Equinox Consulting in 2011 undertook a study in conjunction with the economic research department of the French financial management association (AFG) on the evolution of asset management in France (see attached). Overall, the document points to an intensification in competition, and projects that this trend will continue in the next few years, as increases in assets are not now expected to lead to the creation of significant new jobs.Respondents also predict a more rapid growth in institutional and private management than for mutual funds, and increased rationalisation of product ranges, although asset levels will continue to increase.In the section on the development of organisational models at asset management firms, the study finds that institutional clients, who are one of the major growth areas, appear to be increasingly difficult to win over, while management of institutional mandates and dedicated funds are becoming less profitable. Meanwhile, increased recruitment in sales, which allows for the creation of personalised product ranges (which may potentially consume human resources, in a time when headcounts on the other hand are not supposed to increase), would be one of the elements that would make firms stand out in the asset management market.

Qatar has increased its stake in the capital of Lagardère to 12.83%, and now holds over 10% of voting rights in the media group, a statement released by the French financial regulator, the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF), reveals. Qatar Holding, one of the investment arms of the sovereign fund Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), has also reaffirmed that it is planning to request a seat on the supervisory board, and to “discuss with any interested actors, if there are such, potential strategic partnerships to create long-term value for shareholders, as there are currently no specific projects of this kind.” The Qatari fund has announced that it holds 12.83% of capital in Lagardère and 10.05% of voting rights. It adds that it reserves the right to increase its stake in the firm further, but says that it doesn’t want to acquire a controlling stake.

On 16 March, the CNMV issued registrations for five more ETF funds from Lyxor Asset Management, in addition to the Axa Euro Valeurs Responsables.Since the beginning of the month, the ETF management firm will have listed 12 products in Spain. The five funds, which replicate sector indices of the S&P 500 in capped versions, and charge fees of 0.20%, are as follows: Lyxor ETF S&P 500 Capped Consumer Discretionary Sector, Consumer Staples Sector, Energy Sector, Financials Sector and Health Care Sector.

Rationalisation of the fund catalogues by Spanish asset management firms is intensifying, judging by the number of CNMV notifications, Funds People reports. Last week, the firm which undertook the most fund mergers was Bankia Fondos, while Ahorro Corporación has undertaken a super-merger of 11 products into a single fund, the Ahorro Corporación Renta Fija Euro. Amundi Iberia has merged two ING Direct funds (Naranja Mixto Europeo et Naranja Moderado). Bankinter Gestión de Activo has also merges two funds, while Gescooperativo has merged one fund and one Sicav. Currently, there are 2,473 funds from 98 asset management firms belonging to the Inverco association.

Crédit Mutuel ARKEA on 19 March announced that it is investing in the majority-owning fund “France Transmission I,” created by the asset management firm TCR Capital. The subscription to the fund, dedicated to small caps and aiming for assets of EUR50m to EUR60m, will allow Crédit Mutuel Arkéa to enrich its resources in private equity, so as to offer a complete range of owners’ equity assistance solutions. Crédit Mutuel Arkéa, which has hitherto been positioned solely as a minority shareholder in SMEs and mid-sized businesses, now has a resource for the acquisition of SMEs by a majority investor. The “France Transmission I” fund, managed by TCR Cpaital, in which Crédit Mutuel Arkéa is a major investor, aims to acquire majority stakes of up to EUR6m, in regional businesses in the home territories of Crédit Mutuel Arkéa and also nationwide.

The Irish-registered iShares Barclays Euro Corporate Bond ex-Financials and iShares Barclays Euro Corporate Bond ex-Financials 1-5 Etf funds, launched on 25 September 2009 on the London Stock Exchange, with assets of about EUR1.26bn and EUR322.3m, respectively, are now available on the French market.Both products are ex-financials corporate bond funds, which use physical replication of indices, covering about 700 and 400 shares, respectively.In 2011, the two ETF funds had net inflows of over EUR700m in Europe, in addition to which EUR400m have come in since the beginning of the year (as of 21 February 2012), says David Benmussa, director of iShares in France.

About one year after selling off the Marriott hotel on the Champs-Elysées in Paris, the German firm Union Investment Real Estate has acquired the four-star Meliá Hotels International hotel under construction at La Défense (369 rooms, 24,000 square metres) near Paris. The property is slated for completion in third quarter 2014. The sale price has not been disclosed. The vendor is Vinci Immobilier.The property will be added to the portfolio of the open-ended real estate fund UniImmo: Deutschland, which currently owns 10 hotels of seven different chains, with a total value of EUR900m.

Dominique Ceolin, chairman of the board of directors, has announced at a presentation of 2011 results for ABC Arbitrage (see Newsmanagers of 19 March) that two new products are under study for this year, one investing in futures, and the other in fixed income.As of 1 March, assets under management for third parties totalled EUR259m (5 funds available to qualified investors and one mandate), out of a total of EUR401m, compared with EUR194m out of EUR336m as of the end of 2011.ABC Arbitrage has posted net inflows of EUR165m in 2011, largely in second half. Management for third parties has generated revenues of EUR3.6m in 2011, triple the total in 2010, and the firm has achieved its objective of creating EUR1m in gross revenue on each inflow of EUR25m.For 2012, the objective is to reach EUR400m in external assets.

According to a press release on 16 March, Lehman Brothers Holdings has sold its preferential stake in Neuberger Berman for USD850m, Mutual fund Wire reports. This sum will be distributed to unsecured creditors when Lehman makes its first payments on 17 April.

SPGP has recruited Cedric Chaboud and Jeremy Boublil, who had previously been in charge of IPO strategy at Lazard Frères Gestion. The two managers, who had been in charge of an international Sicav dedicated to investment in companies undertaking IPOs, will retain their fund at their new employer. The internationally-investing OPCVM fund, launched in February 2010, entitled Skylar Origin, had been reserved for qualified investors. Now that it has received a UCITS IV license from the regulator, it will be made available to institutional and retail investors (in private management or via IFA platforms). The first net asset value figures for the Sicav under management by SPGP will be calculated on Friday, 23 March.

The increasing success of funds trading on the volatility of US equities are the subject of concern on the part of investment advisers, the Financial Times reports. ETFs which track the Vix index from CBOE have had record subscriptions this year. But these products have regularly lost money, not only because the volatility of equities has fallen, but also because fund promoters periodically need to buy new Vix futures contracts, which are costly.

HSBC Global Asset Management has hired Paola Pallotta, formerly of Swiss & Global Asset Management, as a relationship manager for its Italian team. She will be in charge of developing the whosesale client segment, with a focus on emerging markets. She will work with Roberto Citarella, deputy managing director, and Alessandra Primavera, relationship manager. HSBC GAM has been present in Italy for 11 years, and has an office of six people. Assets for the Italian activity totalled USD4.1bn as of the end of 2011.

Despite toughening regulations, including the compartmentalisation of retail banking by the Vickers commission, increased taxation and an economy in crisis, the British capital has once again won the top place in the rankings of international financial centres (GFCI) by Z/Yen Group, Les Echos reports. The City will soon benefit from a tax break, and its status as a designated offshore market for the Chinese yuan. New York and Hong Kong continue to trail close behind the City, while Paris has risen 2 places to 22nd place.

Financial and insurance activities have fallen as a proportion of the economy in Geneva. The decline amounts to -0.4% for the year 2011 as a whole, according to estimates from the cantonal statistical office (Ocstat), Agefi Switzerland reports. The proprotion of the financial sector to the canton’s GDP has fallen to slightly under 20%, down from 25% in 2007. “The banking sector has been suffering from the consequences of a strong franc, debt problems, market volatility, and in wealth management, perhaps concerns related to banking confidentiality,” says Didier Benetti of Ocstat.

A team of former electronic traders from RBC Capital is planning to launch an alternative trading platform which will aim to reduce the impact of high-frequency trading on large trades, HFT Review reports. The initiative comes at a time when a growing number of institutional investors are seeking to protect themselves against high-frequency trading. The new platform, supported by RBC and major buy-side institutions, may take the form of a dark pool.

A study by Equinox Consulting of asset management in France (see article in today’s Newsmanagers) is accompanied by a comparison of the German and French markets. The survey finds that German asset managers are more optimistic than their French counterparts about expected growth in assets.The survey also finds that German professionals, more than French ones, prefer “custom” distribution of funds, due to the large market for “Spezialfonds” in Germany.The study also finds that German asset managers are ahead of their French counterparts in outsourcing some functions.

The Danish Saxo Bank group on 19 March announced the launch in the United Kingdom of a wealth management platform. The new range may be offered in other countries in the near future. The platform includes tools from Morningstar, data on funds and ETF products, and a risk profile generator (“Ideator”).

Thomas Richter, CEO of the German BVI association of asset management firms, announced on 19 March that he does not understand why investment funds are named in the European Commission’s green paper proposing regulations of the shadow banking system. These instruments are adequately regulated, he claims, which is not the case for other financial instruments and institutions for which clear rules are overdue for a long time.The BVI manager reminds that the European Commission is seeking to regulate the activities of vehicles which operate to transform maturities, which use leverage, or which run the risk of compromising the stability of the financial system if there are massive withdrawals. This is not the case for money market funds or ETFs, which are mentioned in the green paper.ETF funds are subject to the same strict regulatory conditions as actively-managed funds, and most of these products are subject to the UCITS directive.In conclusion, Richter points out that investment funds did not provoke or aggravate the financial crisis.

The investment firm Pimco and the ETP provider Source on 19 March announced the launch of the Pimco Short-Term High Yield Corporate Bond Index Source ETF (STHY). The fund is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and aims to reproduce the performance of the BofA Merrill Lynch 0-5 Year US High Yield Constrained index. STHY is licensed for sale in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Austria, France, Finland, Germany, Italy (only to institutional investors), the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden.STHY is the first ETF available in Europe to offer investors physical access to the short-term high yield bond sector. Exposure to the high yield sector is often used as an alternative to equity markets. Returns on the short-term segment of the high yield market historically are equivalent to those of the equity markets, but offer two timss lower volatility.The index selected for the ETF includes a wide range of issuers and bonds (821 securities as of 29 February 2012), which allows Pimco to rely on its experience and expertise in the optimisation of portfolios and high yield investment internationally. The Pimco optimisation process aims to minimise tracking error compared with the index, reduce trading costs, and avoid exposure to bonds considered illiquid, and issuers whose long-term viability is uncertain, while concentrating on the objective of replicating the index. These issuers generally represent a small proportion of the high yield universe.The Pimco Short-Term High Yield Corporate Bond Index Source ETF is the sixth fund launched in the physically invested Pimco Source ETF range, which includes the MINT strategies, which are the first actively-managed ETFs in Europe, and the first bond ETFs which weight the various countries according to the GNP so as to provide an optimised reproduction of local currency and European currency emerging market government bond indices.

Only 40% of equity funds in Europe out-perform their benchmarks on average over a year, three years and ten years over the past 20 years, a new Lipper study finds. This means that 60% of funds underperform, which is a new argument in favour of ETF funds. This proportion nonetheless varies in different periods and geographical regions. Looking at actively-managed equity funds’ performance relative to their benchmarks over 1, 3 and 10 years to the end of December 2011, the proportion of funds that out-performed varied from 26.7% in 2011, 40.0% over 3 years and 34.9% over the past 10 years. Meanwhile, funds which invest in equity funds in North America have fewer managers who have outperformed than other categories. In bonds, 45.4% of funds did better than the index over three years, but only 16.2% did so over 10 years. In 2011, 23.7% of funds beat their benchmarks.

The alternative asset management firm Absolute Invest AG and Alpine Select AG are currently in negotiations over a potential merger of the two businesses, Absolute Invest announced in a statement on 19 March. Absolute Invest AG has also announced that the chairman of its board, Thomas Amstutz, will stand for election to the board of directors for a two year term at the general shareholders’ meeting of Alpine Select.

A l’occasion d’un atelier sur les ETF lors du Forum GI, Sylviane Masson, directeur de la multigestion chez AG2R-LA MONDIALE: Lorsque nous sélectionnons des trackers, nous regardons tout d’abord le mode de réplication, avec une préférence accrue pour les ETF physiques (car on a l’impression de détenir les titres et parce que l’on traite à la NAV) ensuite, la structure des frais et enfin la tracking error. Nous avons des doutes sur la liquidité de certains trackers qui ont pour sous jacent des indices ou classes d’actifs peu liquides. Tel est le cas par exemple des small caps sur certains marchés émergents. Nous ne sommes pas non plus convaincu de l’apport des ETF minimum variance, qui correspondent davantage à un concept marketing. Nous préférons détenir des fonds de gestion active utilisant l’approche min Var, ce qui est plus bénéfique en termes de décorrélation. Sur la gestion assurantielle de la Mondiale, nous gérons en direct 80% sur les obligations, 10% sur les actions et 10% d’immobilier. Nous n’effectuons pas d’opérations indraday sur les indices. Nous n’utilisons pas les trackers sur les gestions satellites comme le high yield ou les marchés émergents. Nous privilégions une nouvelle fois les gestions actives. Sur les gestions longues, en revanche, nous pouvons avoir recours aux ETF. Dans ce cas, il s’agit de mettre en place de la multigestion tactique au moyen d’une gestion coussin associant une garantie de capital à la sélection de trackers en intraday dans la limite de budgets de risque pré-définis. Les portefeuilles sont construits avec un c??ur indiciel et des ETF comme satellites au lieu des fonds. D’un point de vue économique, sur les gestions longues, l’apport des trackers est limité car il est toujours possible de mettre en place des mandats de gestion indicielle qui ne coûtent souvent pas plus de 2-3 bps.

Le Crédit Mutuel ARKEA investit dans le fonds majoritaire « France Transmission I » créé par la société de gestion TCR Capital. La souscription à ce fonds - dédié au small caps visant une enveloppe de 50 à 60 millions d’euros - permet au Crédit Mutuel ARKEA d’enrichir son dispositif de capital investissement et de proposer désormais une gamme complète de solutions d’accompagnement en fonds propres. Positionné jusque-là uniquement en qualité d’actionnaire minoritaire de PME et ETI, par le biais de ses véhicules ARKEA Capital Investissement - tickets minoritaires jusqu'à 10 millions d’euros - et plus récemment encore, ARKEA Capital Partenaire, le Crédit Mutuel ARKEA dispose dorénavant d’un outil de reprise de PME par un investisseur majoritaire. Le fonds « France Transmission I », géré par TCR Capital, dont le Crédit Mutuel ARKEA est un investisseur significatif, a vocation à prendre des tickets majoritaires jusqu'à 6 millions d’euros, auprès d’entreprises régionales implantées sur les territoires de référence du Crédit Mutuel ARKEA et également au niveau national. Quelques mois après le lancement de sa filiale ARKEA Capital Partenaire, dédiée à l’accompagnement en fonds propres et à long terme des grandes entreprises régionales de ses territoires d’implantation par des tickets supérieurs à 10 millions d’euros, le Crédit Mutuel ARKEA, réaffirme son rôle de financeur de l'économie régionale, au service du développement de ses territoires. Jean-Pierre Denis, Président du Crédit Mutuel ARKEA, commente: « L’investissement que nous réalisons dans « France Transmission I », complète notre dispositif de capital investissement grâce à une présence, désormais, sur le segment du majoritaire. Il illustre très concrètement notre volonté d’accompagner des entreprises à potentiel, dans le droit fil de notre positionnement de banque territoriale.» Gérard Bayol, Directeur général délégué du pôle entreprises et institutionnels du Crédit Mutuel ARKEA ajoute : « TCR Capital est un acteur reconnu et expérimenté des opérations de transmission majoritaire sur les PME françaises, nous sommes très heureux de cet investissement qui nous permet d’apporter des solutions haut de bilan de type majoritaire aux besoins en fonds propres de nos clients et prospects. »

L’opérateur boursier a annoncé qu’il allait porter plainte contre la Commission européenne concernant la décision de cette dernière de bloquer le projet de fusion entre l’opérateur de la Bourse de Francfort et NYSE Euronext. L’action sera portée devant la Cour européenne au Luxembourg.

Reuters croit savoir de source gouvernementale que New Delhi devrait, dans le sillage de Pékin, demander à ses compagnies aériennes de refuser de participer au programme de l’Union européenne visant à taxer les émissions de carbone dans le transport aérien. Depuis le 1er janvier, toutes les compagnies desservant des aéroports de l’Union sont soumises à un système d'échange des quotas d'émission de gaz à effet de serre (ETS).

Le financier américain, qui compte racheter le raffineur de pétrole brut CVR Energy pour le revendre, a reconnu que cette deuxième phase risque de poser problème. Carl Icahn a prolongé vendredi de 10 jours son offre de 30 dollars par action sur CVR Energy.

Le président de la banque privée suisse Julius Baer a décidé de ne pas se représenter au conseil d’administration. Il restera dans le groupe en tant que président honoraire et prendra la tête d’une commission spéciale chargée de superviser la coopération avec les autorités américaines sur le dossier fiscal. La candidature de Daniel Sauter au poste de président non exécutif sera proposée lors de l’assemblée des actionnaires du 11 avril.

La chambre de compensation a commencé hier à traiter les changes via son service ForexClear, soutenu par 14 participants du marché. Le système fournit de la compensation pour les non-deliverable forwards (NDF), des contrats de gré à gré permettant de couvrir le risque de change dans des devises ne disposant pas de marché à terme.

Fortelus Capital Management, qui détient 6% d’une facilité de crédit de 1,1 milliard de dollars arrivant à maturité le 28 mars, a fait pression sur la société d’investissement du Bahreïn pour être remboursé en totalité. Mais ce dernier a décidé de se mettre sous la protection du chapitre 11 de la loi américaine sur les faillites.

Bloomberg croit savoir que CVC Capital Partners a mandaté Goldman Sachs pour étudier une éventuelle introduction en Bourse partielle du circuit de sport automobile. Ce dernier pourrait à cette occasion être valorisé à plus de 10 milliards de dollars, et Singapour semble être une destination de cotation privilégiée.