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30/01/2012

Only one in four Spanish funds had inflows last year

According to statistics from the Inverco association of asset management firms, 650 funds out of 2,655 funds on sale in Spain posted net subscriptions last year, Funds People reports. That corresponds to a ratio of 25%.Two guaranteed funds from InverCaixa, Foncaixa Estabilidad and Foncaixa Estabilidad Plus, led the rankings with net inflows of EUR2.444bn and EUR514m, respectively. Third place goes to a conservative fund from Santander, the Santander Select Prudente, with EUR437m.Of the top 20 funds by net inflows, 14 are guaranteed funds.Inverco has also announced that average assets in Spanish funds as of the end of December totalled EUR53m. Only eight funds have over EUR1bn in assets, compared with 13 in October 2010. The three largest are the Foncaixa Estabilidad, whose assets have increased 88% to EUR2.533trn, and the Santander Banif Inmobiliario, whose assets under management have fallen 4.6% to EUR2.4tbn (of which 93% are held by Santander), and the BBVA Ahhoro C/P, whose assets have fallen 18% to EUR1.798bn.
30/01/2012

Swisscanto eyes German institutionals

From 1 February, Andreas Rothmer will be joining the sales team at Swisscanto in Frankfurt, as a senior account manager. Rothmer will be particularly charged with recruiting and assisting institutional clients throughout Germany. He previously worked at Allianz Global Investors and Deka, also in distribution of funds to institutional clients.Rothmer will report to Ralf Branda, head of international distribution at Swisscanto.
30/01/2012

Chairman of board at Janus Capital Group retires

Steven L. Scheid, chairman of the board of directors at Janus Group, will be leaving the firm to retire in April. He had been in the position since 2004. He will be replaced by Glenn S. Schafer, former director and chairman of the audit board.
30/01/2012

Bank of Korea issued a QFII license

The Korean central bank has obtained a qualified foreign institutional investor (QFII) license from the Chinese authorities, Asian Investor reports. The Bank of Korea is hoping to invest in Chinese equities from the first half of this year, as soon as it is allocated a quota which may range from USD200m to USD300m. Currency reserved at the Bank of Korea total USD310bn.
30/01/2012

Profits contract at Legg Mason

For the third quarter of the fiscal year to 31 March 2012, from October to December 2011, Legg Mason has announced a net profit of USD28.3m, compared with USD56.7m for July-September and USD61.6m in the corresponding period of 2010.In the nine months to the end of December, net profits have totalled USD144.7m, compared with USD184.9m in April-December 2010.The asset management firm has confirmed that its total assets as of the end of December totalled USD627bn, compared with USD611.8bn as of the end of September, and USD671.8bn twelve months earlier.In October-December, Legg Mason had net outflows of USD7.1bn from fixed income funds, and USD4.9bn from equity funds, and net subscriptions of USD10.7bn to money market funds. As of 31 December, assets under management were 56% in fixed income, 25% in equity and 19% in money market funds, with 63% of assets coming from clients based in the United States.
30/01/2012

BNY Mellon automates processing of loans to hedge funds

Combining the expertise of BNY Mellon Alternative Investment Services (AIS) in alternative management and BNY Mellon Corporate Trust in bonds, BNY Mellon is now offering hedge funds an automated securities lending service. The administrative solution offers straight-through processing (STP), covering all operations from pre-market to post-market, using exclusive technologies. BNY AIS serves as administrator and custodian for USD450bn from hedge funds, funds of hedge funds and private equity funds, while BNY Mellon Corporate Trust provides credit services totalling USD11.8trn.
30/01/2012

South Carolina pension fund backs off hedge funds

Five years ago, the South Carolina public pension fund was not allowed to invest in hedge funds or other alternative products. Now, the Wall Street Journal reports, this type of investment represents nearly half of the fund’s USD26bn in assets (20% in hedge funds, 6 times more than the average pension fund allocation).The State Treasurer, Curtis Loftis, is planning to considerably reduce this percentage, not only due to the risks, but also due to the costs, as management commissions paid by the fund increased in the fiscal year ending on 30 June 2011 by 11%, to USD344m, while performance before fees was 18.6%, compared with a 21.4% average for major pension funds, according to Wilshire Trust Universe Comparison Service.
30/01/2012

Lone Star finally gets clear of KEB tangle in Seoul

Agefi reports that the South Korean regulator has granted its approval to an agreement between the Texas-based fund Lone Star and the claimant to acquire its majority stake in the capital of the Korea Exchange Bank (KEB), the local Hana Financial group. The bank’s 51% stake in the stock market firm will change hands for KRW3.9trn, equivalent to EUR2.7bn.
30/01/2012

Deutsche Bank preparing a fund to invest in distressed hedge fund assets

The Financial Times reports that Deutsche Bank is preparing a fund to snap up investors’ illiquid or damaged holdings in hedge funds that have failed to recover since the financial crisis..The bank claims that assets of this type may represent up to USD100bn for investors. But they also have good long-term potential, particularly for pension fund investors. The fund would be launched by Deutsche Bank with Rosebrook Capial, and would aim to raise at least USD500m, according to sources familiar with the project.
30/01/2012

IASB and FASB want to harmonise classification of financial instruments

The developer of international accounting standards IASB, and the US accounting auditor FASB on 27 January announced that they have reached an agreement to attempt to reduce disparities between their respective classification and measurement models for financial instruments.The talks will be part of the discussions underway on a proposed update of IFRS 9 standards for financial instruments, published in November 2009 and amended in October 2010.
30/01/2012

BlackRock appoints a head of sales

BlackRock has announced the appointment of Jeremy Roberts as head of retail sales for the United Kingdom. He replaces Mark Elliott, who becomes head of strategic retail clients for Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Roberts had previously been head of the sales team for London and the Channel Islands, Investment Week reports.
30/01/2012

Assogestioni plans to lower ratings criteria for money market funds

The Italian asset management association, Assogestioni, is studying the possibility of lowering the minimal rating required for sovereign debt held by money market funds. The limit would be lowered to investment grade.The Italian association made the announcement in a statement. The decision would prevent managers from being required to divest the funds due to recent and future downgrades of the credit ratings of some governments on the part of ratings agencies.Assogestioni points out that by its rules, money market funds may hold bonds with a rating of at least A2 (Moody’s) or A (S&P).
30/01/2012

Raiffeisen takes over nearly all of Wegelin bank

Despite its repeated denials, Wegelin has ultimately decided to take drastic action. Growing threats to the situation at Wegelin & Co. private bankers in the United States have led management into a radical decision, to transfer the majority of clients and employees to the private bank Notenstein Private Bank Ltd., which Raiffeisen will acquire in its entirety. The transfer will bring lasting reinforcement to the position of Raiffeisen on the Swiss wealth management market. The sale price has not been disclosed.On 27 January 2012, Wegelin bank thus transferred most of its clients and employees to the private bank Notenstein SA. The transfer allows the bank to withdraw from asset management activities which had previously been conducted internally at the bank, and to combine them with Wegelin Fund Management Ltd in a dedicated entity, 1741 Asset Management SA, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Notenstein Private Bank Ltd., the bank says in a statement. The Swiss financial market supervisory authority, Finma, has announced that it will authorise the operation.Wegelin & Co. private bankers will remain active to manage US client contracts to their conclusion, and to participate in talks with the US penal authorities. “As a fully liable party, we will clearly assume our responsibilities,” explains Konrad Hummler, partner and director at the bank. “We wanted to confront the legal debates which await us. But at the same time, we had a duty to offer our clients and employees as much security as possible. All personnel at the bank are unanimous in this position.”
30/01/2012

FSA and Finma would sue UBS

The Wall Street Journal reports that British (FSA) and Swiss (Finma) regulators are preparing to file legal actions against UBS for shortfalls which allowed a trader at the firm, Kweku Adoboli, to make unauthorised trades which led to USD2.3bn in losses.
30/01/2012

British government unveils financial reforms

The British government on 27 January published its Financial Services Bill. Under the new legislation, the FSA will cease to exist, while the Bank of England will inherit extended powers, and will become responsible for strengthening financial stability and supervising banks, Agefi reports. Three new organisations will be created: the Financial Policy Committee, whose role will be to contribute to the stability objectives of the Bank of England and to monitor systemic risks; the Prudential Regulation Authority, which will be the future authority to oversee the British banking system, replacing the FSA; and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which will concentrate on protecting consumers and markets.
30/01/2012

Australia's Ascalon in vests in Asian hedge funds

The Australian fund incubator Ascalon Capital Managers, a specialist in the alternative management sector, has invested in two Asian hedge funds, Asian Investor reports. Earlier this month, Ascalon bought a 30% stake in the Singapore-based firm Singapore Canning Park Capital, which manages a long/short equity fund. In December, Ascalon bought a 355 stake in Athos Capital in Hong Kong, which is planning to launch an event-driven strategy. In Australia, Ascalon has already invested in seven boutiques whose cumulative assets under management total USD4.5bn.
30/01/2012

La croissance américaine reste fragile

La progression de 2,8% du PIB américain au quatrième trimestre est surtout due à un effet stocks, ce qui rend les économistes prudents sur la reprise.

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