After a one-year contraction of 16.75% to USD15.9bn as of the end of 2008, assets in ETF funds which replicate China indices more than doubled last year to a total as of 31 December 2009 of USD32.3bn, in 53 products from 28 issuers, listed on 21 stock markets worldwide. Deborah Fuhr (BlackRock) says that the United States alone account for USD12.47bn, with 21 ETF funds, while Hong Kong represented assets of USD9.97bn in 12 ETF funds, and in China, the eight local ETFs had USD5.87bn in assets under management. Net subscriptions represented USD3.1bn last year for ETFs domiciled in the United States and Europe, in addition to which USD3.7bn in net inflows came into emerging market funds replicating indices such as the MSCI Emerging Markets index, in which the Chinese market represents 18.3% of the total. iShares is the largest asset management firm in the Chinese ETF segment, with 11 products and assets of USD18bn, which represents a market share of 55%. The second-largest management firm, far behind the leader, is China Asset Management, with only two funds and USD3.8bn in assets, or 11.7% of the market. These two actors between them thus account for two thirds of the market. Hang Seng Investment Management and E Fund Management are in third and fourth place, respectively, with assets of USD2.2bn and USD1.3bn, and respective market shares of 6.7% and 4.1%.
Anthony Bolton will personally invest GBP2.5m in the new Fidelity China Special Situations fund, Citywire reports. Fidelity International will put GBP15m in the fund. The group is hoping to raise a total of GBP650m.
On Monday, Citigroup announced that it has taken Sanjiv Sawhney back on board as global head of funds services in its securities & fund services division. Sawhney will report to Neeraj Sahai, global head of securities & fund services, and will be in charge of hedge fund, private equity and mutual fund administration worldwide. Sawhney was previously head of fund services at JP Morgan for Europe, and managing director and administrator of JPMorgan Bank Luxembourg. With 17 years of experience in securities services, Sawhney has already spent 15 years at Citigroup, where among other positions he was director of fund administration for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA).
John Holcombe, head of wealth management services for the external distribution division of T. Rowe Price, on 1 March joined JPMorgan Asset Management (JPMAM) in the newly-created position of senior relationship manager specialised in distribution to banks and trust departments, Mutual Fund Wire reports. Holcombe will report to Jed Laskowitz, head of distribution to broker-dealers, insurers, banks and registered investment advisers (RIAs).
The Committee of European Securities Regulators (CESR) on 1 March announced that it has established a specific database on its website to meet the transparency requirements of the MIF directive for information on shares added to trading on regulated markets, which will be available to all market participants. With this in view, the CESR has announced that it will establish an amended protocol describing the cooperation agreements between CESR members, and the Committee secretariat to manage the calculation and publication of data which ensure the transparency of the market, as required by the MIF directive. The guide states that collection of market data also concerns the three largest trading platforms in terms of market share, which are BATS, Chi-X and Turquoise.
In 2009, UCITS funds saw inflows of EUR123bn, compared with outflows of EUR356bn in 2008, according to statistics from the European fund and asset management association (EFAMA). The association points out that this growth dynamic, which began in April 2009, has not lost momentum since that time. UCITS funds domiciled in Luxembourg and the United Kingdom represented 81% of these EUR123bn in inflows, with 54% and 27% of the market, respectively, far ahead of Germany, France and Sweden, which had 7% of the market each. Long-term UCITS funds (excluding money market funds) posted net inflows of EUR165bn for the year as a whole, due to positive inflows of EUR66bn to equities funds, EUR72bn to bond funds, and EUR44bn to diversified funds. The erosion of money market funds resulted in outflows of EUR43bn, following inflows of EUR64bn in 2008. Demand for non-UCITS funds was strong, however: dedicated funds for institutionals saw EUR48bn in inflows in 2009, while real estate funds saw inflows of EUR4bn.
Management firms are seeking to fill a gap in the lending market ignored by the banking sector and governments, Financial Times Fund Management reports. Many firms are seeking to raise capital for funds which would offer loans to businesses with an urgent need for credit, or provide financing for infrastructure development. FT FM cites the examples of Hastings Fund Management, Trafalgar Capital Advisors, and Aviva Investors.
Eftychia (La) Fischer, who was global head of financial markets services & treasury and group chief risk officer at EFG International, has joined the board of directors at Union Bancaire Privée as global head of the treasury and trading unit. She previously held high-level positions at Julius Baer, JPMorgan and UBS. She has also been head of her own asset management firm.
US Judge Burton Lifland has ruled in favour of a plan by Irving Picard, the trustee in charge of recouping losses from Bernard Madoff’s Ponzi scheme, to repay bilked investors based on how much money they originally invested in the fraud. The ruling is a blow to investors who sued Mr Picard to change the formula to one that would allow losses to be recouped based upon investors’ final financial statements before the scheme unravelled in December 2008. When using the final financial statements of Mr Madoff’s fraudulent fund as a measure, the scheme cost investors USD65bn. However, based on the amount of money actually invested in the fund the number is closer to USD21bn.
Hartmut Leser, board member in charge of distribution at Aberdeen Asset Management Deutschland AG (Aberdeen Deutschland) has been promoted to the position of head of Aberdeen for Germany, and chairman of the board at Aberdeen Deutschland. In this latter position he replaces Patrick Walker, head of European Business Development activities for Aberdeen Asset Management, who will now be able to return to London, as the integration of Degi has been completed. Michael Determann will assist Leser as chairman of the executive board at Aberdeen Immobilien KAG (ex DEGI). The board of directors will include Leser and Fabian Klingler, as well as Roger Welz. Klingler will be in charge of fund and asset management. Nico Tates, head of real estate fund management for continental Europe, becomes a member of the supervisory board at Aberdeen KAG, and will serve as international transaction manager and will also coordinate real estate fund management between Frankfurt and the other Aberdeen offices. The appointments were announced at the same time that the resignation of Bärbel Schomberg, chairwoman of the executive board at Aberdeen Immobilien KAG, “for personal convenience,” was announced. Schomberg was also head of Continental Europe at Aberdeen Property Investors. Malcolm Morgan will also be resigning his post as international transaction manager for personal convenience. The two departures come one month after the announcement that the portfolio of the real estate fund DEGI Global Business was written down by 21.6% (see Newsmanagers of 9 February and full article on 11 February). Redemptions from the DEGI Europa and DEGI International funds are still suspended.
A rise in interest in bond funds which began last year is expected to continue this year, but with a more moderate pace of inflows, Moody’s predicts in a report on the sector. Spreads have contracted after reaching all-time highs. Corporate debt issues are expected to decrease in this environment, and selection will be the key to performance, Moody’s estimates. The credit profiles of bond funds will stabilise due to an expected decline in defaults and a return to normal trading conditions. For bets on duration, Moody’s expects little movement in first half, but adds that second half may offer more custom trading opportunities as central banks call off their expansionist monetary policies. In the first nine months of 2009, bond funds attracted about EUR190bn in the United States and EUR50bn in Europe. The trend is expected to continue for most bond segments, and will be more pronounced for short-duration funds, absolute return funds and ETFs.
Sovereign funds are turning away from active management in favour of passive management, according to a study by State Street Global Advisors, cited by Financial Times FM, which has surveyed ten European, Middle Eastern and Asian sovereign funds. In September 2009, the funds had 11 mandates for active management, compared with 15 in December 2008, while the number of passive management mandates increased from 14 to 16.
In the most recent edition of Investment Outlook, published on Monday, Bill Gross, the star manager of the Pimco Total Return Fund (USD200bn) predicts that returns and spreads on government bonds will gradually come into line with those of the markets they are seeking to prop up with their stimulus plans, the Wall Street Journal reports. This places a potential cap on the debt which can be issued as a way out of the debt crisis, and retail investors can no longer rely on an assumption that sovereign debt is airtight. Investors will therefore need to focus on those government bonds whose fundamentals involve lower levels of credit or inflation risk. Germany and Canada are at the top of this list, while the worst choices would include Greece, other comparable members of the Euro zone, and the United Kingdom.
According to statistics from the Inverco association of management firms, assets in Spanish securities funds in February declined by 1.1% to EUR159.98bn (the lowest level since June 1997), following net outflows of nearly EUR1.8bn, the highest levels since June 2009, in addition to the EUR485m observed in January. Ahorro Corporación states that the most conservative funds, money markets and short-term bonds, saw net redemptions of EUR600m and EUR1.6bn, respectively. The largest net outflows were from BBVA Asset Management (EUR596m), Santander Asset Management (EUR287m), and InverCaixa (EUR177m).
The process of concentration is continuing for fund product ranges on the Spanish market. The record set three months ago by Ahorro Corporación as it merged 12 funds in one fell swoop (see Newsmanagers of 25 November) has been beaten by Invercaixa, which has merged 18 diversified funds with the majority of their assets invested in equities into the Foncaixa Mixta 75RV, while ten diversified funds mostly invested in bonds have been merged into the Foncaixa 88 Cesta Mixta 25 RV, according to a declaration to the CNMV. Meanwhile, Banesto (Santander group) has merged its short-term bond funds and Especial Renta Fija, while Barclays is said to be merging its treasury fund with a short-term bond specialist fund and the Barclays Gobiernos Europa Liquidez. Credit Suisse, finally, has merged its Summa and Sigma funds.
Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM) has made an addition to its Scandinavian team with the recruitments of Mårten Bäck and Philip Mikkelsen. The management firm now has six personnel to cover Scandinavia. Bäck, who will be based in Stockholm, was previously head of manager research at SEB Wealth Management. At GSAM, he will be in charge of building relations with the major distributors in Northern Europe. Mikkelsen joins the firm from Danske Bank, where he was jead of Scandinavian institutions. He will now occupy the same position at GSAM. Sheila Patel, co-head of GSAM for Europe, says in a statement that the Scandinavian countries are a priority for the management firm. The recruitments appear to be part of a European expansion strategy, according to an article in Financial News Online on 1 March, which adds that GSAM has more than doubled the size of its distribution team in Europe in the past six months, to 70 total. Recruitments are also planned in France.
The former hedge fund manager Paul Absalom has joined Standard Chartered, according to Asian Investor, in the newly-created position of head of distribution for Singapore. He will report directly to Adrian Walkling, international head of distribution to financial institutions. In his new responsibilities, Absalom will be in charge of major accounts in the Asian region and clients served from Singapore. Absalom previously worked for HSBC in Hong Kong as head of sales to hedge funds and central banks.
The British private bank RBS Coutts, which last year lost about 70 employees in Singapore, is rebuilding its presence in the region with the transfers to Hong Kong of Nick Cringle, co-chief investment officer for the London firm, in the next few weeks. Asian Investor reports that RBS Coutts has also appointed Manfred Liechti as head for South-East Asia.
With subscriptions of EUR20.8bn in fourth quarter, the Italian asset management sector finished 2009 with net inflows of over EUR35bn, Assogestioni, the Italian association of management professionals, reports. As of the end of 2009, assets under management by the sector overall totalled EUR950bn, of which 82% was managed by Italian firms. Open-ended funds finished the year with assets of EUR438bn, thanks to net subscriptions of EUR6.4bn. Assogestioni emphasizes that assets in foreign-registered funds outweighed those in Italian-registered products, with 52% of assets in the former, totalling EUR226bn, and 48% in the latter, at EUR212bn.
The British financial market regulator, the FSA, on 1 March published its new policies for fines. The new framework is more consistent and transparent, and may potentially result in maximum fines three times higher than previously.The new matrix for calculating fines ties penalties more closely to revenues, up to 20% of earnings from the activity deemed to be improper in the period concerned, and up to 40% of remuneration (including bonuses) for employees. A minimum fine of GBP100,000 will be set for serious market abuse cases. The new regime, which has received far from unanimous support from the financial industry, will come into force on 6 March. According to the FSA, record fines were already levied in 2009, but the new approach will increase the dissuasive effect of fines.
Le conseil des ministres espagnol de vendredi a décidé d’attribuer une dotation exceptionnelle de 1,74 milliard d’euros prélevé sur les excédents de 2008 au Fonds de réserve de la Sécurité sociale. «La cagnotte des retraites» passera ainsi à 62,5 milliards d’euros, rapporte El País.
Expansión rapporte que 22 sicav ont notifié à la CNMV qu’elles sont dans l’incapacité de racheter les parts présentées au remboursement sans tomber en dessous du plancher réglementaire de 2,4 millions d’euros ou de leur capital initial. Parmi elles figurent Nomit III International, qui est contrôlée par Ignacio de Polanco, président de Prisa, et Kalyani, qui appartient à la famille du milliardaire Ram Bhavnani.
Selon La Tribune, l ‘un des freins au développement des ETF auprès des particuliers en France tient au fait qu’ils ne sont absolument pas distribués au sein des réseaux des grandes banques françaises. «Ce n’est pourtant pas par manque d’offre puisque BNP Paribas via EasyETF, Crédit Agricole via Amundi ETF et Société Générale via sa filiale Lyxor en proposent», note le quotidien. Ce sont les faibles frais de gestion qui bloquent la distribution de ces produits dans les réseaux. Mais le développement de la distribution des ETF en France pourrait, selon La Tribune, passer par une évolution de la réglementation en s’inspirant du modèle américain, où le système rémunère les conseillers sur la base du contenant et non plus du contenu, à savoir les fonds.
Si dès 2005, l’ERAFP (la caisse de retraite additionnelle de la fonction publique) a fait le choix du tout ISR (investissement socialement responsable) pour la gestion de ses cotisations, c’est, selon La Tribune, la crise financière qui a changé la donne et déclenché un véritable engouement pour la gestion socialement responsable tant du côté des investisseurs institutionnels que des sociétés de gestion. Ecofi Investissements a été la première en France à basculer vers le tout ISR il y a deux ans. Fin janvier, Robeco Gestions a annoncé vouloir s’engager dans une démarche similaire, grâce à l’expertise d’une de ses filiales suisses, Robeco SAM.
Selon L’Agefi, la société de gestion Oddo devient actionnaire majoritaire du réseau de conseillers en gestion de patrimoine indépendants Patrimoine Consultant avec une part de 65 %. Elle vise à cinq ans un triplement des encours de ce réseau, un doublement des effectifs et une hausse du nombre d’agences de 32 à 50.
Mark Wolter, directeur général de Schroder Property KAG a été nommé membre du comité exécutif de la société de gestion WestInvest, filiale de Deka (caisses d'épargne allemandes). Il y sera plus particulièrement responsable de la gestion de fonds immobilier et, sur ce créneau, des produits institutionnels, un segment que le groupe Deka a l’intention de développer tout particulièrement.
Emmerich Müller, l’un des deux associés-gérants, a indiqué dans un entretien que la banque privée Bankhaus B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co a terminé 2009 avec un résultat stable et qu’il reste optimiste pour 2010, même si la période risque d'être agitée, rapporte la Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.Le banquier estime qu’il existe encore un potentiel dans la gestion de fortune, même si les taux de croissance sont appelés à baisser. Metzler avait terminé 2008 avec un encours de 29 milliards d’euros et un quotient de fonds propres de premier rang (tier one) de 15,1 %.
En 2009, l’encours des sociétés de gestion allemandes s’est accru de 170,7 milliards d’euros, dont 33,1 milliards provenant des souscriptions nettes et 137,6 milliards attribuables à l'évolution positive des marchés. Pour les fonds institutionnels, l’effet de marché a représenté 54,3 milliards d’euros tandis que les rentrées nettes ont atteint près de 31 milliards d’euros, selon les calculs de l’agence Kommalpha. Les fonds d’actions ont enregistré des souscriptions nettes de 14,6 milliards d’euros et leur encours a gonflé de 43,3 milliards d’euros tandis que les fonds monétaires ont subi des remboursements nets d’environ 30 milliards d’euros et que les fonds obligataires affichaient des sorties nettes de 898 millions d’euros.Enfin, Kommalpha souligne que les fonds offerts au public de droit luxembourgeois ont accusé des rachats nets de 15 milliards d’euros pendant que ceux de droit allemand bénéficiaient de rentrées nettes supérieures à 11 milliards d’euros.