Echos, total salaries for CAC chiefs this year came to over EUR98.3m, an average of EUR2.46m per head, and 24% higher than in 2009 (at non-comparable perimeter). The first of the three managers of Michelin, Michel Rollier, takes the top spot in the 2011 rankings, with EUR4.5m in pay for 2010. Second and third place go to Frank Riboud, chairman and CEO of Danone, with about EUR4.4m in remuneration, and Bernard Arnault, chairman and CEO of LVMH, with EUR3.9m in total pay.
26/04/2011

Botín family internationalises its real estate portfolio

Cotizalia reports that according to the specialist press, the Spanish firm Luresa Inmobiliaria has mandated the consultants Gresham Down and Knight Frank to advise it on the management of its assets in the United Kingdom. This corresponds in reality of the strategy of the GlanEuro Property fund, which is listed in Dublin and will be renamed Luri 5 UK Property Fund. Assets total EUR74m, and the fund owns 21 commercial properties throughout the United Kingdom.Luresa (La Unión Resiñera Española) is a management firm controlled by Santander, whose major subscribers are the members of the Botín family. There are already four other Luri funds, one of which bought the Astro tower in Brussels for EUR90m in 2008.
26/04/2011

CNMV approves a volley of French-registered funds

On 19 April, the CNMV registered seven funds and 14 classes of shares in French-registered products, all of which are from Allfunds Bank. They are the Elan Convertibles Europe, Elan Euro Valeurs, Elan Midcap Euro, Neuflize Ambition and Neuflize Optimum funds, as well as R Convertibles and R Obligations privées.
26/04/2011

Haitong preparing a Yuan offshore high yield bond fund

Asian Investor reports that following the Haitong Global RMB Fixed Income Fund, which was launched in August, and a private placement in December, Haitong International Asset Management is now preparing a private placement of a new offshore high yield bond fund, denominated in Chinese yuan, which will pay quarterly dividends, to professional investors in Hong Kong and internationally.Joseph Lau, managing director, says that the fund invests in high yield bonds denominated in Hong Kong dollars, in synthetic bonds, bond denominated in dollars issued by Chinese businesses, and convertible bonds.The new fund has two share classes, one of them in Chinese yuan, for Hong Kong investors, and one in US dollars, for foreign investors. The objective is annual returns of 7-8%, which would result in dividends of about 1.5% per quarter.Assets already total HKD18bn (USD2.8bn), and Haitong’s objective for the product is to reach HKD50bn in assets.
26/04/2011

Barclays WM launches a closed bond fund

On 3 March, Barclays Wealth Managers España launched the Barclays Renta 2015 fund, a bond fund which was registered with the CNMV on 19 April, and for which the management firm is aiming for non-guaranteed annual returns of about 3.5% for subscriptions until 27 May 2011 which remain in the fund until 31 August 2015.At launch, all assets, which are rated at least A- by S&P, will have an approximate average duration of 4.2 years; they will be retained until 31 August 2015, and then sold. The product will invest in repos of Spanish public debt, money market instruments and checking deposits of at least one year with EU or OECD credit institutions subject to prudential controls. The portfolio will contain no securitisations or currency risks.CharacteristicsName: Barclays Renta 2015ISIN code: ES011398400Minimal subscription: EUR600Front-end fee: 5%Management commission: 1%Depository banking commission (Barclays Bank SA): 0.1%Penalty for early withdrawal before 31/08/2015: 3%
26/04/2011

Jefferies to release sub-funds of its Luxembourg Sicav in Spain

On 8 April, the CNMV issued licenses for two sub-finds of the Luxembourg Sicav Jefferies Umbrella Fund (JUF, USD1.05bn in assets), managed by the Swiss affiliate of the US Jefferies group. The JUF Global Convertible Bonds and JUF Europe Convertible Bonds funds will both be available for Allfunds Bank. So far, Jefferies has not applied for licenses for Japanese and Asian bond funds which are also sub-funds of the Sicav.
26/04/2011

Quarterly profits at UBS up

In first quarter 2011, net profits at UBS totalled CHF1.8bn, compared with CHF1.7bn in October-December. By comparison, the Swiss group one year ago earned net profits of CHF2.5bn in January-March 2010.The group announced on 26 April that its net inflows during the period under review totalled CHF22.3bn, compared with CHF7.1bn for the previous quarter, and that the group’s invested assets as of the end of March totalled CHF2.198trn, 2% more than at the end of December. Of this total, CHF791bn comes from the wealth management division, CHF700bn from Americas wealth management, and CHF569bn to Global Asset Management. The remaining CHF138bn are for the retail and business banks.
26/04/2011

Profits up slightly for cantonal bank of Lucerne

The cantonal bank of Lucerne has reported gross profits for first quarter 2011 of CHF59.4m, up 3.3% compared with the first three months of 2010. Net profits totalled CHF44.7m (+0.2%). Net inflows totalled CHF57m in the quarter under review. In total, assets under management at the bank as of the end of March totalled CHF25.5bn, compared with CHF25.2bn as of the end of December 2010.
26/04/2011

City bankers continue to earn high bonuses

The Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), which keeps track of bonuses paid in the London financial sector, esimates that bonuses have fallen by 8%, to GBP6.7bn in the 2010 fiscal year, compared with GBP7.3bn the previous year, Les Echos reports. However, the think tank notes that ordinary salaries grew by 7% in the first quarter of this year, compared with 2% for the United Kingdom as a whole. The CEBR recently announced that it estimated that available in comes corrected for inflation would be at least GBP910 lower this year in the United Kingdom due to the government’s austerity program.
26/04/2011

LRI Invest changes depositories

Due to requirements imposed by the European Commission, LRI Invest (EUR8bn in assets) will not be able to continue to use LBBW Luxembourg as its depository. Pending permission from its supervisory authority, Luxembourg’s CSSF, it has decided to retain MM Warburg Luxembourg and Banque LBLux for its current and future assets. As LRI Invest intends to seek out clients from outside the German-speaking countries in order to obtain fund mandates, the choice of a partner as a depository bank fell on BNY Mellon. The migration is expected to be completed by 31 December this year.
26/04/2011

Pékin choie son fonds souverain

China Investment Corp devrait percevoir 100 à 200 milliards de dollars supplémentaires de la part du gouvernement chinois, qui cherche à atténuer son exposition à la dette publique des Etats-Unis. C’est ce qu’avance le quotidien de sources proches, dont l’une évoque des «réticences bureaucratiques». CIC a d’ores et déjà alloué les 110 milliards disponibles pour mener à bien sa mission d’investissements à l’étranger. Le fonds souverain a notamment accompagné les secteurs comme l’énergie où les matières premières, fers de lance de l’expansion internationale chinoise. Les réserves de change du pays ont doublé depuis la création de CIC en 2007, à plus de 3.000 milliards de dollars.
26/04/2011

La Chine compte développer les marchés dérivés

Les autorités du pays envisagent de développer le marché de gré à gré des obligations pour les investisseurs institutionnels et qualifiés, indique le journal qui cite des propos du vice-gouverneur de la banque populaire de Chine, Yi Gang. La Chine compte également poursuivre l’ouverture de son marché obligataire.

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