Avenir Finance a annoncé, lundi 7 avril, la réalisation définitive de la prise de contrôle majoritaire par Ageas France de Sicavonline et Sicavonline Partenaires.Conformément aux termes du partenariat conclu entre Avenir Finance et Ageas France en décembre dernier, la participation d’Ageas France au capital de Sicavonline et au capital de Sicavonline Partenaires devait être portée de 49 à 65%, indique un communiqué.Suite à l’autorisation de prise de contrôle de Sicavonline et de Sivaconline Partenaires par Ageas France donnée par l’ACPR, Avenir Finance a cédé, en date du 2 avril 2014, 16% du capital de Sicavonline et de Sicavonline Partenaires sur la base d’une valorisation de ces deux sociétés de 20 millions d’euros. Avenir Finance garde une participation minoritaire de 35% du capital de Sicavonline et de Sicavonline Partenaires.La cession de 30% du capital de Sicavonline et de Sicavonline Partenaires a généré une plus-value de 5,1 millions d’euros au titre de l’exercice 2013 pour Avenir Finance.
UBS rationalise sa gamme de fonds en Espagne. L’établissement suisse a obtenu le feu vert du régulateur local, la CNMV, pour procéder à la fusion par absorption de la Sicav World Policy par l’autre Sicav Terde de Inversiones, rapporte Cotizalia. Les conseils d’administration des deux entités avaient précédemment donné leur accord pour une telle opération. D’après le site d’information, World Policy et Terde de Inversiones sont les deux Sicav les plus rentables du marché espagnol, les seules à avoir conclu l’exercice 2013 avec un rendement supérieur à 60 %. En prenant comme base les chiffres d’encours disponibles à fin 2013, la nouvelle Sicav née de cette fusion affichera près de 30 millions d’euros d’actifs sous gestion. De fait, à fin 2013, Terde de Inversiones affichait 18,12 millions d’euros d’encours et un rendement de 61,96 % tandis que World Policy atteignait 11,42 millions d’euros d’encours et un rendement de 61,39 %.
InverCaixa Gestión étoffe sa gamme de produits sur le marché espagnol. La société de gestion, filiale du groupe bancaire CaixaBank, va lancer cette semaine un nouveau fonds à objectif de performance non garanti, révèle Funds People. Baptisé FonCaixa Rentas Abril 2020, ce véhicule sera composé de six compartiments et investira en priorité dans la dette publique espagnole avec un horizon d’investissement fixé à avril 2020. A cette échéance, l’objectif du fonds est de maintenir 100 % de l’investissement initial auquel s’ajoute un taux de rendement annuel compris entre 1,5 % et 1,85% en fonction des six compartiments. L’investissement minimal initial varie de 600 euros à 150.000 euros selon le compartiment retenu.
Bankia Fondos, la branche de gestion d’actifs du groupe bancaire espagnol, vient de recevoir l’autorisation du régulateur local, la CNMV, pour fusionner les fonds Bankia Fonduxo (88 millions d’euros d’encours) et Bankia Mixto Renta Variable España (62 millions d’encours), le premier véhicule absorbant le deuxième, rapporte Funds People. Le nouveau fonds issu de la fusion sera baptisé Fonduxo et disposera de près de 150 millions d’euros d’actifs sous gestion. Bankia estime être en mesure de finaliser la fusion juridique de ces deux fonds dans le courant du mois de mois et, ainsi, pouvoir commencer la commercialisation du nouveau véhicule Bankia Fonduxo dans la foulée.
UBS Global Asset Management enrichit sa gamme de produits sur le marché espagnol. Le gestionnaire d’actifs suisse vient en effet d’enregistrer auprès du régulateur national, la CNMV, le UBS Emerging Markets Rising Giants Equity Fund, un fonds actions dédié aux marchés émergents, rapporte Funds People.Le véhicule, géré par Art Gresh, investit principalement dans des titres d’entreprises ayant leur siège social dans les pays émergents ou des entreprises qui développent la majeure partie de leur activité dans ces économies émergentes. Le portefeuille de ce fonds est composé de 50 à 80 valeurs. Son univers d’investissement est composé de sociétés cotées au MSCI Emerging Markets qui réalisent au moins 20 % de leurs revenus en dehors de leur pays d’origine.
Le taux de couverture moyen des fonds de pension d’entreprise américains a reculé de 0,5 point de pourcentage au mois de mars pour s'établir à 92,1%, selon BNY Mellon Investment Strategy & Solutions Group. Depuis le début de l’année, le taux de couverture a diminué de 3,1 points de pourcentage.Durant le mois sous revue, les actifs se sont accrus de 0,3% alors que les engagements augmentaient dans le même temps de 0,7%, le taux d’actualisation diminuant en mars de deux points de base à 4,56% pour les entreprises notées Aa.
State Street Global Advisors vient de recruter Desirée Scarabelli en Italie, en tant que senior sales manager, rapporte Bluerating. Elle vient de BNY Mellon Investment Management, où elle occupait le même poste. Basée à Milan, Desirée Scarabelli travaillera sous la direction de Danilo Verdacanna, responsable de SSgA en Italie. SSgA a recruté deux autres personnes dans son équipe Intermediary Business Group : Steve Muzzlewhite au Royaume-Uni et Elaine Coussement au Benelux.
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Shane Sutton, who trained Tour de France winner Sir Bradley Wiggins and Olympic gold medalist Chris Hoy, has teamed up with the investment consultant Inalytics to offer motivational training to client asset management firms, Financial Times fund management reports. The two partners founded the Trading Peaks academy, which seeks to provide fund managers with “the same mentality as athletes, in order to make them able to confront pressure and deliver endurance.” GLG, a division of Man Group, is the first asset management firm to subscribe to the academy.
Ashcourt Rowan has completed its acquisition of UK Wealth Management Limited (UKWM) having obtained Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) approval, according to a press release published on April 7. This increases its assets to over GBP5 billion, of which GBP2.2 billion is discretionary and managed.
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } It was a smooth end to the year for Liontrust Asset Management. The British asset management firm has posted a very slight increase in its assets under management of 1.2% at the end of its fourth quarter, ending on 31 March, from GBP3.57bn at the end of 2013 to GBP3.61bn as of the end of March 2014. In the past three months, Liontrust has posted a modest GBP16bn in net inflows. This performance has been penalised by outflows of GBP196m from a single client of the Liontrust Global Strategic Bond Fund vehicle. However, the asset management firm can claim to have brought in GBP160bn in net subscriptions from British retail clients and GBP60m in net inflows form institutionals. In the past fiscal year, from 1 April 2013 to 1 March 2014, assets under management have risen by GBP574m (or 18.9%) and net inflows totalled GBP381m, of which GBP293m were from retail clients and GBP109m from institutionals.
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The global ETF and ETP sector is still doing well. Inflows to these products totalled USD11bn in March, according to preliminary data released on 7 April by ETFGI. This perfomance, combined with positive market effects, will drive total assets in the industry to a new record total of USD2.45trn as of the end of first quarter 2014. In the month of March, equity ETF/ETPs posted their strongest net inflows, with USD9.9bn, followed by commodity funds (USD876m in net inflows). At the same time, bond ETF/ETPs posted a net outflow of USD1.4bn. For first quarter, net subscriptions totalled USD33bn, significantly below than the USD73.1bn posted at the same time last year. In the first three months of this year, bond ETF/ETPs brought in USD17.8bn in net inflows, followed by equity funds (USD8.4bn in inflows). However, commodities had outflows of USD207m. In the past quarter, the winner for best inflows was Vanguard, with USD14.7bn in net subscriptions, followed by iShares (USD8.6bn) and Nomura AM (USD4.9bn).
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Franklin Templeton Investments is adding to its sales team, with the recruitment of Peter Gorynski. Gorynski will be responsible for relationships with distributor partners in Germany (central and northern regions of the country), Das Investment reports. He will report to Thomas Knigge, director of sales for Germany at the asset management firm. Gorynski was previously spokesman for the board at the SJB Fondsskyline company.
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Marie Repiquet and David Zerbib have joined the European sales team at Edmond de Rothschild Asset Management (EdRAM), as sales managers in charge of partners. They will report to Michel Dinet, head of partnerships for France, according to a statement released on 7 April. The two recruitments are a sign “of the desire of Edmond de Rothschild Asset Management to participate in its development and the growth of assets from partner clients,” the statement says. After starting her career at Edmond de Rothschild Luxembourg as a fund analyst, Repiquet moved up in the company to the position of private banker. She now joins Edmond de Rothschild Asset Management, where she will be responsible for assisting independent advisers and platforms in Paris and the North and East regions and entrepreneurial asset management firms, as part of the Distribution Partners team. Zerbib began his career in London in sales of derivative products at UBS and HSBC, and then joined a well-known wealth management firm in Paris. He will be responsible for assisting independent advisers and platforms in Paris, and will also serve Western France and entrepreneurial asset management firms.
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Schroders is in talks to increase staff for its multi-asset class team in the United States, as the asset management firm seeks to double the share of its revenues originating from North America, Financial News reports. Multi-asset strategies from Schroders represent over USD9.3bn in assets.
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } BNP Paribas Investment Partners (BNP Paribas IP) on Monday, 7 April announced the appointment of François Hullo has head of external distribution from 31 March 2014. He replaces Andrea Favaloro, who is leaving the group. Hullo was previously head of Fixed Income management at BNPP AM, a statement says, adding that at BNP Paribas, he served in development of alternative and structured management, head of sales for France, and then institutional sales for Southern Europe. He was then head of Alfred Berg, the asset management affiliate for the countries of Northern Europe.
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Capital Group is putting down roots in Italy. The asset management firm has recruited Cristina Mazzurana and Paola Pallota for the newly-created positions of managers in charge of business development for the Milan office, Funds Europe reports. The two join Vlasta Gregis, who joined Capital Group in May 2012, and who has led the Milan office since its opening last year. Mazzurana joins from Carmignac Gestion, where she served as director of development for the activity, while Pallota most recently worked at HSBC Global Asset Management as sales manager.
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } State Street Global Advisors has recruited Desirée Scarabelli in Italy as senior sales manager, Bluerating reports. She joins from BNY Mellon Investment Management, where she had served in the same position. Scarabelli will be based in Milan, and will report to Danilo Vercadanna, head of SSgA in Italy. SSgA has recruited two other people for its Intermediary Business Group team: Steve Muzzlewhite in the United Kingdom, and Elaine Coussement in Benelux.
Australia’s AMP Capital has launched a Luxembourg-domiciled UCITS platform, which will offer UCITS versions of its Global Listed Infrastructure Fund and Global Real Estate Securities Fund to UK and European institutional investors, according to a press release published on April 7. The platform has been launched with USD156 million in assets under management, which will be split equally between the two strategies. Both funds will be available to investors in the UK, the Netherlands and Luxembourg initially, «with plans to expand into other jurisdictions in Europe and Asia,» according to the press release. «The establishment of a UCITS platform is a key step in our continued commitment to further develop AMP Capital’s offering in Europe,» said Anthony Fasso, CEO international and head of global clients at AMP Capital. The AMP Capital Global Listed Infrastructure Fund and the AMP Capital Global Listed Real Estate Securities Fund both provide investors with access to a global portfolio of securities that are diversified across regions and sectors. The infrastructure fund has USD897 million in funds under management and the real estate fund has USD5.9 billion in funds under management (as at 31 March 2014).
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Gazprombank Asset Management is adding to its product range. After launching its first UCITS fund in January (see Newsmanagers of 21 January 2014), the Russian asset management firm is stepping up its presence on the market with the launch of two new UCITS vehicles focused on Russia, Citywire Global reports. The two funds, domiciled in Luxembuorg, cover both equities and bonds in the region, and were launched with seed capital of USD45bn each. The first fund, GBP Russia Equities, is concentrated on sectors of activity outside commodities in Russia and the Community of Independent States (CIS), using the MSCI Russia 10/40 Net TR USD index as a benchmark. The second, the GBP Russia Fixed Income Fund, invests primarily in government and corporate bonds denominated in US dollars, rubles, and other currencies. Its benchmark is the Euro-CBonds IG 3Y.
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The private equity firm Waterton Global Resource Management has raised USD1.06bn for its latest fund dedicated to precious metals, the news agency Reuters reports. The Waterton Precious Metals Fund II will concentrate on projects at advanced stages in politically stable jurisdictions, primarily in North America. The acquisitions planned will be priced between USD25m and USD200m.
Netherlands’ TOM has launched best execution in exchange traded funds (ETFs). The product scope now consists of equities, options and ETFs. «Offering best execution in these products is a unique approach in Europe. Clients can benefit from using a single TOM connection to trade a wide range of products while receiving best execution in all those financial instruments according to MiFID requirements,» according to a press release.
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Senior bank loans are increasingly of interest to institutionals, according to a recent study by ING Investment Management of 84 pension funds, surveyed in March 2014. 42% say that institutional investors have increased their exposure to credit awarded to non-investment grade businesses. “These are private issues negotiated directly between banks and institutional investors on a private secondary market and not the stock market,” the manager says. According to ING IM, demand for this asset class is expected to increase. 40% expect institutional investors to increase their exposure in the next 12 months, while 8% feel that the exposure will fall “slightly.” When asked about the main advantages of investments in senior bank loans, 29% of pension funds cite diversification of bond portfolios, while 19% cite risk-adjusted returns. 14% mention the low risk of payment defaults. ING IM states that assets under management by senior bank loan strategies were up 46% in the past 12 months, from USD13bn to USD19bn. “The potential for this asset class in the asset management sector is enormous, since comprehension of this product by some institutional investors is still very slight. That is what one pension fund out of four said when asked what they felt was the largest challenge for senior bank loans as an asset class,” says Dan Norman, managing director and gorup head of the senior bank loans team at ING IM.
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } InverCaixa Gestión is adding to its product range on the Spanish market. The asset management firm, an affiliate of the banking group CaixaBank, will this week launch a new non-guaranteed performance objective fund, Funds People reveals. The vehicle, entitled FonCaixa Rentas Abril 2020, will be composed of six sub-funds, and will invest primarily in Spanish public debt, with an investment horizon set for April 2020. On this date, the objective of the fund is to maintain 100% of the initial investment, in addition to which there will be an annual performance objective of 1.5% to 1.85% for each of the six sub-funds. The minimal initial investment varies from EUR600 to EUR150,000 according to the sub-fund.
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Pension funds are the largest and most generous investors in the hedge fund sector, according to a study performed by the Prime Brokerage division of J.P. Morgan, the website ValueWalk reports. As of the end of September 2013, total assets invested by defined contribution programmes in hedge funds had risen more quickly than any other category, the study finds. The 200 largest pension funds in the United States last year had a total of USD150bn in direct investment in hedge funds and funds of hedge funds, an increase of slightly over 10% compared with the previous year.
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Eric Schreiber, former head of commodities at the Swiss wealth management firm Union Bancaire Privee (UBP), will be launching a fund specialised in commodities. The EMS Commodity Volatility Fund will be registered in Liechtenstein, and will aim for assets of USD1.5bn, according to Das Investment. Fundraising is currently in progress. The portfolio will be invested in commodity derivatives of all types (energies, precious metals, soft commodities).
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Norwegian sovereign fund, whose assets under management total about USD860bn, is not yet ready to commit to new asset classes, and is taking a year to study opportunities to invest in infrastructure or non-publicly traded assets, finance minister Siv Jansen told a group of journalists on 7 April, the news agency Reuters reports. The fund will first have to evaluate its allocation to real estate, which is still very modest, but which is rising steadily. “We are in a period of apprenticeship with our allocation to real estate, and we are currently discussing an extension into non-publicly traded,” says Jensen. But the sovereign fund clearly has no intention of extending its investment spectrum this year, as some specialists had supposed. 2014 will be primarily a time to think. “If we extend our active portfolio, it will be logical to discuss infrastructure as well as other categories... We will discuss the topic again next year,” says Jansen.
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } BlackRock Investment Management (UK) has added about 14% to its staff in 2013, and now has 2,331 employees, Ignites Europe reports, citing the firm’s annual report. The entity has arms in Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Denmark, Sweden, Austria, Belgium, and Korea. In France, there are 19 personnel and income last year totalled GBP19m (out of a total of GBP873.5m).
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The US asset management firm Aristotle Capital Management has announced the launch of an international equity fund, the Aristotle International Equity, which will invest at least 80% of its net assets in publicly-traded firms, or deposit certificates from companies whose headquarters are outside the United States, or a substantial proportion of whose activities are carried out outside the United States. The strategy is aimed at institutional clients, and will be managed by Geoffrey S Stewart and Sean M Thorpe, whose investment decisions will be taken collectively. The fund will use a bottom-up approach to seek out quality companies from the point of view of market undervaluation. The managers will then use a series of filters such as share price/earnings ratios, free cash flow ratios, and liquid assets to determine the fair value of a business.
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Lazard Asset Management has decided to rename its top-performer UK Equity Income fund (GBP101m in assets) as Lazard Multi-Cap UK Income, Investment Week reports. The objective with the move is to better reflect the multi-cap size approach of the vehicle, 40% of whose portfolio is invested outside the FTSE 100. According to the website, the fund is one of the best performers in the sector, with returns of 132% over five years as of 28 March, compared with 120% for the sector, according to Morningstar data.
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Allianz Global Investors plans to launch a US small caps fund for UK investors in June, Investment Week reports. The fund, which replicates a strategy available to US investors, will be managed by a team based in San Diego, led by John McCraw. It will be available in a Sicav envelope based in Luxembourg. The fund may be the first in a series which may be offered to UK investors. A UK large cap fund is also rumoured to be in the work, which would rival existing strategies.