In first half, Financière de l’Echiquier has seen an increase in its assets of nearly EUR1bn, while the level of inflows in the same period have topped EUR700m, and EUR452m have been invested in funds from the management firm, putting it in second place, behind Rothschild 7 Cie Gestion, in the rankings of firms with the largest inflows this year.Between France and other countries, inflows are distributed relatively evenly, with France nonetheless still representing a majority (56% and 44%, respectively). Stéphane Toullieux, CEO of Financière de l’Echiquier, has focused particularly this year on institutional investor clients and key accounts (see Newsmanagers of 02/05/2011), and this strategy appears to be succeeding, as actors of this type were responsible for 60% of inflows, compared with 35% for distributors.In the product range, Agressor, the flagship fund from the management firm, has posted the largest net inflows (more than EUR270m). For its part, the ARTY fund has topped EUR100m in inflows. The Echiquier Major and Echiquier Patrimoine funds, for their part, have posted subscriptions of EUR40m each.Financière de l’Echiquier now manages EUR5.7bn in assets, of which 13% are from private management, 46% from distributors, and 41% form institutional investors and key accounts.

The French asset management firm DNCA Finance announced in Germany on 7 July that it has posted net subscriptions of EUR943m in the first six months of this year. As of 30 June, its assets totalled EUR5.9bn, or 21.5% more than as of the end of December (EUR4.9bn). About 60% of net inflows went to wealth management type diversified funds, such as DNCA Invest Eurose (ISIN: LU0284394235) and Evolutif (ISIN: LU0284394664), which alone attracted EUR566m. With the defensive fund Eurose, at EUR451m, these represent nearly three quarters of net inflows to diversified funds, while the flexible fund Evolutif attracted EUR115m, says Philippe Chamigneulle, manager of the Eurose fund.DNCA states that the funds are available in France, Germany, Luxembourg, Belgium, Italy, and Switerland, and that they are particularly well-suited to wealth managers and private banks.

“Tobacco bonds” issued by US states are bonds guaranteed by revenues from penalties paid by tobacco companies under settlements reached in the late 1990s. The bonds thus fall into the “municipal bonds” category, which Standard & Poor’s started downgrading in November, the Wall Street Journal reports. That has meant that funds specialised in muni-bonds, which are not allowed to have securities in their portfolios of less than investment grade, have been required to sell off the bonds at heavy losses.Several hedge funds, including Brigade Capital, GoldenTree Asset Management, Venor Capital Management and Foxhill Capital Partners, appeared to buy up the securities at low prices, and tobacco bonds gained 10% in June, and some gained as much as 60% !

Pimco has announced the recruitment of two former managers at Western Asset management, to take advantage of “multiple opportunities” in the municipal bond sector.Joe Dane will become director of the team specialised in municipal bonds, while Julie Callahan is joining Pimco as an analyst specialised in municipal bonds.

Aon Hewitt on 7 July released the European results of its global 2011 survey of risks related to social engagements at businesses (“Global Pension Risk Survey 2011.”) The survey brings together and analyses responses form multinationals in 13 countries of continental Europe, representing financial assets of EUR127bn, and over 1 million members.One of the major lessons of the study is that “de-risking,” or cancelling out risk factors, has become a top priority throughout Europe, and half of respondents would like to reach an economic level which would allow their pension regimes to be autonomous.A trend which could be considered realistic is developing: five times more businesses surveyed than in 2009 (when the last survey was undertaken) say that they are now planning to manage their pension regimes with a 20-year horizon in view. The survey also finds that employers are aware that they will need to bear costs related to retirements: more than half of respondents are planning to finance deficits through contributions alone.Among the other key findings: Fewer businesses are planning to change regimes, as those who are planning to modify their pension plans have already done so, and others are seeking to maintain their plans and are taking on the costs engendered themselves. In a large number of countries, the definition of the advantages and the rules as pension funds develop play a key role, particularly when risks can be managed, as they can, for example, in the choice of a new method for indexing incomes. More sophisticated risk-taking than in the past: employers are turning to alternative asset classes in order to bring in higher revenues, while running fewer risks related to derivatives and interest rates. There is still some way to go until coverage instruments are used more widely: 25% of businesses surveyed have no official policy about interest rates or hedging assets against inflationary risks. Hedging against risks related to longevity is a practice which is gaining popularity, particularly in the Netherlands, which appears to be following in the footsteps of the United Kingdom.

The largest German bank, Deutsche Bank, on 7 July announced that it is in exclusive negotiations with the Belgian financial services company RHJ International for a sale of its affiliate BHF Bank. Deutsche Bank, which acquired BHF Bank with its acquisition of Sal. Oppenheim in 2009, last year announced that it was no longer planning to sell off the entity, after efforts to sell the firm to Liechtenstein’s LGT failed.Deutsche Bank says in a statement that BHF Bank is “one of the best-known brands in German finance, with a long tradition in asset management, wealth management, financial markets, and business banking.”Deutsche Bank claims that the planned operation would allow the Belgian holding company to add to the offerings from its affiliate Kleinwort Benson. That business, which is active in Great Britain, has similar activities to those of BHF Bank.As of the end of 2010, BHF Bank had about EUR43bn in assets, and employed about 1,500 people worldwide. It is present in Germany especially, and also in Luxembourg and Switzerland. It also has offices in Abu Dhabi, Egypt, and Vietnam.

A few days after announcing the opening of branch offices in Frankfurt and Milan (see Newsmanagers of 27 June), the Swiss asset management firm Swisscanto (CHF57.6bn in assets as of the end of March) on 7 July announced that it has recruited Karsten Marzinzik from 1 August as senior account manager in Frankfurt. He will be in charge of maintaining relationships with and recruiting institutional clients (funds of funds, wealth managers, banks, etc.)Marzinzik had previously been senior sales manager at Fidelity Germany, in charge of maintaining relationships with and recruiting distribution partners.

Several foreign asset management firms have announced recently that they are recruiting for their sales teams in Germany. The distribution team at the British firm Schroders has become the next to announce recruitments, with the arrival of a director of distribution for retail clients, intermediaries and regional banks at the firm’s German centre. Alexander Wiss joins from the savings bank Südliche Weinstrasse, where he had been in charge of investment advising for high net worth clients. He will report to Melanie Stahl, head of distribution for Schroder Investment Management (Schroders Germany).

Ben Mooney, who had been director & client operations manager for operational and risk attenuation solutions for clients of Wellington Management International for the Europe, Middle East and Africa region (EMEA) has returned to State Street Corporation as vice president and transition manager for the EMEA region. He will report to Rick Boomgaardt, managing director and head of transition management for EMEA. Mooney already served as a transition manager at State Street from 2007 to 2010.

Amy Lo, head of Asian operations at UBS, on Thursday announced that the Swiss group is aiming for growth in the next three to five years of 10-20% in assets under management in Asia for high net worth clients (those with over USD50m in assets), Handelsblatt reports.To achieve that goal, the bank will recruit client advisers to increase their total numbers by one third, to 1,200 advisers, at a time when staff reductions will be ongoing in other regions.As of the end of 2010, 22% of CHF768bn in assets in UBS’ wealth management division came from Asia.

Money Marketing reports that HSBC is considering launching a low-cost actively-managed fund, to rival products of this type from Schroders and JP Morgan.According to the firm’s head of external distribution for the UK, Phil Reid, investors keep a close eye on the ratio of costs to returns, and it is therefore essential to offer them viable options which fall between active and passive management.

A survey in second quarter by Forsa on behalf of Union Investment, covering financial decision-makers aged 20 to 59 in 500 German households has found that now 45%, up from 42% in January-March, estimate that the ecological impact of financial investments is the most important criterion. Meanwhile, 49%, compared with 54%, feel that the social aspect is determinant for a sustainable investment.This development may be attributed to an increase in environmental awareness following the Fukushima disaster, says Daniel Günnewig, CEO of Union Investment Privatfonds. Meanwhile, 31% of respondents estimate that the sustainable development aspect of their investments is important (comppared with 32% in first quarter). The percentage who are not interested in these issues has fallen to 23%, from 27% in January-March.

In June, open-ended funds underwent net outflows of EUR3.1bn, compared with EUR1.74bn in May. These outflows affected Italian-registered funds to the tune of EUR1.83bn, and foreign funds for EUR1.27bn, Assogestioni reports. In the first five months of the year, net redemptions have totalled «only» EUR10.17bn, largely thanks to very strong net inflows to foreign-registered funds (EUR5.49bn) in first quarter.By fund category, the segments which saw the heaviest outflows were bond products, with net redemptions of EUR4.07bn in first half, and money market funds, with net outflows of UER6.31bn. Hedge funds also suffered, with outflows of nearly EUR1.29bn, from assets of only EUR11.34bn.Equities and diversified funds attracted only EUR16m and EUR370m, respectively, in six months, while flexible funds attracted EUR1.11bn.Total assets, meanwhile, continued to decline; as of 30 June, they totalled EUR441.21bn, compared with EUR447.98bn as of the end of May, EUR453.45bn as of the end of March, and EUR460.05bn as of the end of December 2010. Of total assets as of the end of June, foreign-registered funds represent 59.6%.

Après avoir vainement tenté de vendre sa filiale à LGT, la banque allemande négocie désormais avec la holding belge de Kleinwort Benson

Le ratio core tier 1 prend en compte les actifs détenus par leurs fonds de pension, et les prêts non performants seraient sous-estimés

Jean-Claude Trichet redit son opposition à un défaut même sélectif sur la dette grecque

Jean-Claude Trichet redit son opposition à un défaut même sélectif sur la dette grecque

Le gérant s'installe à Londres et à Dubaï cette année, et vise la Chine à plus long terme. L'objectif de collecte est de 4 milliards d'euros en 2011

La filiale de gestion de Dexia va ouvrir un bureau de représentation à Londres et un autre à Dubaï, avec la Chine en ligne de mire à plus long terme. Le groupe vise 4 milliards d’euros de collecte nette sur 2011 alors qu’il n’en a gagné que 400 millions au premier trimestre.

L’apparition du trading de haute fréquence et la course à la réduction du temps de réalisation des transactions accroît la volatilité sur les marchés et crée un risque systémique, selon le quotidien qui cite des propos tenus à Pékin par Andrew Haldane, le dirigeant de la stabilité financière au sein de la Banque d’Angleterre.

Le gestionnaire d’actifs a envoyé un courrier électronique à ses conseillers financiers pour les informer d’un relèvement au mois de novembre prochain des commissions prélevées sur sept fonds de clientèle privée et deux fonds institutionnels. Les clients devraient en être informés la semaine prochaine par courrier. Une initiative malheureuse et au calendrier inapproprié aux yeux d’un conseiller interrogé par le quotidien.

Les banques centrales ont retiré 635 tonnes d’or auprès de la Banque des règlements internationaux, appelée «la banque des banques centrales», l’année dernière, souligne le quotidien d’après le rapport annuel de la BRI. Il s’agit du montant le plus important jamais retiré depuis plus d’un siècle. Les banques centrales détenaient environ 30.000 tonnes de lingots dans leurs réserves et comptent les utiliser comme une devise.

L’Autorité de contrôle prudentiel et l’Autorité des marchés financiers ont constaté une forte augmentation des propositions d’investissements sur le marché des changes auprès des particuliers. Cette alerte vise en particulier neuf sites internet pour lesquels aucun prestataire autorisé n’a pu être clairement identifié.

Le marché danois des obligations indexées sur des créances hypothécaires ne devrait pas subir de dégradation de la part de S&P, malgré les alertes de Moody’s sur les risques de refinancement que représentent de tels titres quand ils sont à taux variables. Realkredit, la filiale de Danske Bank, avait écarté Moody’s de la notation de ses émissions de «covered bonds» après que l’agence a menacé la banque de dégradation. Alan Boyce, directeur général de la coentreprise de George Soros, Absalon Project, a indiqué que les exigences de Moody’s étaient «ridicules». «Vous achetez des obligations danoises si vous ne souhaitez aucun risque de crédit et beaucoup de liquidité» a-t-il estimé.

L’investisseur a cédé 19,3 millions d’actions de classe B de sa société Berkshire Hathaway pour un montant de 1,5 milliard de dollars au titre de sa contribution annuelle à la fondation caritative de Melinda et Bill Gates, selon un communiqué. Les actions ont clôturé à 77,77 dollars hier à New-York. Le financier entend donner, à terme, 99% de sa fortune à des associations.

Dans un contexte de resserrement monétaire, la Thaïlande souhaite laisser s’apprécier le baht. Le won coréen s’approche de ses plus hauts niveaux

Le coût de l’assurance contre un défaut de la dette souveraine du Portugal a atteint un niveau record, en réaction à l’abaissement par Moody’s de la note du pays. Les credit defaut swaps (CDS) à cinq ans sur le papier portugais sont en hausse de 95 points de base (pdb) à 1.015 pdb. Ceci signifie qu’il coûte 1,015 million d’euros pour assurer 10 millions d’euros d’obligations portugaises. Sur le marché obligataire, le rendement du papier portugais à deux ans atteint environ 17,8% tandis que celui du papier à dix ans ressort autour de 14%. Le coût de l’assurance sur un défaut grec est quant à lui en hausse de plus de 100 pdb à 2.200 pdb. Les rendements de la dette italienne et espagnole à dix ans sont également en hausse, respectivement autour de 5,15% et 5,66%. L'écart de rendement entre le papier allemand à dix ans et son équivalent italien a ainsi atteint 224 pdb, un plus haut depuis la création de l’euro.

La production manufacturière britannique a progressé à rythme sans précédent en plus d’un an en mai après un ralentissement en avril, provoqué par le mariage princier, montrent les données publiées jeudi. La production manufacturière, qui n’inclut pas les services aux collectivités et l’extraction du gaz, a augmenté de 1,8% en mai après une baisse révisée de 1,6% en avril. C’est la plus forte hausse enregistrée depuis mars 2010. Sur un an, la hausse est de 2,8%.

L’Irlande pourra de nouveau se financer sur les marchés d’ici la fin de l’année 2012, a dit le ministre irlandais de la Dépense publique, malgré la hausse des rendements de la dette souveraine provoquée par l’abaissement de la note du Portugal.

Le déficit commercial de la France a battu en mai le record établi le mois précédent, sous l’effet d’une hausse des importations, notamment énergétiques, et d’une relative atonie des exportations. Le solde de la balance commerciale s’est établi à -7,422 milliards d’euros, après -7,174 milliards (révisé) en avril, selon les données CVS/CJO publiées jeudi par les Douanes.