Selon fundstrategy, Lazard va lancer fin septembre un fonds «croissance» investi sur les marchés émergents, le Lazard Developing Markets fund. Il sera géré par Kevin O’Hare et Peter Gillespie et ciblera les entreprises affichant une croissance supérieure à la moyenne.

Martin Currie envisage de compléter sa gamme de fonds Ucits III de performance absolue avec trois nouveaux véhicules.Les trois fonds, européen, japonais et global resources devraient être lancés le 29 septembre, selon Money Marketing. Les trois ont pour objectif de limiter le risque baissier en réduisant l’exposition au marché.

Le comité exécutif d’Altira Advisory a été complété le 16 septembre avec la nomination de Josef Pfannestill comme responsable des relations avec les intermédiaires et les partenaires de distribution (banques privées, gestionnaires de fortune et fonds de fonds). Il rejoint Michael Rieder, le CEO d’Altira Group et Oliver Brandt. Auparavant, Josef Pfannenstill a été membre du directoire de versiko, où il était responsable d'Ökoworld Lux, après avoir assuré les fonction de head of marketing de Fortis Investments pour l’Allemagne, l’Autriche ainsi que l’Europe centrale et orientale. Chez BNP Paribas Asset Management, il avait précédemment été responsable de la distribution en Autriche et dans les pays d’Europe centrale et orientale.

Le 16 septembre, le comité des actionnaires de la banque privée francfortoise Hauck & Aufhäuser (H&A) a nommé Michael Schramm président du comité exécutif. Son alter ego, Volker van Rüth, de sept ans plus âgé, acceptera difficilement cette nomination et ne tardera probablement pas à démissionner, estime le Handelsblatt.Michael Schramm, qui a une réputation de «grande gueule», a contribué ces quatre dernières années à une forte augmentation des encours et a ficelé l’acquisition de Cazenove auprès de J.P. Morgan.

Deux ans après l’avoir achetée à une Hypo Real Estate aux abois, Sal. Oppenheim, qui a été elle-même entre-temps sauvée par la Deutsche Bank, a revendu Collineo Asset Management GmbH (Collineo). Cette société de gestion de Dortmund (6 milliards d’euros d’encours) est reprise dans le cadre d’un MBO par son directeur général Dirk Bergander et les autres membres de la direction, a indiqué le 16 septembre Lincoln International. Aucun détail financier sur la transaction n’a été divulgué.

Selon la Tribune, Lehman demande le remboursement des dividendes versés à Axa. Actionnaire à l'époque de 7,25 % de la banque, l’assureur avait perçu des dividendes en août 2008 (8,5 millions de dollars), quelques semaines avant la faillite de l'établissement américain. Or, selon les représentants des créanciers, Lehman était déjà insolvable, note le quotidien.

Paul Costello a a annoncé qu’il va quitter son poste de general manager du Future Fund (87 milliards de dollars australiens) à la fin de l’année, rapporte The Wall Street Journal. Ce fonds de réserve pour les retraites du secteur public australien a été créé en novembre 2006. Le président du Future Fund, David Murray, a indiqué qu’un appel à candidature pour le poste de general manager a été lancé en Australie et à l'étranger.

Ascalon Capital Managers, qui s’est spécialisé dans l’acquisition de boutiques d’investissement, a confié selon ICFA le mandat de conservation et d’administration des fonds de sa plate-forme en Australie à HSBC Securities.

State Street Global Advisors a été choisi par Pegaso, le fonds de retraite complémentaire pour les salariés des entreprises de services d’utilité publique, pour gérer un mandat obligataire de plus de 60 millions d’euros, rapporte Bluerating. Le mandat sera géré à Londres.

Selon la Tribune, un des trois holdings contrôlés par l'émirat de Dubaï, Dubai International Capital LLC, va vendre pour 2,6 milliards de dollars d’actifs pour rembourser une partie de sa dette. La cession des actifs porterait sur une période de cinq ans. La société, détenue par le Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum demande également de repousser à novembre le remboursement d’un prêt de 1,25 milliard de dollars.

Les actifs sous gestion de Crédit Agricole (Suisse) SA s'élevaient au 30 juin à 49,7 milliards de francs suisses, en recul de 1,3% par rapport à fin 2009. Le bénéfice net s’est contracté de 23,9% à 85,5 millions de francs suisses, a indiqué le 16 septembre la filiale du groupe bancaire français.

Le groupe danois TDC a annoncé le 17 septembre la cession de l’opérateur zurichois Sunrise à la société de participations CVC Capital Partners pour un montant de 3,3 milliards de francs suisses.TDC avait auparavant envisagé de vendre Sunrise à Orange, filiale de France Télécom, mais l’autorité de régulation suisse avait bloqué la fusion entre les deux sociétés. Les principaux actionnaires de TDC - ils en détiennent près de 88% - sont les sociétés de capital-investissement Apax Partners, Blackstone Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, Permira Advisers et Providence Equity Partners.

Reyl Private Office, filiale du Groupe Reyl spécialisé dans l’optimisation juridique et fiscale de grands patrimoines, annonce l’arrivée, début juillet, de Françoise Adam, spécialiste des marchés de l’art. Sa mission est de développer une gamme de services liés à la gestion d’œuvres d’art et de patrimoines artistiques. Avant de rejoindre le Groupe Reyl à Genève, Françoise Adam a travaillé pendant sept ans pour Christie’s, à Paris et Genève. Elle y était chargée du développement de la clientèle et de l’organisation de grandes ventes aux enchères.

Le graphique ci-contre montre l’évolution du coefficient de corrélation moyen pour plusieurs catégories d’actifs. Nous représentons ainsi la corrélation moyenne entre les rendements respectivement : des 18 principaux secteurs mondiaux, des 4 principaux styles du MSCI World et de 5 indices régionaux (dont les émergents). La corrélation entre les performances du MSCI World et des obligations gouvernementales est également présentée. Lorsque cet indicateur vaut 100% (son maximum), tous les secteurs (ou régions ou styles) sont parfaitement positivement corrélés entre eux.

Les tableaux ci-contre présentent les meilleures et pires performances des fonds sur le marché des fonds actions américaines et le marché des fonds actions françaises au cours du mois d’août 2010. Ces performances sont mises en perspective par le calcul de la volatilité et du ratio de Sharpe sur trois ans d’historique ainsi que du rendement depuis un an.

La Chine stabilise ses achats en juillet. Les flux sortants seraient eux liés aux ventes par les hedge funds

Le graphique ci-contre montre l’évolution du coefficient de corrélation moyen pour plusieurs catégories d’actifs.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } On 15 September, the London Stock Exchange (LSE) admitted 45 ETF funds from Credit Suisse to trading, 13 of which were also admitted to the ETFPlus market at Borsa Italiana in Milan (see list below). The London Stock Exchange now lists 327 ETF funds from 11 providers, while the Milan stock exchange had 478 products from 11 issuers.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } With the Luxembourg-registered fund Emerging Markets Corporate Value Bonds, the Danish Sparinvest is extending its range of typically value funds, with a product which will invest exclusively in corporate bonds from firms with low levels of debt in emerging markets, with no supplemental exposure to government debt, which differentiates the product from many competing products. The fund is also available in Germany and France from 15 September. Sparinvest has already obtained EUR45m in subscriptions from Danish institutional investors for the fund, managed by Sune Jensen and Toke Hjortshøj, with the method which has also been successful for the Sparinvest High Yield Value Bonds fund. Characteristics Name: Sparinvest Emerging Markets Corporate Value Bonds ISIN code: LU0519053697 Management commission: 1.25% Front-end fee: 2%

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The European Commission on 15 September unveiled proposed regulations to improve the security and transparency of over-the-counter (OTC) derivative markets. Under the proposed regulations, the EU would require information on over-the-counter derivative contracts to be disclosed to central reference points, and that they be made available to surveillance authorities. Other information would also be made available to all market participants. The Commission is also proposing that normalised over-the-counter derivative contracts should be handled by centralised clearing-houses, which would have the effect of reducing counterparty credit risks, or the danger that the other party might default on a contract. The proposals by the Commission, which are in line with engagements by the EU and the G20 and the approach adopted by the United States, will now be examined by the European Parliament and member states. Once passed, the regulations would come into force in the second half of 2012. While welcoming the Commission’s proposals, the professional associations have expressed some reservations. The European asset management association (EFAMA) says that all participants should benefit from the new regulations, which will also protect users of the markets, including buy-side investors. The European banking federation (EBF), for its part, says that the Commission has perhaps gone a step too far in its enthusiasm for regulation, for example, with the clearing-house requirements. The Commission has also passed proposed regulations for short-selling and some aspects of credit default swaps (CDS). The bill will impose more transparency, reduce risks, and create a harmonised framework which will allow coordinated action throughout Europe. The new regulations grant national and European regulators clear authority to act when necessary in a coordinated manner to improve the functioning of the internal market. The proposal has been handed over to the European Parliament to be passed, and would come into force on 1 July 2012.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The intervention of the Bank of Japan on Wednesday to weaken the Yen (which fell 3%) was a hard hit for hedge fund specialists in fast-trading who had accumulated profits through betting on rises in the Japanese currency, the Wall Street Journal reports. John Taylor at FX Concepts (USD7.8bn), for example, has stated that several funds from his firm lost about 2% on Wednesday. According to financial industry sources, Aspect Capital and Winton Capital Management, among others, were also affected.

Frankie Lee has decided to leave Henderson to join another asset manager based in Hong Kong. He has been managing the USD355 million Henderson HF Asia-Pacific Property Equities Fund since 2008. Henderson is currently in the market to hire an equal replacement for Frankie Lee but until it has done so, Patrick Sumner, head of property equities, will be responsible for the management for the USD800 million Asian property equities assets the asset manager manages on behalf of its clients on a segregated and pooled basis, including the Henderson HF Asia-Pacific Property Equities Fund. In addition, to ensure the smooth management and running of the Fund and to assist in finding a replacement Patrick Sumner will move to Singapore in October until such a time as Henderson feel is appropriate following the recruitment of a replacement, says Henderson. Frankie Lee will continue his involvement in the fund until his day of departure on the 1st of December 2010 or until his replacement arrives.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Agefi reports that Export-Import Bank of China and the Chinese sovereign fund CIC have invested USD300m each in a fund which will finance projects in energy and infrastructure in South-East Asia. The fund will have USD10bn in assets in eight years’ time.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Nevin Shapiro, the former owner and CEO of Capital Investments USA, has pleaded guilty to securities fraud and money-laundering, over charges that he orchestrated a USD880m Ponzi scheme related to his grocery wholesale business, the Wall Street Journal reports. Shapiro admits that the fraud damaged 50 investors, who lost a total of USD50m to USD100m. A verdict in the case will be delivered on 4 January.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } On 15 September, the Austrian management firm Raiffeisen Capital Management (RCM) launched its new Luxembourg Sicav container for several sub-funds which are clones of Austrian-registered funds: Raiffeisen Emerging European Equities, Raiffeisen Russian Equities, Raiffeisen Emerging Markets Equities and Raiffeisen Emerging Markets Local Bonds. The products will initially be registered in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Singapore, the main countries where RCM products are sold. Registration in other countries is planned. Aside from the Russian Equities fund, which is denominated in US dollars, all other funds are denominated in Euros. Shares in pounds Sterling, US dollars and Euros are planned for a later date. For retail investors, minimal subscription is set at EUR2,500. Management commission is 1.75% for equities funds, and 1% for bond products. The choice of a Sicav wrapper for the fund is due to the fact that about three quarters of cross-border sales are of products in this legal format. The Luxembourg Sicav vehicle will allow the firm to improve its access to major opportunities in Europe and Asia and to develop international distribution. RCM states that its assets increased by EUR1.6bn, or 6% in the first eight months of the year, to EUR28.5bn as of the end of August. Including advisory mandates, the total comes to EUR30.7bn. Profits are slightly superior to expectations.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } According to statistics from the Austrian VÖIG association of management firms, assets in funds as of the end of August totalled EUR143.9bn, compared with EUR142.1bn as of the end of July. Compared with 31 December 2009 (EUR136.7bn), this represents an increase of 5.27%.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Californian pension fund CalPERS, with about USD208bn in assets under management, on 15 September announced two “significant reforms,” which will aim to restore investor confidence. Firstly, a position has been created for a senior chief risk officer, who will concentrate on risk management; and secondly, an ethics helpline has been created, which will identify fraud, conflicts of interest, and all other types of abuse. These new efforts come in addition to those already engaged in by the pension fund in the past 12 months to “restore confidence, integrity, and accountability in everything we do,” CalPERS says in a statement.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } On 13 September, Rydex ETF Trust registered a series of 19 new ETF funds which do not rely on leverage, replicating 16 Russell indices and 3 MSCI indices, with the SEC. All the products carry the suffix “equal weight,” indicating that the securities in the index are considered equally weighted. Management commissions range from 0.55% to 0.90%.

On 15 September, Feri Finance Group announced that it has recruited Wilfried Hoffmann as director of the activities fo Feri Family Trust (which manages the assets of 250 families) for southern Germany. Hoffmann has spent more than six years as head of Merck Finck Treuhand. Merck Finck & Co was acquired in May by the Indien Hinduja group when the latter bought KBL European Private Bankers.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } IC Immobilien Holoding (EUR5bn in assets under management) has acquired PropertyOne (EUR2.8bn), financing the acquisition through a capital increase via an injection of capital. The merged entity will become a new firm, IC PropertyOne Asset und Real Estate Management GmbH, with assets of EUR7.8bn, according to a statement to the market dated 15 September. The business will have total staff of about 7,000, and the total area of properties will add up to about 3.7 million square metres, including about 700 properties. Shareholders in PropertyOne will control about 7% of the new entity, including a 4.8% stake for the US private equity investor Cerberus. The objective of IC Immobilien is to reach EUR10bn in assets under management by the end of 2011.