Les négociations devraient se prolonger en 2013 avant d’arriver à une position commune avec le Conseil Ecofin

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Le rétropédalage allemand sur la recapitalisation des banques par le MES ajoute à la volatilité ambiante

La chute des profits industriels atteint 6,2% en rythme annuel en août, à 47 milliards d’euros. Il s'agit du cinquième mois consécutif de baisse

La coentreprise chinoise de Lyxor Asset Management attend un rendement de 15 à 20% sur son nouveau fonds CTA lancé avec Winton Capital Management

Le périmètre et la gouvernance de la Banque publique d’investissement «font toujours l’objet d’intenses négociations entre Bercy et la Caisse des Dépôts», souligne le quotidien, selon lequel «il est désormais question d’élargir le périmètre d’intervention de ce nouvel acteur, afin d’en faire un véritable bras armé de l’Etat au service de toutes les entreprises».

Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (SWIP) a décidé de fermer trois fonds qui ne sont plus économiquement viables, rapporte Money Marketing.Les fonds concernés sont les fonds japonais, European Income et UK Real Estate qui ont subi une vague de rachats pénalisants pour la valeur d’actif net. Les investisseurs dans ces trois fonds pourront investir dans d’autres fonds de la gamme Swip sans frais d’entrée. Swip envisage par ailleurs de fusionner le Swip Pan-European Smaller Companies dans le European fund.

Hermes Fund Managers a lancé au Royaume-Uni un fonds actions petites et moyennes capitalisations américaines basé sur une stratégie gérée par son équipe américaine depuis plus de dix ans. Le produit est géré par Robert Anstey et son équipe.

La société de gestion italienne Anima Sgr fait son entrée parmi les actionnaires importants de l’assureur transalpin FonSai avec une participation de 2,4 %, rapporte Il Sole – 24 Ore. Cela fait suite à l’augmentation de capital de la compagnie d’assurances.

Azimut lancera en 2013 des fonds de droit italien qui seront investis en Turquie, a appris le site transalpin Bluerating, en marge d’une conférence de presse sur la présentation du partenariat entre la société de gestion italienne et le premier groupe de gestion d’actifs en Turquie Global Investment Holding. «Nous avons l’intention de lancer des fonds pour le marché italien qui cibleront principalement les taux turcs», a expliqué Giorgio Medda, le CEO d’Azimut pour le marché turc. En février, Azimut a investi près de 6 millions d’euros pour donner naissance à AZ Global, une société détenue à 60 % par Azimut et à 40 % par le partenaire turc.

Russell Investments envisage de lancer une version coordonnée de son fonds de croissance institutionnel multi-classes d’actifs, rapporte Citywire Global. Le fonds domicilié à Dublin, Russell Multi Asset Growth Strategy, attend le feu vert réglementaire pour un lancement qui pourrait intervenir d’ici à fin octobre. La stratégie non coordonnée fonctionne depuis 2009 et ses actifs sous gestion dépassent le milliard d’euros.

Selon les statistiques de l’association de la gestion allemande BVI, les 5.839 fonds enregistrés en Allemagne ont confié au 30 juin 2012 un total de 1.189 milliards d’euros aux banques dépositaires en Allemagne. Les banques dépositaires d’origine étrangères se taillent la part du lion. Elles conservent 689,8 milliards d’euros pour 2.376 fonds. Viennent ensuite les banques régionales (Landesbanken) avec 130,1 milliards d’euros pour 1.083 fonds. Les banques coopératives accueillent 122 milliards d’euros pour 499 fonds, suivis des grandes banques de réseau (115,1 milliards pour 649 fonds), des caisses d'épargne (81,2 milliards pour 494 fonds) et des banques privées (11,3 milliards pour 153 fonds). Les bancassureurs et les banques industrielles ont respectivement 11,3 milliards et 4,2 milliards d’euros en dépôt, confiés par 153 et 77 fonds.

The Luxembourg financial sector surveillance commission (CSSF) on 26 September issued a warning over the activities of an entity entitled Worldwide Investors Portfolio (a clone of an existing company), which claims to be based at 4, rue Jean Monnet, L-2180 Luxembourg (website http://www.worldwideinvestmentsportfolio.com/). According to information in the possession of the CSSF, the entity offers investment and investment advising services to persons contacted.“The CSSF Informs the public that Worldwide Investors Portfolio does not have the necessary license to provide financial services in or from Luxembourg,” a statement says.

Le FRR a lancé le 23 novembre 2011 un appel d’offres portant sur la sélection de mandats de gestion active investis en actions des pays développés exposées à la croissance des économies émergentes. Cet appel d’offres est composé de 2 lots : Mandat(s) de gestion active sur un univers de sociétés européennes Mandat(s) de gestion active sur un univers de sociétés étendu à l’ensemble du monde. A l’issue du processus de sélection, le FRR a décidé de retenir les offres suivantes : Lot 1 : univers Europe BlackRock Investment Management (UK) Limited Edmond de Rothschild Asset Management La Française AM Lot 2 : univers Monde J.P. Morgan Asset Management (UK) Limited Schroder Investment Management Limited Le montant global indicatif des fonds confiés à ces gestions pourrait s'élever à plus de 200 millions d’euros sur chaque lot.

Azimut will in 2013 launch Italian-registered funds which will invest in Turkey, the Italian website Bluerating reports. The announcement was made at a press conference to present a partnership between the Italian asset management firm and the largest asset management firm in Turkey, Global Investment Holding. “We are planning to launch a fund for the Italian market which will primarily target Turkish rates,” explains Giorgio Medds, CEO of Azimut for the Turkish market. In February, Azimut invested nearly EUR6m to create AZ Global, a firm 60% controlled by Azimut and 40% by the Turkish partner.

Harcourt Investment Consulting, an affiliate of the priate bank Vontobel, is seeking to strengthen its capacities in distribution in Asia with the recruitment of Claire Liou, a specialist in alternative management, finews reports. Liou will be based in Hong Kong, and will report to Ulrich Behm, CEO of Vontobel for the Asia-Pacific region. She will be in charge of developing the range of products and services from Harcourt in the region.

The Italian asset management firm Anima Sgr has become a major shareholder in the Swiss insurer FonSai, with a 2.4% stake, Il Sole – 24 Ore reports. The move follows a capital increase at the insurance company.

The head of Liontrust Asset Management, John Ions, claims that inflows to funds will in the future be controlled by “fewer and more powerful distributors,” Money Marketing reports. “Changes related to RDR regulations should not be underestimated. The accent is often placed on the prices and the consequences for the consumer, but these regulations also clearly indicate that the power in distribution is now crucial,” Ions says, adding that these developments represent “threats to take seriously for asset management firms of all sizes.”

The British authorities have arrested Kareem Serageldin, former global head of structured credit trading activities at Credit Suisse, the Wall Street Journal reports. He is one of three people facing criminal charges in the United States in a case in which he is accused of artificially inflating the value of mortgage-backed securities during the financial crisis. The United States will seek his extradition from the United Kingdom, where he resides. He has dual British and US nationality. The other two defendants in the case, Salmaan Siddiqui and David Higgs, have pleaded guilty.

Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (SWIP) has decided to close three funds which are not economically viable, Money Marketing reports. The funds concerned are the Japanese, European Income and UK Real Estate funds, which have seen a wave of redemptions which have penalised their net asset value. Investors on these three funds will be able to invest in other funds of the SWIP range without front-end fees. SWIP is also planning to merge the SWIP Pan-European Smaller Companies fund into the European fund.

Hermes Fund Managers has launched a US small and midcap equity fund based on a strategy managed by its US team for over 10 years. The product is managed by Robert Anstey and his team.

The CIO of Thames River, Mike Warren, has left the firm, Investment Week reports. His departure comes four days before he was to become head of retail activities at F&C.

Russell Investments is planning to launch a UCITS-compliant version of its institutional multi-asset class growth fund, Citywire Global reports. The Dublin-domiciled fund, Russell Multi Asset Growth Strategy, is pending regulatory approval for launch potentially by the end of October. The non-UCITS-compliant strategy has been in operation since 2009, and its assets under management total over EUR1bn.

Why are savings in financial assets on the decline? According to a survey undertaken by the European asset management association (EFAMA) of its members, two-thirds (65%) of industry participants thought that in current market dynamics lack of trust, market risk and poor performance were the most relevant factors behind the trend.The majority of the industry believes that better communication (81%), better advice (75%) and better understanding of investor needs (74%) is required at a distribution level to strengthen trust over market risk, highlighting the importance of investor education.91% of respondents believe that retail investors still need to become aware of the benefits of long-term savings, most importantly of the fact that long-term savings tend to generate higher returns than short-term savings. More than three-quarters (77%) of industry experts polled said the most relevant reason for this is because long-term savings provide access to equity risk premium and liquidity premium.The majority (72%) of members surveyed believe the most relevant way for the asset management industry to raise awareness of the importance of long-term savings is through convincing authorities at EU and national level to encourage long-term /retirement savings. The European industry also supported (58%) the idea of launching a common information initiative on long-term savings benefits to help raise awareness.Finally, the poll looked at factors that would encourage asset managers to develop funds specifically targeting long-term savings, 82% of respondents felt the most relevant factor would be to create greater incentives for retirement savings, followed by greater household demand for long-term savings products (65%) and 54% felt that a common EU framework dedicated to long-term investments for retail investors is needed.

On 21 September, the CNMV issued a sales licenses for the BBVA Bonos Patrimonio II, a guaranteed fund maturing on 22 July 2016 which aims for returns of 3.25% per year for shares subscribed to before 22 November 2012 at the latest. The portfolio will be invested in middle-quality bonds (BBB- rating) and in Spanish government bonds or guaranteed by the Spanish government, regardless of rating.CharacteristicsName: BBVA Bonos Patrimonio II, FIISIN code: ES0130357009Minimal subscription: EUR30,000Front-end fee: 5% from 23 November, or when assets reach EUR20mEarly withdrawal penalty: 0.03% until 22 November0.95% after 22 NovemberDepository banking commission: 0.02% until 22 November0.05% after 22 November

The German government on 26 September has passed a bill to regulate high-frequency market transactions or high-frequency trading, to seek to control risks of “extreme and irrational price fluctuations” related to this technology.The practice concerns about 40% of financial transactions within the European Union, and more than half of market trades in the United States. In particular, it was responsible for the Wall Street “flash crash” of 6 May 2010, caused by runaway computer systems.According to the German finance ministry, high-frequency trading has caused a steep increase in the risk of “extreme and irrational price fluctuations, system overloads, and potential for market abuses.” The measures passed on Wednesday aim to instil “more transparency, security and supervision,” which will make “the financial system more resistant to crises,” a statement from the minister says.The bill requires a license for traders who practice high-frequency trading. These traders will also be required to configure their systems in such a way as to avoid chain reactions on the market, which could lead to extreme scenarios.The German government also plans to impose a tax on those who make excessive use of the practice, and to increase the rights to information and intervention of the German financial market regulator, BaFin.The bill will be presented to Parliament by the end of the year, to be passed by February 2013 at the latest. It would come into effect in mid-2013.

Several big names in alternative management, such as Steve Einhorn (Omega Avisors), Harvey Eisen (Oak Advisors) and Michael Novogratz (Fortress) have agreed at a conference in New York that it is time to migrate bond assets to equities, Forbes reports.According to Novogratz, “Bernanke has told investors that he will push interest rates on bond instruments to such low levels that they will be forced to invest in riskier assets.”This opinion is shared by Eisen, who claims that the migration being considered could take some time, particularly for pension funds, which will not modify their allocations from one day to the next.According to a survey of the audience at the conference, which included hedge fund and institutional managers, European equities are expected to post the best returns in 2013, followed by US equities and gold.

Morgan Stanley has changed the name of its wealth management activities within Morgan Stanley Smith Barney, which will become Morgan Stanley Wealth Management. The activity was founded in 2009 as a joint venture of Morgan Stanley and Smith Barney. The broker-dealer activities will retain their current name of Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC.

The French pension fund FRR has launched a limited request for proposals process with a view to selecting up to three investment service providers to manage its transition process. The Transition Manager’s role and responsibilities shall be as follows: - to manage one or more portfolios assigned to it by the FRR during the transition periods. - to execute and, potentially, receive and transmit buy and sell orders on financial instruments originating from the FRR’s asset Managers for execution during the transition periods, subject always to the strictest confidentiality. The aim of these tasks will be to reconfigure the portfolios in accordance with the wishes expressed by the asset managers acting on behalf of the FRR to whom such portfolios will subsequently be transferred and reduce the overall costs that are customarily associated with such operations. In March 2010 the FRR appointed Goldman Sachs International and Russell Implementation Services Limited to carry out the same tasks. As this contract expires in March 2013, it is now necessary to relaunch a new selection process. The FRR estimates, on a purely indicative basis, that the amount of funds involved in the transition could fall within a spread of between one hundred million euros and two billion euros. Applications must reach the FRR before Monday 5th November 2012, 12.00, French time, on the terms and conditions set forth in the consultation regulations. All documents relating to this request for proposals are available on the dedicated platform http://www.achatpublic.com/accueil/frr/medias/ or on the FRR’s website www.fondsdereserve.fr