Henderson Plc on Thursday, 1 July announced that it the Irish-registered OEIC fund New Star European Growth has been integrated into the Luxembourg Sicav Henderson Horizon, as of 18 June. The fund will now be known as the Henderson Horizon European Growth Fund. The mutual fund, managed by Richard Pease and Simon Rowe, has assets of EUR84.2m. The operation follows the acquisition of New Star Asset Management by the Henderson Plc group in 2009. Characteristics Name: Henderson Horizon European Growth Fund Structure of the fund: Complex UCITS III SICAV Currency of the fund: EUR Minimal subscription: EUR2,500 or USD2,500 for retail share class Front-end fee: Maximum 5% Management commission: 1.75%

The Dutch pension fund PGGM, which manages about EUR80bn in assets, is seeking a senior manager or director of investments for its portfolio of responsible equities, Responsible Investor reports. The team which manages the fund already has nine members. PGGM, which dedicated EUR1bn to this strategy in 2008, would like to increase assets in the fund to EUR2.2bn during 2010. PGGM has also announced that it has decided to exclude the Indian mining firm Vedanta Resources from its investment portfolio.

Threadneedle has appointed Quentin Fitzsimmons as lead manager for two bond funds, the Threadneedle Absolute Return Bond and Target Return funds, previously managed by Peter Annwright and Stuart Frost, who have recently left the firm to join RWC. Fitzsimmons, who has been head of government bonds since 2003, made significant contributions to the growth of absolute return strategies, and it would be an exaggeration to attribute the success of these strategies solely to the two managers who have moved to RWC, Threadneedle says in a statement. Assets in the two funds concerned totalled over EUR2.3bn as of the end of March, within fixed income (EUR22bn in assets under management in total). Threadneedle has also recruited Vladimir Gerasimia, who will join the team specialised in emerging market debts, a,dn who previously worked at Fortis Investments. Another new arrival, Richard Stevens, previously of Old Mutual Asset Managers, joins the government bond team.

On Thursday evening, Commerzbank announced that it has sold its Kleinwort Benson activities to the private equity investor RHJ International. These include the wealth and fiduciary management firms Channel Islands Holdings Limited and Kleinwort Benson Private Bank Limited. Their assets in wealth management as of the end of 2009 totalled GBP5.6bn (EUR6.3bn); the firms have about 600 employees.

Gartmore on 30 June announced the appointment of Charolotte Gibson as head of marketing. Gibson, previously of JP Morgan AM, will join Gartmore in mid-July. She will report to Richard Pursglove, head of UK retail. Gibson will lead a team of 12 people in charge of advertising, client relationships, and other elements of the distribution chain.

Fund Strategy reports that Old Mutual Asset Managers (Omam) has dismissed Mark Allpress, head of UK retail sales, in a reorganisation of the firm. As of 30 April this year, assets under management at Omam totalled GBP4.4bn.

Société Générale Corporate & Investment Banking announced on Thursday that it has added to its range of ETF services for European institutional investors, extending its ETF lending and borrowing service, and acting as market maker for five new series of options based on French-registered ETF funds from the Société Générale affiliate Lyxor Asset Management. The funds concerned are Lyxor ETF DJ Stoxx 600 Banks, Lyxor ETF DJ Stoxx 600 Oil & Gas, Lyxor ETF DJ Stoxx 600 Basic Resources, Lyxor ETF DJ Stoxx 600 Telecommunications and Lyxor ETF China Enterprise.

The head of institutional distribution at ComStage ETF (Commerzbank), Levente Kulcsar, on 1 July became director and head of ETF activities for Germany and Austria at Credit Suisse. Meanwhile, Annabelle Wegner is leaving RBS/ABN Amro, where she worked in the structured products team, to join the ETF division of Credit Suisse. ETF assets at Credit Suisse represent CHF12bn, or EUR8.4bn. The ETF product range from Credit Suisse currently includes 31 funds with a sales license in Germany.

Six months after the appointment to the managing board of Jan Ehrhardt, head of research and portoflio design activities, and son of founder Jens Ehrhardt, DJE Kapital on Thursday announced that Ulrich Kaffarnik and Peter Schmitz have been promoted to become members of the board. Kaffarnik will be head of investment funds, institutional and retail clients, while retaining his position as head of the Luxembourg affiliate DJE Investment. Schmitz, an economist, will become head of finance, administration, and service center. With Eberhard Winberger, the board includes five members.

Dirk Popielas, co-head of the pensions & insurance advisory group at the JP Morgan investment bank, has been appointed as head of insurance solutions for the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region at JPMorgan Asset Management. Popielas will be based in Frankfurt, and will report directly to Jamie Broderick, CEO of JPMAM for Europe, who is based in London.

Kai Brunko has left ING Real Estate Investment Management Germany, to take on the newly-created position of asset manager for the retail sector at LaSalle Investment Management in Munich, from 1 July.

Benjamin Phillips a partner at the New York firm Casey & Quirk & Associates, says traditional asset managers are looking for simple ways to bank profits, independently of the prevailing trends on equities and bond markets, Handelsblatt reports. Kevin Packenham, CEO of Jefferies in London, says that more than half of the 41 mergers and acquisitions this year (January-May) involved alternative managers. Jamie Broderick, CEO of JPMorgan AM for Europe, also in attendance at the Monaco Fund Forum, predicts that the number of transactions will increase, as banks and insurers are seeking to unload their asset management affiliates, and may now be able to do so at a more attractive price than last year. Kevin Pakenham estimates that the number of deals in 2010 will not rival the 140 deals signed last year, but Martin Gilbert, head of Aberdeen, thinks this number will be exceeded.

The Fitch Ratings agency on 1 July announced that it is confirming its Asset Manager rating of M1 for the management firm Alcentra (Bank of New York Mellon) for its European management activities. The decision reflects the stable track record of activities at Alcentra (CLO), and efforts at diversification which have been embarked on, into areas including special situations and structured funds.

Fund Strategy reports that Neuberger Berman has launched a global equities fund with no constraints, entitled Global Thematic Opportunities, which replicated the strategy of the Global Opportunities fund. The new UCITS III-compliant fund is domiciled in Dublin, and will be managed by MLG Group (which is owned by Neuberger Berman). Minimal initial investment has been set at USD10,000. Management fees are 2% per year for retail investors. The fund will initially be available in US dollars and Euros.

Two months after its launch, the Mandarine Capital Solidaire FCPR fund, whose portfolio is composed of 40% non-publicly traded shares issued by solidaristic organisations, has announced its first two investments in solidaristic organisations: Autonomie et Solidarité, and Habitats Solidaires. Autonomie et Solidarité is a cooperative company with variable capital, specialised in solidaristic investments to finance businesses in the process of creation, acquisition, or development of their activities. Habitats Solidaires is a cooperative collective interest company with variable capital, which aims to improve the housing placement conditions for individuals and families excluded from housing in the Paris region for economic or social reasons.

Diversity Inversiones (ES0126908039) is a “free investment company,” or SIL, and is the second hedge fund aimed at high net worth private clients from BBVA Patrimonios. The product will be managed by the alternative management affiliate Omega Gestión. The objective is to generate annual performance of 9-12%, with ex ante volatility of 10%, through investments of at least 35% of assets in 8 to 20 Spanish-registered hedge funds (FIL), funds of FIL funds, feeder funds, or commodities ETFs. The product, which offers monthly liquidity, requires a minimal initial subscription, as required by law, of EUR50,000. BBVA Patrimonios charges fees of EUR7,512 per year, plus a commission of 0.3% on assets.

The decline in assets in Spanish securities funds in June slowed to about EUR0.4bn (to a total of EUR152.7bn), from EUR5.2bn in May (see Newsmanagers of 2 June), but net redemptions increased to EUR3.33bn, from EUR3.16bn. According to the Inverco association of management firms, these are the worst results since November 2008. And in first quarter, net outflows totalled EUR11.3bn. According to statistics from Ahorro Corporación, net redemptions totalled as much as EUR4.5bn, the highest since October 2008.

Fund Strategy reports that the British financial mediation service has asked Barclays to reimburse GBP17,192 to a prudent client who was led to invest in a high-risk fund. The bank has also apologised to the client for the delay in addressing her claim. The client, Sue Murton, initally invested GBP52,000 in April 2007, in a fund (Aviva Global Balanced Income) which then changed formats and moved into the high-risk category; but the client was never informed. In response to an initial claim, Barclays offered compensation of GBP8,374, though in March 2009, the value of the client’s investment had fallen by GBP21,000.

Mercredi après-midi, à Monaco, dans le cadre du Fund Forum International, sept dirigeants (CEO) de sociétés de gestion européennes se sont réunis à huis clos, pendant trois heures, autour d’Eddy Wymeersch, le président du CESR, le comité des régulateurs européens. Parmi eux figurait notamment le français Dominique Carrel-Billiard, CEO d’Axa Investment Managers*.Cette réunion fermée, organisée sous l’égide de l’Efama (l’association européenne du secteur de la gestion d’actifs), qui était notamment représentée par son président Jean-Baptiste de Franssu, également CEO d’Invesco Europe, avait pour objectif de permettre aux dirigeants de débattre librement avec le régulateur représenté par Eddy Wymeersch.Selon le communiqué de presse de l’Efama publié jeudi, les participants ont abordé le sujet de l’engagement actionnarial. «Les sociétés de gestion doivent aller au delà d’une approche court termiste et engager un dialogue sur le long terme avec les entreprises dans lesquelles elles investissent», indique le document. «Le groupe a reconnu qu’il est essentiel de trouver un juste équilibre entre leurs devoirs fiduciaires envers les investisseurs et leur rôle d’investisseur, et de trouver les mécanismes appropriés pour un engagement efficace», poursuit-il.Les dirigeants se sont aussi penchés sur les ETF, «dont le rôle et le comportement suscitent une inquiétude grandissante parmi les régulateurs, surtout après le flash crash du 6 mai», selon Jean-Baptiste de Franssu, lequel ne partage toutefois pas ces craintes. «Les régulateurs ont besoin de mieux comprendre cette activité», a-t-il estimé. Pour Peter De Proft, directeur général de l’Efama, également présent à la session fermée, les discussions autour des ETF s’inscrivaient dans le cadre d’un souci général de transparence. Pour lui, il est important que les fournisseurs d’ETF donnent davantage d’informations sur leurs sites, ces produits pouvant être achetés librement et directement par les investisseurs.Les CEO se sont par ailleurs exprimés en faveur de la création d’un produit d’épargne long terme paneuropéen qui puisse répondre aux besoins de la population vieillissante d’Europe. Ils ont également abordé le sujet de la supervision, et plus particulièrement celui de la création du régulateur européen ESMA et de l’impact pour le secteur de la gestion d’actifs. Enfin, le sujet des dépositaires a aussi été débattu. (*) Dans le détail, la session réunissait : Tom Brown, Partner KPMG ; Eddy Wymeersch, président du CESR, Jean-Baptiste de Franssu, président de l’Efama, les représentants de consommateurs Mick McAteer et Guillaume Prache ; Marc Garvin, président d’International Business, Treasury and Securities Services de JPMorgan ; Juan Alcaraz, CEO d’Allfunds Bank et Santander Asset Management, Dominique Carrel-Billiard, CEO d’Axa Investment Managers, Alain Dromer, CEO d’Aviva Investors ; Roderick Munsters, CEO de Robeco, Martin Gilbert, CEO d’Aberdeen Asset Management, Allan Polack, CEO de Nordea Savings and Asset Management ; Peter De Proft, directeur général de l’Efama et Claude Kremer, vice-président de l’Efama.

Le ralentissement de la Chine et de l'Asie intervient au pire moment pour les économies occidentales

Le ralentissement de la Chine et de l'Asie intervient au pire moment pour les économies occidentales

The British management firm Threadneedle has launched a new sub-fund of its Luxembourg Sicav, benchmarked against the Dow Jones UBS Commodities index, entitled Threadneedle Enhanced Commodities Fund (TECF). The product is a UCITS-compliant version of the Commodities Crescendo hedge fund (launched in 2008), which is not permitted to use any leverage or short positions. It is actively managed by Nicholas Robin and Daniel Belchers, under the supervision of David Donora. The outperformance objective is 6% per year, after fees, with a tracking error less than or equal to 6%. The fund will initially invest nearly one third of its assets in equities from businesses in the energy sector (including 14.3% in oil), and less than 20% each for industrial and precious metals, while the allocation to grains is about 10%.

Carolyn Lu, qui était CEO et regional head of business pour l’Asie chez Société Générale, a rejoint à Singapour Aviva Investors en tant que managing director, business development pour la région Asie-Pacifique. Elle est subordonnée à Erich Gerth, executive director et CEO global business devlopment, basé à Londres, et coopérera étroitement avec Craig Bingham, CEO Asia Pacific, basé en Australie.

HSBC a annoncé le regroupement de ses spécialistes au sein des activités de gestion d’actifs pour une seule marque unique. Désormais, Halbis dédié à la gestion fondamentale active, Sinopia, spécialiste de la gestion quantitative, HSBC Liquidity destiné à la gestion de trésorerie et HSBC Multimanager représentant l’activité multigestionnaire seront regroupés et commercialisés sous la marque HSBC Global Asset Management. Chacun conservera sa philosophie d’investissement et son processus de gestion propres sous cette seule marque, précise l'établissement, qui note que HSBC Global Asset Management gèrait 427,3 milliards de dollars, au 31 décembre 2009.

Paul Ilott, qui dirigeait la communication du pôle multigestion chez Fidelirty International, vient de lancer un institut de recherche sur la multigestion, selon Money Marketing. Selon Paul Ilott, la sophistication croissante de la multigestion a créé une demande spécifique pour ce type de fonds.Scopic Research fournira de l’information et des notations sur les fonds de multigestion et pourra aussi exécuter des «due diligences» ou proposer du conseil à la demande.

Carlos Pérez Parada, président de la société de gestion espagnole Barclays Wealth Managers, a été élu le 17 juin représentant du groupement des institutions d’investissement collectif au sein de l’association espagnole Inverco des sociétés de gestion de fonds et de fonds de pension. Il succède jusqu'à l’assemblée générale de juin 2011 à Paloma Piqueras (BBVA Asset Management).

Axa Rosenberg Group, qui a avoué tardivement à la mi-avril une erreur de codage (coding glitch) découverte et corrigée l’an dernier, a annoncé mercredi que Barr Rosenberg, l’un des fondateurs de l’entreprise, a démissionné du board et que Thomas Mead a démissionné de son poste de directeur de la recherche et d’administrateur, rapporte The Wall Street Journal.Ils ont tous deux «agi pour limiter la dissémination de l’information» sur l’erreur survenue. D’autre part, Agustin Sevilla a démissionné de son poste de global CIO pour prendre un «senior research role» : il «n’avait pas agi d’une manière conforme avec la politique de la maison».En tous cas, l’encours géré par Axa Rosenberg est tombé à 41 milliards de dollars fin mai contre 62 milliards deux mois plus tôt. Charles Schwab va liquider ses quatre fonds Laudus Rosenberg qui avaient été fermés aux souscriptions dans les semaines suivant l’annonce de la bavure.

La boutique d’investissement américaine Aladdin Capital vient de recruter Keith Innes au poste nouvellement créé de responsable mondial des ventes. Keith Aladdin, qui supervisera l’ensemble du réseau de distribution d’Aladdin, sera membre du comité exécutif.Keith Innes travaillait précédemment chez Forum Partners où il était responsable des ventes et du marketing.

Invesco PowerShares Capital Management a acquis auprès de Morningstar la licence du nouvel indice StockInvestor Core qui reproduit un portefeuille diversifié d’actions extraites des portefeuilles Hare et Tortoise (lièvre et tortue) popularisés par la lettre d’informations StockInvestor de Morningstar. Ces portefeuilles comportent des actions de haute qualité qui se traitent avec de fortes décotes par rapport aux estimations des analystes de Morningstar.Le StockInvestor Core Index va donc servir de nouveau benchmark au PowerShares Value Line Industry Rotation Portfolio ETF qui prend désormais le nom de PowerShares Morningstar StockInvestor Core Portfolio. Ce produit est négocié sur le NYSE sous l’acronyme PYH.

State Street a annoncé le 29 juin la nomination en qualité de chief risk officer de Andrew Kuritzkes qui supervisera une équipe de 300 professionnels du risque au niveau mondial.Andres Kuritzkes, qui doit prendre ses fonctions en août, sera rattaché à Jay Hooley, le CEO de State Street, et entrera au Management Committee de State Street. Il était précédemment chez Oliver Wyman.