Bilan de la visite au Qatar du premier ministre espagnol José Luis Rodriguez Zapatero : l'émirat accepte d’investir, au travers du fonds souverain Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), 3 milliards d’euros en Espagne, dont 300 millions pour recapitaliser les caisses d'épargne, rapporte Cinco Días. Les 2,7 milliards restants seront placés prioritairement dans des entreprises des secteurs énergétique et des télécommunications. Aux cours actuels, ce montant correspondrait à 8 % d’Iberdroal, ou au quart de Gas Natural ou encore à 3,2 % de Telefónica.
Le 25 février, la CNMV a enregistré neuf fonds lancés par le suisse Bellevue Asset Management, filiale de Bellevue Group. L’organisme commercialisateur pour l’Espagne est Banco Inversis.Les fonds, des compartiments de la sicav luxembourgeoise, sont les suivants : BB African Opportunities, BB Biotech, BB Entrepreneur Europe, BB European Opportunities, BB Global Macro, BB Healthcare, BB Meditech, BB Selection et BB Silk Road Opportunities.
Le compartiment BGF European Income de la sicav luxembourgeoise BlackRock Global Funds (61 fonds) vient d’obtenir de la CNMV l’agrément de commercialisation en Espagne, rapporte Funds People. Ce produit, qui vise une performance moyenne annuelle d’au moins 110 % du MSCI Europe, est géré par Andreas Zoellinger et Alice Gaskell. Il investit, en «bottom up», au moins 70 % de son portefeuille (40-70 lignes) dans des entreprises domiciliées en Europe ou dont l’essentiel de l’activité s’effectue sur le Vieux Continent.
Selon Asian Investor, CCB International Asset Management, qui fait partie de la China Consruction Bank International à Hong Kong, vient de lancer un fonds obligataire libellé en renminbi.Le fonds investira en priorité dans des instruments libellés en renminbi émis à Hong Kong et ne comprendra pas d’obligations synthétiques ou de produits structurés.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } On 25 February 2011, the CNMV issues a sales license for Spain for the Echiquier Global fund (FR0010859769 and FR0010868174) from La Financière de l’Echiquier. The distributor for Spain will be Allfunds Bank.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Dow Jones Credit Suisse hedge fund index rose 0.69% in January, with positive results for six strategies out of ten. The best-performing sector was convertibles arbitrage, with gains of 2.16% for the month, followed by event-driven strategies (1.80%) and equity market neutral (1.79%). However, dedicated short bias and global macro lost 0.83% and 0.77%, respectively.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } On 25 February, the CNMV issued registrations for nine funds launched by the Swiss management firm Bellevue Asset Management, an affiliate of Bellevue Group. Sales in Spain will be conducted by Banco Inversis.The funds, all sub-funds of the group’s Luxembourg Sicav, are the following: BB African Opportunities, BB Biotech, BB Entrepreneur Europe, BB European Opportunities, BB Global Macro, BB Healthcare, BB Meditech, BB Selection and BB Silk Road Opportunities.
Bernard Madoff has claimed in a series of taped phone calls with a reporter for New York magazine that his Ponzi scheme, in which investors lost USD65bn, started off as a legitimate business that earned 15 per cent annual returns through much of the 1980s, according to the Financial Times. He said that he started defrauding investors in the early 1990s when a period of low market volatility made it hard for his strategy to work. “I thought I could extricate myself after a short period of time. But I just couldn’t,” he said.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The British asset management firm M&G Investments is now offering the new M&G European Inflation Corporate Bond Fund, managed by Jim Leaviss and Ben Lord, which invests in investment grade corporate bonds, with the objective of generating performance at least equivalent to the European inflation rate, for sale in Germany, Das Investment reports.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Schroders Germany has released the European Small & Mid Cap Value sub-fund of its Luxembourg Sicav Schroder Isf, launched on 30 November 2010, based on the seven-year track record of a similar Swiss-registered fund, for sale in Germany. The manager remains the same: Caspar Benz, assisted by Daniel Lenz as co-manager.As its name indicates, the value fund focuses on European small and midcaps, including shares from central and eastern Europe and Russian companies, with total capitalisations of EUR500m to EUR10bn. The portfolio of 70-100 positions is managed with a stock-picking approach, and a good deal of freedom to diverge from the benchmark index (MSCI Europe Small & Mid Cap TR).CharacteristicsName: Schroder ISF European Small & Mid Cap ValueISIN code: LU0559386015Front-end fee: 5%Management commission: 1.5%Minimal initial subscription: EUR1000
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } In a letter to shareholders, the German asset management firm KanAm has announced that the freeze on redemptions from it open-ended real estate fund grundinvest will probably be extended for another year, from 6 May 2011, the Börsen-Zeitung reports. The move comes as a result of depreciations of assets, tax charges, poor returns (0.3% in 2010), and legislative changes in preparation.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Financial Times Fund Management reports that the Securities and Exchange Commission will probably pass a law requiring European asset management firms with clients in the United States for over USD25m to register with it by July, or to withdraw from the US market. The move comes despite lobbying by the European fund and asset management association (EFAMA) against the proposed legislation.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Long/short equities strategies are expected to benefit from lower levels of correlation between securities, according to fund of hedge fund managers surveyed by Standard & Poor’s Fund Services. As correlation falls, fund of fund managers say in the most recent survey by Standard & Poor’s, hedge funds may generate alpha due to the dispersion between sectors and businesses. Funds of funds finished 2010 in a good position, with gains of 3.5% in fourth quarter, and returns of 5% for the year, according to statistics from HFN.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } In its half-yearly evaluation, released on Monday, the Financial Services Authority (FSA) esimates that arbitrage funds present a limited risk to the stability of the financial system, Agefi reports. Based on a study undertaken between April and the end of September 2010, it finds that funds surveyed have a high level of liquidity, and 55% of portfolios could be liquidated in under five days. According to statistics collected by the FSA, five institutions account for more than 60% of net exposure to credit risk, the newspaper adds.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Geneva private bank Pictet has announced the volume of its assets under management and administration as of 31 December 2010. The total amount was down 4.1% to CHF372bn compared with twelve months previously, Le Temps reports. In 2009, asets rose 24.1%. Excluding assets under administration, assets under management for private and institutional clients held steady at CHF250.178bn (-0.3% year on year), following gains of 21.3% in 2009.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Fabien Perez has joined CCR Asset Management (UBS group) as a sales representative for external distribution. Perez previously worked at Société Générale Corporate & Investment Banking as a financial engineer for structured products and mutual funds.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } At a presentation of its annual results, HSBC France announced pre-tax profits of EUR626m, up 15% compared with 2009. Assets under management rose by 15%, from EUR84.7bn to EUR97bn as of 31 December 2010. Pre-tax profits more than doubled (+156%), with 16% growth in earnings and an 8% increase in operating costs. In the private banking sector, growth in earnings was 10% compared with 2009, with a noticeable improvement in pre-tax profits, which were multiplied by a factor of 6.5. Assets under management rose 2% compared with 2009, to EUR9.5bn, largely, the bank says, thanks to synergies with the HSBC network.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Agnès Paquin has been appointed as head of business development at Aviva Investors France, the asset management unit of the Aviva France group, a statement says. She will be in charge of supervising the sales team, composed of Abdel Chabane and Said Bel Bachir. Paquin joined Aviva France in 1997. Since 2006, she has been technical director for projects and advising at GIE AFER.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The French investment fund Axa Private Equity announced in a statement on 28 February that it has acquired a 10% stake in the Spanish oil transport and storage firm CLH (Compania Logistica de Hydrocarburos) from the Disa petrol station group.“The transaction values the company at about EUR3.6bn,” says Axa PE, which implies an acquisition price of EUR360m. The investment fund is pleased to become “one of the shareholders of reference in CLH,” after the Spanish oil group Cepsa, which holds a 14.15% stake.The Oman Oil group, AMP Capital, and Repsol already control about 10% each in CLH, but Repsol announced in mid-January that it had retained a business bank to help it to sell a part of its stake. The remainder of the capital is held by banks and other oil groups.“With this deal, Axa Private Equity signs a new significant engagement in the Spanish infrastructure market, following the recent acquisition of a strategic stake in Autopista Trados 45,” the fund says. Axa PE has a strategy of “investing in strategic infrastructure assets, which are both protected against inflation and have low volatility.”
The French asset management boutique SPGP is preparing to add to its range of funds with the launch on 7 March of Sélection Small Caps. The stock-picking fund will invest exclusively in small caps with a market capitalisation of under EUR500m, from a European investment universe with a marked French bias. On paper, the fund will invest 75% in shares from the European Community, of which at least 60% will be French shares. “The portfolio will remain rather concentrated, with 50 positions, whose capitalisation will be rather close to EUR300m,” explains Roger Polani, vice-CEO, who will manage the fund with Gonzague Ruchaud, “but it will avoid illiquid shares, with floats of only about 2% to 3%.”Despite the recent good perforamnce of small and midcaps, Polani estimates that the timing for the launch of a fund of this kind is not bad. However, the fund will be classified as balanced, so as to allow the managers to hedge the portfolio if there is a sustained downturn in the market.In terms of assets, the management will limit the size of the fund to EUR30m; it will start with EUR4m to EUR5m in seed capital. The firm is also planning to offer a six-month waiver of front-end fees for the OPCVM fund, aimed primarily at retail investors via independent financial advisers.Characteristics of the fundISIN code: FR0011001460Front-end fee: 1% (temporary exemption for at least 6 months)Fixed annual management fee: 2.4%Annual performance commission: 10% of returns exceeding 10%Size of shares: EUR100
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Angel Oak Capital Advisors, an asset management firm based in Atlanta, is launching its first mutual fund, a bond product. The firm, led by Screeni Prabhu, Michael Fierman and Brad Friedlander, all veterans of Washington Mutual, manages USD165m in assets, Mutual Fund Wire reports.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } La Tribune reports that the pension fund for Louisiana municipal police employees have filed a lawsuit against Nyse-Euronext. The fund claims that the proposed deal with Deutsche Börse does not value the transatlantic market operator at a fair price.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The German BVI association of asset management firms on 28 February announced that it has admitted IntReal International Real Estate Kapitalanlagegessellschaft mbH, a wholly-owned subsidiar of Warbirg-Henderson KAG, which manages five open-ended real estate funds with assets of EUR228.5m as of the end of 2010, as a new member. The executive board at the firm consists of Eitel Coridaß, Henning Klöppelt, Detlef Mertens and Michael Schneider.With this new member, the BVI now has 83 “full” members, of whom 65 have the status of KAG, 12 asset management firms, and 6 holding companies, which manage a total of over EUR1.8trn in open-ended funds, institutional funds and mandates.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } From 1 March, Wulf Matthias, a board member at Credit Suisse Deutschland, will join Banque Sarasin in Frankfurt, to serve ultra-high net worth individuals (UHNWI) and family offices in Germany. Matthias will report directly to Frank Niehage, chairman of the board at Banque Sarasin.The Swiss private bank has had a branch in Nuremberg since October 2009. It recently announced that it is the largest foreign financial services provider in Germany to become profitable less than three years after receiving a full banking license for the country.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } BlackRock and the Ireland-based NTR group on 28 February announced that they have signed a strategic agreement to launch a new investment platform specialised in renewable energies.Partners at NTR will join the BlackRock Alternative Investors (BAI) investment platform, which currently manages more than USD110bn in assets in various alternative strategies. As a part of the partnership, NTR will provide market analysis to the investment team, and will have an economic interest in some of the products of the new investment platform. The CEO of NTR, Jim Barry, will serve as chief investment officer of the new BAI unit, and will be in charge of developing the platform.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Since 24 February, the listings of the London Stock Exchange (LSE) include four more ETF funds from Credit Suisse. Only one of these, the Global Alternative Energy, is a synthetic replication fund, while the other three (Fed Funds Effective Rate, Eonia and MSCI World) are physical replication products.Pimco (Allianz Global Investors group) has also listed the Irish-registered ETF PIMCO Euro Enhanced Short Maturity Source ETF (IE00B5ZR2157). This is the first actively-managed ETF to be listed on the LSE.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The BGF European Income sub-fund of the Luxembourg Sicav BlackRock Global Funds (61 funds) has been issued a sales license for Spain by the CNMV, Funds People reports. The product, which aims for average annual returns of at least 110% of the MSCI Europe index, is managed by Andreas Zoellinger and Alice Gaskell. It invests at least 70% of its portfolio (40-70 positions) with a bottom-up approach in businesses domiciled in Europe or which realise most of their activities on the continent.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Asian Investor reports that CCB International Asset Management, part of China Construction Bank International in Hong Kong, has launched a bond fund denominated in renminbi. The fund will invest as its top priority in instruments denominated in renminbi issued in Hong Kong, and will not include synthetic bonds or structured products.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Investment Week reports that Pimco has launched a high yield bond fund, whose largest allocations will be dedicated to ABS, RMBS and CMBS. The Select UK Income Bond Fund is a UCITS-compliant vehicle, which will be managed by Mike Amey, and which will aim for gross returns of 5% per year. The fund will invest as a top priority in investment grade rated British assets. About 50% of the allocation is dedicated to ABS and MBS, 30% to investment grade credit (largely from the UK), 10% to high yield, and 10% to emerging markets debt.
p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } For 2010, the Bellevue Group has posted net profits of CHF1.53m, compared with losses of CHF95.06m in 2009, though the cost/income ratio deteriorated to 91.4% from 85.2%.As of the end of the year, total assets were down to CHF4.1bn, from CHF4.85bn. Net outflows totalled CHF526m, compared with CHF520m.The group’s affiliate Bellevue Asset Management, for its part, saw losss of CHF2.3m, compared with CHF1.4m. New niche strategies, particularly entrepreneurial strategies, allowed the firm to raise CHF200m, but those inflows were insufficient to offset net redemptions from historic strategies in the area of health (capital reduction at the affiliate BB Biotech), further structural adjustments, and negative market effects.Bellevue Group will propose a dividend payment for 2010 of CHF4 per share from reserves at its general shareholders’ meeting on 21 March.