Le capital-investisseur américain Carlyle Group a consacré 140 millions de dollars de son fonds de capital-croissance Carlyle Asia Growth Capital Partners IV à l’acquisition de participations minoritaires dans les sud-coréens HKucar Global Co (voitures d’occasion) et EO Technics C. (lasers) ainsi que dans l’indien Tirumala Mils Products Private Ltd (laiteries) et le chinois Atmu Inc (guichets automatiques bancaires), rapporte The Wall Street Journal. Le fonds affiche 1,04 milliard de dollars d’encours.
Dave Fishwick et Eric Lonergan sont les gérants du nouveau M&G Macro Episode Fund, version conforme à la directive OPCVM III d’un hedge fund, le Prudential life fund lancé au début de 2001 ainsi que d’un autre hedge fund de M&G domicilié aux îles Caïman. Ce produit, qui fait appel à la finance comportementale, est initialement réservé aux investisseurs institutionnels et aux particuliers avertis, avec une souscription minimale fixée à 1 million de livres, indique Investment Week. Le fonds géré pour Prudential affiche une performance annuelle moyenne de 12,2 % depuis le lancement, précise Hedge Week.L’objectif est de générer à l’aide d’une stratégie long/short sur des indices de plusieurs classes d’actifs (actions, obligations d’Etat, obligations d’entreprise, devises et cash) une performance supérieure à celle des actions mondiales sur le moyen terme, mais avec une volatilité inférieure.Le fonds comporte des classes de parts en dollars non couvertes, en livres et en euros couvertes du risque de change sur le dollar.
La nouvelle société de gestion Querns Asset Managers va lancer son premier fonds, un produit diversifié actions/obligations, le Querns Income Funds. Il investira principalement en actions britanniques et en obligations d’entreprises britanniques. Ce fonds, dans lequel les associés investiront 5 millions de livres pour l’amorçage, ne comporte pas de droit d’entrée et affiche une commission de gestion de 0,75 %.Querns Asset Managers a été créée récemment par les gérants Phil Roantree et Stephen Whittaker, deux anciens de New Star, ainsi que par Peter Gardner (ex Invesco Perpetual) et John Tierney (ex selectfunds et ancien de Perpetual). L’objectif de Querns AM est d’atteindre un encours de 250 millions de livres sous cinq ans.
BNP Paribas a annoncé, lundi 7 juin, le rapprochement au Royaume-Uni de ses activités de gestion privée avec celles de Fortis Private Investment Management et Insinger de Beaufort UK, sous le nom BNP Paribas Wealth Management. L’entité, qui va gérer près de 5 milliards de livres sterling d’actifs et emploiera 130 personnes, proposera des services d’investissement, de gestion de patrimoine, et des solutions de financement et de structuration à une clientèle britannique et internationale. «Au delà des solutions d’investissement dans les différentes classes d’actifs, des conseils juridiques et fiduciaires, BNP Paribas Wealth Management UK va mettre à la disposition de ses clients des équipes spécialisées dans des produits d’investissement sur mesure, mais aussi la philanthropie, l’art et l’immobilier. Elle va également pouvoir proposer des solutions de financement», précise un communiqué de la banque. Le nouvel ensemble sera dirigé par Ligia Torres, ancien responsable Fixed Income Corporate /SAS Origination and Sales, pour l’Europe, le Moyen-Orient et l’Asie, chez BNP Paribas.
Martin Currie a annoncé la promotion, à compter de début juin, de Claire Marwick au titre de co-gérante du Japan Alpha Fund aux côtés de Keith Donaldson et John-Paul Temperley. Claire Marwick avait rejoint l'équipe spécialisée sur le Japon en août 2007.Martin Currie a par ailleurs indiqué son intention de fermer le fonds lorsqu’il aura atteint 175 millions de livres. Le Japon Alpha Fund est un fonds de conviction, comportant de 30 à 40 lignes. Depuis le début de l’année, le fonds de 32 millions de livres a dégagé un rendement de 23,6% contre 14,6% pour le Topix.
BlueBay Asset Management, une société de gestion britannique spécialisée dans le crédit, gérant 47 milliards de dollars, vient de recruter Mark Dowding pour piloter le développement d’une activité d’obligations gouvernementales européennes au sein de la société. L’intéressé vient de Deutsche Asset Management, où il occupait le poste de responsable européen de l’obligataire institutionnel. Il était précédemment chez Invesco, où il travaillait en étroite collaboration avec Raphael Robelin, le responsable actuel du crédit investment grade de BlueBay. Les deux anciens d’Invesco vont donc désormais co-diriger l'équipe investment grade européenne de BlueBlay, avec chacun une spécialisation (obligations d’entreprises pour Raphael Robelin et obligations souveraines pour Mark Dowding). Après l’arrivée de Mark Dowding début septembre, la société de gestion londonienne va lancer des fonds, l’un dans les obligations gouvernementales européennes et l’autre combinant obligations souveraines et obligations d’entreprises.
Ancien analyste actions chez Morningstar aux Etats-Unis, Justin Craib-Cox quitte M&G Investments, où il était co-gérant de fonds, pour devenir gérant de fonds dans l'équipe obligations convertibles d’Aviva Investors. Il assistera les gérants seniors David Clott et Shawn Mato, basés à Boston.
Sur les cinq premiers mois de l’année, M&G a enregistré des souscriptions nettes de 3,4 milliards de livres, après 7,9 milliards sur la période correspondante de 2009, annonce sa maison mère, Prudential, dans un communiqué sur les résultats du groupe. Les entrées nettes en Asie sont ressorties à 0,3 milliard de livres (1,5 milliard en 2009).
En vendant pour 123 millions d’euros l’immeuble de bureaux Eugene Investment & Securities Building de Séoul au fonds de pension des fonctionnaires sud-coréens Public Officials Benefit Association, l’allemand Deka Immobilien, au travers de son fonds offert au public Deka-ImmobilienGlobal a réalisé une plus-value importante. L’immeuble d’environ 40.000 mètres carrés avait été payé 70 millions d’euros en septembre 2004 et l’estimation des experts en situe la valeur de marché actuelle à 95 millions d’euros.
Selon L’Agefi suisse, Valartis Group prévoit de fermer le hedge fund European Energy Fonds. Le CEO de Valartis, Gustav Stenbolt, explique que les rendements sont inférieurs aux attentes.
Vontobel a annoncé le 7 juin la création d’une nouvelle unité, Swiss Wealth Advisors AG, qui s’occupera du suivi de clients américains dont la fortune est déclarée au fisc. L’unité est basée à Zurich et sera soumise à la surveillance de l’autorité américaine SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission), indique le groupe bancaire dans un communiqué. La nouvelle entité se concentrera sur la gestion de fortune sur mesure adaptée aux besoins des clients américains. Vontobel entend ainsi répondre aux besoins d’investissements en actions européennes et asiatiques ou en devises de clients américains, besoins que des gestionnaires de fortune américains ne peuvent pas ou que partiellement satisfaire. L’offre de Vontobel s’adressera aussi bien à des citoyens américains domiciliés aux et hors des Etats-Unis et à des citoyens non américains qui vivent aux Etats-Unis. Les transactions seront assurées par Vontobel Securities AG, qui dispose déjà d’une licence de la SEC.
BNY Mellon a annoncé en fin de semaine dernière le lancement d’une émission d’actions ordinaires pour un montant d’environ 700 millions de dollars (25,9 millions de titres à 27 dollars l’unité) afin de financer l’acquisition de PNC Global Investment Servicing.L’offre est ouverte jusqu’au 9 juin. Les co-teneurs du livre sont Goldman Sachs et Citi, BofA Merrill Lynch et Morgan Stanley opérant en tant que co-managers.
Selon un avis publié par la SEC, le Stockcar Stocks Index Fund sera liquidé d’ici au 1er août, rapporte The Wall Street Journal. Ce fonds spécialiste des voitures de stock-car et des courses du Nascar affichait un encours de seulement 4 millions de dollars.
En échange d’obligations de Harrah’s Entertainment de presque 1,12 milliard de dollars de valeur faciale, Paulson & Company, TPG Capital et Apollo Management ont pris 15,6 % de la société de casinos, dont 9,9 % pour Paulson et 5,7 % pour les deux autres gestionnaires alternatifs. Harrah’s a vendu à Paulson pour 351 millions de dollars en numéraire des obligations de 532 millions de dollars arrivant à échéance entre 2015 et 2017 ; TPG et Apollo ont acquis pour 200 millions de dollars d’autres obligations Harrah’s d’un volume de 303 millions.
Justin Craib-Cox, a former equities analyst for Morningstar in the United States, is leaving M&G Investments, where he was co-manager of funds, to become a fund manager in the convertible bonds team at Aviva Investors. He will assist senior managers David Clott and Shawn Mato, based in Boston.
M&G net inflows for the first five months of 2010 were at GBP3.4 billion (2009 May year to date: GBP7.9 billion), says Prudential in a press release. Net inflows in the Asian asset management business were GBP0.3 billion (2009: GBP1.5 billion).
Standard Life Investments has announced that the pension fund PGGM, one of the largest real estate fund managers in Europe, has invested about GBP75m in the Standard Life Investment UK Shopping Centre Trust, a portfolio which is currently valued at about GBP1.2bn.
According to the most recent statistics from the British investment management association (IMA), net inflows totalled GBP2.3bn in April, their highest level since November 2009. Bonds remained the most popular asset class, with net inflows of GBP629m (27% of the total), compared with GBP412m for equities, GBP434m for diversified strategies, and GBP233m for real estate. As of the end of April, assets under management totalled GBP510.9bn, their highest level of all time, compared with GBP375.2bn in April 2009. For the first time, the association is providing statistics for distribution platforms, on the basis of five actors representing 85% of the market (Cofunds, Fidelity, Hargreaves Landsown, Skandia, and Transact). In April, gross sales via these platforms totalled 3.3bn, about 37% of gross retail sales. In the first four months of the year, sales via platforms totalled GBP11.9bn (also 37% of retail sales). Institutional funds, notably, also posted net inflows in April of GBP1.13bn, after outflows of GBP535m in March.
The British Financial Services Authority (FSA) has published proposals to strengthen the abilities of individuals active in the distribution of financial services, such as independent financial advisers (IFA), with an emphasis on ethical behaviour. The FSA plans to define a 30-month period, during which those affected would be required to undergo training in the practice of their profession. Provisional rules which had previously allowed these persons to practice their profession without qualifications will be annulled. The proposals come as an addition to the proposed Retail Distribution Review (RDR) legislation, and to rules already in place for investment advising. The consultation will remain open until 6 September.
In a statement, Société Générale Securities Services (SGSS) announced on Monday, 8 June, that it has been granted a mandate by Grosvenor, a specialist in real estate investment and development, to provide securities services for the launch of its first French collective real estate investment organism, OPCI. The new fund will be managed by Viveris REIM, and capital in the fund will total nearly EUR300m. The mandate specifically mandates SGSS to provide depository services, custody of financial assets, market making for real estate assets, passive management, account administration, and valuation. As of the end of 2009, Grosvenor had GBP10.2bn in assets under management.
Anne-France Gauthier, who previously served as director of retail activities in France at Métropole Gestion, whose departure was announced in Newsmanagers (see article on 28/04/10), is joining Skandia as director of sales for major client and private banking partnerships. Gauthier, 42, will be responsible for defining and deploying the organisation and commercial strategy of Skandia Labels, a product range which will be aimed at asset management firms, private management departments, and private banks, according to a statement from Skandia. She will also be in charge of the organisation and commercial development of Skandia Labels in France, and for promoting the range of products and services in question and developing synergies with other activities of the group, such as marketing, products, back-office, Service Partners, finance, and others.
Jean-François Théodore, former deputy CEO of NYSE Euronext, on 6 May joined the supervisory board at the asset management firm HDF France. In addition to this responsibility, Théodore, who will remain as non-executive director of the stock exchange company, will “assist HDF with regulatory developments,” a statement says. In addition, HDF Finance has announced that it is in the process of recruiting a team member in the United States to replace one US-based departure, Gilles Guérin, at the end of June. The fund manager is also planning to request an SEC license for its US unit. In Switzerland, HDF has also recruited Joseph Steiger, formerly of Credit Suisse and SAM Asset Manaegment, to develop the German-speaking Swiss institutional client base. The Swiss affiliate of the asset management firm now has two offices: one in Geneva, for private banking clients, and one in Zurich. Some funds from the management firm are now in the process of being licensed in the country.
Il Sole – 24 Ore reports that the international organisation of securities commissions (IOSCO) is planning to announce a survey of hedge funds, at the annual conference of the organisation, to be held Wednesday in Montreal. It will initially concentrate on the largest entities. The goal is to obtain data on the identity of hedge funds, their performance, the composition of managed activities, investments in derivatives, and the banking intermediaries with whom they have credit relationships.
The new asset management firm Querns Asset Managers will soon launch its first fund, an equities/bonds diversified product, the Querns Income Funds. It will primarily invest in UK equities and British corporate bonds. The fund, in which partners will invest GBP5m as seed capital, carries no front-end fee, and charges a management commission of only 0.75%. Querns Asset Managers was recently founded by the managers Phil Roantree and Stephan Whittaker, two former New Star managers, and Peter Gardner (formerly of Invesco Perpetual) and John Tierney (formerly of selectfunds and Perpetual). The objective for Querns AM is to reach assets of GBP250m in five years.
Dave Fishwick and Eric Lonergan are the managers of the new M&G Macro Episode Fund, a UCITS-compliant rendition of the Prudential Life hedge fund, launched in early 2001, and another M&G hedge fund domiciled in the Cayman Islands. The product, which relies on behavioural finance techniques, is initially restricted to institutional and qualified retail investors, with a minimal subscription of GBP1m, Investment Week reports. The fund managed for Prudential has earned average annual returns of 12.2% since its launch, Hedge Week reports. The fund includes share classes in unhedged US dollars, and classes in pounds Sterling and Euros hedged for forex risks against the dollar.
Martin Currie has announced the promotion of Clair Marwich from early June as co-manager of the Japan Alpha Fund, alongside Keith Donaldson and John-Paul Temperley. Marwick joined the Japan specialist team in August 2007. Martin Currie has also announced that it is planning to close the fund at GBP175m in assets. The Japan Alpha Fund is a conviction-based fund, with 30 to 40 positions. Since the beginning of the year, the GBP32m fund has earned returns of 23.6%, compared with 14.6% for the Topix index.
Fund Strategy reports that JP Morgan Asset Management is planning to launch a global emerging markets value fund, with an initial performance objective of 4%. The head of emerging markets equities activities at the group, Richard Titherington, will manage the fund as a diversified portfolio of 50 to 70 positions which distribute dividends.
The Swiss wealth management firm Helvetia Wealth AG has announced that it has acquired the investment advising firm Mercury Wealth Management, based in Dublin, which is one of the largest distributors of protected-capital investment products on the Irish market. The acquisition price has not been disclosed. Helvetia Wealth states that its assets have increased due to the acquisition by CHF70m. Gareth Fahey, who founded Mercury Wealth in 2003, will continue to lead the business.
Vontobel on 7 June announced the creation of a new entity, Swiss Wealth Advisors AG, which will assist US clients whose assets are declared to the US tax authorities. The unit will be based in Zurich, and will be subject to oversight by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the banking group says in a statement. The new entity will focus on custom wealth management adapted to the needs of US clients. Vontobel is planning to answer the European and Asian equity and currency investment needs of US clients, which US-based wealth management firms are not able to satisfy, or can only partially satisfy. The product range from Vontobel will also be aimed at US citizens domiciled outside the United States, and to non-US citizens living in the United States. Transactions will be provided by Vontobel Securities AG, which already has a license from the SEC.
The overall default rate for corporate debt issuers ranked in the speculative category fell to 7.5% in the month of May, compared with 9% in April, according to the most recent statistics from Moody’s. The default rate has thus fallen 44% since its peak in November 2009 (13.5%). In the United States, the default rate came to 9.5% in May, compared with 7.9% the previous month, from a peak of 14.5% six months earlier. In Europe, the default rate has fallen to 6.8%, compared with 7.8%, and a peak at 11.8% in November 2009. Moody’s is predicting an overall default rate of 2.4% by the end of the year, and of 1.9% in one year’s time. Outlooks for the United States and Europe are 2.7% by the end of 2010 for the United States, and 1.5% for Europe.