P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } The Swiss Federal financial market surveillance authority (FINMA) has revised its document “Guidelines for wealth management.” The new version of the text states the duties of wealth managers in their relationships with their clients, including a requirement to report commissions. The most recent verdicts of the Federal court and a revision to the law on collective investments are taken into account. The revised guidelines come into force from 1 July 2013. The document “Guidelines for wealth management” (Circ.Finma 2009/1) defines the guidelines that Finma uses as reference criteria to admit rules of conduct for an organisation which is active in wealth management as minimal requirements. Verdicts handed down by the Federal court with respect to individual wealth management as well as the revised law on collective investments have been made necessary in the revised document. Research (client risk profile), information (information about risk) and diligence (updating of risk profile) requirements as well as a requirement to disclose commissions, are included.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } According to fondweb.de, Franklin Templeton has decided to close its equity product Templeton Frontier Markets Fund, managed by Mark Mobius snce 14 October 2008, to new investors from 28 June, 2013. Current shareholders will be allowed to continue to invest. The soft closing aims to protect performance for existing subscribers, to allow the management team to continue to deploy a value strategy. As of 31 March, the Luxembourg-registered fund had assets of USD1.836bn.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } The US firm First Trust Advisors is continuing its offensive in Europe. After launching its first three ETFs in April this year (see Newsmanagers of 11 April 2013), First Trust is planning to offer two new products in the AlphaDEX range, one of them dedicated to the euro zone, and the other to international high dividends equities, by September or slightly later, Martin Molère, head of sales at First Trust for continental Europe, has told Newsmanagers. The dividend ETF will offer quarterly liquidity. The ETFs already launched by First Trust, which are domiciled in Ireland and listed in London, are currently available in the United Kingdom, Ireland, and France. Switzerland and Benelux are expected to follow. All ETFs listed use the exclusive AlphaDEX methodology from First Trust, which is designed to select a combination of growth equities and attractive fundamental value. This methodology selects equities from a base universe, and separates them into growth and value categories. The weighting of equities held in ETFs is not based on market capitalisation, but on their AlphaDEX scores. The scores for growth equities are based on three measurements: price appreciation over three, six and twelve months, growth in sales, and their price/sale ratio. The scores for value equities are also based on three measurements: the book price/value ratio, their price/cash flow ratio, and returns on assets. As of 21 June, ETFs under management had USD12bn in assets, compared with USD8.1bn at the beginning of the year. Of this total, the AlphaDEX range currently represents USD5.8bn.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } Since the beginning of the year, the Vice Fund, which invests in shares in the alcohol, tobacco, weapons and gambling sectors, may have underperformed the S&P 500, with gains of only 9.47%, compared with 11.5% for the flagship indicator of the US market. But, El Confidencial remarks, over three years, the product from the asset management firm USA Mutuals has beaten the S&P 500, with gains of 16.5% compared with 10.6%.By way of illustration, an investment of USD10,000 in 2002 in the fund would as of 31 March 2013 have been worth USD27,691 for the Vice fund, compared with USD21,229 for the S&P 500.The Vice Fund is 15.6% invested in Altria, 5.6% in Philip Morris, and 4.7% in Lorillard, for tobacco, and 4.1% each in Las Vegas Sands and Galaxy Entertainment, for gambling.

The Asian asset management affiliate of Prudential in the United Kingdom and sister company of M&G, Eastspring Investments, is preparing to open an office in London after settling in Luxembourg in April this year. The objective is to set out to conquer European clients. Despite the European origins of its parent company, 90% of clients of the Hong Kong and Singapore-based firm are Asian.In order to develop in Europe, Eastspring Investments has not needed to create ad-hoc products. The Asian firm has already had a Luxembourg Sicav since the mid-2000s. It has been used to serve Asian clients, the UCITS format being an effective passport in this market. In addition to a track record of several years, the Sicav with 45 sub-funds already has assets of USD20bn, while the firm has nearly USD100bn in assets under management (of which 60% are managed for its parent company, 33% for retail and 7% for institutional clients).Development in Europe (and the United States), however, were preceded by a rebranding of the Asian asset management affiliate of Prudential. The firm, which is present in 11 Asian countries, had been using a variety of different names related to its parent company. The decision was taken in February this year to unify these and to select a single brand, Eastspring Investments.“The choice of a brand was a major step in our international development process,” Guy Strapp, the new CEO of Eastspring Investments, says at the Fund Forum International in Monaco. Two other reasons are cited as reasons for the timing of the new location in Europe: the need to have a sufficiently long track record for European investors, and the maturity of the market towards investments in Asia.In Europe, the main target countries are the Nordics, with the registration of the Sicav in Sweden, these countries are more sensitive than others to investment in emerging markets. For France, as for Germany and Italy, some hurdles still need to be cleared. Nonethtless, Strapp is planning to move step by step and gradually build a presence in Europe. Although he remains discreet about objectives, he does not conceal his admiration for the success of sister company M&G in Europe...

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; direction: ltr; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); }P.western { font-family: «Times New Roman»,serif; font-size: 12pt; }P.cjk { font-family: «WenQuanYi Micro Hei"; font-size: 12pt; }P.ctl { font-family: «Lohit Hindi"; font-size: 12pt; }A:link { } Citigroup and HSBC have received permission to sell local funds in China, a breakthrough at a time when foreign bankers are usually excluded from the domestic retail market, the Financial Times reports. The two banks will now be able to offer funds designed by local asset management firms for retail, corporate and institutional investors. Other foreign banks, such as Standard Chartered and Bank of East Asia, have also applied for licenses to sell local funds.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; direction: ltr; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); }P.western { font-family: «Times New Roman»,serif; font-size: 12pt; }P.cjk { font-family: «WenQuanYi Micro Hei"; font-size: 12pt; }P.ctl { font-family: «Lohit Hindi"; font-size: 12pt; }A:link { } From hedge funds such as those from Bridgewater Associates and AQR Capital Management to mutual funds and pension funds, products which apply risk parity strategies have been severely affected by the current turmoil on the markets, the Wall Street Journal observes. Risk parity managers use leverage to increase returns on bond investments, in order to make them more closely resemble equity investments.In addition, equities have fallen at the same time as bonds after the Fed suggested that it may slow its quantitative easing policy. To make the situation worse, commodities and inflation-linked securities, which are largely used by risk parity managers, have also seen heavy losses due to the decline of inflationary expectations.According to Morningstar, risk parity mutual funds have seen average losses of 6.75%, while a composite index of 60% S&P 500 and 40% Barclays US Aggregate Bond Index made 6.76%. Risk parity funds often aim to beat a 60/40 benchmark.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } According to El Confidencial, the chairman of Inmobiliaria Colonial, Juan José Bruguera, and deputy director Pere Viñolas are seeking to avoid the Spanish real estate firm being required to accept a bid from the chairman of OHL, Juan Miguel Villar Mir, who, with Mexican billionarire Mariasun Aramburuzabala and the Colombian family Santo Domingo, is offering to inject EUR750m to recapitalise the business, which is burdened with a debt of EUR4bn. To achieve that, Colonial is offering the 57% stake which it holds in the French publicly-traded firm Société Foncière Lyonnaise (SFL) to the Government Pension Fund-Global (GPFG), the Norwegian sovereign wealth fund managed by Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM).

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } AXA Real Estate has announced the acquisition from Generalitat de Catalunya of a portfolio of offices located in Barcelona for EUR172m. The portfolio includes 13 properties leased to government bodies. The office properties are all located in the Barcelona business centre and have a total floor area of over 105,000 square metres. The acquisition of 11 of the properties will be completed on 28 June 2013, while the purchase of two other properties will be completed in mid-July. Generalitat will continue to occupy the properties, as it has signed a 20-year lease for annual rent of EUR16.2m.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } Dirk de Vlaam, head of marketing & sales at Franklin Templeton for the Netherlands, has told Fondsnieuws that the asset management firm is now offering two share classes with no commissions in the Netherlands, to comply with new regulations that forbid commissions.The “z” share class has been available since last year, and is aimed at financial advisers who do not pass through a platform and who order shares directly from Franklin Templeton. The formula is available from EUR5,000.Franklin Templeton is now launching “w” shares, which are aimed more particularly at banks and wealth managers, with the minimal subscription in this case set at EUR3m.Currently, 26 funds are available in “w” shares, and 36 in “z” shares.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; direction: ltr; color: rgb(0, 0, 0); }P.western { font-family: «Times New Roman»,serif; font-size: 12pt; }P.cjk { font-family: «WenQuanYi Micro Hei"; font-size: 12pt; }P.ctl { font-family: «Lohit Hindi"; font-size: 12pt; }A:link { } The CNMV has issued a sales license for Spain to Legg Mason Global AM for the equity funds Legg Mason Clearbridge Tactical Dividend Income and Legg Mason ClearBridge US Equity Income and for the bond fund Legg Mason Brandywine Income Optimiser.Funds People notes that, according to Bernardo Rivero de Aguilar, co-head of sales at Legg Mason for Spain, the three products have in common the characteristic of delivering regular income, “but not at any price.”

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } The Citywire db x-trackers Emerging Markets Sentiment Indicator (SEMI) was unveiled on 27 June. It aims to be the first predictive indicator in Europe of capital flows to emerging markets. It is calculated independently by Citywire, and is sponsored by Deutsche Asset & Wealth Management (DeAWM). The sentiment indicator reflects the opinion of fund management professionals about emerging markets, and is based on the results of a Citywire quarterly survey of 101 managers focused on emerging markets, with total assets of about EUR200bn. The most recent survey was carried out in March and April 2013.In detail, the EMSI is established on the basis of manager sentiment concerning ten markets: Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Russia, South Africa and Taiwan. For equities, bonds and diversified portfolios, Citywire asks managers about their current sentiment concerning markets as well as the evolution they expect for markets in the next twelve months, on one hand, and on the weighting of portfolios on a six-month horizon, on the other.The EMSI (base 1000) came out at 1009, which reflects a predominantly optimistic attitude. Among the markets under review, managers are preferring China and India for the next six months: 34% of managers are planning to increase allocation to China in their funds by at least 5% in the next 6 months, and the percentage stands at 32% for India.As a complement, Citywire is asking respondents how the MSCI Emerging Market Index will develop compared with the MSCI World Index. For the first edition of the EMSI, 49% of managers predict that the MSCI EM will outperform the MSCI World, while 31% hold the opposite opinion.Institutional investors may access the report for free upon request at the address http://www.etf.db.com/DE/DE/sentiment-indicator

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } Following changes to the emerging market debt team at ING Investment Managers (ING IM), 20 members of which have joined Neuberger Berman, Danske Bank has decided to reallocate a USD1.6bn mandate for emerging market debt to a team led in London by Samuel Finkelstein at Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM), Citywire reports.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Manulife Asset Management is in the process of adding to its team in charge of asset allocation in Asia, in the expectation of a “great rotation” in an environment of low interest rates and an ageing population, Asian Investor reports. The firm, with more than USD100bn in assets under management in allocation strategies with total assets under management of over USD250bn, last year installed a team of two people in Hong Kong, and is planning more recruitments during the quarter.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } The Spanish asset management firm Bestinver (Acciona group) has decided to open a commercial representative and analytical office in London. The new office comes in addition to two other existing analysis and investment centres in Madrid and Shanghai. In the next two years, the MD and star manager at the asset management firm, Francisco García Paramés, will personally direct the London office, dedicating most of his time to analysis.From the point of view of sales activity, the decision marks a new step in the geographical diversification strategy for Bestinver investors. “This strategy, initiated four years ago, means that today, one third of total assets are of international origin, which guarantees better stability in our investments,” Beltrán Parages Reverter, director of sales at Bestinver Gestión, says in a statement.In terms of asset management, the London office will primarily allow Bestinver to be closer to companies in which it invests, and more generally to improve its access to information about businesses “which are, or which may be investment targets. London is the main European financial and investment centre, and we think that this location will help us in our management activity, since 80% of the wealth managed by the Bestinver group is invested in European businesses,” says Reverter.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } Pending the approval of the regulatory authorities, John Misselbrook has been appointed as interim CEO of Aviva Investors (GBP274bn as of the end of December 2012), replacing Paul Abberley, who becomes head of investments, effective immediately.Misselbrook had previously been non-executive director of Aviva Investors, and he has served in operational management roles in the financial services sector, including as COO of Barings.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } NYSE Euronext and the Vigeo agency have announced that they are adding to their range of ESG indices with the launch of the Euronext Vigeo Benelux 20 Euronext Vigeo Eurozone 120 and Euronext Vigeo US 50 indices. The composition of the indices is established on the basis of the opinions of Vigeo and will be updated twice per year in May and November. The Euronext vigeo benelux 20, Euronext Vigeo Eurozone 120 and Euronext Vigeo US 50 indices include the largest market caps of the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, the euro zone and North America, respectively. Businesses included in the three new indices are the ones which receive the best ratings for control of their social responsibility risk and contribution to sustainable development. Performance is evaluated with the Equitics® methodology developed by Vigeo. The ratings are established on the basis of 38 criteria which take into account environmental policy, respect for human rights, and valuation of human capital at businesses, relationships with stakeholders (clients, providers, shareholders, etc.), corporate governance and business ethics, the integrity of influence and anti-corruption practices, the prevention of social and environmental dumping in the supply and subcontracting chain, a statement says.

P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } Hedge Week reports that BNP Paribas Securities Services has added to its range of collateral management services with Collateral Access, an all-in-one formula which aims to meet the needs of both buy-side and sell-side clients.Hélène Virello, head of collateral management, says that Collateral Access allows client to fully comply with new regulations with limited and short-term investments. It is an open model, connected to several counterparties, compensators, custodians and market structures. Collateral Access is a modular product available in stand-alone or as part of a multi-product range from BNPP SS.

AXA Real Estate a annoncé l’acquisition auprès de la Generalitat de Catalunya (Généralité de Catalogne) d’un portefeuille de bureaux situé à Barcelone pour un montant de 172 millions d’euros. Le portefeuille est composé de 13 immeubles loués à des administrations gouvernementales. Les immeubles de bureaux sont tous situés dans le centre d’affaires de Barcelone et représentent une superficie totale de plus de 105 000 mètres carrés.L’acquisition de 11 des biens doit être réalisée vendredi 28 juin 2013, tandis que l’achat des deux autres immeubles doit intervenir à la mi-juillet. La Generalitat continuera d’occuper les bâtiments, en ayant signé un bail de 20 ans représentant un loyer annuel total de 16,2 millions d’euros.

BlueCrest Capital Management, le hedge fund américain dont les actifs sous gestion s'élèvent à quelque 14 milliards de dollars, a perdu 8,3% au mois de juin, selon une note envoyée aux investisseurs obtenue par Bloomberg.Le hedge fund Blue Trend a perdu 9,2% depuis le début de l’année jusqu’au 21 juin. Ce hedge fund a dégagé un rendement annuel moyen de 12,9% depuis son lancement en 2004 et n’a jamais été dans le rouge sur une année calendaire.

Petercam a choisi Caceis comme prestataire d’Asset Servicing pour sa gamme de sicav luxembourgeoises. «L’offre de services de Caceis répond à tous les besoins actuels de Petercam, notamment en termes de conservation, de banque dépositaire, d’administration de fonds et d’agent de transfert», précise Caceis dans un communiqué.Caceis a été choisi grâce à l’efficacité de son offre de services. Il a aussi l’expertise pour accompagner Petercam dans la mise en oeuvre de sa stratégie de développement en matière de gestion institutionnelle, qui vise à renforcer sa proximité avec ses clients en multipliant ses implantations locales en Europe continentale.Hugo Lasat, associé et membre du comité de direction de Petercam, commente : « Après une analyse approfondie des différents dossiers, nous avons retenu l’offre de Caceis qui avait l’avantage d’inclure les services à valeur ajoutée requis pour soutenir nos capacités de gestion dans un environnement financier en constante évolution. »

Depuis le début de l’année, The Vice Fund, qui investit en actions des secteurs de l’alcool, du tabac, de l’armement et des jeux de hasard a certes sous-performé l’indice S&P 500 avec un gain de seulement 9,47 % contre 11,5 % pour l’indicateur-phare du marché américain. Mais, remarque El Confidencial, sur trois ans, ce produit de la société de gestion USA Mutuals a battu le S&P 500 avec un gain de 16,5 % contre 10,6 %.A titre d’illustration, un placement de 10.000 dollars en 2002 dans le fonds aurait donné au 31 mars 2013 un montant de 27.691 dollars pour le Vice Fund, contre 21.229 dollars pour le S&P 500.The Vice Fund est investi à 15,6 % dans Altria 5,6 % dans Philip Morris et 4,7 % dans Lorillard, pour le tabac, et à 4,1 % chacun dans Las Vegas Sands et Glaxy Entertainment, pour les jeux de hasard.

D’après El Confidencial, le président d’Inmobiliaria Colonial, Juan José Bruguera et l’administrateur délégué, Pere Viñolas, cherchent à éviter que la société immobilière espagnole ne soit obligée d’accepter l’offre du président d’OHL, Juan Miguel Villar Mir. Cer dernier propose, avec la milliardaire mexicaine Mariasun Aramburuzabala et la famille colombienne Santo Domingo, d’injecter 750 millions d’euros pour recapitaliser la société, plombée par une dette de 4 milliards d’euros. Pour ce faire, Colonial propose les 57 % qu’il détient dans la société française cotée Société Foncière Lyonnaise (SFL) au Government Pension Fund-Global (GPFG) le fonds souverain norvégien qui est géré par Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM).

Natixis Asset Management (NAM) annonce sur son site qu'à compter du 1er juillet 2013, elle transmet la quasi-totalité de ses ordres sur instruments financiers résultant des décisions de gestion à Natixis Asset Management Finance, sa filiale d’intermédiation.Natixis Asset Management, afin d’améliorer les rendements et les produits financiers des portefeuilles, peut avoir recours aux opérations de emprunts/prêts de titres et de prises/mises en pensions livrées. Cette activité d’acquisitions/cessions temporaires de titres est également assurée dans sa quasi-totalité par Natixis Asset Management Finance, précise le communiqué. NAM a également décidé d’harmoniser la rémunération perçue par Natixis Asset Management Finance au titre de cette activité à hauteur de 40% du revenu généré par les opérations d’acquisition et de cession temporaires de titres. Cette modification entre aussi en vigueur le 1er juillet 2013 et concerne les produits figurant dans la liste ci-dessous : http://www.am.natixis.fr/Content/Images/Actualites/archives_avis/Avis.jpg

CamGestion, filiale de BNP Paribas, a annoncé, sur son site, qu'à compter du 1er juillet 2013, le commissaire aux comptes du fonds CamGestion Oblicycle Inflation allait changer. Son mandat, d’une durée de six exercices, arrivant à échéance le dernier jour de Bourse de Paris du mois de juin 2019, il sera remplacé par le commissaire aux comptes Deloitte & Associés, indique la société de gestion .

Fédéris Gestion d’Actifs a annoncé avoir clôturé fin mai la souscription de son deuxième fonds crédit non noté à échéance Fédéris Core Euro Crédit 2019 (cf. Newsmanagers du 24 avril), avec un encours de plus de 330 millions d’euros.

La Banque cantonale de St-Gall (SGKB) a décidé de recentrer ses activités sur son cœur de marché et a annoncé le 27 juin la cession de sa filiale Hyposwiss Private Bank Genève au gestionnaire de fortune Mirelis InvestTrust qui fait partie de Mirelis Financial Group. L'établissement cédé poursuivra son activité sous son ancienne appellation. Les activités en Amérique latine de Hyposwiss Banque Privée Zurich sont quant à elles cédées à la banque privée Espirito Santo, tandis que les activités en Europe de l’Est sont acquises par l'établissement Falcon Privat Bank.SGKB n’a pas précisé les prix de vente de ces diverses activités, mais a indiqué que l’opération pèsera à hauteur de 7 millions de francs suisses sur le résultat 2013. Les autres domaines d’activité – concernant essentiellement les clients suisses et allemands – seront intégrés à la SGKB au 1er janvier 2014 et gérés depuis le site actuel de Zurich, dans la division Private Banking Marché Suisse alémanique. Zurich reste, en outre, l’Investment Center qui met ses compétences d’investissement à disposition de l’ensemble du Groupe SGKB.La banque st-galloise «a décidé de recentrer sa stratégie pour se concentrer désormais sur son marché de proximité», selon un communiqué de Hyposwiss. SGKB a pour sa part souligné se concentrer sur le marché domestique en Suisse orientale et certains marchés helvétiques, ainsi que sur l’Allemagne."Avec ce changement de stratégie, SGKB réagit aux changements des conditions cadre dans la gestion de fortune, posant ainsi les fondations pour une croissance durable dans ses marchés clés», a souligné SGKB. «Des perspectives de croissance moroses, des marges plus faibles et une hausse des coûts en raison d’une régulation plus forte requièrent des volumes plus importants dans les différents marchés offshore, pour rendre une activité profitable», poursuit la banque cantonale.Pour faire face à cette situation, SGKB aurait dû effectuer d’importants investissements et des acquisitions, qui n’auraient pas été conformes à sa stratégie, poussant ainsi l'établissement à recentrer son activité. Les mesures mises en place vont se dérouler sur plusieurs mois.SGKB a indiqué par ailleurs avoir dégagé un résultat opérationnel «réjouissant» sur les cinq premiers mois de l’année. Sur la période, le produit brut bancaire a progressé de 3%, tandis que les coûts ont diminué de 1%, faisant progresser le bénéfice brut de 7% sur un an. En 2012, l'établissement de St-Gall avait dégagé un bénéfice net en hausse de 11,5% à 151,4 millions de francs suisses.

Citigroup et HSBC ont obtenu l’autorisation de commercialiser des fonds locaux en Chine, une avancée alors que les banques étrangères sont habituellement exclues du marché retail domestique, rapporte le Financial Times. Les deux banques vont désormais pouvoir offrir des fonds conçus par des sociétés de gestion locales aux particuliers, aux entreprises et aux institutionnels. D’autres banques étrangères comme Standard Chartered et Bank of East Asia ont aussi demandé une licence pour vendre des fonds locaux.

La banque privée des Emirats Arabes Unis NBAD augmente ce vendredi la capitalisation de sa filiale genevoise, NBAD Private Bank (Suisse), de 40 millions de francs pour atteindre 140 millions, renforçant ainsi sa capacité de financement, rapporte L’Agefi suisse. La filiale de Genève a une double mission de gestion de fortune et de participation active dans le financement du négoce international.

En seulement six mois, CVC Capital Partners a reçu des engagements de plus de 14 milliards d’euros de la part des investisseurs, rapporte le Financial Times. Dans le détail, la société de capital investissement a levé 11,8 milliards d’euros dans le cadre de son nouveau fonds pour un premier closing attendu mi-juillet et 2,5 à 4 milliards supplémentaires pour un closing final en fin d’année.