Mandarine Gestion has appointed Denis Auclair as head of institutional development. He will lead the sales team dedicated to institutional investors at Mandarine Gestion, and will aim to develop that client segment primarily in France, Switzerland, Belgium and Luxembourg.Institutional investors represent nearly half of assets at Mandarine Gestion, which hopes to continue its development serving this client segment both in France and Europe, a statement says.Auclair previously worked at Allianz Global Investors Paris, where he was responsible for the Enterprise sector from 2007 to 2010, before being promoted to head of commercial development for France, Belgium and Luxembourg.
Allianz Global Investors has replaced Seung Minn as manager of the Allianz US Equity fund (USD856m) after six and a half years, Financial News reports. Steve Bereza has become the principal manager of the fund. A spokesperson for Allianz GI has explained to FN that Minn has left the firm.
Via Banco Best, iShares is opening access to Portugal for 131 of its equity and bond ETFs, which have recently been registered by CMVM, Funds People reports.
New research from Cerulli Associates finds that more than 60% of institutions’ asset flows were consultant-intermediated in 2012 with the rest coming from direct sales, according to their recent survey of institutional asset managers."Given the significance of investment consultants, just over half of the asset managers we polled plan on placing an even greater emphasis on fostering consultant relationships,» states Michele Giuditta, associate director at Cerulli. «This percentage initially appeared low to us, but our discussions with institutional distribution leaders confirmed that many firms are already devoting substantial resources to these efforts and plan on continuing to do so. Finally, Cerulli reports that many investment committees are redefining their roles, delegating more of the day-to-day investment-related responsibilities to their gatekeepers, and focusing more on overall policy matters.
AXA Real Estate Investment Managers has announced key new appointments to strengthen its management team, particularly in the Alternatives business unit. Riccardo Dallolio, who joined AXA Real Estate in 2011 as head of European transactions, will become sector head of alternatives and will be responsible for overseeing AXA Real Estate’s Alternatives Business Line. This new business unit was launched by AXA Real Estate in October 2012 in response to increasing demand from investors for exposure to alternative assets such as healthcare and student accommodation and is now being expanded to include hotels, data-centres, residential, forest and other specific situations. Laurent Jacquemin, who is currently global head of corporate finance and has over 14 years’ experience in the real estate industry will replace Riccardo as head of European transactions. Philippe de Martel will be promoted from head of corporate finance France to replace Laurent as global head of corporate finance.
Société Générale on Monday, 21 October announced the appointment of Richad Soundardjee as head of the Société Générale group for the Middle Eastern region. He will also be head of Société Générale Dubai. He replaces Eric Wormser, who will assume a new role in the Group. Soundardjee will aim to develop the activities of Société Générale, and to strengthen its presence in the region, and particularly the Gulf countries. Soundardjee will be based in Dubai, and will report to Slawomir Krupa, head of the finance and investment bank, private banking, asset management, and securities professions for the Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa region. Dounsardjee joined Société Générale in 1994, and was previously head of capitsl markets for the CEEMEA region, since 2009.
Raoul Weil, a major Swiss asset manager, may be extradited to the United States, following his arrest on holiday in Italy, the Financial Times reports. He is accused of helping US clients with USD20bn in assets to evade US taxes, when he was working at UBS. Weil, 53, now openly worked in the Swiss asset management sector as CEO of Reuss Private Group, which has over CHF4bn in assets.
E Fund Management will list a cross-market ETF in Hong Kong, which may be traded in Hong Kong dollars or in Chinese renminbi, Asian Investor reports. The RQFII (renmibi denominated qualified foreign institutional investor) will track the CES China 120 index, composed of A and H shares listed in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Shenzhen.
The asset management firm Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM) on Monday, 21 October announced that it would be acquiring money market funds managed by RBS Asset Management, under the Global Treasury Funds brand. The sale price has not been disclosed. “The acquisition of these GSAM money market funds emphasizes our firm and ongoing commitment to provide global liquidity solutions,” Timothy O’Neill and Eric S. Lane, co-heads of the investment management division at Goldman Sachs, has announced. GSAM has US195bn in assets under management invested in money market funds, of which 33% are in Europe. The acquisition of Global Treasury Funds will allow the firm to virtually double the size of its product range denominated in sterling. The transaction is expected to be completed in first quarter 2014, pending approval by the Irish central bank and the Irish Stock Exchange, as Global Treasury Funds products are domiciled in Ireland, and by a vote of investors.
On 21 October, Credit Suisse announced the launch of the Credit Suisse LGBT Equality Index™ (ticker on Bloomberg: CSLGBT Index), which, according to the Swiss group, is the first to replicate the performance of equities in companies which employ a policy to promote equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered persons (LGBT). It is a cap-size weighted index; in order to be eligible, companies must have a score of at least 80 on the Human Rights Campaign’s Corporate Equality Index (CEI), which is the national benchmark index for corporate policies and practices concerning employee members of the LGBT community. The index has been developed in cooperation with LGBT Capital, an opinion leader for responsible investment activities related to LGBT.Credit Suisse is also launching the Credit Suisse LGBT Equality Portfolio, an investable product which is avaiable only to clients of Credit Suisse Private Banking USA.
Barclays has recently launched a synthetic index replicating the performance of emerging market bonds in local currencies, Asian Investor reports, stating that according to the British bank, it is the first index of its type. The index is entitled EM Local Currency Bond Synthetic Replication, and will allow the bank to offer its clients liquid exposure to an asset class for which demand is increasing steadily, Asian Investor states.
Jupiter AM on Monday, 21 October announced the recruitment of Richard Wilson as head of marketing. He will join the asset management firm on 6 November this year, and will be responsible for developing and implementing the global marketing strategy of the firm. Wilson previously worked at HSBC Global Asset Management, Henderson Global Investors and New Star Asset Management, where he was director of marketing. Earlier in his career, Wilson served in a variety of positions related to marketing at Aberdeen Asset Management, Prolific Unit Trust Managers and Save&Prosper.
The three groups concerned have declined to comment on reports in Investment Week that only Aberdeen Asset Management and Macquarie Group remain in the running to acquire Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (SWIP, GBP146bn) from Lloyds Banking Group.
Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM) will acquire the range of money market funds from RBS, Investment Week reports. The transaction will be completed in first quarter 2014. GSAM states that there will be no change in the way that accounts are managed during the transitional period, and that investors will not pay any fees. GSAM manages USd195bn in money market funds, of which 33% are in Europe. The acquisition will double the size of its product range denominated in pounds sterling, and will strengthen its presence in Europe.
Dan Carter has been promoted to principal manager of the Jupiter Japan Select fund, Citywire Global reports. His predecessor, Simon Somerville, will focus on the Jupiter Japan UK unit trust. Carter had been assistant manager of the fund since 2011.
UK pension funds “waste” more than GBP6bn per year by investing in actively-managed equity, bond and real estate funds, rather than passive funds which cost less and post better returns, according to a study by Evercore Pan Asset, cited by Financial Times fund management. The study of the 14 most popular asset classes with UK pension funds finds that the median passive fund outperforms the median active fund in 13 cases over the past five years. The average difference between the passive and active funds was 6.5 over five years, which is greater than the difference in price alone, which was an average of 60 basis points per year for active funds and 20 points per year for passive funds.
Les deux gestionnaires Pimco (groupe Allianz) et Source ont annoncé le 21 octobre la création d’une classe de parts couverte du risque de change en euros de leur ETF PIMCO Short-Term High Yield Corporate Bond Index Source (code mnémonique : STHY), un fonds dont la monnaie de référence est le dollar et qui a déjà atteint 550 millions de dollars d’encours bien qu’il n’ait été lancé qu’en mars 2012.Le fonds, coté sur le London Stock Exchange, réplique l’indice BofA Merrill Lynch 0-5 Year US High Yield Constrained Index, un «benchmark» large couvrant plus de 800 obligations d’entreprises libellées en dollars US. La part «euro-hedgée» est assortie d’un taux de frais sur encours de 0,60 % contre 0,55 % pour la part en dollars.
Morgan Stanley a lancé le 14 octobre le MS Broadmark Tactical Plus UCITS Fund sur sa plate-forme FundLogic Alternatives plc. Il s’agit d’un fonds géré par Broadmark Asset Management LLC qui vise un rendement supérieur à la moyenne ajusté du risque avec moins de volatilité à la baisse que le S&P 500 quelle que soit la position dans le cycle de marché. Pour ce faire, l'équipe de gestion peut prendre des positions longues et courtes sur les marchés d’actions, principalement en investissant dans des futures sur actions américaines, des ETF et des options.CaractéristiquesDénomination : MS Broadmark Tactical Plus UCITS FundCode Isin : IE00BC1JD990Code mnémonique : FLBTB1U:IDAgréments de commercialisation; France, Italie, Royaume-Uni, Espagne ; en cours : Allemagne et Suisse
Daniel Ineichen, qui gère le fonds NGAR Secquaero ILS Fund depuis mai 2011, va gérer le nouveau Schroder GAIA Cat Bond Fund, qui intègre la plate-forme coordonnée de fonds alternatifs GAIA (Global alternative Investor Access).Le nouveau produit, qui a fusionné le 21 octobre avec le NGAR Secquaero ILS Fund de Secquaero Advisors, sera investi au minimum à 80 % en obligations catastrophe et en titrisations de risques assurantiels (insurance-linked securities ou ILS). Schroders précise que le portefeuille sera principalement exposé à des régions à forte concentration de fortunes assurées comme les Etats-Unis, l’Europe occidentale et le Japon.L’objectif consiste à surperformer le Libor 3 mois en dollars américains de 600 points de base par an, net de frais. Schroders précise que le NGAR Secquaero ILS Fund affiche un historique de performance de 7,27 % par an depuis son lancement le 15 août 2011.La plate-forme GAIA affiche actuellement un encours de 2,5 milliards de dollars (soit 1,8 milliard d’euros). Elle comptera bientôt sept fonds, dont cinq externes (Schroder GAIA CQS Credit, Schroder GAIA Egerton Equity, Schroder GAIA Sirios US Equity, Schroder GAIA Avoca Credit (qui doit être lancé le 7 novembre) et le Schroder GAIA Cat Bond) et deux fonds maison (Schroder GAIA Global Macro Bond et Schroder GAIA QEP Global Absolute).
Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM) va acquérir la gamme de fonds monétaires de RBS, rapporte Investment Week. La transaction devrait être bouclée au premier trimestre 2014. GSAM indique qu’il n’y aura aucun changement dans la façon de gérer les comptes pendant la période de transition, et que les investisseurs n’auront à supporter aucun frais.GSAM gère 195 milliards de dollars dans des fonds monétaires, dont 33 % en Europe. L’acquisition va doubler la taille de son offre libellée en livres et renforcer sa présence en Europe.
Les trois groupes intéressés ont refusé de commenter l’information d’Investment Week selon laquelle seuls Aberdeen Asset Management et Macquarie Group demeureraient en compétition pour acheter Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (SWIP, 146 milliards de livres) à Lloyds Banking Group.
Bestinvest a publié son palmarès 2013 des plus mauvais fonds, son «Spot The Dog», qui comprend 113 fonds sous-performant de manière chronique et gérant au total 31 milliards de livres pour le compte de fonds de pension, rapporte Money Marketing.Phoenix et Friends Life sont les deux fournisseurs des fonds de pension qui comptent le plus de «dog funds» dans leur gamme, avec respectivement 15 et 17 produits respectivement. Mais plusieurs fonds en délégation comptent également parmi les sous-performeurs comme le Legal & General BlackRock UK Dynamic fund et le Aviva Investec America fund.
La société de gestion Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM) a annoncé, lundi 21 octobre, qu’elle allait acquérir les fonds monétaires gérés par RBS Asset Management regroupés sous la marque Global Treasury Funds. Le montant de la transaction n’a pas été dévoilé."L’acquisition de ces fonds du marché monétaire de GSAM souligne notre engagement ferme et continu à fournir des solutions de liquidité à l'échelle mondiale», ont déclaré Timothy J. O’Neill et Eric S. Lane, co- chefs de la Division de la gestion d’investissement chez Goldman Sachs.GSAM gère dispose de 195 milliards de dollars d’actifs sous gestion investis dans des fonds monétaires dont 33% sont en Europe. L’acquisition de Global Treasury Funds doit permettre à la société de presque doubler la taille de son offre libellée en livres sterling.La transaction devrait être finalisée au cours du premier trimestre de 2014, sous réserve de l’approbation par la Banque centrale d’Irlande et de l’Irish Stock Exchange, sachant que les produits Global Treasury Funds sont domiciliés en Irlande, ainsi que d’un vote des investisseurs.
Entre fin septembre 2012 et fin septembre 2013, rapporte Fonds Nieuws, l’encours du gestionnaire de fortune Alex Vermogensbeheer (groupe BinckBank) est passé de 878 millions d’euros à 1,8 milliard. Les souscriptions nettes ont porté sur 191 millions d’euros en juillet-septembre et 709 millions sur les trois premiers trimestres.L’ampleur des entrées nettes est attribuée entre autres à la campagne publicitaire télévisée d’Alex en juillet et en août.
E Fund Management va coter un ETF «cross market» à Hong Kong qui peut être négocié en dollars de Hong Kong et en renminbi, rapporte Asian Investor. Le véhicule RQFII (renminbi denominated qualified foreign institutional investor) suivra l’indice CES China 120, composé d’actions A et H cotées à Hong Kong, Shanghai et Shenzhen.
La société de gestion suédoise Odin Fonder a recruté Thomas Nielsen comme analyste actions dans l’équipe actions nordiques ainsi que Mariann Stoltenberg Lind comme gérante de portefeuille sur les taux norvégiens.Thomas Nielsen vient de Pareto, tandis que Mariann Stoltenberg a travaillé au sein de Storebrand précédemment.
Le prix moyen des nouveaux logements dans les 70 plus importantes villes du pays a augmenté de 9,1% sur un an le mois dernier, selon des calculs faits par Reuters à partir de données du Bureau national des statistiques publiées mardi. Les prix immobiliers ont ainsi enregistré en septembre leur hausse la plus marquée en près de trois ans.
La société de private equity a annoncé vendredi mettre la main sur Avoca Capital, gestionnaire de 8 milliards de dollars d’actifs dans le crédit européen. KKR indique disposer de 28 milliards de dollars sous gestion dont 11 milliards en Europe lorsque la transaction sera finalisée au premier trimestre 2014. «Le secteur du crédit européen représente une opportunité majeure», selon les cofondateurs et codirigeants de KKR Henry Kravis et George Roberts.
Les prix des mises en vente de logements ont bondi de 10,2% entre début septembre et début octobre à Londres, rapporte le site internet Rightmove, une envolée qui laisse craindre la formation d’une bulle spéculative dans la capitale britannique. Cette hausse mensuelle est la plus élevée observée depuis 2002, point de départ du suivi de cette évolution, et porte à 13,8% la hausse des prix de mise en vente en rythme annuel.