Elle s'appuiera davantage sur des outils basés sur le prix, tels que les taux d'intérêt ou de change, plutôt que sur des mécanismes quantitatifs

Ceux qui ne souhaitent pas payer la taxe sur les transactions en achetant des actions peuvent demander des CFD à des intermédiaires financiers étrangers

Alors que la taxe de 0,2% sur les actions des grosses sociétés françaises est entrée en vigueur en août, plusieurs spécialistes confirment qu’elle est facilement évitée, notamment grâce à l’utilisation des CFD. Elle provoque aussi un déplacement de la liquidité vers des valeurs non françaises.

Le rapporteur du règlement sur la réforme de l’audit au Parlement européen, Sajjad Karim, propose de n’imposer la rotation des cabinets d’audit que tous les 25 ans, contre les 6 à 9 ans proposés par la Commission européenne. Il ne souhaite pas non plus généraliser le co-commissariat.

La CFTC enquête sur les causes de la chute hier soir du prix des Futures sur le Nymex de 3 dollars en une minute dans des volumes étoffés

L’Autorité européenne des marchés financiers a soumis pour consultation ses propositions de règles visant à encadrer la politique de rémunérations des sociétés d’investissement. D’ordre très général, elles s’inscrivent dans le cadre de la directive MIF (Marchés d’instruments financiers). L’Esma propose par exemple que les systèmes de rémunération ne fassent pas la part belle à la partie variable et recommande l’introduction de critères non-financiers (qualitatifs) dans l’évaluation des performances des professionnels, comme la conformité avec la réglementation et les procédures internes, la satisfaction ou la fidélité des clients. Les politiques devraient également être approuvées par les dirigeants, qui seraient considérés comme responsables de l’application de ces règles. La consultation sera ouverte jusqu’au 7 décembre, pour une proposition définitive au deuxième trimestre 2013.

Les Etats-Unis ont annoncé l’ouverture d’une nouvelle procédure contre les subventions chinoises à l’exportation dans le secteur de l’automobile et des pièces détachées. Pékin de son côté a porté plainte auprès de l’OMC contre une nouvelle loi américaine sur les «droits compensatoires», destinée à combattre les subventions ayant un caractère de stimulant des exportations. Une plainte détaillée sera transmise dans les prochains jours.

«L’évaluation actuelle des perspectives d’inflation continue d’offrir une marge de manœuvre pour ajuster la politique monétaire en réponse à une détérioration importante des perspectives de croissance» a indiqué la Banque centrale australienne dans les minutes, publiées ce matin, de sa dernière réunion du 4 septembre dernier où elle avait laissé ses taux inchangés à 3,50%.

Le fonds activiste américain a révélé avoir pris une participation de 13,3% dans Office Depot, devenant ainsi le premier actionnaire du distributeur de fournitures de bureau qu’il juge «profondément sous-évalué». Starboard a adressé un courrier au directeur général d’Office Depot, Neil Austrian, et à son conseil d’administration pour réclamer des réductions de dépenses et des «initiatives stratégiques» afin d’améliorer la valorisation de la société.

La BCE pourrait encore abaisser son taux directeur, faire passer son taux des dépôts en territoire négatif ou lancer une nouvelle opération de refinancement à trois ans (LTRO), selon Luc Coene, membre du conseil des gouverneurs. Il a cependant jugé «très improbable» que la BCE s’engage un jour, à l’instar de la Fed, dans un programme d’assouplissement quantitatif massif.

La société de paiement dirigée par le fondateur de Twitter Jack Dorsey a finalisé son quatrième tour de table à hauteur de 200 millions de dollars environ. Les investisseurs comprennent notamment Citi Ventures, Rizvi Traverse Management et Starbucks. La société est valorisée entre 3 et 4 milliards de dollars. Sa valeur aurait donc plus que triplé depuis le dernier tour de table en juin 2011.

Le groupe de private equity a réussi à récolter 2,87 milliards de dollars pour son dernier fonds américain, Carlyle Partners VI, selon un document enregistré auprès de la SEC. Ce sixième fonds américain, lancé en janvier, vise 10 milliards de dollars à terme. Carlyle s’attend à ce que la levée ne dure pas plus d’une année.

For an undisclosed amount, the German asset management firm Union Investment Real Estate has acquired the real estate complex K-Point, located in Kirchberg, Luxembourg, which will be added to the portfolio of the institutional real estate fund UniInstitutional European Real Estate. The complex includes 8,169 square metres of office space, 1,041 square metres of commercial space, and 620 square metres of archival area, plus parking slots.This is the first investment in Luxembourg for the German fund, which has seen a net inflow of EUR300m in the first seven months of this year.

On 17 September, Deutsche Bank announced the composition of the executive committee for its new asset & wealth management (AWM) division, which will be led by Michel Faissola (see Newsmanagers of 12 September).The committee will include:* Michele Faissola, Chair, Head of Asset & Wealth Management and* Jon Eilbeck, Chief Operating OfficerThe committee will additionally include representatives of the major investment platformand and the various functions in the AWM unit. These include:* Reinhard Bellet, Head of Passive Investments*Randy Brown, Co- Chief Investment Officer of Asset Management*Pierre Cherki, Head of Alternative Investments (Internal Managers)*Mark Cullen, Head of Operating Platform & Re-engineering*Stephane Farouze, Head of Alternative Investments (Third-party Managers)*Kevin Lecocq, Chief Investment Officer of Wealth Management*Wolfgang Matis, Head of Active Investments*Balaji Prasanna, Head of Loans/Deposits and Asset & Liability Managementand Asoka Woehrmann, Co-Chief Investment Officer of Asset Management.In addition, the committee will include representatives of client areas:*Marco Bizzozero, Head of Wealth Management EMEA*Thomas Bowers, Head of Wealth Management Americas*Joachim Haeger, Head of Wealth Management Germany (Deutsche Bank)*Wilhelm von Haller, Head of Wealth Management Germany (Sal. Oppenheim)*Ravi Raju, Head of Wealth Management Asia Pacific and*Dario Schiraldi, Head of DistributionThe regional executive committees for AWM will be chaired by members of the executive board:*Wolfgang Matis: Germany*Ravi Raju: Asia-Pacific*Dario Schiraldi: Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA)The chairman of the regional committee for the Americas has yet to be appointed.

According to an analysis undertaken for Expansión by Lipper Thomson Reuters and JP Morgan Asset Management (JPMAM), emerging market bond funds were the category which had the largest inflows in net terms in Europe in first half. Global funds attracted EUR6bn.The strongest net subscriptions in the period under review were for Pimco, with EUR12.8bn, followed by Axa Investment Managers (EUR9.8bn) and M&G Investments (EUR6.6bn).

Mutual funds investing solely in equities in July underwent record net outflows, and show net redemptions over the past 13 months, according to figures released by the Bank of France on 17 September. Net outflows from equity mutual funds totalled EUR5.2bn in July, the largest amount ever observed by the Bank of France, whose statistics begin in January 2006.At the same time, mutual funds invested wholly in bonds finished the month with net inflows of EUR2bn, while mixed unfds posted net subscriptions totalling EUR3.4bn.Non-money market mutual funds finished the month of July with net outflows of only EUR0.7bn by seasonaly-adjusted figures, following record outflows of EUR9.2bn in June.An average incrase of 2.1% in net asset values, which applies to all types of funds, has resulted in a further increase in total assets of EUR19.7bn, to EUR862.9bn.Money market mutual funds in July underwent net outflows of EUR5.5bn, following net subscriptions of EUR4.7bn in June. Cumulative inflows year on year remain positive, at a total of EUR8bn.

From 17 September to 6 November, the Austrian firm Raiffeisen Capital Management (RCM) will open subscriptions to the corporate bond fund Raiffeisen-Unternehmensanleihen 2017, which will mature on 8 November 2017.The product is designed so that at maturity date the amount reimbursed will be at least equal to the initial net asset value (EUR100).The portfolio will be invested in investment-grade corporate bonds and high yield securities, all of which will be issues with maturity dates compatible with that of the fund.Front-end fee and management commissions are set at 2% and 0.6%, respectively, but the former will increase to 3% after 6 November 2012, of which 1% will be paid to the fund. There will be an early withdrawal penalty of 1%.RCM will pay out a regular distribution projected to be EUR3.50 per share, before taxes, but the final total will depend on the evolution of the markets.

Due to its performance, the Oyster European Opportunities fund from Syz & Co, managed by Eric Bendahan, has managed to win the loyalty of its investors since the beginning of this year. The fund has gained about 20% year to date, which represents a lead of 5 ½% compared with its peer group, and the manager announced in a presentation in Paris that assets now total about EUR1.25bn, compared with EUR1.01bn as of the end of 2011. The Stoxx Europe 600, its benchmark index, for its part, has gained 12.84%.The portfolio, 70% of whose outperformance comes from genuinely family-owned businesses, and 90% of which comes from stock-picking generally, has been gradually rebalanced over the course of this year, reducing the weight of growth stocks in order to increase the proportion of value shares.The new Oyster European Selection fund (see Newsmanagers of 1 December and 17 January), which is aimed at institutional investors (minimal subscription: EUR1m), has already attracted EUR55m. It is a more concentrated version of the Opportunities (70-90 holdings), with a portfolio of 40-50 positions.

The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) published on September 17 a consultation paper on proposed Guidelines on remuneration policies and practices under the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID).The proposed remuneration guidelines for MiFID investment firms are key to ensuring that the pay and incentive structures for sales staff and their superiors do not create false incentives when selling financial products to retail investors. The consistent application of ESMA’s remuneration guidelines will help strengthen investor protection and achieving the same level of protection for Europe’s retail investors no matter where they invest.The consultation period for the draft MiFID guidelines on remuneration closes on 7 December 2012. The final report, and the final guidelines, should be published by the second quarter of 2013.

The US asset management firm BlackRock has notified the CNMV that it now holds 3.11% of capital in the Spanish firm Banco Sabadell, compared with 2.53% previously, Cotizalia reports.As Sabadell shares now trade at about EUR2.17, the 91.9 million shares held by BlackRock represent an investment of about EUR200m.

Renauld de Planta, one of Pictet’s eight partners, told Asian Investor that the Swiss-based group (EUR105bn in AUM) plans to put three equity managers (onf which two are already hired) and three equity traders in Hong Kong. By the time the are all in place, the entire Greater China long-only equities portfolio as well as the QFII quota (A-shares), will be managed on site. The three equity managers will be part of the 20-strong global EM equities unit.The Chinese equity team will be headed by Pauline Dan (ex Samsung Investment Trust Management).Meanwhile, the new corporate EMD team will comprise seven or eight persons globally, about half of which based in Asia, largely in Singapore.The global EMD team managers about USD10bn.

iShares, the exchange traded funds platform of BlackRock, has announced the appointment of Ursula Marchioni to its EMEA Investment Strategy and Insights team.She joins iShares from Credit Suisse, where she was most recently head of ETF sales strategy for its asset management division. Ursula Marchioni joins iShares’ EMEA Investment Strategy and Insights team as a director and will be based in its London office. The team is led by Stephen Cohen, head of investment strategies EMEA.

Dalton Strategic Partnership has appointed Luca Vaiani as portfolio manager joining from Fondaco SGR, Fundweb reports. Previously manager of the multi-asset, absolute return Fondaco Global Opportunities fund, the new PM joins as part of a six-strong team responsible for the Melchior Multi-Asset fund and will work alongside CIO Rupert Caldecott

Simon Wilson, who has left Old Mutual Asset Managers after 12 years, will join Premier Asset Management in early October as head of marketing, Investment Week reports.

Occitan Capital Partners, a firm speclalised in investment in equities and equity derivatives, has extended its investment team with four new partners, two of whom work at Nomura, Financial News reports. These include Alexandre Capez and Othmane Akherraz. Occitan was founded in 2010 by Herve Gallo, a former equity derivaties trader at Nomura, and Thomas de Garidel-Thoron, of Boussard & Gavaudan Asset Management.

Boutique fund manager JO Hambro Capital Management, which was acquired last year by the Australian firm BT Investment Management, is planning to launch a multi-asset class fund, which will be limited to bonds and equities, Fund Web reports.According to the CEO of JO Hambro, Gavin Rochussen, “this will include only equities and fixed income. I would not like to include more complex investments. The reasons I would not like to add such products are the cost, the inherent difficulties of such products, and liquidity. Investors are looking for simple and easy-to-understand products.”

A reshuffle at Natixis Asset Management announced in late March, orienting the firm to six areas of management expertise, is now being put into practice. The firm this morning unveils its volatility management and structured product expertise unit, entitled Seeyond.The team, which includes 32 members, and has EUR14.7bn in assets under management, includes structured management, flexible asset allocation, active volatility management, modelled equity management and long/short equities. The objective is to offer strategies which combine the search for returns and reduction of risk, a statement says.This is based on the idea that it is more efficient to exploit volatility in the markets to generate value. “Seeyond uses variability and dispersion in the markets to generate performance, and concentrates on risk management to construct portfolios which are adapted to the environment,” says Natixis AM. In the unit, the teams will also have a dedicated quantitative research unit, and “experts in the unit may regularly question the assumptions of classic financial theory, as well as their own models.”Concretely, Seeyond will develop a complete range of funds, in four areas of expertise: structuring and active protected management, modelled and optimised equities, flexible allocation and volatility, and equity arbitrage. The range from the unit will be available from the global distribution platform of Natixis Global Asset Management, and will be aimed at all investors, be they professional or not (institutional investors, corporates, multi-managers, private banks, IFAs and banking networks).Lastly, Emmanuel Bourdeix, who is co-CIO at Natixis Asset Management and a member of the executive board, has been appointed as head of the unit. Frank Trividic will join him as head of flexible allocation and volatility management. Nicolas Just, CFA, will be head of modelled and optimised equity management. Samir Naït Bachir is director of structured and protected active management, while Stéphane Galzy is head of equity arbitrage, and Hamza Bahaji is head of quantitative research.

The asset management firm Pastel & Associés has signed an agreement with the third-party marketer Amadé Global Partners, to accelerate its international development. The partnership will aim to release funds to institutional investors and actors in private management, mostly located in continental Europe, the firm tells Newsmanagers.The products to be highlighted will be Valeur Intrinsèque and Margin of Safety Fund.Pastel & Associés, which currently has slightly over EUR200m in assets under management, hopes to reach EUR500m in assets under management in three years, due to international development.

Carmignac Gestion has recruited Pierre Andriveau as regional director of external distribution to IFA clients. He previously worked at Franklin Templeton Investments as head of sales. Andriveau will aim to strengthen relationships with IFAs in Paris and the South-East region, and will report to Ariane Tardieu, head of business development for France. He started on 17 September 2012.

The asset management firm ALPS Advisors, which advises open-ended and closed funds and ETFs, with assets of USD6.6bn, has announced that it has signed a licening agreement with Goldman Sachs to use its indices as a basis for new ETF products.The indices will be developed by the ETP structuring team at Goldman Sachs based in New York.