Le rapport Berger-Lefebvre dévoile 15 propositions
Il recommande la création d'un nouveau contrat d'assurance-vie «euro-croissance»
Jérôme Cahuzac reconnaît un compte à l'étranger
L’ancien ministre du Budget a avoué mardi détenir un compte bancaire à l'étranger depuis environ 20 ans, ce qu’il avait toujours démenti jusqu’ici. Il a confirmé sur son blog, après une entrevue avec les juges d’instruction Roger Le Loire et Renaud Van Ruymbeke à sa demande, leur avoir confirmé l’existence de ce compte. Il ne précise pas dans quel pays. Jérôme Cahuzac a été mis en examen pour blanchiment de fraude fiscale, selon son avocat.
Pier Luigi Bersani toujours opposé à une alliance avec le centre-droit
Le chef de file du centre-gauche en Italie, Pier Luigi Bersani, a réaffirmé son opposition à la formation d’une grande coalition avec le bloc de centre-droit dirigé par Silvio Berlusconi, assurant qu’un tel gouvernement ne serait pas crédible. Il a également rejeté l’appel du centre-droit en faveur de nouvelles élections.
Accord sur les conditions de l'aide à Chypre
Les autorités chypriotes ont achevé leurs discussions avec les créanciers sur les conditions du plan de sauvetage, dont la première tranche sera versée en mai. Nicosie versera un intérêt de 2,5% sur les prêts accordés, les remboursements débutant dans 10 ans et étant étalés sur 12 ans. En outre, Harris Georgiades a été nommé ministre des Finances en remplacement de Michael Sarris, démissionnaire.
Les commandes à l’industrie en forte hausse aux Etats-Unis
Le département du Commerce a fait état d’une hausse de 3% des commandes nouvelles reçues par les groupes industriels américains au mois de février, après une baisse de 1% en janvier. Les commandes de l’industrie aéronautique, sujettes à de fortes variations, ont stimulé l’indicateur global. Les commandes de l’aéronautique civile ont ainsi bondi de 95,1%.
Le président italien donne dix jours aux «sages»
Les deux commissions d’experts formées par le président italien Giorgio Napolitano pour trouver une issue à la crise politique devront achever leurs travaux d’ici dix jours, ont annoncé mardi les services du chef de l’Etat. «La période adéquate devrait être de huit à dix jours», a indiqué le chef de l’Etat dans un communiqué diffusé sur le site de la présidence.
L’inflation a ralenti en Allemagne en mars
Selon l’estimation préliminaire publiée mardi par l’Office fédéral de la statistique, l’inflation a ralenti en Allemagne au mois de mars, se maintenant pour le troisième mois de suite sous l’objectif de 2% fixé par la Banque centrale européenne. La hausse des prix à la consommation a atteint en mars 1,4% sur un an, contre 1,5% en février, la plus faible depuis décembre 2010.
02/04/2013
"Il faut plus que jamais poursuivre dans la voie de l'investissement responsable"
Ecofi Investissements et sa maison mère le Crédit Coopératif tranchent dans le paysage français par leur engagement sans faille en faveur de l’investissement responsable. Dans un entretien à Newsmanagers, Christophe Couturier, directeur général d’Ecofi Investissements explique les problématiques propres à ce type d'investissement et les défis d’un établissement engagé dans l’économie sociale.
02/04/2013
Nomination d'un nouveau patron pour l'Asie chez Martin Currie IM
Martin Currie Investment Management vient de nommer Andrew Graham au poste de responsable pour l’Asie après le départ annoncé de Jason McCay.Jason McCay devrait quitter ses fonctions dans le courant de l'été 2013 pour «faire un break de carrière significatif» après quinze années passées chez Martin Currie.Andrew Graham cogère avec Jason McCay les deux stratégies asiatiques de Martin Currie. Jason McCay sera remplacé sur ces deux fonds par le directeur des investissements Paul Danes.
02/04/2013
BVI wishes to channel ESMA index transparency initiative
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } In an interview with the Börsen-Zeitung, Rudolf Siebel, a member of the board at the German BVI association of asset management firms, wishes that recommendations of the European Securities Markets Authority (ESMA) for index transparency should be frozen in the absence of regulations and centralised oversight of indices.These would actually mean that fund management firms would be required to ensure themselves that the purveyors of indices satisfy transparency standards, which would be far too costly, or impossible, when the index provider itself refuses to disclose confidential information.In the worst case, says Siebel, asset management firms would have to withdraw products from the market. They would thus fall victim to distortions of competition, as ESMA is explicitly targeting only funds, but certificates would not be affected. Additionally, the BVI would like to see asset management firms able to access information for free related to indices, when these are among the legally required items as part of reporting.
02/04/2013
Luxembourg funds: EUR62.1bn AUM increase in February
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } As of 28 February, net assets under management by collective investment organisms (OPCs) and specialised investment funds (SIFs) in Luxembourg totalled EUR2.46807trn, which represents an increase of EUR62.14bn compared with the end of January (ER2.40593trn), EUR29.32bn of which are attributable to net subscriptions, and EUR32.89bn to market appreciation, according to figures from the Financial Sector Supervision Commission (CSSF).The number of OPCs and SIFs products under consideration is 3,849, compared with 3,840 the previous month, while 2,472 entities have adopted a multiple sub-fund structure, with a total of 12,141 sub-funds. With the addition of 1,377 traditionally structured entities, a total of 13,518 entities are active on the financial market.In the month under review, 25 OPCs and SIFs entities were added to the official list, while 16 were removed.
02/04/2013
New head for Asia appointed at Martin Currie IM
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } Martin Currie Investment Management has appointed Andrew Graham as head for Asia, following the previously announced departure of Jason McCay. McCay will be leaving his position during summer 2013, to “take a significant career break,” after 15 years at Martin Currie. Graham is co-manager with McCay of Martin Currie’s two Asian strategies. McCay will be replaced at the helm of the two funds by chief investment officer Paul Danes.
02/04/2013
Amin Snehal leaves Theleme Partners
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } One of the largest new hedge funds created since the 2008 crisis, Theleme Partners, has lost its second in command. Amin Snehal, former head of US research at TCI, has decided to leave the firm to found his own investment firm, FTfm reports. Theleme Partners was founded by Snehal and the Frenchman Patrick Degorce, a former partner at TCI, following their departure from the activist firm led by Chris Hohn in 2009. Theleme Partners last year earned returns of 20%, compared with an average of less than 7% for hedge funds overall.
02/04/2013
Credit Suisse sells off JO Hambro
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } The financial holding company Utilico, whose headquarters are located in Bermuda, has acquired the British firm JO Hambro (CHF5.5bn in assets) from Credit Suisse, finews.ch reports, relaying information in Citywire.JO Hambro Investment Management was acquired by the Swiss group in 2000. It has 100 employees, including 20 portfolio managers.
02/04/2013
UBS GAM launches two funds of solid major corporations
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } On 25 january, UBS Global Asset Management launched two Luxembourg-registered funds specialising in equities in solid firms able to profit from growth both in developed and emerging countries, the UBS Western Winners Equity Fund and UBS Solid Consumer Brands Fund. The first will focus on major international businesses, while the second will focus on consumers’ preference for established brands.The UBS Western Winners Equity Fund is managed by Nick Irish, and its portfolio will include 40 positions, in Western businesses with a strong presence in emerging markets. Alexander Gabiati, for his part, manages the 30-40 positions in the UBS Solid Consumer Brands Fund, which invests in businesses in the consumer goods sector with brands that enjoy strong reputations and whose business models appear solid. CharacteristicsName: UBS Western Winners Equity Fund ISIN code: LU0859500539Management commision: 0.95%Name: UBS Solid Consumer Brands FundISIN code: LU0859451659Management commission: 1.50%
02/04/2013
Dexia AM reshuffles its emerging market debt team
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } Dexia Asset Management has announced two internal promotions in its emerging market debt team, following the departure of the head of the unit, Luc d’Hooge, for Vontobel, Citywire Global reports. Leen Clijsters, who has been at Dexia for 30 years, becomes head of two funds previously overseen by d’Hooge (Dexia Bonds Emerging Markets and Dexia Bonds Emerging Debt Local Currencies). At the same time, Isabelle Rome becomes head of the emerging market debt team. She had previously been co-head of the credit team.
02/04/2013
Head of SAC Capital buys a Picasso for USD155m
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } Two weeks after SAC Capital settled two insider cases with the SEC for USD616m, the billionaire Steven Cohen, head of the asset management firm, has bought himself a Picasso painting for USD155m, Forbes reports. The artwork was purchased from the billionaire Steve Wynn.
02/04/2013
Acatis Invest gets a sales representative in Paris
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } Acatis Investment has announced the recruitment in mid-March of Marie Ballorain for the position of director of development for France and Belgum. The German asset management firm did not yet have an official representative office, but it is planning to open one this autumn. Ballorain had previously been senior relationship manager at Sparinvest in Paris, from 2006 to 2013.Acatis Investment had EUR1.75bn in assets under management as of the end of February 2013. The range on sale in France includes four products: Acatis Aktien Global Funds UI, an international equity fund with EUR290m in assets, Acatis Gané Value Event Fonds, a mixed balanced fund combining value and event-driven management (EUR467m in assets), Acatis IfK Value Renten UI, an international value bond fund (EUR187m in assets) and Acatis Aktien Deutschland ELM, a fund of German value equities, with EUR83m in assets.
02/04/2013
ERAFP awards management mandates for multi-asset funds of funds
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } The French public pension fund Etablissement de retraite additionnelle de la fonction publique (ERAFP) has awarded one active and two stand-by management mandates for multi-asset funds of funds as part of a policy to extend its investment universe, in line with the five values of the SRI charter. In July 2012, ERAFP launched a restricted request for proposals, for management of a multi-asset SRI fund of funds. Following the selection process, the ERAFP has decided to award the active mandate to Amundi. The additional managers are BNP Paribas Asset Management and Neuflize OBC Investissements. Following a fundamental approach, unconstrained by a benchmark, the management firm will construct its portfolio in line with a rigorous asset allocation and fund selection process, which will include respect for the SRI framework of ERAFP. The mandated firm will seek to maximise returns while limiting losses on the portfolio over a one-year period, through management of the risk budget. The sums invested for a one-year period may be on the order of EUR150m, and may rise to about EUR300m in three years’ time, the ERAFP says in a statement. The initial duration of the contract is four years, with a means for ERAFP to reduce the length of the contract for two successive periods of two years each.
02/04/2013
iShares opens in Belgium
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } A total of 31 iShares ETFs have been registered in Belgium. They give investors in the country access to equity and bond products (government, corporate, inflation-linked), emerging market funds, and vehicles focused on commodities.The products which are now available include the iShares Euro Stoxx 503 ETF, the iShares MSCI World4 ETF and the iShares Barclays Captial Global inflation-linked bond fund. Investors also gain access to the Belgian government bond market through the iShares Belgium Treasury Bond ETF.iShares in Belgium is led by Charles Symons.
02/04/2013
Renaissance AM acquired by Kazimir Partners
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Russian asset management firm Renaissance Asset managers, which has USD3bn in assets under management, has been acquired by its counterpart and competitor Kazimir Partners, with USD400-500m under management, at a price which has not been disclosed.The structure born of the merger of the two emerging market specialists (with a hedge fund bias in the case of Kazimir) will be independent, and owned by its management and employees, including a stake of about 25% for the management of RAM.Previously, Renaissance AM had been nearly 90% controlled by Renaissance Group, while the remainder was in the hands of management. Its acquisition by a smaller firm may be surprising, but Adrian Harris, head of distribution and investor relationships at RAM, explains to Newsmanagers that Kazimir, a firm based in Moscow, had accumulated a lot of cash through its success in recent years, and now has about USD100m in capital, which may be invested in funds. The Renaissance group, the major shareholder in RAM, meanwhile, has had trouble recently, and had already sold its investment bank in November last year.The attraction for Renaissance, therefore, is to become an independent firm, and to receive additional capital for its funds. For its part, Kazimir will make use of the Luxembourg Sicav launched by Renaissance in 2010, with 10 sub-funds, for a European deploymentA new product range will be organised, and Russian equity and bond funds from the two firms will, logically, be expected to merge. Lastly, Renaissance AM will change names in second half, Harris says.
02/04/2013
Oddo launches a high yield fund
TD P { margin-bottom: 0in; }P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } Oddo Asset Management is adding to its bond range, with the launch of the Oddo Bonds High Yield Europe fund, an open-ended fund investing primarily in European high yield corporate bonds. The new fund is an immediate successor to successful horizon bond funds, partly investing in high yield, for which Oddo am has received over EUR1.4bn in investments since 2009. The new fund will be managed by Alain Krief, who joined the firm in October 2012 as head of fixed income management at Oddo AM. The portfolio will be invested primarily in bonds and other securities from Europe, primarily denominated in euros and issued by businesses most of which are rated beneath BBB-. The new fund is a sub-fund of the Luxembourg Sicav Oddo Funds. Investors may subscribe in euros, dollars and Swiss francs. The licensing process for the sale of the funds in Italy, Switzerland, Germany and Belgium has been initiated, and will be completed in the next few weeks. As of 26 March 2013, Oddo Bonds High Yield Europe had assets of EUR50m. Assets under management in high yield total EUR500m, nearly 15% of bond assets overall.
02/04/2013
Lyxor lists a new ETF on NYSE Euronext
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } NYSE Euronext on 28 March announced that from the same date, a new ETF for Lyxor will be listed on NYSE Euronext in Paris: the Lyxor ETF USAC, whose underlying index is the MSCI USA Net Total Return.
02/04/2013
Assénagon launches a corporate bond fund
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } The new fund from the Munich-absed firm Assénagon Asset Management (which manages ETF portfolios for Source), Assénagon Credit Selection, is an institutional, Luxembourg-registered, UCITS-compliant fund, which aims to generate revenues from interest 3.5 percentage points higher than the Euribor 3-month, while avoiding currency and interest rate risks.The new product is managed by Michael Hünseler, CEO of Assénagon since 1 August 2012 (and formerly of Bayerische HypoVereinsbank, of the Unicredit group, and of Deka), and the fund will start up with assets of over EUR100m.The portfolio is invested largely in corporate bonds and CDS. In order to avoid concentration risks, the fund uses no benchmark index, and is focused on issuers rated at least B- (Fitch and S&P) or B3 (Moody’s). Currently, the fund is primarily allocated to positions on European industrials.CharacteristicsName: Assénagon Credit SelectionISIN code: LU0890803710Front-end fee: maximum 2.5% for P (retail) share classManagement commission:0.70% (I, industrial, share class)1.20% (P share class)Performance commission: 15% of performance exceeding the hurdle rate (Euribor 3 month) + 350 basis points per year.
02/04/2013
Maximum draw-down for absolute return funds declines with age
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } Over five years of crisis, the 498 UCITS-compliant absolute return funds on sale in Germany (including 210 hedge funds) as of the end of December have posted average gains of 0.78% per year, compared with losses of 2.89% for the HFR Global Hedge Funds Index, and of 9.74% for Euro Stoxx 50 return funds, the Frankfurt-based asset management firm Lupus alpha reports.Only 64.9% of these funds, with assets as of the end of December representing EUR95.9bn, show positive returns, compared with 58.8% as of 30 June 2012. Lupus alpha has extended its analysis this year to include all absolute return funds, including hedge funds, as soon as they come into compliance with UCITS III (see Newsmanagers of 13 February 2012).Of 168 absolute return funds analysed over five years, only 34% show a positive Sharpe ratio over five years, and they range from 1.48 to -1.61.The average maximum draw-down (MDD) for the period under review (2008-2012) comes out to 14.22% also with a wide range form -0.31% to -87.6%. The study also finds that the verage MDD for funds whose track record is 0 to 3 years long stands at 5.65%, while it is 4.59% for those with 3-5 years in existence. For funds over 5 years old, the average MDD is only 3.19%.
02/04/2013
Investors reduce exposure to Europe
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } Uncertainty related to chaotic Italian elections and a bailout of the Cypriot banking sector have driven investors to reduce their engagements in funds exposed to Europe in the final days of March. Equity funds, money market funds and European bond funds have seen significant redemptions in the week to 28 March, as have emerging Europe and Russian equity funds, according to statistics released by SPFR Global.However, US equity funds have continued to post inflows, and for the first time since January, inflows to actively-managed funds have exceeded those to ETFs. Japanese equity funds have continued to attract investors, while inflows have for the first time toppe USD2bn in the space of a single week.Equity funds overall have posted net inflows of USD1.9bn, while bond funds have finished the week with net inflows of USD3.72bn. Money market funds have finished the week with losses, due to net outflows of USD9.3bn from European money market funds.For bonds, US funds took the lion’s share, but high yield bond funds finished the week with inflows of nearly USD1bn, while bank loan debt funds posted subscriptions totalling USD1bn for the eighth consecutive week.
02/04/2013
New head for Southern Europe at Fidelity
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Paolo Federici, country manager for Italy at Fidelity, has been appointed as head for Southern Europe and Latin America at the US asset management firm, Bluerating reports. He will be responsible for Spain, Portugal, Turkey, Greece, Israel and South America, in addition to Italy. Last year, assets under management by Fidelity in Italy increased by about USD3bn.
02/04/2013
European investors remain very satisfied with ETFs
The annual EDHEC European ETF Survey 2012, which represents a comprehensive survey of 212 European ETF investors shows that ETFs remain the favourite choice of investors for passive investment, with consistently high satisfaction levels (equity ETF satisfaction rates have been consistently in the region of 90%). It also documents that there has been an increase in the use of ETFs for corporate bonds, infrastructure and real estate.The survey, which was conducted as part of the Amundi ETF research chair at EDHEC-Risk Institute on “Core-Satellite and ETF Investment» shows that demand for innovation is high in different asset categories, with 49% of respondents seeking development of emerging market equity ETFs, and there is also demand for new forms of indices, such as «smart beta» ETFs.It should also be stressed that the great majority of European investors think that ETFs should remain as beta-producing products (81% of respondents). However, 17% of respondents were of the opinion that ETFs should become actively managed, which is an increase from just 11% in 2011.Turning to regulation at large, ESMA recommendations of July 2012 have been warmly welcomed by investors, with 77% agreeing that the guidelines have achieved their stated aim of improving investor protection. And support for the ESMA recommendations is even stronger on the subject of revenues from securities lending. Investors are overwhelmingly in favour of the requirement to return securities lending revenue net of costs to the ETF investor, with 84% of respondents in agreement.The ESMA guidelines appear to have been informative and setting standards in the right direction. The overall issue of index transparency has been very positively viewed by investors.
02/04/2013
Fidelity Contrafund reduces exposure to Apple
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } As of the end of February, the Fidelity Contrafund (USD92bn, or EUR71.76bn) had reduced its exposure to Apple to 10.43 million shares (which corresponds to USD4.6bn), from 11.56 million shares as of the end of December, Expansión reports. The Apple position, the largest for the fund, now equates to 5.2% of assets, down from 8.2%, making it smaller than its stake in Google, which represents 5.8% of assets under management.
02/04/2013
Invesco AM finishes 2012 with inflows in France
P { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }A:link { } At a press conference held by Invesco AM on Thursday, 28 March in Paris, Nicolas Bouët, deputy CEO, announced that the asset management firm had posted gross subscriptions in France of USD1.6bn in 2012, and about USD700m in net subscriptions. By comparison, gross inflows as of the beginning of December totalled about USD1.2bn, of which more than half were net inflows. At the end of last year, global assets totalled EUR3.5bn, while as of the end of May 2012, they stood at EUR2bn. Since the beginning of this year, “the trend remains the same, just a little bit short,” the director says.