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02/10/2009

Mediobanca pulls out of talks with Sal. Oppenheim

Mediobanca announced on Thursday that it is abandoning talks to acquire the originally German and Luxembourg-domiciled bank Sal. Oppenheim. The acquisition of these activities would have been possible only at the price of cost reductions impossible to put into action in the current environment, a spokesperson for Mediobanca explained to Reuters. According to sources close to the situation, other potential acquirers are said to be interested, including the UK bank Barclays and the Australian group Macquarie, which would seek to take control of all investment banking activities, an option which would be favoured by Sal. Oppenheim. Deutsche Bank, which dropped out of negotiations after its due diligence procedure, is said to be in discussions to buy a stake in the wealth management segment.
02/10/2009

Fast times for SRI funds

According to Wim Vermier, a member of the executive board at Dexia Asset Management in charge of investment management, European SRI funds posted net subscriptions last year corresponding to 5.6% of their assets as of the end of 2007, while conventional funds have undergone net redemptions of 6% in the same period. This trend continued in first half 2009, when net inflows to SRI funds were higher than those to traditional funds. As of the end of July, SRI assets at Dexia AM totalled EUR17.5bn, of which EUR4.6bn were in the form of funds, and EUR12.9bn in custom SRI solutions.
02/10/2009

Hester Borrie becomes a board member at Robeco

Hester Borrie has been appointed as a member of the board at the Robeco group. Borrie, formerly of Morgan Stanley Investment Management (MSIM), where she spent more than ten years, and where she most recently occupied the position of managing director for sales, will be in charge of the Global Distribution and Marketing units. Meanwhile, Roderick Munsters, CEO, will serve in the interim over the next few months as head of the Mainstream Investments unit.
02/10/2009

One out of three managers saw losses in first half

José María Marcos, director general for issuers at the CNMV, says 40 Spanish asset management firms, one out of every three, saw losses in January-June this year, Cinco Días reports. The deterioration of margins is the evident consequence of falling asset levels. In 2008, the number of asset management firms in the red was 34. Since their peak in May 2007, assets under management have fallen 38%.
02/10/2009

Gains of over 60% in 2009 for the best funds invested in French equities

From the beginning of the year to 25 September, according to data from Teleperformance SIX telekurs, the category of funds invested in French equities has posted average returns of 24.15%. Pluvalca France, managed by La Financière d’Arbevel, tops the rankings, with gains of 63.82%. It is true that in the fund from La Financière d’Arbevel small and midcaps represent 15% to 20% of the portfolio. On average, funds invested in this asset class have gained 34.42% since the beginning of the year, and the fund at the top of the rankings in this category is the Pluvalca France Small Caps fund, which has gained 67.01%.
02/10/2009

Espa closes subscriptions to New Europe Basket 2014 a week early

Erste Sparinvest (Espa) announced on Thursday that on 2 October, rather than 9 October, it will be closing subscriptions to its new fund of government bonds from countries of central and eastern Europe, entitled Espa New Europe Basket 2014 (see Newsmanagers of 15 September). According to the product manager, Edwin Triebling, the move comes as a result of high demand and a strong rise in the price of government bonds from central and eastern European countries recently. On the basis of current data, the fund is expected to return a minimum of 5% (it had initially aimed for returns of 5.25%). In light of the scale of demand, Espa is proposing to launch a new fund which will use the same investment strategy, with subscriptions to open for the new product on 9 November 2009.
02/10/2009

Cadbury sued by a fund

Steward International Enhanced Value Index Fund, which invests according to biblical and Christian principles, filed a legal complaint in the US alleging that Cadbury’s board breached its fiduciary duties by rejecting Kraft’s GBP10.2bn takeover approach. The US mutual fund holds 6,720 Cadbury shares.
02/10/2009

Funds will take 3-4 years to regain their levels at the end of 2007

According to Mariano Rabadán, president of the Inverco association of asset management firms, investment and pension funds will need three to four years to regain the asset volumes of EUR415bn seen at the end of 2007, when the crisis set in, Expansión reports. They are expected to finish 2009 with assets under management of EUR315-320bn.
02/10/2009

Union Investment launches a sustainable development fund

The UniNachhaltig Aktien Global fund, being launched by Union Investment (co-operative banks), is a global equities sustainable development product, which uses a stock-picking approach after environmental, social and governance (ESG) filters have been applied by the agency imug (Institut für Markt-Umwelt-Gesellschaft). Selection will be made from a universe of 2,800 businesses worldwide, from which imug will select 260 names. Then, the companies selected are passed through another filter which this time applies sustainable research from Union Investment. The shares are then selected based on a best-in-class approach, and are subjected to a parallel tradititional type financial fundamental analysis. The manager of the fund is Ingo Speich. Union Investment manages about EUR2.5bn in sustainable development. Characteristics Name : UniNachhaltig Aktien Global: ISIN : DE000A0M80G4 Front-end fee : 5% Management commission : 1.2% (maximum: 1.75%) Depository banking commission : 0.05%
02/10/2009

SRI provides high returns and a warm, fuzzy feeling

After noting that ecological sectoral funds in Germany currently represent assets of EUR826m, or about one third of the amount in biotech and pharmaceuticals funds, Börsen-Zeitung points out that regardless of the method used to compose funds (exclusion or best-in-class) SRI generates outperformance. According to a study by the Swiss asset management firm SAM (Robeco group) covering 2,500 businesses in all sectors, 20% of the most sustainable development-friendly businesses in 2008 posted performance 300 basis points higher than the 20% least sustainable development-friendly. Lucrative investments can also provide a good conscience, it seems, as long as the right fund is selected. According to the Sustainable Business Institute (SBI), the best sustainable development equities funds in the German-speaking countries (Germany, Austria, and Switzerland) in first half 2009 posted returns of about 53%, while the worst of them lost 7%. Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Sustainability World index gained about 28%.
02/10/2009

Redemptions outweigh subscriptions for funds

In August, securities funds on sale in Spain posted their first net subscriptions since April 2007 (see Newsmanagers of 2 September), totalling EUR402m. But in September, these funds saw further net outflows of EUR1.2bn, a phenomenon which the Inverco association of asset management firms blames primarily on issues on primary markets. In the first nine months of the year, net redemptions totalled EUR10.31bn, compared with EUR42.99bn in the corresponding period of 2008. Assets fell by 0.05%, or EUR77m, in September, to a total of EUR162.777bn as of 30 September, compared with EUR162.840bn one month earlier. Only two firms out of the top ten showed net subscriptions: Invercaixa Gestión and Ibercaja Gestión posted inflows of EUR80.9m and EUR126.5m, respectively, while BBVA Asset Management, Santander Asset Management and Ahorro Corporación saw net outflows of EUR673.5m, EUR172.3m and EUR268.2m. In terms of assets, BBVA Asset Management posted EUR32.36bn as of the end of September, putting it ahead of Santander Asset Management (EUR28.47bn) and Invercaixa Gestión (EUR12.66bn).
02/10/2009

Deutsche Bank launches 70 derivatives of db x-trackers ETFs

On Thursday, Deutsche Bank announced that it will be launching calls and puts, WAVEs, XXL WAVEs and discount certificates based on seven emerging markets ETF funds from db x-trackers on sale on its X-markets platform, for a total of 70 new derivatives. The products will allow investors to participate in an “extra-proportional” manner in the evolution of equities markets in emerging countries, including both negative and positive developments. Thorsten Michalik head of db x-trackers, points out that WAVEs and XXL WAVEs make it possible for the first time to make long and short investments with constant leverage on the selected indexes (FTSE Vietnam, MSCI Brazil TRN, MSCI EM TRN, MSCI Korea, MSCI Latam TRN, MSCI Taiwan TRN and FTSE/X. China 25 TRN). WAVEs and XXL WAVEs mature in November 2009, while options mature in December 2009 and June 2010. The new X-markets products will be traded from 8 AM to 8 PM on the Frankfurt and Stuttgart markets. They may also be traded until 10 PM off-market with Deutsche Bank, via several online brokers.
02/10/2009

Henderson infrastructure fund loses 2/3 of its value

According to Financial News Online, Henderson Group is in talks with investors and banks in a bid to refinance an infrastructure fund, Henderson PFI Secondary Fund II, whose value fell by 66% between 2006 and the end of June. The drop is linked to an investment made 3 years ago in John Laing, adds Financial News, which obtained a report sent to investors.
02/10/2009

EFG launches a bond fund

EFG Private Bank, the London-based affiliate of EFG International, has launched a bond fund in partnership with Stratton Street Capital. New Capital Wealthy Nations Bond Fund is a UCITS III fund domiciled in Ireland, which aims for returns of about 8%, and which maintains an average credit quality of single A for bonds in the portfolio.
02/10/2009

Threadneedle expands Sicav product range

Threadneedle announced on 1 October that it has launched a new Sicav platform, the Threadneedle (Lux)Sicav, of the World Express range from Standard Chartered. Since its acquisition in May 2009, the platform, domiciled in Luxembourg, has been under profound study with the objective of improving its integration within the Threadneedle product range. A total of 16 funds will now be managed directly by Threadneedle. Seven other funds of the range will be managed by sub-advisors. Some portfolios have changed names (European Small Cap Equities becomes Pan European Smaller Companies, Focused US Growth Equities becomes American Select), while the investment objectives for some products have been modified to better reflect the fund’s approach and the strategy of the manager.
02/10/2009

MEAG places institutional and retail management under a single command

MEAG Munich Ergo Asset Management (EUR186bn in assets), a joint venture from Munich Ré and the primary insurer Ergo, announced on Thursday that it is placing its institutional management and its management on behalf of retail investors under the single direction of Robert Helm, who since 2003 had been head of the institutional clients division. For his part, Max Plank, who was director of retail distribution, becomes general director of the asset management firm MEAG KAG, the operational affiliate of MEAG AM.
02/10/2009

3A launches a 100% UCITS III fund of hedge funds

Alternative Asset Advisors (3A), the alternative investment division of the Syz & CO Group, announced on Thursday the launch of a new fund of hedge funds, 3A Dynamic UCITS III. This product, a sub-fund of the umbrella Luxembourg Sicav Oceano, invests in UCITS III hedge funds, a universe which is increasing rapidly, according to 3A. At present there are approximately 200 such hedge funds. The fund, which is itself also compliant with the requirements of the UCITS III directive, comprises between 18 and 25 positions. 3A Dynamic UCITS III, aimed at professional clients only, seeks to achieve a low volatility of 2-4% with a return objective of 6-8% p.a. The fund will be available in three different reference currencies (USD, EUR and CHF) and will include several share classes. It offers bi-monthly liquidity.
02/10/2009

Old Mutual launches a bond fund

Old Mutual Asset Managers is to launch a bond fund domiciled in Dublin for the head of fixed income Stewart Cowley. The fund will be launched in December, and will be based on the same investment strategy as the Global Strategic Bond fund, domiciled in the United Kingdom, and also managed by Cowley. The fund will be attentive to its benchmark, without being dependent on the benchmark. In other words, it will not adopt positions for the simple reason that they are found in the index.
01/10/2009
Fonds

Mutuactivos mise sur les obligations des financières

La société de gestion de fonds de Mutua Madrileña, Mutuactivos, a lancé il y a une semaine le fonds Mutuafondo Bonos Financieros. Ce produit est investi en obligations de banques et de compagnies d’assurances européennes, ce qui est une manière plus conservatrice de miser sur les financières qu’en investissant en actions, rapporte Expansión.Le fonds, qui a déjà drainé 100 millions d’euros, est géré par Joaquín Álvarez-Borrás ; les valeurs dans le portefeuille seront notées au minimum BBB-, un cran au-dessus du junk bond, mais en fait le gérant se focalisera sur les leaders de chaque pays.Jusqu’au 15 octobre, la souscription se fait sans droit d’entrée. Au-delà de cette date, Mutuactivos facturera 3 % à la souscription ou en cas de remboursement avant trois ans.
Fonds
01/10/2009
Fonds

Lyxor compte neuf hedge funds de plus sur sa plate-forme de comptes gérés

Lyxor Asset Management a annoncé le 29 septembre qu’il compte désormais neuf hedge funds de plus sur sa plate-forme de comptes gérés, ce qui porte à plus de cent les fonds de ce type dans sa gamme. Depuis janvier 2009, Lyxor a régulièrement renforcé la diversification de son univers d’investissement, en ajoutant un nouveau hedge fund en avril, un en juin, un en juillet, quatre en août et un en septembre. Depuis le début de l’année, les actifs sous gestion de la plate-forme se sont ainsi accrus de 3 milliards de dollars.Le dernier fonds, lancé en septembre, est le Apollo Distressed Fund qui met en œuvre une stratégie «event driven» et «risk arbitrage».
Fonds
01/10/2009

Le Crédit Agricole va quitter les paradis fiscaux

Georges Pauget, le directeur général du Crédit Agricole a annoncé mercredi que la Banque verte se retirera des paradis fiscaux en 2010, rapporte la Tribune. La banque fermera ses filiales aux Bahamas et à Panama.
01/10/2009
Fonds

Les fonds obligataires ont le vent en poupe

Durant les huit premiers mois de l’année, les fonds obligataires américains ont drainé 209,1 milliards de dollars en net, alors que les souscriptions nettes des fonds d’actions se sont limitées à 15,2 milliards, d’après les statistiques de Morningstar, rapporte la Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. Neuf des dix fonds ayant enregistré les plus fortes rentrées nettes sont des produits obligataires.
Fonds
01/10/2009

Nyse Liffe tire bien son épingle du jeu en 2009

En dépit de volumes record en 2008, les volumes traités sur l’ensemble des produits dérivés (contrats futures et options) de Nyse Liffe, la filiale produits dérivés de Nyse-Euronext, n’ont baissé que de 1 % sur les huit premiers mois de l’année 2009, note la Tribune.
01/10/2009
Fonds

Nouveau fonds distressed lancé par GLG Partners

GLG Partners vient de lancer un nouveau fonds qui s’intéresse en priorité aux sociétés britanniques et européennes en difficulté, selon Hedge Week. Toutefois, le fonds favorise plutôt les titres négociables et liquides que les sociétés engagées dans des restructurations longues et difficiles, généralement recherchées par les activistes du distressed.Le fonds, qui pèse quelque 300 millions de dollars, était géré en interne depuis juillet 2008. Mais des rendements de 84% depuis janvier ont poussé GLG à lancer une offre spécifique à destination des investisseurs extérieurs.
Fonds
01/10/2009

Carsten Maschmeyer vend encore des actions Swiss Life

Fondateur du prestataire allemand de services financiers AWD, Carsten Maschmeyer, administrateur et actionnaire important de Swiss Life a une nouvelle fois vendu des titres de l’assureur suisse, rapporte la Börsen-Zeitung. Il aurait revendu en quatre fois un total de 302.000 actions pour environ 36 millions de francs suisses. Cela s’ajoute aux 35 millions de francs tirés de ventes effectuées durant les deux semaines précédentes.
01/10/2009

Unigestion veut se renforcer en Suisse

Dans un entretien à L’Agefi suisse, le président exécutif de la société de gestion genevoise Unigestion, Patrick Fenal, veut profiter du cadre réglementaire stable de la gestion alternative pour se renforcer sur son marché d’origine après s’être concentré sur son développement à l’étranger. «Nous avons toujours considéré la Suisse comme un marché intéressant. Nous avons fait beaucoup de paris sur l’étranger. Nous souhaitons désormais faire un effort particulier vers la Suisse, qui est un pays aujourd’hui davantage à l’abri de ce qui se passe dans l’Union européenne concernant les projets de réglementation, et bien organisée notamment dans l’industrie des hedge funds. Elle devient donc relativement plus attractive», explique au quotidien Patrick Fenal qui envisage l’ouverture d’un bureau à Zurich et une augmentation de ses effectifs de vente.
01/10/2009

La scission de Julius Baer Group est effective

A compter de ce 1er octobre, le gestionnaire d’actifs indépendant GAM Holding Ltd est séparé de Julius Baer Group et son action sera désormais coté sur la Bourse suisse SIX sous l’acronyme GAM.GAM Holding coiffe GAM Group AG et Swiss & Global Asset Management AG.
01/10/2009

Dominik Issler rejoint Martin Currie

Mercredi, Martin Currie a annoncé la nomination comme country head pour la Suisse de Dominik Issler, qui rejoindra le 4 janvier 2010. Il sera subordonné à Eric Bateman, director, head of European sales. Il était précédemment CEO de Fortis Investments/ABN Amro Asset Management pour la Suisse.

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