Vontobel has appointed Georg Schubiger as the new head of its Private Banking business unit with effect from 1 September 2012. He will take over responsibility for the private clients business from Peter Fanconi, who has decided to pursue a new professional challenge outside the group. As a member of the Group Executive Management, Georg Schubiger will report directly to Zeno Staub, CEO of the Vontobel Group. Over the last 10 years, Georg Schubiger has held various senior management functions within the Northern European Danske Bank Group, where he was most recently a member of the executive board. In addition to this, he brings with him experience of conducting business in Eastern Europe and Russia, which are among the Vontobel Group’s focus markets.

Robert Lacoursiere, a partner at Paulson & Co, left the firm last week, and is planning to launch his own hedge fund, Bloomberg reports.After four years at Paulson, Lacoursiere is planning to set up an equity hedge fund in the next six months, which will focus on international financial establishments.Paulson underwent record losses last year, including more than 50% for one of its largest funds, Bloomberg reports.

Ossiam, an affiliate of Natixis Global Asset Management, on 15 March announced the launch of a new exchange-traded fund (ETF) based on a minimum variance strategy index, on the London, Frankfurt, Milan and Paris stock markets. The new ETF will offer investors access to a key market segment, emerging markets, with a reduced risk profile. It follows the launch of the strategy ETFs OSSIAM ETF iSTOXX EUROPE MINIMUM VARIANCE NR, OSSIAM ETF US MINIMUM VARIANCE NR and OSSIAM ETF FTSE 100 MINIMUM VARIANCE.The addition of the new fund to the minimum variance product range from Ossiam allows investors to diversify a global portfolio whose objective is to reduce volatility and drawdowns. The new ETF will be listed on 19 March 2012 on Xetra in Frankfurt, on 19 March 2012 on Borsa Italiana in Milan, on 22 March 2012 on NYSE Euronext Paris, and on 26 March 2012 on the London Stock Exchange.The fund replicates the rising and falling performance of a new strategy index from the research team at Ossiam, the Ossiam Emerging Markets Minimum Variance (Bloomberg OEMMVNR). The index is calculated and published in real time by Standard & Poor’s. The index is composed of a dynamic sample of 400 of the most liquid equities from a universe composed 85% of the market capitalisation of the S&P IFCI index. The S&P IFCI index is a global index, which tracks the performance of major businesses in 20 emerging markets (composed of about 1800 shares and ADR). The Ossiam Emerging Markets Minimum Variance index aims to reduce the volatility of a portfolio composed of shares from emerging markets. Its volatility is on average more than 30% lower than that of the benchmark index (here the emerging markets S&P IFCI), which results in a significant reduction in drawdowns.TER for the fund is 0.75% per year.

The German real estate fund DEGI Europa from Aberdeen, which is under liquidation to be completed by 30 September 2013, has sold the WestendGate tower (55,000 square metres) in Frankfurt to RFR Holding and Stenham Property, for an undisclosed amount, which increases liquidity in the fund to 16% from 10% previously. The property, which contains the Marriott Hotel and also has 27,000 square metres of office space, was acquired in 1988, and was renovated in recent years to make it a green property.The fund had EUR845.3m in assets as of the end of January.

NYSE Euronext on 15 March announced that it has added the LVIX ETF from Lyxor, which replicates the S&P 500 VIX FutureEnhancedRoll index, on Euronext Paris, bringing the total number of ETFs listed in Europe by NYSE Euronext to 596.CharacteristicsName: Lyxor LVIXISIN code: FR0011160290TER: 0.70%

According to reports in Investment Week, Liontrust Asset Management has made redundant Ian Furtado, director of sales at its new affiliate Occam, acquired in October. The other two sales personnel at the boutique, David Shephard and Edward Ford, remain at the firm, and will be in charge of international sales.

The global equities team led by Ilario Di Bon at Alliance Trust Investments has gained the addition of Adrien Bommelaer (formerly of Matrix Corporate Capital) and James Twyman (formerly of AllianceBernstein), Fundweb reports.

According to the British MEP Peter Skinner, cited by Reuters, a last-minute agreement in the European Parliament will allow for the reinsertion into the Solvency II directive of clauses easing the capital requirements for insurers, Agefi reports.

ESMA has announced that it considers the regulatory frameworks for credit rating agencies (CRAs) of the United States of America, Canada, Hong Kong and Singapore to be in line with European rules. The EU Regulation (EC) No 1060/2009 on Credit Rating Agencies requires ESMA to assess whether the requirements of third-country CRA regimes are “as stringent as” the European ones.Today’s announcement allows European financial institutions to continue using for regulatory purposes credit ratings issued in these countries after 30 April 2012. ESMA’s assessment of third-country CRA regimes is an important tool for enhancing internationally consistent supervision of CRAs in the interests of protecting financial markets and investors in the EU.

Two months after taking over as global head of BBVA AM, Paloma Piqueras has reshuffled teams and apointed Luis Megías as director fo Europe, after serving as head of Goldman Sachs Quartix for the Iberian peninsula in London, Funds People reports. Megías had been head of sales at BBVA AM until mid-2010.Eduardo García Hidalgo has been appointed as chief investment officer for Europe, replacing Olivier Asselin, who has left the business. Hidalgo was head of the Quality Funds unit (fund platform). He will be replaced by Belén Blanco, head of innovation and product development.

The US alternative management firm Blue Mountain has created a specialised vehicle, Alpine, which will be in charge of liquidating the derivatives portfolio acquired from Crédit Agricole, allowing the latter to reduce its risk-weighted assets by EUR14bn, the Financial Times reports, citing information from Jean-Yves Hocher, CEO of Crédit Agricole CIB. Alpine will be fed by existing BlueMountain funds and new subscriptions.The transfer will concern market-making activities in structured credit which Crédit Agricole shut down three years ago, leaving thousands of derivative contracts based on corporate bonds which will mature in the next six years. Crédit Agricole retains the counterparty risks.

The former Quilvest & Associés Gestion d’Actifs, currently known as Q&A Gestion d’Actifs, is now adopting the name Alma Capital & Associés, following an acquisition of 51% of its capital by Alma Capital, while two of its three founders, François Genovese and Florence Albaret, retain 40% and 9% of capital, respectively. The third founder, Thierry Bourgain continues to serve as a director of the firm, but has sold his stake.Alma Capital is specialised in private equity and distribution of unique niche products, to institutional investors. It launched a fund in November (Alma USD Convertibles), a sub-fund of the Luxembourg Sicav Alma Capital Investment Funds (ACIF), which is presently legally managed by a local affiliate of La Française AM. The product is managed under an outsourcing contract by Shenkman Capital Management, a specialist in convertible bonds in the “best part of high yield.”Q&A, for its part, is a portfolio management firm which has been licensed since 2005 by the AMF, and which offers personalised service mostly to high net worth individuals and families. Its assets, in private and collective management, total about EUR200m.

Results at the French investment firm Eurazeo moved into negative territory last year, as predicted at a publication of half-yearly results, with a net loss for the part of the group of EUR97.5m, according to a statement released on 16 March. The firm earned profits of EUR134.6m the previous year, in adapted figures.Earnings in the 2011 fiscal year totalled EUR4.2bn, compared with EUR3.8bn in 2010. As of 8 March, reevaluated net assets totalled EUR57.2 per share, well above the share price of EUR38.33 as of Thursday evening.

The Qatar Holding fund, controlled by the oil-rich Gulf state, has acquired 1.03% in the capital of LVMH, Les Echos reports. The entry into the capital of the French firm took place in 2011, the reference document released by LVMH, and published yesterday by the French financial market authority, the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF), indicates. The stake is valued at about EUR680m. The new shareholder is required to declare to the group controlled by Bernard Arnault that it has entered its capital at the general ahareholders’ meeting on 5 April, as it has passed the statutory threshold of 1%.

Joseph Pacini, head of alternative investments at JP Morgan Private Bank (Asia), is joining BlackRock Alternative Investors (BAI) as head of the strategy group Asia-Pacific ex Japan, Hedgeweek reports. He will be based in Hong Kong, and will report to Mark McCombe, chairman of BlackRock Asia-Pacific, and Rick Arney, head of hedge funds in the strategy group at BAI.As of the end of December, alternative assets under management by BlackRock totalled USD105bn worldwide (hedge funds, private equity and real estate).

In order to protect retail investors who rely on the services of a family office, Luxembourg is preparing a law to determine which professionals are allowed to provide this service, making the Grand Duchy the first European country to regulate these activities, Funds People reports. The Bill on the activities of family offices explains in its preamble that creating these regulations will make Luxembourg a centre of excellence in this area.The bill was submitted on 1 December, and will soon have concluded its way thorough Parliament. It limits family office activities to credit institutions, investment advisers, wealth managers, certain lawyers, notaries, auditors and accounting experts, and creates a PSF Family Office license.

Polaris has selected H2O Asset Management to manage a sub-fund of its Luxembourg-registered Polaris fund, the Italian website Bluerating reports. The mandate is worth EUR100m, and is for a total return bond strategy.

Fidelity Worldwide Investment has launched a Global Demographics Fund to tap into social trends such as the world’s population getting bigger, wealthier and older.Fidelity Funds Global Demographics Fund, managed by Hilary Natoff and Nicky Stafford, is an unconstrained portfolio of around 50-80 stocks where demographic trends are the dominant influence of the earnings power of a company. The universe of around 1,000 companies is currently weighted towards healthcare and consumer stocks where many companies are set to benefit from an ageing population and the emergence of middle classes in emerging markets. However, investment opportunities are not confined to these sectors, the fund managers have also identified ideas in other industries including IT, agriculture-related businesses, aerospace companies.The fund will invest in two types of company. The first are called the ‘winners of today’. These are primarily global leaders, dominant in their respective areas. The second type of company is described as the ‘winners of tomorrow’. These are typically leaders in new growth markets, or innovators bringing new products to market which will play directly into demographic themes with the potential for strong future growth prospects.Fidelity Funds Global Demographics fund is a Luxembourg-domiciled SICAV.

Last year, 419 open-ended funds were launched in Germany, while 436 funds were closed, not counting closed-ended funds, according to statistics from the German BVI association of asset management firms. The number of new funds created has been at its lowest since 2005, with a peak in 2007 at 1,113 launches. In 2010, 482 funds were launched, while 389 were closed.Due to the development of the equities market, it is not overly surprising that the most negative population growth in 2011 was in the equity fund category, with 110 launches and 170 closures. However, creations of diversified funds totalled 128, while there were 93 closures.

The UK’s big pension funds now own a smaller slice of shares quoted on the London stock market than at any time for nearly half a century, Henderson Global Investors reports. Figures from the Office for National Statistics claim that ownership has slipped to just 9% of the total – the lowest since 1963. The “cult of equity,” based on the belief that equities will outperform all other asset classes over the long term, is losing its appeal. However, UK’s pension funds are not completely neglecting equities, as they are increasingly focusing on non-UK equities. And foreign investors, including sovereign funds, consider the shares attractive long-term investments. Foreign owners now control about 40% of the UK equity market, which was valued at GBP1.8tn as the end of December 2011.

F&C Investments has seen net outflows in 2011 of GBP7.2bn, the firm has announced at a publication of its annual results. These outflows have come largely from strategic partnerships. Assets have fallen from GBP105.8bn as of the end of 2010 to GBP100.1bn as of the end of 2011, and underlying operating profits have fallen from GBP67.2m to GBP65.2m. Despite that decline, net revenues increased from GBP243.2m to GBP267m as of the end of 2011. F&C has also announced that the first phase of its strategic review has been completed, and that the second phase will begin in May 2012. A cost reduction plan for GBP33.2m will also be completed by the end of 2012. Alain Grisay, CEO of F&C, has confirmed that he will be leaving the group following its general shareholders’ meeting in May.

Dans un communiqué, La Française AM a annoncé une prise de participation à hauteur de 25% dans le capital de Flornoy & Associés Gestion. Cette dernière est une société de gestion de portefeuille indépendante avec une majorité de son capital détenu par les associés fondateurs et des clients partenaires.

Selon le département du Travail, les inscriptions hebdomadaires au chômage ont diminué pour s'établir à un plus bas de quatre ans aux Etats-Unis lors de la semaine au 10 mars, à 351.000 contre 365.000 (révisé) la semaine précédente. Les économistes attendaient en moyenne 356.000 inscriptions au chômage.

La RBI a laissé ses taux inchangés après une baisse de 75 pb du ratio des réserves obligatoires, alors que l’inflation remonte à 6,95% en février

Les derniers indicateurs macroéconomiques confortent les espoirs de reprise et de fin de la politique de taux bas de la Fed avant 2014

Le recul des prix a atteint un record de 11,2% l'an dernier. Les ventes de logements saisis par les banques mettront la pression en 2012

Ils ne pourront plus financer certains établissements dégradés, mais ces derniers profitent déjà, grâce à la LTRO, d'un financement bon marché

Les banques européennes pourront continuer à utiliser les notes émises aux Etats-Unis, l'Esma ayant tranché hier un feuilleton vieux de plus d'un an

Les espoirs de reprise se répercutent sur les taux des titres d’Etat américains qui ont pris près de 30 points de base en cinq jours. Certains analystes estiment que la Fed renoncera à toute forme de QE3 et reviendra sur sa politique de taux proches de zéro plus tôt que prévu.

«C’est le bon moment pour investir dans les actifs européens dépréciés et sous-évalués, la dette européenne et les obligations de la zone euro» a confié au quotidien Lee Kuan Yew, conseiller senior du fonds souverain singapourien GIC et ancien Premier ministre de la ville-Etat de 1959 à 1990. Et de rappler que « la Chine a 3.180 milliards de dollars de réserves de change ».