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11/10/2018

Exclusive: Amiral Gestion makes Sextant fund range available to Swiss investors

French boutique Amiral Gestion has registered its Sextant fund range in Switzerland in September, NewsManagers can reveal.The asset manager has confirmed the information. It is planning to register funds in Luxembourg and Italy.This includes the Sextant PME, Sextant PEA, Sextant Grand Large, Sextant Bond Picking, Sextant Autour du Monde and Sextant Europe funds.These Ucits funds are distributed through the Swiss firm ARM Swiss Representatives SA.Sextant PME had been reopened to subscriptions last 3 October after it was hard-closed in July 2017..
11/10/2018

Smith & Williamson appoints head of Fund Sales

London-headquartered investment firm Smith & Williamson has appointed David Barfoot to the newly-created role of head of Fund Sales. Barfoot joins Smith & Williamson from JP Morgan Asset Management, where he was sales executive director, covering discretionary clients including wealth managers, DFMs, fund of funds and private banks. Reporting to Ed Rosengarten and based in London, Barfoot will oversee the sales team and focus on growing the group’s funds’ assets.This includes the Short-Dated Corporate Bond fund managed by Ian Kenny, the Global Inflation-Linked Bond fund headed by Thomas Wells, the Enterprise fund led by Mark Boucher, and the Artificial Intelligence (AI) fund run by Chris Ford and Tim Day. Commenting on Barfoot’s appointment, David Cobb, co-chief executive at Smith & Williamson, said: “I am delighted that David has joined the firm to help accelerate the growth in this key area for Smith & Williamson. He has the right experience and ability to drive growth in our funds proposition, which includes access to exciting thematic opportunities as well as strategies providing diversified global inflation protection and proven UK equity long/short expertise.”
11/10/2018

GAM reportedly in talks with potential buyers

GAM Holdings is in informal discussions with potential buyers, to sell all or part of the firm, as it seeks solutions to stabilise after a star manager was suspended, according to reports in Bloomberg. The talks are at an early stage, and may not result in a sale of the business, according to the sources, who prefer to remain anonymous. The news has boosted GAM stock prices. A spokesperson for the firm did not wish to comment.
11/10/2018

Martin Gilbert steps down as Sky director

@page { size: 8.27in 11.69in; margin: 0.79in }p { margin-bottom: 0.1in; line-height: 115%; background: transparent }Martin Gilbert, co-CEO of Standard Life Aberdeen, has resigned fromhis position as a director at Sky, the British television group,following the acquisition of the group by the US group Comcast. Hehad been a director since 2011, and had sat as chairman of anindependent committee created to study takeover bids for the group.Gilbert had already announced that he would be leaving his job whenthe saga of the acquisition of the British company would reach aconclusion. His position was under challenge due to the accumulationof multiple responsibilities. Gilbert had also sat on the board ofdirectors at Glencore.
11/10/2018

Calvert adds four to ESG research team

Eaton Vance’s SRI subsidiary Calvert has appointed four senior ESG research analysts, all based in Washington and reporting to ESG research head Jessica Milano. Daniel Dorman joins Calvert from the US Treasury department where he held various positions at the offices of financial Institutions and Financial Stability, including senior advisor, senior policy advisor and senior investment manager. Prior to that, he served as a manager and analyst at JP Morgan Chase. Hellen Mbugua worked previously at IFG Development Group, where she was a vice president focused on due diligence and model construction and analysis. She also held roles at Adaris Capital, Pacific Alternative Asset Management and State Street Corporation. John Patrick Miller joins Calvert from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), where he held multiple roles including branch chief, technical and policy advisor and energy industry analyst. Other roles were with IMG-Crown Energy Services JV, Platts McGraw Hill and Financial TTN. Before joining Calvert, Daniel Rourke worked at the US Department of Agriculture, where he served as senior policy advisor on infrastructure finance, economic development, impact analysis and other issues. He also spent some time at the US Treasury. Prior to his government service, he worked in real estate private equity for Cafritz Company, The Carlyle Group and The Archon Group. Calvert’s AUM were worth $15bn as at 31 July 2018.
11/10/2018

Nordea sells non-performing loans portfolio

Nordea has reached an agreement with Norwegian company B2Holding for the sale of a portfolio of non-perfoming loans. Some 12,000 non-perfoming customer accounts, representing €388m of total debt, will be transferred to B2Holding, that operates debt collection company Nordic Debt Collection in Danemark.The transfer will occur on 31 October 2018. Furthermore six employees will be transferred to Nordic Debt Collection on 1 December 2018. Upon completion of the transaction, Nordea is expected to generate a capital gain of around €35-45m which will be included in the financial statements for 2019. “We let professional debt collection companies take over more of the non-performing accounts. Instead we can focus on our prevention work and help our customers avoid debt problems,” said Mads Skovlund, deputy head of Personal Banking, Denmark. B2Holding provides debt solutions to banks and institutional providers.
11/10/2018

Private equity sector raised EUR6.6bn in first half

The future is looking bright for French players in private equity. In the first half of 2018, the sector managed to raise EUR6.6bn, after EUR8.1bn in the first half of 2017, according to figures released yesterday by France Invest and Grant Thornton. “This is a high level, at a time when the discontinuation of the ISF PME fund, which raised EUR383m in the first half of 2017, has cut off a part of inflows,” France Invest comments in a statement.In the first six months of 2018, the capital raised has risen sharply from retirement funds and pension funds (+53% in one year), many of them foreign, and from sovereign funds (+75% compared with the first half of 2017), many of them Asian. Another reason to be pleased is that foreign investors represent 50% of inflows, which is “a positive sign about the attractiveness of French private equity,” France Invest says.In the first half of 2018, private equity players invested EUR6.1bn in 1,116 startups ,SMEs and mid-sized businesses, compared with EUR6.4bn in the first half of 2017. 19% of these investments were outside France, “2.6 times more than in the first half of 2017,” France Invest notes. The association also cites a steep rise in investment in innovation venture capital (+42% year on year to EUR809m), mainly in the range of single investments of EUR5m to EUR30m.Lastly, the liquidity of the private equity sector is becoming a reality. In the first half of 2018, 814 businesses were partially or totally sold.
11/10/2018

Finance sector in Geneva includes 35,600 jobs

@page { size: 8.27in 11.69in; margin: 0.79in }p { margin-bottom: 0.1in; line-height: 115%; background: transparent }TheGenève Place Financière foundation on Wednesday, 9 October,announced that the banking sector contributes 12% of the grossdomestic product of the canton of Geneva, adding that financialintermediaries were expressing confidence for 2018 and 2019.Theinstitution is hoping to create a partnership between the privatesector and the Swiss public authorities at all levels, to apply taxreforms for moral persons and maintain reasonable tax levels fornatural persons.Thefoundation notes that during the financial crisis, relationshipscould sometimes be tense between the financial industry and publicbodies.“Theparadigm change has come largely since Switzerland has adoptedautomatic information exchanges, which has ushered in a new era ofpeaceful public-private partnerships,” it says.Taxationfor moral and natural persons represents a major challenge forGeneva, the foundation says.“Onthe one hand, as far as taxation of moral persons goes, Geneva cannotallow itself to fail to adopt the ‘PF 17’ reform, if it hopes toremain competitive with its neighbours, such as the Canton of Vaud,which has already adopted these measures. Meanwhile, taxation is anindispensable tool to keep taxpayers in Geneva who paid in more thanCHF400m for the canton in 2016. In these two areas, the financialmarketplace calls on the political circles to show pragmatism,” thefoundation says in a statement.Accordingto data reported by Genève Place Financière, the Geneva financialsector currently has 35,600 employees, and most bankingestablishments are planning recruiting personnel.
11/10/2018

Tough autumn for Swedish funds

@page { size: 8.27in 11.69in; margin: 0.79in }p { margin-bottom: 0.1in; line-height: 115%; background: transparent }@page { size: 8.27in 11.69in; margin: 0.79in }p { margin-bottom: 0.1in; line-height: 115%; background: transparent }In September, funds on sale inSweden overall saw net redemptions of SEK3bn, or EUR287m, afterattracting SEK4.5bn in Augut, the most recent statistics from theSwedish fund association FondbolagensFörening show. Outflows were mainly from equity funds, from whichSEK2.7bn flowed out. All other fund categories show inflows ornear-zero flow levels. Since the start of the year, Swedish fundshave shown net inflows of SEK39bn, with SEK14.9bn to diversifiedfunds, and SEK6.2bn for equity funds.InSeptember, assets in funds on sale in Sweden fell slightly, to atotal of SEK4.405trn, or EUR421bn, with 59% of this volume in equityfunds.
11/10/2018

Chahine Capital adds to range of European equity funds

@page { size: 8.27in 11.69in; margin: 0.79in }p { margin-bottom: 0.1in; line-height: 115%; background: transparent }@page { size: 8.27in 11.69in; margin: 0.79in }p { margin-bottom: 0.1in; line-height: 115%; background: transparent }Chahine Capital, an assetmanagement firm specialised in quantitative momentum management, on10 October announced the launch of Digital Stars EuroFlex, a newflexible European equity fund. The firm now has six funds undermanagement. Digital Stars EuroFlex is based on the Digital StarsEurope Ex-UK fund as underlying, and includes a component of flexiblesystematic hedging for 0-100%, the asset management firm explains ina statement. “Shareholders in Digital Stars EuroFlex will alsobenefit from the outperformance capacities of Digital Stars EuropeEx-UK, and from dynamic hedging, calculated each month, for anypotential loss from the fund over a sliding one-year basis,”Chahine Capital adds. “Hedging relies on the use of listed futureson equity indices.”The management of the fund isprovided by Aymarde Léotoing. Accordingto Chahine Capital, the new product has “a profile which isparticularly well-suited to the needs of family offices, privatebanks, independent financial advisers and retail investors.”Thelaunch of Digital Stars EuroFlex has been accompanied by the creationof Digital Stars Eurozone, a fund compatible with Digital StarsEurope, being an equity fund for all cap sizes, investing in theEuropean Union, Norway and Switzerland, with the difference that itinvests exclusively in euro zone stocks.
11/10/2018

Loomis Sayles veteran Dan Fuss steps down from $5.6bn fund

Boston-based asset manager Loomis Sayles, an affiliate of Natixis Investment Managers, is set to make a few changes on the management teams of two funds, NewsManagers has learned.Veteran bond manager Daniel Fuss, who has been working at Loomis Sayles since 1976, will no longer serve as co-portfolio manager of the Loomis Sayles Investment Grade Bond fund effective 1 November 2018. Matthew Eagan, Elaine Stokes and Brian Kennedy will remain co-portfolio managers of the fund whose assets under management were $5.6bn as of 30 September 2018.Another change effective 1 November 2018 will be on the Loomis Sayles High Income fund ($170.5m of AUM as of end June 2018). Todd Vandam and Brian Kennedy will be added to the current management team composed of Matthew Eagan and Elaine Stokes.In a statement to NewsManagers, Loomis Sayles explains guidelines changes will implemented on the Loomis SaylesInvestment Grade Bond Fund and the Loomis Sayles High Income Fund at the start of November."These changes are largely in response to feedback from clients, as well as demand for flexible fixed income solutions without the volatility that can accompany currency and equity positions,» says Loomis Sayles.Regarding the changes in the management team of both funds, the firm comments: «We believe this is a well-earned opportunity for these managers to oversee the transition of these Funds. This is a natural extension of the work they’ve long been doing for institutional clients, where they manage across the spectrum of guideline flexibility. Dan will continue to co-manage the funds that can draw on the full multisector toolbox.»
11/10/2018

+33 %

En dépit d’un été calme, il s’est investi 12,8 milliards d’euros en immobilier de bureaux francilien de janvier à septembre 2018, indique Immostat. Soit une hausse de 33 % par rapport à la même période de 2017. Sur la base d’un volume de 10 milliards en France au quatrième trimestre, les investissements dans l’Hexagone « devraient dépasser les 25 milliards » pour Knight Frank, voire « s’approcher des 30 milliards », selon CBRE, pour qui l’immobilier de bureaux dans Paris Centre Ouest pourrait atteindre « le record du siècle ».
11/10/2018

Sang chaud

Outre-Manche, les « Brexiters » ne sont pas de fins diplomates. Manifestement, les nerfs du secrétaire d’Etat britannique aux Affaires étrangères, Jeremy Hunt (photo), le lâchent à l’approche de l’échéance du 29 mars prochain. Il n’a pas trouvé mieux que d’assimiler le comportement de l’Union européenne dans les négociations du Brexit aux agissements de l’Union soviétique des pires heures. Ayant passé une partie de son existence dans le bloc soviétique, Donald Tusk, le président du Conseil européen, a jugé la comparaison insultante. Polonais et libéral, Donald Tusk passe aussi pour être un allié du Royaume-Uni au sein de l’UE. Jeremy Hunt a perdu une occasion de se taire.
11/10/2018

Le transport maritime mondial se porte bien

Flotte. Après plusieurs années maussades, le transport maritime de marchandises se porte bien et la bataille tarifaire sur les échanges commerciaux que se livrent les Etats-Unis et la Chine ne devrait pas avoir de conséquences majeures sur les volumes d’échanges, à en croire les prévisions de la Cnuced. Le trafic maritime s’est accru de 4 % en 2017 et une croissance similaire est attendue pour l’année en cours, indique la Cnuced qui table sur une croissance annuelle moyenne de 3,8 % du transport par mer jusqu’en 2023. Ces prévisions sont susceptibles d’être remises en cause en cas d’escalade protectionniste, souligne l’organisation. La croissance du trafic est tirée par le transport de conteneurs et les vraquiers (vrac sec de matières premières). Les volumes transportés par tanker sont, en revanche, en recul. Le pavillon allemand est le principal transporteur par conteneurs avec une part de marché de 20 %. Les chantiers navals de Chine, du Japon et de la Corée réalisent 90 % de la production mondiale neuve de bateaux. Les chantiers de démolition se situent au Bangladesh, au Pakistan et en Inde.
11/10/2018

Soccer

Les échanges internationaux de services ne sont pas un problème pour Donald Trump. Et pour cause. Les Etats-Unis exportent plus de 70 milliards de dollars de services chaque mois et en importent de l’ordre de 45 milliards. Heureusement, car la Maison-Blanche aurait dû interdire la retransmission de la Coupe du monde de football. Le poste « propriété intellectuelle » de la balance commerciale a enregistré des importations supplémentaires de 600 millions de dollars en juin et juillet, des charges temporaires pour obtenir les droits de retransmission de la Coupe du monde de football, explique le BEA (Bureau of Economics Analysis).
11/10/2018
Gestion d'actifs

Une plate-forme de recherche sur la gestion institutionnelle

Ciblée. La société de conseil Mercer (MMC) et le fournisseur de données et de recherche Morningstar se sont alliés pour proposer aux investisseurs une plate-forme digitale de données sur la gestion institutionnelle, des analyses de performances et de la recherche qualitative. Ce rapprochement combinera la recherche ciblée de Mercer (6.000 sociétés de gestion, 32.000 stratégies) avec la recherche indépendante de Morningstar et ses bases de données sur quelque 252.000 fonds ouverts et ETF (exchange-trade funds), plus les comptes gérés et indices. Il permettra d’offrir une vision élargie des coûts et des opportunités avant les décisions d’investissement.
Gestion d'actifs
11/10/2018

La photo de la semaine

Adjugée, adjugée… disparue. A peine vendue 1 million de livres aux enchères chez Sotheby’s à Londres, la Fille au ballon de Banksy s’est auto-détruite grâce à un mécanisme que le facétieux artiste avait ingénieusement dissimulé dans son cadre. Le « graffeur » de Bristol s’est fait une spécialité de ces canulars qui moquent le snobisme d’un marché de l’art contemporain toujours prompt à s’enflammer pour les fausses valeurs. A ceci près que sa dernière trouvaille, en changeant la nature du tableau et en l’immortalisant, en accroît sans doute le prix, posant la question d’une éventuelle complicité de la maison de vente. En matière d’œuvres devenues performances, Banksy suit les traces de nombreux devanciers, comme Piero Manzoni, dont certaines des boîtes « produites » en 1961 laissent aujourd’hui échapper leur contenu.
11/10/2018
Gestion d'actifs

Le juste prix de la gestion

La gestion d’actifs ne vaut plus rien. L’américain Fidelity l’a clamé à la face du monde en lançant cet été des fonds indiciels cotés totalement gratuits pour contrer les géants des ETF aux Etats-Unis. Pourtant, ce grand nom de la gestion fondamentale n’annonce pas la fin du métier. Tout au plus celle d’un âge d’or qui voyait une industrie dégager de trop confortables marges sans toujours fournir à ses clients des performances d’égale ampleur (lire le Dossier, page 20).
Gestion d'actifs
Alexandre Garabedian

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