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.

The European equities management team at Edmond de Rothschild Asset Management, led by Philippe Lecocq under the responsibility of Bruno Vanier, director of equities management, consists of ten managers, one management assistant, and one analyst. As of 30 January 2009, it managed nearly EUR5bn in assets, and has recently been strengthened by the arrival of Olivier Huet, who will join the two managers specialised in large caps. Since October 2000, Huet has been an equities manager at OFI Asset Management.The European large caps equities team manages the Europe Rendement, Saint-Honoré Europe Synergie, Selective Recovery Europe, and Saint-Honoré Euro Opportunités funds. It also participates in the management of the Ecosphere Europe and Selective Recovery funds.

For 2008, profits at AWD Holding AG totalled EUR2.1m, compared with EUR55.2m the previous year (a fall of 96.2%), while pre-tax profits fell 73.7% to EUR22.7m, on earnings down ?only? 11.8% to EUR633m. The financial services provider, which is now owned by Swiss Life, will not distribute a dividend. The number of advisors has fallen 4.7% in one year to 6,009.

According to Lipper, assets under management in European ETF funds increased last year by 17.05%, to EUR108.42bn, while assets in equities ETFs, the most common type of ETF fund, increased by only 0.07%. However, ?other asset class? categories saw an increase of 130.16% to their assets, thanks in part to the success of come strategies such as short-selling, Funds People reports.

Franklin Resources, better known under the brand name Franklin Templeton Investments, has announced that it has increased its stake in Algebra Capital (Dubai), in which it purchased a 25% stake in September 2007, to 40%. In addition, William Y Yun, executive vice president of alternative strategies at Franklin Templeton, will become the director of Algebra Capital, alongside two other representatives of the American management firm. The operation will strengthen Franklin Templeton’s presence in the Middle East/North Africa (MENA) region. The two partners have already launched five MENA equities funds. Franklin Templeton is planning to continue its cooperation with Algebra to develop products.

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.

Selon La Tribune, la FED a indiqué qu’elle commencerait à acheter des obligations du Trésor américain à long terme (échéance 2016-2019) dès ce mercredi. Le montant de ces achats pourrait atteindre 300 milliards de dollars dans les six prochains mois, précise le quotidien.

Selon l’Agefi, près de 8,2 milliards de dollars d’ABS éligibles au TALF ont été émis depuis la semaine dernière, ce qui traduit la fin de la léthargie du marché de la titrisation américaine.Le secteur profite du Talf, dispositif piloté par la FED et qui offre aux investisseurs la possibilité de financer les achats de titres adossés à des actifs (ABS) éligibles. Le Trésor, qui pourrait porter le Talf à 1.000 milliards de dollars, a récemment «ouvert son éligibilité aux titrisations existantes pour nettoyer les bilans bancaires», rappelle notamment le quotidien numérique.

Le Banco Sabadell a offert aux investisseurs institutionnels de leur racheter la moitié d’une émission de 500 millions d’euros de titres préférentiels effectuée en 2006, rapporte Cinco Días. Ce rachat s’effectuerait à 42,5 % de la valeur faciale alors que les titres se négocient actuellement aux alentours de 30 %. C’est la première fois que la Banque d’Espagne autorise ce genre d’opération qui réduira légèrement le quotient prudentiel de fonds propres de premier rang.

Deux grands noms de l"analyse quittent Merrill Lynch, rapporte le Financial Times. Ainsi, David Rosenberg, l"économiste nord américain de Merrill, va partir en mai et retourner à Toronto où il rejoindra la société Gluskin Sheff & Associates. Richard Bernstein, chief investment strategist et patron du comité de recherche en investissement de la clientèle privée mondiale, est aussi sur le départ.

Les fonds dédiés souffrent d’une désaffection significative depuis l’automne dernier. Sur l’ensemble de l’année 2008, la collecte nette s’est inscrite en baisse de 25% à 8,32 milliards d’euros, selon les chiffres communiqués par la fédération professionnelle des fonds fermés (VGF Verband Geschlossene Fonds). Si les fonds placés dans l’assurance vie ou le private equity affichent des reculs de respectivement 58% à 359 millions d’euros et 60% à 742 millions d’euros, les fonds placés dans l’aéronautique font un bond de 165% à 703 millions d’euros. Les deux plus grosses lignes, l’immobilier et le maritime marquent des reculs de respectivement 26% à 3,05 milliards et de 22% à 2,48 milliards. Les réseaux de CGPI et les banques ont cumulé l’an dernier une part de marché de 81% dans la distribution des fonds dédiés

A fin 2008, indique le rapport annuel de la Deutsche Bank, le capital de la banque était détenu à 71 % par des institutionnels et 29 % par des particuliers, rapporte la Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. Les actionnaires allemands sont redevenus majoritaires (55 % contre 45 % un an plus tôt). Le nombre d’actionnaires a augmenté de 60 % à un record de 582.000 environ, un gonflement qui est presque exclusivement attribuable aux particuliers allemands, qui ont surtout investi au quatrième trimestre, donc après la faillite de Lehman, lorsque le titre a plongé de 44 %. La rémunération du directoire a plongé de 86 % à 4,5 millions d’euros, le bénéfice net record de 6,5 milliards d’euros de 2007 ayant été suivi d’une perte record de 3,9 milliards pour 2008.

Josef Ackermann, président du directoire, indique dans le rapport annuel publié mardi que la Deutsche Bank compte redevenir bénéficiaire cette année après la perte record de 3,9 milliards d’euros subie en 2008, rapporte le Handelsblatt. Cela s’il n’y a pas de nouvelles turbulences sur les marchés des capitaux comme après la faillite de Lehman Brothers et si la récession ne s’avère pas plus sévère qu’on ne l’escompte déjà.

? Les fonds dédiés souffrent d’une désaffection significative depuis l’automne dernier. Sur l’ensemble de l’année 2008, la collecte nette s’est inscrite en baisse de 25% à 8,32 milliards d’euros, selon les chiffres communiqués par la fédération professionnelle des fonds fermés (VGF Verband Geschlossene Fonds). Si les fonds placés dans l’assurance vie ou le private equity affichent des reculs de respectivement 58% à 359 millions d’euros et 60% à 742 millions d’euros, les fonds placés dans l’aéronautique font un bond de 165% à 703 millions d’euros. Les deux plus grosses lignes, l’immobilier et le maritime marquent des reculs de respectivement 26% à 3,05 milliards et de 22% à 2,48 milliards. Les réseaux de CGPI et les banques ont cumulé l’an dernier une part de marché de 81% dans la distribution des fonds dédiés

La Deutsche Bank indique dans son rapport annuel que les rémunérations du directoire ont totalisé pour l’exercice écoulé 4,48 millions d’euros contre 33,18 millions en 2007. Le président du directoire, Josef Ackermann, a vu sa rémunération tomber à 1,39 million d’euros contre 13,98 millions en 2007.

En 2008, Hannover Rück (Hanovre Ré) a accusé la première perte de son histoire, avec 127 millions d’euros. Ce réassureur, dont Talanx détient 50,2 %, vient d'être promu dans le Dax, mais cela ne satisfait pas son président du directoire Wilhelm Zeller, qui aurait préféré que le titre reste l’un des premiers du MDax, comme il l’indique à Die Welt. Le manager prévoit pour cette année un bénéfice net de 600 millions d’euros. Tous les risques ont désormais été sortis du portefeuille et l’allocation aux actions, qui était de 8 % fin 2007, est désormais pratiquement tombée à zéro.

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

As previously reported, BNY Mellon Asset Management is opening a branch office in Paris. For the past four years, the management firm has served the French market from its European headquarters in London. The Paris office, which will also serve Benelux, will be led by Anne-Laure Frischlander. She will be assisted by a team of 5 professionals.

Before the crisis, Mitsubishi UFG began seeking a more high-end client base to gradually transition the generalist bank towards wealth management, Les Echos reports. Since 2007, Mitsubishi has decided to mobilise JPY100bn (EUR760m) to redeploy its network and open 20 offices dedicated exclusively to this activity. The largest Japanese bank by asset volumes on Monday announced that 1,000 jobs will be cut, and a further 1,000 will not be replaced.