Pierre Simonet on 1 October joined the portfolio management firm PIM Gestion France, with assets of over EUR500m, as CEO and director.Béatrice Philippe remains chairwoman of the board of directors at the French firm, and CEO of its sister company Philippe Investment Management, based in New York.Simonet was a member of the French regulator CMF from 1998 to 2002. He also served as director and CEO of CPR Asset Management.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Agefi Switzerland reports that Christian Gast has been appointed director of iShares Switzerland from 1 November 2010. iShares offers exchange-traded funds (ETFs) from BlackRock and is hoping to strengthen its presence on the Swiss market. Previously, Gast was executive director at UBS Global Asset Management. Andreas Zingg also joined iShares on 1 November, taking over as head of sales for German-speaking Switzerland. He also previously worked at UBS Global Asset Management. “We will invest in the Swiss market and strengthen our team in the next few months,” says David Gardner, head of sales for iShares in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Clariden Leu, an affiliate of Credit Suisse Group, on 4 November announced in a statement that it has opened a representative office in Abu Dhabi. The office, which opened on Wednesday, is a sign of the bank’s ambition to strengthen its strategic presence in the Middle East. The bank is also present in Dubai and Cairo. “Our presence in Abu Dhabi will help us in the future to respond more quickly and individually to the wishes of our Middle Eastern clients,” says the CEO of Clariden Leu, Hans Nützi.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Thames River has delayed the launch of its global emerging markets absolute return fund until next year, Money Marketing reports. The boutique, bought by F&C this year, received considerable support for the fund, which was to be managed by Kristof Bulkai and Hugo Rogers.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } In the first nine months of this year, net subscriptions to retail funds domiciled and distributed in the United Kingdom totalled GBP17.9bn, compared with a record GBP18.9bn in the corresponding period of 2009, according to statistics from the Investment Management Association (IMA). In September, these net subscriptions totalled GBP2.4bn, compared with an average of EUR2.1bn in the past 12 months. Net inflows were over GBP2bn per month in 15 of the 18 months under review. They totalled GBP2.8bn in September 2009.As of the end of September, assets in retail funds domiciled in the United Kingdom totalled an all-time record GBP542.6bn, due to rising equities markets, compared with GBP516.1bn one month earlier, and GBP463.35bn as of 30 September 2009.The IMA says that for the third consecutive month, the asset class which attracted the most retail net subscriptions was bonds, with GBP914m in September and GBP3bn in third quarter. Equities funds attracted GBP760m in September and GBP2.1bn in July-September.Institutional funds attracted GBP1bn in September, less than in the previous months, as insurers transferred their assets to unit trusts and OEIC products (GBP5.36bn in August, for example).Lastly, the IMA states that foreign-domiciled funds as of the end of September represented GBP24.2bn, compared with GBP23.1bn as of the end of August, and GBP24.9bn one year earlier.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Government Pension Fund - Global (the former Petroleum fund), the second-largest sovereign fund in the world, earned returns of 7.2% in third quarter, bringing its value to NOK2.908trn, or about EUR356bn, the Bank of Norway announced on 4 November. “Better-than-expected results for some businesses and easing fears of an economic downturn in Europe contributed to rises for equities markets,” explained Yngve Slyngstad, CEO of the investment direction at the Bank of Norway. The equities portfolio gained nearly 10%. In the past quarter, the fund took on an added NOK49bn the to the contribution of oil revenues by the government. However, currency effects wiped out NOK132bn, as the appreciation of the Norwegian kroner mechanically reduced the value of investments in foreign currencies. The Bank of Norway also announced that it has made its first foray into real estate investment, in Regent Street in London, with the acquisition of 25% of a real estate portfolio owned by the Crown Estate for GBP448m. The fund will receive a share of rents from shops and offices in the street for a period of 150 years. 5% of the value of the fund will eventually be invested in real estate, in other countries, so as not to distort the Norwegian market. The fund was previously 60% invested in equities, and 40% in bonds.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } According to a research by Reinhold & Partners, cited by Agefi, the French alternative management industry is not competitive. “A detestable image and no domestic market are two major obstacles to any slight inclination to setting up in the country, and any possible development for existing companies,” conclude the writers of the research, who spoke to about 200 international players, in partnership with the French asset management association (AFG). French alternative asset management does not attract investments from major funds of funds, family offices, or pension funds, which further accentuates the gap from managers based in the United Kingdom or Switzerland. 66% of French-speaking managers surveyed, and 80% of English-speaking managers, say that setting up in France brings no competitive advantage. The research also blames the French tax regime, which is unattractive.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Schroder has announced that it has registered its emerging markets long/short fund Schroder GAIA Sloane Robinson Emerging Markets (see Newsmanagers of 24 September) with the CNMV for sale in Spain. In addition, the British management firm has registered two other funds from its GAIA (Global Alternative Investor Access) platform: the Schroder GAIA Opus Multi Strategy (multi-strategy) and Schroder GAIA QEP Global Absolute (market neutral global bonds). The Schroder GAIA Egerton European Equity had already been registered in Spain for several months (see Newsmanagers of 11 February).

AFG (the French investment management association) at a press conference on 4 November welcomed the publication of a report by the French high committee for the markets on the strategy and development of the French management industry. The president of AFG, Paul-Henri de la Porte du Theil, who co-chaired the working group whose proposals were approved on 15 October by the Minister for the Economy, Christine Lagarde, emphasized the need for a successful transposition of the UCITS IV directive. This means, among other things, a transposition which would be rapid, to be completed before the end of March 2011, with a public consultation launched before the end of December. It would be a literal transposition without gold plating, and would be an occasion to strengthen the readability and competitiveness of the regulatory framework and therefore of product offerings.With this in mind, de la Porte du Theil argues that there are too many technical obstacles discouraging investment by non-residents. “If we want to attract investors, it is indispensable for them to understand the rules,” he said. Therefore, the working group has made a certain number of recommendations, including setting up a reference for OPCVM funds on the Paris market by 2012, which would allow management firms to better understand the passive for funds that they manage, through order marking, and to promote direct orders in a secure framework, in oder to allow foreign investors to establish a direct relationship with the management firm, and to develop a system in France similar to that of the transfer agent.AFG will also actively participate in the international promotion of asset management, and set up better coordination of all parties concerned, including AFG, asset management firms, regulatory and public authorities, and will aim to mobilize the entire industry ecosystem. A framework dedicated to international promotion will be set up under the umbrella of the AFG, which will have added means to deploy this strategy.

The planned AIFM directive, which will be definitively passed on 11 November, is not a step in the right direction, says the AFG. “The directive includes positive aspects and negative aspects. The positive aspects are numerous, including maintaining freedom of investment for professionals and application waiting periods. But there is one major negative element: the passport,” Paul-Henri de la Porte du Theil, president of the French investment management association AFG, said at a press conference on 4 November.“Even the philosophy of the passport is bad,” de la Porte du Theil insisted. The problem is the extension of the passport to non-European companies by 2015, insofar as this widely-discussed opening of the doors will give them the same rights as European companies without subjecting them to the same requirements. “Non-European management firms should be required to set up in Europe, in areas with serious regulation. We missed an opportunity to repatriate funds and jobs, and we will be exposed to competition distortions, since the ‘light’ zones, even if they pledge to apply European governance principles, will remain ‘light.'” the AFG president claims.AFG therefore argues that it is essential to strengthen the role of the new European regulator, the ESMA, which will have the double duty of overseeing the establishment of a genuine European label, and ensuring a minimal competitive equity with offshore funds. “The most important responsibilities to devolve to the ESMA are determined, but the details of their application are not yet,” de la Porte du Theil warns.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The political consultant at the centre of the pay-to-play scandal concerning the Common Retirement Fund of the State of New York (USD125bn), Henry “Hank” Morris, has pleaded guilty in the corruption case, the Wall Street Journal reports. Morris, a political advisor to the former Comptroller of New York, Alan Hevesi, was accused by prosecutor general Andrew Cuomo of taking bribed “disguised” as investment commissions in exchange for intermediating mandates for management firms. Hevesi was last month the seventh person to plead guilty in the case.

According to new research by Hedge Fund Research and Glocap cited by the Financial Times, year-end bonuses for US hedge fund employees will increase by 5 per cent this year – after rising on average by 15 per cent in 2009. The average fund manager at a small hedge fund could expect an annual compensation, including bonus, of about USD1.23m.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Of EUR16.54bn in net subscriptions in January-September to securities funds monitored by the German BVI association of management firms, the Allianz Global Investors group is well out in front, with inflows of EUR12.71bn, thanks to EUR13.88bn in inflows to Pimco Europe. The DWS/DB Advisors/DB group (Deutsche Bank), for its part, attracted EUR1.67bn, solely due to EUR3.57bn for its ETF affiliate db x-trackers. Among other ETF specialists, BlackRock, with its iShares funds, attracted EUR800.5m, and ComStage attracted EUR565.1m, However, ETFlab (Deka) saw net outflows of EUR390.2m. For the other two major generalist firms, Deka (savings banks) saw net redemptions of EUR4.48bn, and Union Investment (co-operative banks) saw ent outflows of EUR2.19bn.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } On 2 November, the Norwegian central bank (Norges Bank) notified the CNMV that it controls 3.152% of Gamesa Corp Technologica SA. The investment is on behalf of the Government Pension Fund – Global (GPFG), formerly known as the Oil Fund. The acquisition represents about EUR40m at current prices.The other major shareholders are Iberdrola, which as of 3 November held 16.137%, and BlackRock, with about 8.3% of the total, of which 4.93 percentage points were acquired on 3 November.

Next week, the US high yield asset management firm Muzinich (USD9bn) will announce the launch of a sixth sub-fund of its Irish Sicav. After the Short Term Duration High Yield (see Newsmanagers of 30 September and 22 October), which was recently released for sale, the firm will release the Bond Yield ESG in France, a largely Euro SRI fund, with 80% of its positions rated investment grade, and 20% high yield investments.The new product was licensed by the AMF on 27 August, at the same time as the Short Term Duration fund. It will have a duration of 5-6 years, and will be seeded with USD50m from Scandinavian clients. The consultant for the new best-in-class fund will be Sustainanalytics.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } On 24 September, March Gestión de Fondos created the Spanish-registered fund March New Emerging World, which uses the MSCI Emerging Markets index as its benchmark; the product was registered by the CNMV on 29 October.The portfolio may be up to 70% invested in other funds. It will be at least 75% exposed to emerging markets equities, and up to 20% in equities in businesses in OECD countries which earn 5% to 50% of their profits from emerging markets. The fund may also invest up to 20% in commodities via indices or derivatives.Management of the product will be undertaken by Santiago Montero Ruíz, head of multi-management.CharacteristicsName: March New Emerging WorldISIN code: ES0160933000Management commission: 1.9%

Le gestionnaire alternatif coté a dégagé au titre de son premier semestre, clos fin septembre, 227 millions de dollars de bénéfices avant impôts, 5,8% de mieux que ses prévisions de pré-clôture. Les actifs sous gestion ont grimpé à 40,5 milliards de dollars à fin septembre, contre 38,5 milliards trois mois plus tôt. Ces résultats ne prennent pas en compte GLG Partners, intégré depuis le 14 octobre.

L’opérateur boursier transatlantique a indiqué avoir achevé la migration de ses marchés cash et dérivés européens vers le centre de données de Basildon, au Royaume-Uni. Une opération similaire se poursuit aux Etats-Unis, avec le centre de Mahwah (New Jersey).

Le gestionnaire d’actifs australien a repris ses discussions avec Axa quant à une éventuelle nouvelle offre sur la filiale asiatique de l’assureur français, Axa Asia Pacific, a annoncé vendredi la société cible, selon Reuters.

La société de conseil, détenue majoritairement par Carlyle, prévoit de céder 14 millions de titres à un prix unitaire compris entre 17 et 19 dollars. En milieu de fourchette, l’offre devrait permettre à Booz Allen de lever quelque 252 millions de dollars.

«Vous pouvez investir dans BlackRock et nous continuerons à être un partenaire stratégique pour un très long moment», a déclaré le directeur général de Bank of American, Brian Moynihan, au lendemain de l’annonce d’une cession de 34,5 millions de titres. Ce placement secondaire réduira la participation de BoA dans BlackRock de 33,9% à 12,6%.

Troisième refinancement pour la tour CB 21 située à la Défense. Bayern LB, DG Hyp, Berlin Hyp et LBB viennent d’arranger un financement à hauteur de 270 millions d’euros pour ce bâtiment loué aux deux tiers à Suez Environnement. En juillet 2009, FDR avait refinancé CB 21 pour 290 millions d’euros sur 5,5 années auprès de banques différentes.

Le ministre allemand des finances, Rainer Brüderle, cité par le journal, souhaite toujours réduire le niveau des impôts d’ici 2013, même si la réduction du déficit budgétaire reste la priorité actuelle. Même si le but à court terme est de simplifier le système d’imposition, le potentiel de baisse des impôts dépendra in fine de l’ampleur de l’activité.

La banque britannique a cédé ses activités ferroviaires à Star Capital, Morgan Stanley Infrastructure et 3i Infrastructure pour 2,1 milliards de livres

La ministre de l’économie et des finances a estimé que la décision de la Fed de lancer un nouveau round d’assouplissement quantitatif de 600 milliards de dollars devrait mettre une pression supplémentaire sur la valeur de l’euro, selon le quotidien qui évoque un entretien. «L’euro supporte le poids de cette décision» a estimé Christine Lagarde.

La politique de la Fed tranche avec les statu quo de la BCE et de la BoE, exacerbant les mouvements observés sur le marché des changes.

Bonne nouvelle de fin d’année en perspective pour les gérants américains de hedge funds. Le quotidien cite une enquête menée par Hedge Fund Research et Glocap selon laquelle leur bonus devrait progresser en moyenne de 5% (après une hausse de 15% l’an dernier). Un signe de retour en grâce du secteur selon le quotidien.

Au lendemain de l'annonce par la Fed de son plan de rachats, les « statu quo » de la BCE et de la BoE ont accentué le repli du billet vert

L’AFG estime que les encours sous gestion ont progressé de 2,2 % en 2010 sur neuf mois, à 2.670 milliards d’euros. Ceux des OPCVM seuls ont cédé 2,1 %

Sur les 15 milliards d’euros d’économies prévus sur quatre ans, 6 milliards sont annoncés pour l'an prochain