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01/03/2012

QFS offers a UCITS-compliant version of its macro currency strategy

The platform from Merrill Lynch has listed a UCITS-compliant version of the Currency Program from the US asset management firm QFS Asset and Risk Management. The product is the QFS Currency UCITS Fund, which invests with a quantitative process in bonds and currencies on the basis of fundamental data, with the objective of profiting from inefficiencies in conjunctural cycles.CharacteristicsName: QFS Currency UCIFS FundISIN code: LU0690450225Management commission: 2%Performance commission: 20% with high watermarkMinimal subscription: EUR1m
01/03/2012

EU addresses capital requirements for systemic banks

The Danish EU presidency has proposed a compromise which would allow national regulators to set the level of additional tier 1 equity required for systemic banks, Les Echos reports. Under the proposals, which are a part of the recommendations of the Financial Stability Board and the Basel Committee, national supervisors would be allowed to increase the base owners’ equity ratio, which has been set at a minimum of 7% under the new Basel III regulations. This compromise, achieved at the initiative of the Danish presidency, may also include an easing of short-term liquidity requirements for banks.
01/03/2012

Martin Currie merges US funds

The British asset management firm Martin Currie has merged the North American Alpha fund (GBP28m in assets) and Martin Currie Global (GBP44m) into other funds, in order to modernise its fund range. The North American Alpha fund, a strategy which is not well-adapted to the current market environment, will be merged into the Martin Currie North American Fund, whose assets under management total GBP418m, while the Martin Currie Global fund has been merged with the Global Equity Income fund, which has GBP18m in assets, and offers significant potential for growth, Martin Currie says. Assets under management at Martin Currie totalled GBP5.5bn as of the end of 2011, and peaked at about GBP10bn.
01/03/2012

KanAm obliged to liquidate grundinvest real estate fund

On 29 February, KanAm Grund KAG announced that the open-ended real estate fund KanAm grundinvest (DE 0006791809) will be liquidated by 31 December 2016, and that shareholders will be reimbursed, as it is now apparent that redemptions, which have been frozen for nearly two years, will not be reopened as planned on 6 May 2012, due to a lack of sufficient liquidity to honour expected redemption demands.Since redemptions were suspended in May 2010, the Munich-based asset management firm has sold about 30% of its portfolio in order to rise liquidity, generating about EUR1bn.Shareholders will receive an initial payment in the next few weeks of EUR200m. Subsequent distributions will be made on a half-yearly basis, depending on revenues from sales of properties.Currently, the portfolio still includes 51 properties, with a market value of about EUR6.3bn. The fund has posted returns of 64% for the ten years to the end of January 2012.In September 2010, KanAm became the first German asset management firm to decide to liquidate an open-ended real estate fund, the KanAm US grundinvest. The fund will be liquidated by 31 March 2012.
01/03/2012

Germany's largest fund is an ETF

The iShares Dax has become the fund available in Germany with the largest asset volume, Financial Times Deutschland reports. The fund had inflows in 2011 of EUR8bn, at a time when all other funds on sale in the country were undergoing net outflows of nearly EUR25bn. Thanks to the most recent rally on the markets, the fund has reached assets of EUR12.3bn, dethroning the largest open-ended real estate fund, Dekafonds, which had EUR11.5bn in assets as of the end of 2011.
01/03/2012

Invesco Perpetual recruits a US manager

Simon Clinch will be joining Invesco Perpetual as a US equity fund manager next month. He will report to Simon Laing, IPE.com reports. He was previously at J Rothschild Capital Management. Invesco has also announced the recruitment of Rob Barrett as head of institutional sales, based in London. Barrett previously worked at HSBC Global Asset Management, JP Morgan and UBS.
01/03/2012

Neptune raises questions about plans to move Prudential

The founder of Neptune, Robin Geffen, has raised questions about plans to move the headquarters of Prudential from London to Hong Kong. According to rumours that Prudential is not denying, the head of Prudential, Tidjane Thiam, is planning to leave London in order to avoid the inconveniences of Solvency II regulations. Geffen claims in a column in the Scotsman newspaper that such a move could legitimately make investors ask questions about the solvency of the group, and particularly about the future of its asset management unit, M&G.“That’s one way for the group to avoid European solvency ratios. Investors would be right to be concerned,” Geffen claims. Neptune holds a stake of less than 3% in the British insurer.
01/03/2012

Local affiliates of multinationals in emerging markets outperform

The share price performance of locally-listed EM affiliates of multinationals is vastly better than that of both emerging and developed markets broadly as well as their own local markets, according to a study carried out by Yale University’s Martijn Cremers and commissioned by Aberdeen Asset Management. There are 92 such companies across the emerging world, including Unilever PLC, for example, that has listed affiliates in India, Indonesia and Pakistan in which it has stakes of 37%, 85% and 75% respectively. Over the thirteen years from June 1998 to June 2011, a period chosen for its balance between sample size and history length, the listed affiliates returned 2,229%. This compared with total returns of parents, local markets and parents’ markets of 407%, 1,157% and 147% respectively. This pattern of outperformance was consistent across each region too. Affiliates in LatAm, EMEA and Asia outperformed their local indices by 41%, 134% and 50% respectively. “The two main reasons for this outperformance are improved corporate governance and a stabilizing role of the parent companies. Both seem critical specifically in financial crises. These give affiliates a clear comparative advantage over their local competitors that should endure in the foreseeable future,” explains Martijn Cremers, associate professor of finance at Yale School of Management. These findings contradict the so-called perceived wisdom of those who have argued the most effective way for investors to obtain exposure to emerging markets is through developed market companies.
01/03/2012

Feri Trust targets German institutional clients

With the recruitment of Robert Kellermann, head of consultant relations at Pioneer Investments in Munich, Feri Trust is planning to create a new position for him as director of institutional clients for Germany. He will be in charge of cultivating relationships with existing clients and recruiting new clients.Jürgen Obermann, a board member at Feri Trust, points out that with the strategic reorientation of the Feri group, advisory activities have been separated from asset management, now a part of Feri Trust, which offers multi-asset class solutions as well as private equity, hedge funds, real estate and risk overlay management.With its parent company, MLP, the Feri group currently has over EUR20bn in assets under management or under advisory mandates.
01/03/2012

Insurers planning to increase alternative investments

The Solvency II regulations will have a decisive influence on asset allocations by insurers, and BlackRock has tasked the Economist Intelligence Unit with undertaking a survey of 223 European insurance firms. The results are counterintuitive: 32% of respondents are planning to incresae their allocation to hedge funds, and 32% are also planning to increase their exposure to private equity, despite heavier regulatory ratios. This contradiction is due to the fact that insurers need revenues to keep up with their liabilities, and alternative products are more liable to provide these steady revenues.33% of insurers are also planning to increase their investments in corporate bonds. In terms of government bonds, about one quarter of companies are planning to increase their exposure, while another quarter are planning to reduce it.
01/03/2012

AGI adds to fiduciary management team

From 1 March, Piet Molenaar, who had since January 2011 been CIO of the Stork pension fund, will be joining Allianz Global Investors (AGI), as head of fiduciary management for Benelux and Northern Europe. He will be in charge of developing complete solutions for pension and retirement funds, developing relationships with existing clients, and recruiting new clients. He will be based in Rotterdam, and will report to Andrew Hilka, head of pensions at AGI.Assets in fiduciary management at AGI total EUR13bn.
01/03/2012

Hedge fund population once more grew in 2011

As of the end of December, the number of hedge funds worldwide topped 9,800, with launches of new funds still outnumbering closures in 2011 for the second consecutive year, according to the Hedge Funds 2012 report from TheCity UK.As of the end of 2011, total assets in hedge funds came to USD1.902trn, 3% less than one year previously, as net subscriptions of USD70bn were more than offset by a negative performance effect of 4.6%.According to TheCity UK, New York continued to be the largest centre for hedge fund management, with 42% of the global total, compared with more than 50% a decade earlier. The market share in London, at 18%, was slightly lower than at the end of 2010, but doubled in the space of 10 years. In addition, London accounts for 85% of assets managed by hedge funds in Europe, due to its local expertise, the proximity of clients and markets, and the fact that the UK is also a leading centre for hedge fund services such as administration, prime brokerage and custody.
01/03/2012

Profits down at MLP

Although its operating profits rose 11% to EUR52.3m, the German financial services provider MLP has posted net profits for 2011 of EUR12.5m (-63%) due to exceptional elements (investment programmes and rationalisation).Earnings at the wealth management business unit (MLP and Feri) were down by EUR0.3m to EUR78.5m, due to turbulence on the financial markets which drove retail investors to stay on the benches. Total earnings at MLP rose 6% to EUR526.7m.The number of advisers as of the end of 2011 was 2,132, down from 2,273 one year earlier. The number of clients, meanwhile, rose to 794,500 from 774,500 twelve months previously.
01/03/2012

UBP acquires Nexar Capital Group

Union Bancaire Privée (UBP), a bank specialised in private banking, has unveiled plans to acquire Nexar Capital Group (Nexar), a French asset management firm dedicated to alternative management, founded by Arié Assayag (CEO), Eric Attias (CIO) and Bernard Kalfon (Head of Volatility Strategies). The transaction, whose terms have not been disclosed, and which is still subject to regulatory approval, will allow the UBP-Nexar ensemble to “benefit from an enlarged platform, global distribution capacities, and innovative alternative investment solutions,” a statement says.With offices in Geneva, New York, London, Paris, Jersey, Tokyo and Hong Kong, the combined alternative investment group will form a division of its own within the establishment, which will report directly to Guy de Picciotto, chairman of the executive board at the bank.UBP explains that the reason for the deal is that it is convinced of the determining role that funds of hedge funds will play in meeting the specific expectations of its clients, via portfolios that combine active management, risk control and interactive services for investors. The bank would like to be able to offer international investors asset management solutions and investment advising services.
01/03/2012

Julius Baer completes its equity buyback programme

On 28 February, Julius Baer Group had bought back 10.24 million of its own shares, at an average price of CHF34.39, which represents a total of about CHF352m. This concludes the equity buyback program launched on 23 May 2011.The board of directors will propose at the ordinary general shareholders’ meeting to be held on 11 April to cancel the repurchased shares via a capital reduction.
01/03/2012
Gestion d'actifs

Les Caisses d'Epargne et Banques Populaires devront investir au profit de BPCE

D’après l’Agefi, les 19 Banques Populaires et les 17 Caisses d’Epargne devront investir au total 2 milliards d’euros en titres super subordonnés (TSS) au profit de BPCE afin que cette dernière puisse se conformer aux exigences de l’ACP. Les TSS, considérés comme du tier one mais pas comme du core tier one, porteront une rémunération avantageuse, autour de 11%. Ils auraient la faculté d'être convertis en actions ajoute l’Agefi. L’organe central se tourne donc à son tour vers ses banques régionales. Celles-ci verront peut-être dans les TSS un investissement plus rentable que leurs actions BPCE, qui ne versent pas de dividende. Pire, de sources concordantes, la valeur de ces actions BPCE va être dépréciée dans les comptes à fin 2011. A l'échelle des 17 Caisses d’Epargne, l’ardoise cumulée des dépréciations approche 1,1 milliard, avec pour certaines d’entre elles un résultat net quasiment réduit à zéro.
Gestion d'actifs
01/03/2012

State Street lists three more SPDRs in Frankfurt

Since 29 February, three equity ETFs from State Street Global Advisors (SSgA) have been available for trading on the XTF segment of the Xetra electronic trading platform from Deutsche Börse. The new funds bring the total number of index-based funds listed on XTF to 939.CharacteristicsName: SPDR S&P Euro Dividend Aristocrats ETFISIN code: IE00B5M1WJ87Benchmark index: S&P Euro High Yield Dividend Aristocrats IndexTER: 0.30%Name: SPDR S&P UK Dividend Aristocrats ETFISIN code: IE00B6S2Z822Benchmark index: S&P UK High Yield Dividend Aristocrats IndexTER: 0.30%Name: SPDR FTSE UK All Share ETFISIN code: IE00B7452L46Benchmark index: FTSE All-Share IndexTER: 0.30%
01/03/2012

Taxation: Life insurers express concerns over François Hollande's proposals

Proposals by the French socialist party to include life insurance on the income tax scales has provoked questions from insurers, Les Echos reports. Insurers are worried that the move would drive French clients away from long-term savings. “One might worry that inflows might not keep up with costs in the next two to three months. Clients are already in a very cautious attitude at the moment, and they are preferring more precautionary types of savings,” says Bernard Le Bras, executive director of Suravenir (Crédit Mutuel Arkea).
01/03/2012

Application of Volcker rule likely to be delayed

Ben Bernanke, the chairman of the Federal Reserve, has told a Congressional committee that the Volcker rule, part of the larger Dodd-Frank reforms, will probably not come into force at the beginning of July as planned, as a market consultation which ran until the end of February has received about 17,000 comments which will need to be analysed, the Financial Times reports. The Dodd-Frank law gives regulators an option to delay the application of the bill for up to two years.
01/03/2012

Banking confidentiality estimated to account for 8% to 14% of the value of a bank

Between 8% and 14% of a Swiss bank’s value depends on banking confidentiality, Agefi Switzerland reports. These are the findings of a university study published in the March issue of Financial Markets and Portfolio Management, covering a limited sample of four establishments (UBS, Credit Suisse, Julius Baer and Vontobel). Another finding is that banking confidentiality is mostly not appreciated for taxation reasons, but rather in order to protect individual privacy. The authors, one bank director and two professors in Zurich, find that the value of a management bank may be measured in the absence of banking confidentiality, and the value of confidentiality may be added to this, weighted according to the likelihood that confidentiality will be preserved.
01/03/2012

Chinese government opens internal market to foreign hedge funds

The local Chinese press reports that the Chinese government has in principle authorised foreign hedge funds to raise capital within continental China. The funds will be required to be registered in Shanghai, but will be required to invest outside China, Z-Ben Advisors reports.Asset management firms involved in this activity will be required to apply for a license, and a quota from the Chinese State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE).
01/03/2012

Heavy institutional outflows at Henderson Global Investors

The British asset management firm Henderson Global Investors on 29 February announced that it has earned a net profit of GBP33.9m, compared with GBP77.4m in 2010. Pre-tax profits are nonetheless up 58% year on year, to GBP159.2m, largely due to the acquisition of Gartmore, which was completed on 4 April 2011 for a total of GBP365.4m, and which thus contributed to nine months of results for the fiscal year. Assets under management as of 31 December 2011 were up 4% to GBP64.3bn. The acquisition of Gartmore brought in assets under management of GBP15.7bn, which were nonetheless partially offset by divestments. The year ended with net outflows, largely in second half, of GBP6.4bn, of which GBP4.7bn were to institutional clients. The negative impact of markets and forex totalled GBP2.7bn.
01/03/2012

EFG International plans to sell private banking activities in France

The Swiss wealth management specialist EFG International on 29 February announced at a presentation of its annual results that it is in negotiations with potential acquirers for all or part of its private banking activities in France, as part of an initiative to refocus its private banking activities. In France, the private management activities of EFG International which will be affected belong to EFG Gestion Privée, the former wealtth management arm of the asset management boutique Sycomore, acquired in 2008. EFG International is also present in France with EFG Asset Management, which has recently announced that it is releasing four sub-funds of its Irish Sicav New Capital in France (see Newsmanagers of 24 January 2012). EFG International is also active in France in the structured products segment. The group has reported a net loss for the 2011 fiscal year of CHF294.1m, due to restructuring costs (CHF46m) and amortisations (CHF223.8m), compared with losses of CHF721.8m in 2010. Assets under management that generate revenues as of the end of 2011 totalled CHF78.4bn, compared with CHF84.8bn as of the end of 2010. Net inflows to ongoing activities totalled CHF0.6bn. Taking into account discontinued activities, EFG has reported capital outflows totalling CHF1.2bn.
01/03/2012

La BoE pourrait se passer d’un assouplissement supplémentaire

C’est l’avis de Martin Weale, membre du comité de politique monétaire de la Banque d’Angleterre, qui estime que l’inflation britannique pourrait se révéler plus persistante que prévu, rendant improbable la nécessité d’un stimulus supplémentaire à la fin du programme actuel de rachats d’obligations.
01/03/2012

Nyse Liffe allonge l'horizon de cotation de certains contrats

Le marché des contrats à terme et d’options cotés à Paris informe ses membres de l’allongement des horizons de cotation pour les contrats à terme et d’options sur matières premières à compter du 13 mars : de 8 à 12 échéances disponibles à la négociation sur le blé meunier et l’orge de brasserie, de 6 à 10 échéances sur le colza et de 7 à 10 échéances sur le maïs.A la fin de la journée de bourse du 12 Mars, l’échéance Août 2012 sera par ailleurs la dernière échéance août listée pour les contrats sur le blé meunier et sur l’orge de brasserie.
01/03/2012

Natixis Capital Partners se renomme Captiva

L’équipe de direction de Natixis Capital Partners vient de boucler sous la forme d’un management buy-out la reprise de la société, qui opère désormais sous le nom de Captiva Capital Management. La société d’investissement immobilier, qui compte des bureaux à Paris, Milan, Londres, Luxembourg et Hambourg, s’attend à investir plus de 200 millions d’euros en 2012.
01/03/2012

La «TVA sociale» adoptée par le Parlement

Le Parlement français a adopté définitivement hier soir le projet de loi de finances rectificative pour 2012 qui prévoit notamment la création d’une «TVA sociale». Ce projet de loi prévoit notamment de supprimer, à compter du 1er octobre prochain, les cotisations patronales affectées à la protection sociale et de les compenser par une hausse de 1,6 point de la TVA, à 21,2%, et d’augmenter de deux points la CSG sur les revenus du capital.
01/03/2012

L'indice PMI Chicago à son plus haut depuis avril 2011

L’indice des directeurs d’achats de la région de Chicago a augmenté nettement plus que prévu en février, pour atteindre son plus haut niveau depuis avril 2011, a annoncé hier l’Institute for Supply Management-Chicago (ISM-Chicago). L’indice ressort à 64,0 après 60,2 en janvier, alors que les analystes interrogés par Reuters l’attendaient en hausse moins marquée, à 61,5. La composante de l’emploi a bondi à 64,2, contre 54,7 en janvier, atteignant son plus haut niveau depuis mai 1984.

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