La BCE met en garde contre une résurgence de la crise de la dette
Le rapport de stabilité financière de l'institution indique qu'en dépit d'une amélioration dans la zone euro, la situation reste fragile
La Fed met sous tension les taux longs américains
Le rendement des Treasuries a bondi de 50 pb en un mois, relançant les spéculations sur la fin du rally
La Fed met sous tension les taux longs américains
Le rendement des Treasuries a bondi de 50 pb en un mois, relançant les spéculations sur la fin du rally
Allianz France vise 5 % de son allocation en placements privés non cotés
Martine Legendre-Kaloustian, Responsable des investissements long terme d’Allianz France, à la rédaction de www.institinvest.com : Aujourd’hui, le portefeuille d’Allianz France contient entre 2% et 3% de Private Equity et private debt, et à moyen terme aura 2% de dettes infrastructures . « Tous ces actifs devraient représenter à moyen terme environ 5% du portefeuille d’Allianz France (contre un peu plus de 3% actuellement), indique Martine Legendre-Kaloustian. Cette part est relativement importante car il s’agit d’actifs illiquides et l’investissement nécessite un important travail de préparation, de mise en ??uvre et de suivi. Nos concurrents n’ont pas forcément le même positionnement même si la tendance est au développement des classes d’actif adossées à de la dette. Dans le Private Equity, Martine Legendre-Kaloustian gère en direct un petit portefeuille de participations stratégiques dans une dizaine d’entreprises. Mais l’essentiel des investissements sont réalisés par le biais des asset managers « maison » qui choisissent des fonds (environ 200). Plus précisément, l’assureur fait appel à deux grandes équipes : Idinvest Partners (ex-AGF Private Equity) avec lequel il garde des liens forts et Allianz Capital Partners qui emploie une cinquantaine de collaborateurs. Enfin, Martine Legendre-Kaloustian investit également dans quelques fonds externes en private equity et en Private debt et dans des véhicules de place (par exemple le FCDE visant à aider les entreprises qui ont souffert de la crise mais ont un potentiel de rebond). Pour l’equity infrastructures et l’investissement dans les énergies renouvelables, Martine Legendre-Kaloustian s’appuie sur l’expertise d’Allianz Capital Partners.
La croissance du PIB américain révisée en légère baisse
Elle ressort en deuxième estimation à 2,4% en rythme annualisé au premier trimestre
Plus de 40.000 chômeurs de plus en avril en France
Le nombre de chômeurs a augmenté de plus de 40.000 en France en avril, a rapporté le quotidien Les Echos sur son site internet, à quelques heures de la publication des chiffres officiels des demandeurs d’emploi pour le mois dernier. En mars, le nombre de chômeurs dans la catégorie la plus regardée en France métropolitaine avait battu son record, à 3.224.600.
La Wallonie pourrait nationaliser un site d'Arcelor
La Région wallonne réfléchit à une nationalisation d’installations d’ArcelorMittal à Liège, un projet qui fait écho à celui, avorté, qui avait été imaginé en France pour les hauts-fourneaux de Florange. Fin janvier, le numéro un mondial de la sidérurgie a annoncé son intention de fermer une cokerie et six lignes de production sur son site belge de Liège, une décision qui affectera 1.300 salariés.
Les ventes à la suite de saisies reculent aux Etats-Unis
Selon RealtyTrac, les ventes de biens immobiliers aux Etats-Unis liées à des saisies ont chuté de 22% au premier trimestre en base annuelle, la hausse des prix ayant atténué l’intérêt d’une vente pour les propriétaires qui doivent davantage que la valeur de leur bien. D’un trimestre à l’autre, la baisse des cessions s’élève à 18%.
Légère réduction du déficit du compte courant canadien
Le déficit du compte courant du Canada s’est légèrement resserré au premier trimestre de 2013 pour totaliser 14,1 milliards de dollars canadiens (10,4 milliards d’euros), contre 14,6 milliards (chiffre révisé) au dernier trimestre de 2012. Selon Statistics Canada, le déficit sur le commerce des biens est tombé à 1,7 milliards de dollars sur la période contre 2,1 milliards le trimestre précédent.
L’Esma autorise une nouvelle agence de notation
L’Autorité européenne de supervision des marchés financiers a formellement donné son feu vert à Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), une nouvelle agence de notation de crédit basée au Royaume-Uni. Cet enregistrement prendra effet à compter du 3 juin. Il y actuellement 20 agences enregistrées dans l’Union européenne et deux autres certifiées.
Progression inattendue des inscriptions au chômage aux Etats-Unis
Les inscriptions hebdomadaires au chômage aux Etats-Unis ont enregistré une hausse contre toute attente lors de la semaine au 25 mai, à 354.000 contre 344.000 (révisé) la semaine précédente, a fait savoir le département du Travail. Cette augmentation inattendue devrait diminuer les craintes de voir la Fed mettre un coup de frein plus tôt que prévu à son programme de rachat d’actifs.
30/05/2013
KKR hires former CIA head
David Petraeus, the former U.S. Army general who resigned last year as CIA chief, is joining KKR, the giant private-equity firm, according to The Wall Street Journal. The former general will be chairman of a new internal «institute» focused on macroeconomic forecasts, communications, public policy and advice on investments in emerging markets.
30/05/2013
Assets and profits up at Reyl group
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } As of 31 December 2012, the Geneva-based Reyl group posted assets under management of CHF7.3bn, which corresponds to an increase of 61.8% year on year. Assets in private onshore management and corporate finance have leapt 72.4%, to CHF5bn, while those at Reyl Asset Management increased 43%, to CHF2.3bn.The group has also announced that its net profits for 2012 were up 69.8% compared with the previous year, to CHF8.8m.
30/05/2013
AUM at Pictet top CHF300bn
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Assets under management at Pictet as of the end of March totalled a record CHF301bn, passing their pre-crisis peak, Agefi Switzerland reports.
30/05/2013
Appointments in AM at Bank Sarasin
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Swiss private bank Bank Sarasin on 29 May announced several internal appointments to its Asset Management, Products & Sales unit. Jan A. Poser becomes head of research into asset management and sustainability, with immediate effect. Philipp E. Bärtschi is promoted to chief investment officer, Private Clients, with the mission of investment strategy and management of assets for private clients. Daniel Graf becomes head of the unit dedicated to institutional clients, with immediate effect.
30/05/2013
Natixis AM reshuffles sales team and adopts an international orientation
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } According to reports in Agefi, Natixis AM (NAM) will transfer most of its sales teams to Natixis Global Asset Management (NGAM), the holding company which supervises NAM, the real estate management firm AEW, and a collection of US boutiques. The objective is to significantly increase the proportion of NAM products, which remains very low. To that end, NGAM will create a new Luxembourg Sicav. The idea is also to better sell US expertise in France. 53 sales, customer service, marketing and communications professionals will in autumn begin to report to Hervé Guinamant, chairman of NGAM Distribution Internationale. At NAM, Philippe Zaouati, deputy CEO and head of socially responsible investment (Mirova), says the 130 remaining employees will primarily be dedicated to assisting the networks of BPCE, the parent company of Natixis.
30/05/2013
Blackstone withdraws its money from SAC Capital Advisors
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Blackstone is planning to ask SAC Capital Advisors to redeem nearly USD400m, twice as much as had been planned at the beginning of the month, the Wall Street Journal reports, citing sources familiar with the matter. This sum represents most of Blackstone’s capital invested in SAC, sources say. This reflects growing concerns regarding the future of SAC, which is under investigation for insider trading. Although the sum of USD400m is low compared with the USD15bn under management by SAC, the decision by Blackstone is being closely watched by other clients, the WSJ comments. An institutional investor, Ironwood Capital Management, has also asked SAC Capital Advisors to redeem USD100m that it had invested in the firm.
30/05/2013
Kerry James promoted at Robeco IM
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } To replace Paul Healey, who will be retiring at the end of June, the US firm Robeco Investment Management has appointed Kerry James as head of institutional distribution, from 1 June. James, who since 2009 has been based in Rotterdam, where she is head of international distribution, will move to Boston. She will be responsible for institutional sales, relationships with consultants, client relationship management, and marketing. She had previously been responsible for sales of US products to institutional investors in Europe and Asia.Jan Feeney. co-CEO of Robeco IM, states that assets at the US affiliate of Robeco have increased from USD12bn at the end of 2008 to USD35bn as of the end of March 2013.
30/05/2013
SAC suffers USD100m divestment
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } An institutional investor, Ironwood Capital Management, has asked SAC Capital Investors, the hedge fund at the centre of an insider trading investigtion, to redeem USD100m that it had invested in the firm, the Wall Street Journal reports, citing sources familiar with the matter. Ironwood had been an investor since 2007. Its withdrawal is related to the fact that SAC has announced that it will no longer be providing investors with updates on the government investigation and is no longer cooperating unconditionally with the investigation.
30/05/2013
Strong increase in inflows to UCITS funds in Q1
UCITS enjoyed a surge in demand in the first quarter to EUR 130 billion, marking the largest quarterly net inflows since the first quarter of 2006, according to the European Fund ans Asset Management Association’s latest quarterly statistical release. This compares with net sales of EUR 78 billion in the previous quarter. Investor confidence on the economic outlook strengthened in the first quarter as financial markets around the globe enjoyed a strong start to 2013, all of which fed into the high net sales of UCITS.Net sales of equity funds increased to EUR 44 billion, from EUR 30 billion in the fourth quarter of 2012, while net sales of balanced funds surged during the quarter to register net inflows of EUR 36 billion, compared to EUR 13 billion in the fourth quarter of 2012. Bond funds continued to attract strong net inflows of EUR 44 billion, albeit down from EUR 61 billion in the previous quarter. Net outflows from money market funds fell during the quarter to EUR 2 billion, compared to EUR 28 billion in the previous quarter. Total UCITS net assets rose 5.5 percent during the first quarter to stand at EUR 6,641 billion at end March 2013. Total net assets of non-UCITS increased by 3.9 percent in the first quarter to stand at EUR 2,751 billion at end March 2013.The combined assets of the investment fund market in Europe, i.e. the market for UCITS and non-UCITS, increased by 5.0 percent in the first quarter to break through the 9 trillion euro mark to stand at EUR 9,393 billion at end March 2013.
30/05/2013
BNY Mellon AS recruits from State Street
BNY Mellon has hired Jeff Pamplin as head of client service management in EMEA for its alternative investment services (AIS) business. Pamplin will lead the company’s team of specialists serving hedge fund administration clients throughout the EMEA region. He is based in Dublin and reports to Carol Andrews, head of AIS EMEA service delivery.Pamplin joins BNY Mellon from State Street, where he led the integration of their Goldman Sachs Administration Services acquisition. BNY Mellon has more than USD575 billion of alternative assets under administration and custody and an extensive global presence.
30/05/2013
BVK reshuffles investment unit
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The largest public retirement fund in Germany, with assets of EUR55m, the Bayerische Versorgungskammer (BVK), on 29 May announced a reorganization of its investment unit, which since February has been led by André Heimrich, who replaces Daniel Just, who has been promoted to chairman of the managing board.The investment unit is now structured into four divisions: equities and alternative investments, fixed income products, real estate property management and management of real estate investments.The fixed income product division is led by Constantin Echter, and has assets of UR46.3bn. It covers bonds, real estate credit, credit for infrastructure projects, fixed income structured products and spread investments.The equity and alternative investment division, which has 12 staff, is led by Anselm Wagner. It is responsible for about 20% of investments by BVK. If includes hedge funds, private equity, timber, and infrastructure. It also co-ordinates the engagement of BVK in the area of sustainable development, for all asset classes.Real estate property management has about EUR3.5bn in assets under management directly, led by Alois Pröbstl, while the real estate management division, led by Norman Fackelmann, is responsible both for real estate investments in Germany, which represent 4.4% of total assets, and international real estate funds, which represent 5.1% of total assets.
30/05/2013
Banca MPS launches fund in bonds from Italian SMEs
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Italian bank Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena has launched a fund, in partnership with Finanziaria Internazionale and the Italian employer union Confindustria, investing in bonds from Italian mid-sized businesses not listed on the stock exchange, Bluerating reports. The fund, entitled Minibond, with a duration of 7 years, will be closed and reserved for qualified investors. Its total size will be from EUR100m to EUR150m. This will allow Italian businesses to benefit from a new source of financing.
30/05/2013
Vanguard cuts management commissions for six funds
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } On 28 May, Vanguard announced that it is lowering the total expense ratio to 0.10% from 0.13% for its Dividend Application ETF (ticker VIG) and cutting the fees for five traditional mutual funds.The latter include the Dividend Appreciation Index (VDAIX), whose commission is being cut to 0.20% from 0.25% for the Investor share class. Commission is reduced to 0.26% from 0.28% and 0.29%, respectively, for the Energy (VGELX, Admiral share class) and Precious Metals & Mining (VGPMX, Investor share class), to 0.29% from 0.31% for the Dividend Growth (VDGIX, Investor share class), and to 0.31% from 0.34% for the Energy fund (VGENX, Investor share class).Vanguard states that this reduction in commissions has been made possible by the positive evolution of the markets, as well as by a high volume of subscriptions. Which has allowed it to pass on economies of scale.
30/05/2013
Barclays offers multi-managed bond fund
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } According to Expansión, Barclays has launched the Barclays MultiManager Bond Portfolio, a bond fund for which the management of each asset class segment is outsourced to the best manager in the category. Liquidity is daily and the minimal subscription is EUR1,000.
30/05/2013
Madoff: HSBC and Genevalor reach settlement
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } HSBC and Genevalor, the promoter of the Thema International fund, which had invested in Madoff, have reached an agreement to end a case filed on 30 April this year in Dublin, which was expected to last 14 weeks, Agefi Switzerland reporst. Thema had accused HSBC of negligence in its role as a depository bank for assets placed with the New York-based manager. The Irish-registered fund was seeking USD1.5bn. The terms of the agreement have not been disclosed. Officially, neither party admits fault in the surveillance of the Thema fund. The UCITS vehicle had USd1.1bn in assets under management when Bernard Madoff was arrested, on 12 December 2008. The terms of the agreement are subject to the approval of shareholders in Thema, which will hold a general shareholders’ meeting in July. The new out-of-court agreement will likely bring many lessons for other depository banks which were custodians of funds placed with Madoff, the newspaper reports, particularly UBS, as depository for the Luxalpha fund (USD1.4bn in assets).
30/05/2013
S&P Dow Jones Indices launches new low-vol index
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The index provider S&P Dow Jones Indices on 29 May announced the launch of a new low-volatility index, the S&P Nordic Low Volatility Index, which aims to measure the performance of the 30 least volatile securities in the S&P Nordic Broad Market Index (BMI). The countries that make up the S&P Nordic BMI are Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden. The new index comes as an addition to the range of low volatility indices, which includes the S&P 500 Low Volatility Index and the S&P Europe 350 low Volatility Index.
30/05/2013
Intesa Sanpaolo regroups asset management activities in Eastern Europe
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Italian Intesa Sanapolo group will unite all of its asset management activities in Eastern Europe in a single unit. The new structure, entitled Hub, will be controlled by Eurizon Capital SGR, the asset management affiliate of the Italian banking group, with 50.1%, while the Slovak bank VUB Bank will take 40.6%, and the Croatian PBZ Bank will have 9.3%. It represents assets under management of about EUR2bn, which will be within the perimeter of Eurizon Capital SGR. The objective with the project is to “strengthen the asset management activities of the group in Slovakia, Hungary and Croatia, and developing managed savings in the countries of Eastern Europe,” a statement says. The partner bank will have facilitated access to Eurizon products.
30/05/2013
EdRIP prend un ticket dans le groupe MCI
La société Edmond de Rothschild Investment Partners (EdRIP) a annoncé mercredi 29 mai prendre une participation minoritaire au capital du groupe MCI au travers du fonds Winch Capital 2. MCI est spécialisé dans l’organisation de congrès scientifiques pour le compte notamment d’associations et d’institutionnels, et dans l’organisation de conférences et d’événements pour le compte d’entreprises. Le groupe possède 47 bureaux répartis dans 23 pays et a réalisé un chiffre d’affaires de 337 millions de francs suisse en 2012. Il s’agit de la quatorzième opération pour Winch Capital 2.
30/05/2013
Mirae plans to develop in Europe
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The South Korean asset management firm Mirae Asset Management is planning to develop its activities in Europe in the next few months, Asian Investor reports. The chief marketing officer at Mirae, Ashley Dale, will visit Euorpe next week to evaluate needs. Mirae, whose assets under management total about USD57bn, is also preparing two ETFs for the Hong Kong market during June, which is another area of development for the asset management firm. The first ETF will replicate the MSCI China index, while the second will replicate the Hang Seng High Dividend Yield.