Pioneer Investments has recruited two people for its institutional team in the United States. Mark Dacey has been appointed as head of consultant relations, while Amu DiMarzio joins the firm as a bond strategist. Dacey was previously at State Street Global Advisors (SSgA), where he was recently managing director and head of consultant relationships in the United States. DiMarzio joins from Putnam Investments, where she was recently vice president and credit analyst.

The French investor Union Mutualiste Retraite, which has EUR7.6bn in assets under management, has awarded Egamo, the asset management firm of MGEN a bond mandate for EUR4bn, following a consultation launched in September 2012. The management mandate for a core portfolio asset is a first for UMR, a press statement says. Egamo has about EUR2.8bn in assets under management in mandates and mutual funds.

JP Morgan Asset Management would like to enter the Australian fund market this year, says Jed Laskowitz, CEO of Asian fund activities and head of asset management in Asia for the US firm, at a press breakfast held by Asian Investor. The firm already has an institutional presence in the country. JP Morgan AM would also like to penetrate South-East Asia, and may launch its first ETF in China via its joint venture, the Asian website adds.

Two former employees of Man Investments are joining teams responsible for assisting independent wealth management advisers and family offices in Switzerland at Swiss & Global Asset Management (CHF87.4bn in assets as of the end of September). Remo Badertscher, senior relationship manager at his former employer, and Markus Lienert, who had been head of clients for independent wealth management advisers in Liechtenstein and Switzerland, have been recruited for the sales team at Swiss & Global in Zurich.

Philippe Currat, who will reach the age of 65 in May 2013, has announced plans to leave the executive board at Banque Privée Edmond de Rothschild S.A. at the beginning of 2013, from 9 January, the Geneva-based bank has announced in a statement released on 8 January, after the close of the trading day. Currat had been chairman of the executive board at the private bank for 25 years.

GLG, the discretionary investment manager of Man Group plc, has announced a number of senior hires to its macro and fixed income team. The appointments are part of a focus on expanding GLG’s strategy as it relates to absolute return macro and fixed income. Kumaran Damodaran joins Sudi from Pimco as a portfolio manager focusing on emerging markets within GLG’s fixed income platform. He has significant experience managing absolute return and outperformance portfolios and has worked closely with Sudi Mariappa in the past, who also joined GLG in October.Brian Pinto will join from the World Bank to take on the role of Senior Macro- Economist, specialising in emerging markets. With many publications to his credit, Brian has spent nearly thirty years at the World Bank, where he is currently Senior Adviser, focusing on sovereign debt, financial integration and growth in emerging markets. He will work closely with GLG strategist Driss Lamrani. Richard Bateson joins from Man AHL as a Senior Quantitative Analyst. He currently heads a strategy within AHL which trades trend, reversion and value strategies across over 150 markets. He is also an Associate of the OxfordMan Institute, Oxford University. The overall macro and fixed income platform will be co-headed by Jamil Baz and Sudi Mariappa.

The former chairman of the international alternative management association (AIMA) and hedge fund sector specialist Todd Groome is joining the Highwater group, specialised in corporate governance, The Asset reports. Groome, who from 2009 to 2012 represented the hedge fund sector as head of the AIMA, has recently served as a senior adviser to Albourne Partners and as adviser to a hedge fund successfully launched in 2011. The Highwater group offers corporate governance services to hedge funds and asset management firms via the appointment of independent administrators and other means.

While remaining as chief research officer, Fred Fraenkel has been promoted to the position of chairman of Fairholme Capital Management, replacing Bruce Berkowitz, CIO and managing member, who had held the position for the interim since the resignation of Charlie Fernandez in spring 2012. Fraenkel joined Fairholme in 2011, after serving as chief investment officer at Beacon Trust Company.

Jes Staley, former lieutenant of the head of JPMorgan, Jamie Dimon, is joining the hedge fund firm BlueMountain Capital Management, the Financial Times reports. The firm is one of the hedge funds which brought down the US banking trader known as the whale of London. Staley had been head of investment banking.

Jens Peers has been appointed CIO sustainable equities of Mirova, the responsible investment division of Natixis Asset Management, where he will report directly to Philippe Zaouati, the deputy CEO of Natixis AM, Head of Mirova. Jens Peers started his career in 1998 as a financial advisor at KBC Bank, Brussels. He subsequently joined KBC Asset Management in 2001 as a financial analyst. In 2003, he moved to Kleinwort Benson Investors, Dublin, as head of portfolio management - environmental strategies on the following thematic areas: water, agribusiness, cleantech (renewable energy, energy efficiency, waste management). Mirova has EUR4bn in assets under management in SRI assets, EUR7.7bn in assets advised in ESG strategies and EUR20.4bn in assets in voting and engagement (as of 30 September 2012).

Source Markets, one of the top providers of European ETPs, has announced the arrival of Feargal Dempsey as a member of its board of directors and an independent director. Dempsey is a consultant for ETFGI, the ETF analysis and consulting firm founded by Deborah Fuhr. He has served in several management positions at Barclays Global Investors/BlackRock, including head of strategy for iShares products in EMEA, head of product structuring for products in the EMEA region, and head of product governance. Source Markets plc is a firm domiciled in Ireland, which sells investment funds that comply with UCITS regulations.

The Swiss Siz & Co group has announced that it has registered four new sub-funds of its Luxembourg Oyster sicav in Switzerland. The registration of the new sub-funds is a sign of the group’s desire to meet the particular need of Swiss professional clients. Switzerland currently represents a major area of development for Oyster funds. With the Oyster range and the Oyster Multi-Manager sub-funds of the Sicav 3A Alternative Funds, 36 funds are offered to Swiss investors, a range which is constantly developing, and which ranges from highly conservative absolute return strategies to traditional strategies focused on various asset classes, and more innovative “newcits” approaches. OYSTER European SelectionOyster European Selection adopts the approach and philosophy of the Oyster European Opportunities fund. The strategy is appropriate for the requirements of institutional clients, and targets European equities with strong potential for growth in the next five years. With its longer investment horizon, the fund benefits from the expertise and strong convictions of its manager, Eric Bendhan, a specialist in European equities. OYSTER US SelectionOyster US Selection focuses on US equities, combining bottom-up analysis with a top-down complement which aims to anticipate changes in economic cycles. The fund, managed by Scout Investments, Inc., a US asset management firm, offers a strategy which is available in UCITS format exclusively via the Oyster Sicav. OYSTER Global High DividendOyster Global High Dividend invests in high-dividend equities worldwide. Managed by SYZ Asset Management SA and SYZ & Co Asset Management LLP with Roberto Magnatantini as lead manager, Oyster Global High Dividend combines quantitative and fundamental analysis with a particular emphasis on growth in dividends. OYSTER Global High YieldOyster Global High Yield invests in high yield bonds worldwide. The fund is managed by Seix Investment Advisors LLC, an asset management firm based in the United States.

The British firm Federated Prime Rate Capital Management, an affiliate of Federated Investments, has registered its money market Sicav umbrella fund Federated Prime Rate Cash Management Funds, domiciled in Luxembourg, with the CNMV, Funds People reports.

At a time when Spanish asset management firms underwent net redemptions and a decline in their assets under management throughout last year, the assets at foreign asset management firms have increased 10.6% in the first eleven months of 2012, to a total of EUR52bn, Funds People reports.

Le britannique Federated Prime Rate Capital Management, filiale de Federated Investments, a fait enregistrer par la CNMV sa sicav monétaire à compartiments Federated Prime Rate Cash Management Funds domiciliée au Luxembourg, rapporte Funds People.

Le fonds immobilier allemand offert au public Deka-ImmobilienGlobal annonce avoir vendu pour un montant non divulgué à un investisseur qui ne souhaite pas être identifié l’immeuble de bureaux du 5, Plaza de Cataluña à Barcelone, un actif de 14.000 mètres carrés. En fait, il semble selon les informations de Newsmanagers que l’acquéreur soit le milliardaire Amancio Ortega, le principal actionnaire d’Inditex.Deka Immobilien précise que cette cession lui a permis de réaliser une plus-value. De plus, cette vente s’inscrit dans la stratégie du Deka-ImmobilienGlobal, qui consiste à focaliser ses investissements sur les plus grandes métropoles extra-européennes ainsi que sur l’Allemagne et le Royaume-Uni.

La société suédoise Stella Asset Management va liquider ses deux hedge funds, Stella Nova et Stella Polaris, rapporte Privata Affärer. Ces derniers ont connu une année 2012 difficile. Pour le site internet suédois, ce n’est que le début d’un mouvement de fermeture de hedge funds.

Six ans, jour pour jour après l’acquisition de ce portefeuille, le fonds immobilier allemand offert au public UniImmo: Global a revendu pour 171 millions d’euros son portefeuille de cinq immeubles de bureaux situés au Chili à Aurus Renta Inmobiliaria. Le prix de cession est d’environ 33 millions d’euros supérieur au prix d’acquisition. Les actifs vendus totalisent 55.725 mètres carrés des immeubles Birmann 24, Torre Paris, Xerox, Bandera 76 et Teatinos 254-258 à Santiago du Chili.Après cette cession, le fonds UniImmo: Global détient encore en Amérique latine six immeubles ou participations d’une valeur de 230 millions d’euros.

JP Morgan Asset Management souhaite entrer sur le marché australien des fonds cette année, a indiqué Jed Laskowitz, CEO de l’activité des fonds en Asie et responsable de la gestion d’actifs en Asie de la société américaine, lors d’un déjeuner de presse auquel Asian Investor était convié. La société a déjà une présence institutionnelle dans le pays. JP Morgan AM souhaite aussi pénétrer en Asie du sud est et veut lancer son premier ETF en China via sa joint-venture, ajoute le site asiatique.

Morgan Stanley Investment Management (MSIM) a annoncé mardi à Londres le lancement du Morgan Stanley Investment Funds Global Premier Credit Fund, un fonds investi dans des obligations émises par des entreprises ayant des franchises fortes ou une position de leader dans leur secteur, une faible intensité capitalistique et avec des bilans solides.Pour construire le portefeuille, les gérants du fonds s’appuieront sur la recherche de l’équipe obligataire mondiale de MSIM et utiliseront des outils quantitatifs maison.Selon Richard Ford, le responsable européen du crédit de MSIM, ce fonds est destiné aux investisseurs cherchant des alternatives à la dette gouvernementale et des rendements élevés.

Schroders a mis fin à ses relations avec son auditeur PwC, qui l’accompagnait depuis plus de 50 ans, rapporte le Financial Times, pour qui c’est le signe que les grandes entreprises deviennent plus sensibles aux accusations selon lesquelles elles sont trop à l’aise avec les gens qui doivent vérifier leurs comptes. La société de gestion a choisi à la place KPMG.

Jupiter vient de recruter Luca Evangelisti et Harry Richards pour son équipe fixed interest and multi-asset. Ils rejoignent la société en tant qu’analystes crédit sous la direction d’Hilary Blandy. Luca Evangelisti était précédemment chez Moody’s, tandis que Harry Richards travaillait déjà chez Jupiter.

SAC Capital Advisors a augmenté la taille des bonus qu’elle va distribuer à ses gérants de portefeuilles de trois points de pourcentage pour 2013, selon des personnes proches de la société, rapporte le Wall Street Journal. Il s’agit d’une tentative pour retenir les talents alors que SAC fait face à une enquête des autorités.

Jes Staley, l’ancien bras droit du patron de JPMorgan Jamie Dimon, rejoint la société de hedge funds BlueMountain Capital Management, rapporte le Financial Times. Cette société fait partie des hedge funds qui ont fait tomber le trader de la banque américaine baptisé la baleine de Londres. Jes Staley était responsable de la banque d’investissement.

Succédant à Georg von Werz, Sebastiano Ferrante est devenu depuis début 2013 le responsable pays de Pramerica Real Estate International pour l’Allemagne. Au sein de la direction générale, il est de surcroît responsable de la gestion de fonds. De 2077 à 2012, il a été co-country head Germany chez Tishman Speyer Properties à Francfort, responsable des achats et des ventes d’actifs en Allemagne ainsi que de la plate-forme opérationnelle de Tishman Speyer Properties.Par ailleurs, Pramerica Real Estate Investors (filiale européenne de Prudential Financial) annonce avoir acheté pour 70 millions de livres l’immeuble de bureaux 141 Bothwell Street (175.000 pieds carrés) de Glasgow auprès du Strathclyde Pensionfund.

Trusteam Finance (société de gestion de portefeuille et d’ingénierie patrimoniale agréée par l’AMF) et Monte Paschi Banque ont signé un partenariat privilégié dans le domaine de la gestion d’actifs à effet du 2 Janvier 2013.L ’activité de gestion des OPCVM assurée par Monte Paschi Invest jusqu’au 31 décembre 2012 a été transférée chez Trusteam Finance dès le 2 janvier 2013. Trusteam Finance, créée en 2000, gère aujourd’hui 500 millions d’euros.

Le directeur général du groupe pharmaceutique estime qu’il «vaut la peine» de songer au rachat de la société de produits ophtalmologiques mise en vente par Warburg Pincus. Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, Abbott et Sanofi seraient sur les rangs. En marge d’une conférence hier, le directeur général de Bausch & Lomb, Brent Saunders, a fait part de son souhait de revenir en Bourse, une solution alternative envisagée par Warburg Pincus de sources concordantes.

L’assureur britannique a cédé sa participation de 19,4% au capital du groupe néerlandais pour 430 millions d’euros (34 millions de titres au prix unitaire de 12,65 euros). Morgan Stanley a coordonné la constitution accélérée du livre d’ordres en lien avec Goldman Sachs et Barclays. L’offre, «plusieurs fois sursouscrite» selon Aviva, a été placée auprès de « diversinvestisseurs institutionnels».

La société autoroutière italienne est actuellement en discussions pour acquérir Gemina, qui contrôle la société Aeroporti di Roma (ADR) gérant les aéroports de Rome, ont déclaré à Reuters des sources proches du dossier. Le rapprochement des deux entreprises, chacune contrôlée par Sintonia, société elle-même contrôlée par la holding de la famille Benetton permettrait à ADR de déployer un projet de 2,5 milliards d’euros d’investissements pour relancer l’aéroport de Fiumicino.

En réponse aux appels des investisseurs pour davantage de transparence, la banque américaine s’apprête selon le quotidien qui cite des sources proches du projet à mettre en œuvre une valorisation quotidienne et non plus seulement mensuelle de ses fonds monétaires ouverts. Certaines valorisations quotidiennes pourraient être publiées dès aujourd’hui.