Fidelity Worldwide Investment has launched a Global Demographics Fund to tap into social trends such as the world’s population getting bigger, wealthier and older.Fidelity Funds Global Demographics Fund, managed by Hilary Natoff and Nicky Stafford, is an unconstrained portfolio of around 50-80 stocks where demographic trends are the dominant influence of the earnings power of a company. The universe of around 1,000 companies is currently weighted towards healthcare and consumer stocks where many companies are set to benefit from an ageing population and the emergence of middle classes in emerging markets. However, investment opportunities are not confined to these sectors, the fund managers have also identified ideas in other industries including IT, agriculture-related businesses, aerospace companies.The fund will invest in two types of company. The first are called the ‘winners of today’. These are primarily global leaders, dominant in their respective areas. The second type of company is described as the ‘winners of tomorrow’. These are typically leaders in new growth markets, or innovators bringing new products to market which will play directly into demographic themes with the potential for strong future growth prospects.Fidelity Funds Global Demographics fund is a Luxembourg-domiciled SICAV.

In order to protect retail investors who rely on the services of a family office, Luxembourg is preparing a law to determine which professionals are allowed to provide this service, making the Grand Duchy the first European country to regulate these activities, Funds People reports. The Bill on the activities of family offices explains in its preamble that creating these regulations will make Luxembourg a centre of excellence in this area.The bill was submitted on 1 December, and will soon have concluded its way thorough Parliament. It limits family office activities to credit institutions, investment advisers, wealth managers, certain lawyers, notaries, auditors and accounting experts, and creates a PSF Family Office license.

The private bank DBS Private Bank, one of the largest in the Asia ex Japan region, has set up an international team which will be led by Peter Triggs, previously of Bank of China (Switzerland), where had been deputy CEO and head of the international private bank. Triggs, who will be based in Singapore, will begin next month as managing director and head of international and wealth structuring. He will lead a team of four people, and will be in charge of development of wealth management activities serving high net worth clients in Asia. Among the four employees who will assist Triggs are Yann Mocellin, who had previously worked for a multi-family office (Swiss-Asia Financial Services), and James Tan, previously of Credit Suisse. Two client advisers will soon join the team.

The British asset management firm Schroders has recruited Katja Börger, who will focus on insurers and businesses, for institutional client relationship management. She will report to Carlos Boehles, head of the institutional team in Frankfurt.Börger has over 20 years of experience in investment banking, including 18 years at Commerzbank, where she was most recently head of capital markets, North America, before becoming an independent financial adviser in the area of financing optimisation, derivative risk management and corporate finance.

Natixis Global Asset Management, an asset management affiliate of Natixis, is prepared to consider potential acquisitions and mergers, and would like to strengthen its activities in Europe and Asia, its CEO, Pierre Servant, has told Reuters.The asset management firm, which last year compensated for EUR9.5bn in outflows from funds in Europe with inflows of over EUR13bn in Asia and the United States, claims that it is not easy to find teams to acquire, and that it will be vigilant on price.“We have the issue of price before us. We would not like to be large just for the sake of being large, but it’s a question of investment capacity,” Servant explains.

Societe Generale Private Banking has appointed Nicolas Cagi Nicolau as head of commercial & marketing. He becomes a member of the private bank’s executive committee and reports to Jean-François Mazaud, and Patrick Folléa respectively head and deputy head of Societe Generale Private Banking. Nicolas Cagi Nicolau will be responsible for defining and implementing the private bank’s commercial strategy, in coordination with the executive committee. He will anticipate the evolving needs of clients in order to adapt the private bank’s services offering and its overall marketing approach. He will supervise the marketing and commercial activities domestically and abroad. From January 2011, Nicolas Cagi Nicolau was deputy global head of market solutions for Societe Generale Private Banking, with responsibility for managing market activities (fixed income, foreign exchange, equity and bonds) and for developing and promoting the structured products and derivatives offering.

Daniel Och, the billionaire fund manager and founder of Och-Ziff Capital Management, is being sued by one of his former traders, the Fremchman Arnaud Achache, who is seeking USD150m, Forbes reports. The plaintiff claims that he was unfairly forced out from Och-Ziff Capital Management, where he had been a partner, so that Och could increase his own stake in the firm.

The measurement of performance has never been an uncontroversial subject. The most recent quarterly study of US financial advisers (Financial Professional Outlook) by Russell Investments provides a further illustration. Financial advisers do not at all have the same approach as their clients to the measurement of the performance of a portfolio.The majority of advisers (53%) see performance as a measurement of the growth of a portfolio compared with the investment objectives of the client, while only 29% of clients measure performance in this way. Advisers recommend that their clients measure performance on the basis of short-term factors such as one-year returns (54%), absolute returns on the portfolio (49%), or the volatility of a portfolio (41%).The most recent survey also finds that there is a persistent divergence in market outlooks. While advisers have a marked optimism about the development of capital markets in the next three years (78%), only 18% say that their clients have a similar outlook.These points of view seem to fall into line with performance outlooks for 2012. Advisers predict an average of 3.9% returns for a prudent portfolio, 5.9% for a diversified portfolio and 8.3% for an aggressive portfolio. Clients, who are more pessimistic in general, are more optimistic than their advisers about outlooks for returns in 2012: 4.3% for a prudent portfolio, 6.5% for a balanced portfolio and 9.3% for an aggressive portfolio.

Assets under management by Sicavs, the preferred vehicle of Spanish high net worth investors, fell last year by 10.59% to EUR23.3bn, and the number of shareholders fell 3.86% to 411,178, according to VDOS Stochastics, relayed by Cotizalia.The largst manager in the sector is BBVA Patrimonios, with a market share of 11.28%, but Bansabadell Inversión has seen the largest net inflows, with EUR180m, March Gestion has been the firm whose Sicav assets have increased most, gaining 7.26%.

The UK’s big pension funds now own a smaller slice of shares quoted on the London stock market than at any time for nearly half a century, Henderson Global Investors reports. Figures from the Office for National Statistics claim that ownership has slipped to just 9% of the total – the lowest since 1963. The “cult of equity,” based on the belief that equities will outperform all other asset classes over the long term, is losing its appeal. However, UK’s pension funds are not completely neglecting equities, as they are increasingly focusing on non-UK equities. And foreign investors, including sovereign funds, consider the shares attractive long-term investments. Foreign owners now control about 40% of the UK equity market, which was valued at GBP1.8tn as the end of December 2011.

F&C Investments has seen net outflows in 2011 of GBP7.2bn, the firm has announced at a publication of its annual results. These outflows have come largely from strategic partnerships. Assets have fallen from GBP105.8bn as of the end of 2010 to GBP100.1bn as of the end of 2011, and underlying operating profits have fallen from GBP67.2m to GBP65.2m. Despite that decline, net revenues increased from GBP243.2m to GBP267m as of the end of 2011. F&C has also announced that the first phase of its strategic review has been completed, and that the second phase will begin in May 2012. A cost reduction plan for GBP33.2m will also be completed by the end of 2012. Alain Grisay, CEO of F&C, has confirmed that he will be leaving the group following its general shareholders’ meeting in May.

Finesti and fundinfo have announced that they are combining their respective expertise in investment fund data and documents to offer services intended to facilitate cross-border notifications and the dissemination of Key Investor Information Documents (KIIDs). The two companies will offer integrated solutions and packages to all fund groups and fund promoters who need to fulfil the requirements of the UCITS IV directive.

Ossiam, an affiliate of Natixis Global Asset Management, on 15 March announced the launch of a new exchange-traded fund (ETF) based on a minimum variance strategy index, on the London, Frankfurt, Milan and Paris stock markets. The new ETF will offer investors access to a key market segment, emerging markets, with a reduced risk profile. It follows the launch of the strategy ETFs OSSIAM ETF iSTOXX EUROPE MINIMUM VARIANCE NR, OSSIAM ETF US MINIMUM VARIANCE NR and OSSIAM ETF FTSE 100 MINIMUM VARIANCE.The addition of the new fund to the minimum variance product range from Ossiam allows investors to diversify a global portfolio whose objective is to reduce volatility and drawdowns. The new ETF will be listed on 19 March 2012 on Xetra in Frankfurt, on 19 March 2012 on Borsa Italiana in Milan, on 22 March 2012 on NYSE Euronext Paris, and on 26 March 2012 on the London Stock Exchange.The fund replicates the rising and falling performance of a new strategy index from the research team at Ossiam, the Ossiam Emerging Markets Minimum Variance (Bloomberg OEMMVNR). The index is calculated and published in real time by Standard & Poor’s. The index is composed of a dynamic sample of 400 of the most liquid equities from a universe composed 85% of the market capitalisation of the S&P IFCI index. The S&P IFCI index is a global index, which tracks the performance of major businesses in 20 emerging markets (composed of about 1800 shares and ADR). The Ossiam Emerging Markets Minimum Variance index aims to reduce the volatility of a portfolio composed of shares from emerging markets. Its volatility is on average more than 30% lower than that of the benchmark index (here the emerging markets S&P IFCI), which results in a significant reduction in drawdowns.TER for the fund is 0.75% per year.

The German real estate fund DEGI Europa from Aberdeen, which is under liquidation to be completed by 30 September 2013, has sold the WestendGate tower (55,000 square metres) in Frankfurt to RFR Holding and Stenham Property, for an undisclosed amount, which increases liquidity in the fund to 16% from 10% previously. The property, which contains the Marriott Hotel and also has 27,000 square metres of office space, was acquired in 1988, and was renovated in recent years to make it a green property.The fund had EUR845.3m in assets as of the end of January.

Robert Lacoursiere, a partner at Paulson & Co, left the firm last week, and is planning to launch his own hedge fund, Bloomberg reports.After four years at Paulson, Lacoursiere is planning to set up an equity hedge fund in the next six months, which will focus on international financial establishments.Paulson underwent record losses last year, including more than 50% for one of its largest funds, Bloomberg reports.

NYSE Euronext on 15 March announced that it has added the LVIX ETF from Lyxor, which replicates the S&P 500 VIX FutureEnhancedRoll index, on Euronext Paris, bringing the total number of ETFs listed in Europe by NYSE Euronext to 596.CharacteristicsName: Lyxor LVIXISIN code: FR0011160290TER: 0.70%

Vontobel has appointed Georg Schubiger as the new head of its Private Banking business unit with effect from 1 September 2012. He will take over responsibility for the private clients business from Peter Fanconi, who has decided to pursue a new professional challenge outside the group. As a member of the Group Executive Management, Georg Schubiger will report directly to Zeno Staub, CEO of the Vontobel Group. Over the last 10 years, Georg Schubiger has held various senior management functions within the Northern European Danske Bank Group, where he was most recently a member of the executive board. In addition to this, he brings with him experience of conducting business in Eastern Europe and Russia, which are among the Vontobel Group’s focus markets.

According to the British MEP Peter Skinner, cited by Reuters, a last-minute agreement in the European Parliament will allow for the reinsertion into the Solvency II directive of clauses easing the capital requirements for insurers, Agefi reports.

ESMA has announced that it considers the regulatory frameworks for credit rating agencies (CRAs) of the United States of America, Canada, Hong Kong and Singapore to be in line with European rules. The EU Regulation (EC) No 1060/2009 on Credit Rating Agencies requires ESMA to assess whether the requirements of third-country CRA regimes are “as stringent as” the European ones.Today’s announcement allows European financial institutions to continue using for regulatory purposes credit ratings issued in these countries after 30 April 2012. ESMA’s assessment of third-country CRA regimes is an important tool for enhancing internationally consistent supervision of CRAs in the interests of protecting financial markets and investors in the EU.

Two months after taking over as global head of BBVA AM, Paloma Piqueras has reshuffled teams and apointed Luis Megías as director fo Europe, after serving as head of Goldman Sachs Quartix for the Iberian peninsula in London, Funds People reports. Megías had been head of sales at BBVA AM until mid-2010.Eduardo García Hidalgo has been appointed as chief investment officer for Europe, replacing Olivier Asselin, who has left the business. Hidalgo was head of the Quality Funds unit (fund platform). He will be replaced by Belén Blanco, head of innovation and product development.

Last year, 419 open-ended funds were launched in Germany, while 436 funds were closed, not counting closed-ended funds, according to statistics from the German BVI association of asset management firms. The number of new funds created has been at its lowest since 2005, with a peak in 2007 at 1,113 launches. In 2010, 482 funds were launched, while 389 were closed.Due to the development of the equities market, it is not overly surprising that the most negative population growth in 2011 was in the equity fund category, with 110 launches and 170 closures. However, creations of diversified funds totalled 128, while there were 93 closures.

Fidelity a lancé un fonds démographique investi sur les sociétés dans le monde qui vont profiter des développement sociologiques de long terme, rapporte Money Marketing.Le Fidelity global deographics, de droit luxembourgeois, sera géré par Hilary Natoff et Nicky Stafford. Il s’agira d’un portefeuille sans contrainte de 50 et 80 valeurs, couvrant un univers de 1.000 entreprises.

The US alternative management firm Blue Mountain has created a specialised vehicle, Alpine, which will be in charge of liquidating the derivatives portfolio acquired from Crédit Agricole, allowing the latter to reduce its risk-weighted assets by EUR14bn, the Financial Times reports, citing information from Jean-Yves Hocher, CEO of Crédit Agricole CIB. Alpine will be fed by existing BlueMountain funds and new subscriptions.The transfer will concern market-making activities in structured credit which Crédit Agricole shut down three years ago, leaving thousands of derivative contracts based on corporate bonds which will mature in the next six years. Crédit Agricole retains the counterparty risks.

A new asset management firm has appeared on the French market. Flornoy & Associés Gestion received its business license a few weeks ago. The firm, founded by former employees of the Eurofin bank and Quilvest & Associés, is starting up with the support of a major player. La Française AM has acquired a 25% stake in the capital of the new asset management firm, which is primarily aimed at private clients, congregations and federations.The team at Flornoy & Associés Gestion is composed of five people, all of whom are partners in the capital of the firm: Olivier Flornoy, chairman, Didier Bouchard, CEO, Christophe Bonasse, head of sales, and Marc Antoine Brabant and Stéphane Le Rai, portfolio managers.The range on offer to clients includes two funds, Flornoy Valeurs familiales and Flornoy Allocation.

The former Quilvest & Associés Gestion d’Actifs, currently known as Q&A Gestion d’Actifs, is now adopting the name Alma Capital & Associés, following an acquisition of 51% of its capital by Alma Capital, while two of its three founders, François Genovese and Florence Albaret, retain 40% and 9% of capital, respectively. The third founder, Thierry Bourgain continues to serve as a director of the firm, but has sold his stake.Alma Capital is specialised in private equity and distribution of unique niche products, to institutional investors. It launched a fund in November (Alma USD Convertibles), a sub-fund of the Luxembourg Sicav Alma Capital Investment Funds (ACIF), which is presently legally managed by a local affiliate of La Française AM. The product is managed under an outsourcing contract by Shenkman Capital Management, a specialist in convertible bonds in the “best part of high yield.”Q&A, for its part, is a portfolio management firm which has been licensed since 2005 by the AMF, and which offers personalised service mostly to high net worth individuals and families. Its assets, in private and collective management, total about EUR200m.

Results at the French investment firm Eurazeo moved into negative territory last year, as predicted at a publication of half-yearly results, with a net loss for the part of the group of EUR97.5m, according to a statement released on 16 March. The firm earned profits of EUR134.6m the previous year, in adapted figures.Earnings in the 2011 fiscal year totalled EUR4.2bn, compared with EUR3.8bn in 2010. As of 8 March, reevaluated net assets totalled EUR57.2 per share, well above the share price of EUR38.33 as of Thursday evening.

The Qatar Holding fund, controlled by the oil-rich Gulf state, has acquired 1.03% in the capital of LVMH, Les Echos reports. The entry into the capital of the French firm took place in 2011, the reference document released by LVMH, and published yesterday by the French financial market authority, the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF), indicates. The stake is valued at about EUR680m. The new shareholder is required to declare to the group controlled by Bernard Arnault that it has entered its capital at the general ahareholders’ meeting on 5 April, as it has passed the statutory threshold of 1%.

Joseph Pacini, head of alternative investments at JP Morgan Private Bank (Asia), is joining BlackRock Alternative Investors (BAI) as head of the strategy group Asia-Pacific ex Japan, Hedgeweek reports. He will be based in Hong Kong, and will report to Mark McCombe, chairman of BlackRock Asia-Pacific, and Rick Arney, head of hedge funds in the strategy group at BAI.As of the end of December, alternative assets under management by BlackRock totalled USD105bn worldwide (hedge funds, private equity and real estate).

The global equities team led by Ilario Di Bon at Alliance Trust Investments has gained the addition of Adrien Bommelaer (formerly of Matrix Corporate Capital) and James Twyman (formerly of AllianceBernstein), Fundweb reports.

According to reports in Investment Week, Liontrust Asset Management has made redundant Ian Furtado, director of sales at its new affiliate Occam, acquired in October. The other two sales personnel at the boutique, David Shephard and Edward Ford, remain at the firm, and will be in charge of international sales.