P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Assets under management at the Swiss firm GAM as of the end of 2012 totalled CHF116.2bn, compared with CHF107bn at the end of 2011, according to a statement released on 5 March. Net inflows last year totalled CHF2.4bn, after outflows of CHF3.8bn in 2011. The wealth management firm last year earned operating profits of CHF161m groupwide, down 2% year on year.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } It appears that Morgan Stanley is planning to sell its wealth management activities in Europe (excluding Switzerland), which are experiencing a sensitive period, and finews reports that, according to financial news, Credit Suisse is interested in the acquisition and has already begun studying the case.Wealth management at Morgan Stanley in Europe, the Middle East and Africa has assets of USD18bn.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } With the Global Unconstrained Bond fund, Schroders will be offering a new bond sub-fund of its Luxembourg Sicav Schroder International Selection Fund (Schroders ISF) from this April, which may invest unconstrained and globally, and whose outperformance objective is 4-5% above the benchmark per year, over a full interest rate cycle.The benchmark index will be the Barclays Capital Glboal Aggregate Bond USD Hedged Index over a sliding 3 to 5-year period. Management will be assumed by the global multi-sector team, which includes 100 investment professionals worldwide. The team is led by Bob Jolly, head of global macro, and Gareth Isaac, bond fund manager. They will use a top-down, diversified approach, and will work to generate stable returns by exploiting the potential offere dby a wade range of sources of outperformance.The new product, which is not yet licensed for sale in France, will be managed with the same approach as the existing Schroder ISF Global Bond, ISF Strategic Bond and Schroder GAIA Global Macro Bond portfolios.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Funds People reports that Lausanne-based Diapason Commodities Management has launched a Luxembourg-registered SIF, the Diapason Relative Value Pertroleum Industry fund, a sub-fund of Diapason Funds, which deploys a relative value strategy via oil derivatives. The fund is managed by Sean Corrigan, aims for absolute returns (10-12%), with total ex ante volatility of 6% to 7%.In Spain, Diapason is represented by Atrium Portfolio Managers.

In 2012, investment fund assets in Europe increased by 12.4 percent to EUR 8,944 billion, according to the European Fund and Asset Management Association’s latest quarterly statistical release. Overall, net assets of UCITS increased by 11.7 percent to EUR 6,295 billion. Net assets of non-UCITS increased by 14.1 percent to EUR 2,649 billion.Net Sales of UCITS reached EUR 201 billion: net sales of UCITS returned to positive territory in 2012 after recording net outflows of EUR 97 billion in 2011. Long-term UCITS recorded net inflows of EUR 239 billion in 2012, after registering net outflows of EUR 64 billion in 2011. Bond funds made up the lion’s share of net inflows (EUR 203 billion), eclipsing the net inflows into equity funds (EUR 2 billion) and suggesting investors remained risk-averse and cautious about the economic outlook almost until the end of 2012. Money market funds continued to suffer from a low interest rate environment: they recorded net outflows of EUR 39 billion, up from EUR 33 billion in 2011. Net sales of non-UCITS increased in 2012, up from EUR 99 billion in 2011. Special funds (funds reserved to institutional investors) attracted EUR 112 billion in net new money, compared to EUR 94 billion in 2011.Buoyant cross-border fund business dominated by two countries, according to the EFAMA. The market share of Luxembourg and Ireland in the UCITS assets increased to 47.2 percent at end 2012, compared to 45.8 percent a year earlier. Total net sales of UCITS in these countries reached EUR 187 billion or 93 percent of total UCITS net sales in 2012.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Following Spanish royal decree 4/2013 of 22 February, which modifies the pension fund law, Funds People reports, Spanish pension funds are now authorised to invest in securities listed on the Mercado Alternativo Bursátil (MAB), in Sicav funds, private equity firms, Socimi (real estate investment companies), and in securities which will be listed on the future Mercado Alternativo de Renta Fija (MARF) which the Spanish government is preparing.Pension funds have assets of EUR86.5bn.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Source on 4 March announced that UBS has been named as an authorised participant (AP) and swap counterparty for the Man GLG Europe Plus ETF (MPFE SW), a single product which invests in European equities, listed in London (LSE), Switzerland (SIX), and Germany (Xetra). With this sixth partner, Source ETF further strengthens the diversification of its swap counterparties. With assets under management of USD950m, the Man GLG Europe Plus Source fund is one of the most successful Source equity ETFs. Its objective is to outperforme the European equity markets overall, through investent recommendations from brokers. Man GLG exploits the best investment ideas from nearly 65 major brokerage firms to create a liquid and highly diversified European long only equity index. In 2012, the index outperformed the MSCI Europe index by 5.34% Due to the size and the growth of MPFE, supplementary trading resources are necessary to continue to ensure its development.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } According to initial estimates by the BlackRock Institute, th 4,798 ETPs worldwide at the end of February (compared with 4,793 at the end of January) posted inflows of USD10.6bn last month (compared with USD37bn in January, USD38.7bn in December, and USD15.6bn in February 2012).Year to date, net inflows have totalled USD47.6bn, of which USD37.7bn have been in the United States, and USD7.9bn in Europe.As of 28 February, assets were down by USD7bn in one month, to USD2.037trn, but remain higher than USD1.944trn in assets as of the end of December, and USD1.720trn as of the end of February 2012.

State Street Global Advisers a annoncé le 4 mars la nomination avec effet immédiat de Maria Dwyer en qualité de chief risk officer.Maria Dwyer travaillait précédemment en tant que chief regulatory officer chez MFS Investment Management.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Wall Street Journal reports that as John Hess is saying that his activist alternative asset management firm has missed the train, Hess Corp is in the process of changing tracks though, after Elliott management sent the CEO a message asking him to restructure the firm. There will be a reshuffle on the board of directors, which will affect six of its 14 seats, and sales of assets to increase dividends, along with a USD4bn equity repurchase programme, equivalent to 18% of the market capitalisation of Hess.However, John Hess does not accept Elliott’s primary demand, which is to break up the group into a Bakken company and an international oil firm whose survival may be at risk. This may spell the end for Hess, a difficult scenario to accept for a CEO whose company is named after him.

State Street Global Advisers has hired Maria Dwyer as chief risk officer. Maria Dwyer previously served as chief regulatory officer at MFS Investment Management.

Principal Global Investors, a global asset manager and a member of the Principal Financial Group, on March 4 announced an agreement to acquire a 55 percent stake in Liongate Capital Management, an alternative investment boutique based in London and New York focused on managing portfolios of hedge funds. Founded in 2003, Liongate has approximately USD2.1 billion in assets under management across a range of commingled funds and dedicated client portfolios. Its client base includes many of the world’s leading pension funds, insurance companies and sovereign wealth funds.The Liongate partners will retain a 45 percent share and will manage Liongate within their current roles.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Funds of hedge funds started 2013 well, with returns of 2.10% in January, according to the most recent edition of the Hedge Fund Spotlight published by Preqin. This is the best result in more than two years. Last year, funds of hedge funds posted returns of 4.62%, with returns of over 7% for the best, and even over 24% for the most profitable vehicle.The performance of funds of hedge funds, however, remains modest over the long term, with annualised rates of 1.79% over three years, and -0.25% over five years. This may explain the steep fall in assets under management, which, after peaking at USD1.2trn in 2008, last month stood at USD810bn.In Europe, funds of hedge funds have seen an increase in their assets from USD375bn at the end of 2011 to USD280bn in December 2012. North America is the only region of the world where assets under management increased, from USD485bn as of the end of 2011 to USD508bn in December 2012. Funds of hedge funds with exposure to North America also posted better returns than those exposed to Europe in 11 out of 12 months of 2012.Creations of funds of hedge funds also fell sharply. There were 59 in 2012, a level not seen since 2000, compared with 79 the previous year, and 142 in 2010, according to statistics from Preqin.According to Preqin, 65% of investors have funds of hedge funds as part of their allocation to hedge funds, but only 12% of them are planning to increase their allocation to funds of hedge funds in 2013, while 53% are planning to maintain their exposure. Of the 35% who are planning to reduce their exposure, more than half cite performance problems as the reason for their decision.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } According to the Investment Management Association (IMA), net sales of shares in retail funds domiciled in the United Kingdom in January fell to GBP567m, compared with USD1.2bn in December, which is the worst result since August 2012.However, Daniel Godfrey, CEO of the IMA, says that these fugres represent a continuation of the decline in net subscriptions to bond funds observed since summer (they have undergone their first net outflows since October 2008), while net sales of shares in equity funds have increased for the fifth consecutive month.Institutional funds have seen net outflows of GBP79m, while funds domiciled abroad posted net inflows of GBP191m, their strongest since September 2012.Assets in retail funds as of 31 January set a new record at GBP688bn, comapred with GBP659bn one month earlier. Compared with the end of January 2012, the increase totals 16%.

SIX Swiss Exchange launches a segment for Sponsored Funds. The first sponsor and market maker for over 250 products is Bank Julius Baer., according to a press release published on March 4.With this new segment, investors in traditional mutual funds can trade funds like shares. Thanks to the continuous pricing and instant order execution, investment decisions in fund trading can now be implemented immediately and at known prices. The segment for Sponsored Funds is another service that SIX Swiss Exchange is launching as part of its «Over the Exchange» initiative.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Financial Services Authority is preparing to crack down on asset management firms which use investors’ money to pay for access to corporate CEOs, the Financial Times reports in its UK edition. Ed Harley, head of supervision for asset management at the FSA, has said that fines of up to several million pounds are possible. The comments come after the Financial Times wrote in an article on Monday that asset management firms were paying their brokers as much as GBP20,000 per hour to meet the CEOs of their client businesses.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Liechtenstein bank LGT is reported to have recruited a team of 15 client advisers from Sal. Oppenheim in Zurich, which is owned by Deutsche Bank. Advisors may account for up to half of the CHF7bn which Sal. Oppenheim Switzerland has under management, according to the website Paradeplatz. The arrival of the advisers at the Liechtenstein bank is connected with the transfer of Hanspeter Oes, who in April last year moved from his positoin as chief financial officer at Sal. Oppenheim to LGT Bank (Switzerland). For Deutsche Bank, which took over Sal. Oppenheim in 2010, the loss of the adviers represents a serious setback, according to the website. The German firm iN December completed its integration of Sal. Oppenheim Switzerland into the Swiss affiliate of Deutsche Bank. A bonus programme was then offered to client advisers at Sal. Oppenheim in order to retain them. It wasn’t enough for some, and Deutsche Bank is expected to confirm the departure of seven of them. Inside Paradeplatz cites a Zurich source as saying that the Liechtenstein bank guaranteed the Sal. Oppeheim client adviers high salaries and a set first bonus. The annual salary is said to be CHF250,000, and the bonus is expected to be an equivalent sum. Assets under managemet at the LGT group in mid-2012 totalled CHF94.7bn.

Les fonds de hedge funds ont bien démarré l’année 2013, avec une performance de 2,10% en janvier dernier, selon la dernière édition du Hedge Fund Spotlight publiée par Preqin. Il s’agit de la meilleure performance enregistrée depuis plus de deux ans. L’an dernier, les fonds de hedge funds ont enregistré des rendements de 4,63%, avec des performances de plus de 7% pour les meilleurs et même de plus de 24% pour le véhicule le plus rentable. Les performances des fonds de hedge funds restent toutefois modestes sur longue période, avec des taux annualisés de 1,79% sur trois ans et de -0,25% sur cinq ans. Ce qui peut expliquer la forte des baisse des actifs sous gestion qui après avoir culminé à 1.200 milliards de dollars en 2008, s’inscrivaient le mois dernier à 810 milliards de dollars. En Europe, les fonds de hedge funds ont vu leur encours revenir de 375 milliards de dollars fin 2011 à 280 milliards de dollars en décembre 2012. L’Amérique du Nord est la seule région du monde où les actifs sous gestion se sont accrus, passant de 485 milliards de dollars fin 2011 à 508 milliards de dollars en décembre 2012. Il faut dire aussi que les fonds de hedge funds exposés à l’Amérique du Nord ont enregistré de meilleures performances que ceux exposés à l’Europe pendant onze sur douze mois en 2012. Les créations de fonds de hedge funds ont aussi fortement diminué. On en a dénombré 59 en 2012, un niveau jamais vu depuis l’année 2000, contre 79 l’année précédente et 142 en 2010, selon les statistiques de Preqin. Enfin, 65% des investisseurs intègrent les fonds de hedge funds dans leur allocation dans les hedge funds mais seulement 12% d’entre eux envisagent d’augmenter leur allocation aux fonds de hedge funds en 2013 alors que 53% prévoient de maintenir en l'état leur exposition. Sur les 35% qui envisagent de réduire cette exposition, plus d’un sur d’eux évoque des problèmes de performance à l’origine de leur décision.

La banque liechtensteinoise LGT aurait débauché une équipe de 15 conseillers à la clientèle de Sal. Oppenheim à Zurich, qui appartient à Deutsche Bank. Les conseillers pourraient apporter jusqu'à la moitié des 7 milliards de francs suisses que gère Sal. Oppenheim Suisse, selon le portail en ligne Inside Paradeplatz. L’arrivée de ces conseillers dans la banque de la principauté est à mettre en relation avec le transfert de Hanspeter Oes, qui en avril dernier est passé du poste de directeur financier chez Sal. Oppenheim à LGT Bank (Suisse), oùm il vient du reste d'être promu membre de la direction générale (lire Newsmanagers du 27 février).Pour Deutsche Bank, qui a repris Sal. Oppenheim en 2010, la fuite de ses conseillers représente un sérieux revers, selon le portail en ligne. L'établissement allemand avait achevé en décembre l’intégration de Sal. Oppenheim Suisse au sein de la filiale Suisse de Deutsche Bank. Un programme de bonus avait alors été proposé aux conseillers à la clientèle de Sal. Oppenheim, afin de les retenir. Cela n’aura pas suffi pour certains et Deutsche Bank devrait confirmer le départ de sept d’entre-eux.Citant une source zurichoise, «Inside Paradeplatz» affirme que la banque liechtensteinoise a garanti aux conseillers à la clientèle de Sal. Oppenheim de hauts salaires ainsi qu’un premier bonus fixe. Le salaire annuel se monterait à 250.000 francs suisses et le bonus devrait atteindre un montant équivalent.Les actifs sous gestion du groupe LGT s'élevaient à la mi-2012 à 94,7 milliards de francs suisses.

La société de gestion américaine Principal Global Investors a acquis 55 % de la société de fonds de hedge funds basée à Londres et New York Liongate Capital Management. Les associés de Liongate conservent 45 % de la société.Fondée en 2003, Liongate gère environ 2,1 milliards de dollars d’encours pour le compte de fonds de pension, de compagnies d’assurances et de fonds souverains.Cette acquisition s’inscrit dans le cadre d’un vaste mouvement de concentration de la multigestion alternative.

Axa Investment Managers a lancé le 12 février au Luxembourg l’Axa WF Equity Volatility, un fonds «offrant aux investisseurs institutionnels une exposition positive et efficiente en termes de coûts à la volatilité implicite des principaux marchés d’actions», selon un communiqué de presse. Le fonds, géré par Laurent Ramsamy, cherche à capter les hausses importantes de la volatilité actions sur les marchés européen et/ou américain tout en limitant partiellement le coût du portage de cette exposition. Pour ce faire, le produit bâtit une position longue dans la volatilité implicite du S&P 500 et/ou de l’Euro Stoxx 50 par le biais de dérivés. Dans le même temps, le fonds peut prendre des positions courtes opportunistes sur la volatilité implicite à court terme par le biais de futures sur indices.

AXA Investment Managers has announced the launch of AXA WF Equity Volatility «offering institutional investors cost efficient, positive exposure to the implied volatility of major equity markets», according to a press statement. AXA WF Equity Volatility, managed by Laurent Ramsamy, seeks to capture significant increases in equity volatility in the European and/or US equity markets while partially mitigating the cost of carry of this exposure. The fund achieves this by building a long position in implied volatility of the S&P 500 index and/or the Euro Stoxx 50 index through derivatives. In order to mitigate the cost of carry of this long position, the fund has the flexibility to opportunistically take short positions on the near term implied volatility through the use of indices futures.

Le groupe de gestion OFI a pris, à travers sa holding historique Ofivalmo Partenaires, une participation minoritaire de 10 % dans la société de gestion suisse BlueOrchard Finance afin de renforcer son expertise dans les investissements socialement responsables (ISR). Suite à l’acquisition de cette part minoritaire dans BlueOrchard Finance, Ofivalmo Partenaires sera représenté au conseil d’administration de la société genevoise, dont les encours s'élèvent à 620 millions de dollars (476 millions d’euros).

La collecte mondiale se chiffre à 10,6 milliards de dollars en février contre 37 milliards en janvier, selon BlackRock

L’Eurogroupe s’est penché sur l’extension des maturités des prêts à ces deux pays « sur les rails »

L'annonce de mesures restrictives, dont un impôt de 20% sur les plus-values de cession des résidences secondaires, a fait dévisser le marché actions

La quête de rendement devrait continuer à favoriser les placements de dette hybride par les non financières dans un environnement de taux bas

L’Eurogroupe s’est penché sur l’extension des maturités des prêts à ces deux pays « sur les rails »

Les textes européens d'application de Bâle 3 laissent d'importantes marges de manœuvres aux autorités prudentielles nationales

Le président de la Bourse de Shenzhen, Chen Dongzheng, confie au quotidien son souhait de voir les autorités chinoises accorder un régime fiscal attractif aux actionnaires de long terme. Le dirigeant assure également que le marché obligataire reste un point faible des marchés en Chine et mérite d’être développé.