p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } In January, more than 30 hedge funds were created worldwide, according to Eurekahedge, confirming the dynamism of 2010. Assets under management in the sector totalled over USD1.67trn. In terms of performance, the Eurekahedge Hedge Fund index increased by only 0.01%.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Pimco has announced the appointment of four managing directors. Mike Amey becomes managing director of the London office, in charge of portfolios in pounds Sterling. Robert Mead was appointed as managing director fo the Sydney office, in addition to his roles as head of portfolio management for Australia and head of Asia-Pacific credit portfolio management. James Moore, for his part, has been promoted to managing director of the Newport Beach office, and director of the global liability driven investments team. Marc P. Seidner has been appointed as managing director at the same office, and portfolio manager.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The survey “Anticipating the future of the fund industry in the light of UCITS,” from the German consultancy EGC Eurogroup Consulting AG, announced on 9 February in Bad Homburg and Vienna, which covered 78 management firms which account for 46% of European AUM, and their service providers in ten European countries (Germany, Austria, Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, the United Kingdom, and Switzerland), has found that European managers are making only very limited use of the potential offered by the UCITS IV directive. Many of them are still maintaining a wait-and-see attitude.About 70% of respondents say that the profession is not adequately prepared, which presents an obstacle to exploiting the potential of the regulations, while many are waiting to see how their competitors react. In addition, 32% estimate that the legal consequences (for fund mergers in particular) or the impact of the UCITS IV regulations on their business model cannot be anticipated. 80% of respondants find that tax questions have not been adequately addressed, which has also resulted in delays in the application of the possibilities offered by the regulations.As a result, respondents consider that the objective of a nominal increase of 3% in returns for investors is not likely to be achieved, and that there will be no significant increase in cross-border distribution, while only 20% of respondents are planning to make use of this possibility.Eurogroup Consulting reports that service providers will be the big winners out of UCITS IV, particularly those which have European distribution networks.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Luxembourg management firm Berenberg Lux Invest, an affiliate of the Hamburg private bank Berenberg, has announced the recruitment of Doreen Mallon as director of distribution for third party relationship management. After contributing to the creation of Skandia Germany, Mallon became CEO of the German affiliate of GAM.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } According to initial estimates based on 73% of the sample, the Dow Jones Credit Suisse hedge fund index in January earned 0.55% returns, compared with 2.90% in December, and 10.95% for last year as a whole. Six out of ten sectors show positive results; the best strategy was convertibles arbitrage, with a gain of 2.22%. However, emerging markets funds lost an average of 1.70%.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The XTF segment of the Xetra electronic platform from Deutsche Börse now includes 775 funds. UBS ETF Plc has listed four new Irish-registered ETFs, which replicate the US equities indices MSCI USA and S&P 500.The funds include the institutional fund UBS ETFs plc MSCI USA TRN Index (USD) I-acc (IE00B3RJTD64), which charges 0.15%, and the retail fund UBS ETFs plc MSCI USA TRN Index (USD) A-acc, with a management commission of 0.32%UBS ETF has also launched the institutional fund UBS ETFs plc S&P 500 Index (USD) I-acc, with a management commission of 0.05%, and the UBS ETFs plc S&P 500 Index (USD) A-acc, with fees of 0.22%.The funds are denominated in US dollars, a first for the XTF segment.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } BaFin has issued a sales license for Germany to the Tocqueville Gold fund (FR0010653501), which invests in equities in gold mining companies, and which has been managed from New York by John Hathaway since 2008, Das Investment reports. As of the end of January, the fund had assets of EUR82.79m.

The Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating whether Wall Street traders are using ETFs as a means of hiding insider trading, according to the Financial Times. For instance, a trader could learn information about a company, buy an ETF including the company’s stock, and short sell the other shares in the ETF.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Pioneer Fund, the third-oldest fund in the United States, has set a new record, Cinco Días reports. From its launch on 13 February 1928 until 31 December 2010, the actively-managed product specialised in large caps has earned returns of 1,073,300%, an unrivalled result according to Morningstar and Lipper. Annualised returns come out to 11.89%. As of 31 December, the fund, which has had four managers since its inception, had assets of USD7bn. Over the past ten years, annual performance was limited to 1.88%.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Union Financière de France (UFF) has recently halted sales of its high yield fund maturing in 2018, which promises minimal returns of 7%, at EUR120m. Meanwhile, the bank, which sells 60 FCPs from 20 open architecture providers (“we work with everybody, but not with just anybody,” says Nicolas Schimel, CEO), a few weeks ago started to offer the UFF REFflex fund, managed by Edmond de Rothschild Investment Managers (EDRIM), for sale.This is an “anti-crisis investment,” a diversified fund “whose goal is to seek to earn returns particularly in periods of crisis, when traditional asset classes (equities and bonds) tend to suffer,” UFF announced at a presentation of its 2010 results on 9 February (see Newsmanagers of 9 February).REFflex is an asset allocation fund, whose management is based on “dymamic, flexible and systematic” allocation in safe-heaven assets. To this end, EDRIM and UFF chose seven refuge asset classes: real estate (trackers), gold (funds), long-term Euro zone interest rates (buying and/or selling of Bund futures), European inflation-linked government bonds (trackers), and dollar and euro money markets.Based on these, EDRIM has constructed a quantitative and systematic model to select the best assets at the best times, with monthly revision. Each month, the portfolio will be invested equally (50/50) in the two refuge asset classes which earned the best returns the previous month, to provide time to ensure that there is genuine momentum.CharacteristicsName: UFF REFflexISIN: FR0010962621Management fees:C shares: 2.25%V shares (minimal subscription of EUR300,000): 1.75%Performance commission: 20% of performance exceeding annual returns of 7.5%

H2O Asset Management, a London-based entrepreneurial venture created by Bruno Crastes, CEO, and Vincent Chailley, CIO, is launching a range of “global macro” UCIT funds: H2O Patrimoine, H2O Multibonds, H2O Adagio, H2O Moderato. The range provides institutional, corporate and private investors with access to global macro type strategies within UCIT funds. H2O Patrimoine is a flexible diversified management, with a three-year goal of maximizing performance beyond its reference indicator while promoting wealth growth. H2O Multibonds is a multi-currency global bond management with a three-year goal of outperforming the JPM Government Bond Index Broad by 2% per year (Part I). Finally, H2O Adagio and H2O Moderato rely on a non-benchmarked management with an annualized performance goal over 1 year and 2 years: capitalized Eonia rate +1% per year and capitalized Eonia + 2% per year (parts I), while maintaining the lowest possible correlation with markets.With a team of thirteen professionals, including six asset managers and one analyst, H2O Asset Management has formed a partnership with Natixis Asset Management and leverages the support of its sales teams in France and of its support functions, such as middle office, IS, reporting, risks, etc. For international distribution, it relies on the teams of Natixis Global Associates. H2O Asset Management manages today close to EUR522 million of assets (02/02/2011). It is expecting another EUR500m.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Tikehau Investment Management, a management firm specialised in credit markets, announced on Wednesday, 9 February, that it has launched Tikehau Subordonnées Financières (TSF), a fund dedicated to investment in subordinated bank debt and insurance from top Euopean insurance issuers. With an average minimal rating of BB+, the fund aims to deliver gross annual returns of 7% to 8%. Characteristics ISIN: FR0010985549 (C shares) / FR0010985556 (D shares) Liquidity: daily Subscription amount: EUR1,000 Institutional shares/Retail shares: yes/yes

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Absolute Alpha Fund, a long/short multi-manager equities fund of funds, is the first mutual fund from the management firm 361° Capital. The objective is to generate returns with low volatility and a low correlation with US and international equities markets. It will offer subscribers access to highly outperforming funds, combined with an overlay of risk management techniques to protect the portfolio against falls on the equity markets. The Absolute Alpha Fund is available in A (AAFAX) shares for IFAs, with a front-end fee of 5.75%, and in institutional I (AAFIX) shares, for which the minimal subscription is set at USD1m.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The tennis legend Stefan Edberg, through the Swedish management firm Case in which he is a partner, has launched a fund which will invest in corporate bonds, Safe Play, the Swedish newspaper Dagens Industri (di.se) reports. With Kristianstad Sparbank, the player has invested SEK50m in the new fund, Affärsvärlden, another Swedish newspaper, reports.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } A majority of European investors predict a high level of inflation in 2011, according to the most recent quarterly survey by the ratings agency Fitch Ratings, undertaken between 7 and 31 January of managers with assets representing USD3.7trn in bond assets. A mere quarter ago, investors considered deflation the most likely scenario for 2011. The survey finds that 55% of managers surveyed predict a high risk of inflation in the next twelve months, compared with only 22% in fourth quarter 2010, and 12% in third quarter. However, the risk of deflation is mentioned by only 15% of the sample, compared with 36% in fourth quarter 2010. David Rilet, head of sovereign ratings at Fitch, says “the survey suggests that investors are increasingly sceptical that inflation is only reflecting the short-term impact of rising commodity and food prices,” and they estimate that central banks may have to normalise their monetary policies sooner than later.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } State Street has hired Giovanni Caricati as COO for its Global Services business in Italy. He will report to Riccardo Lamanna, managing director of State Street Global Services in Italy. Caricati previously was head of the net asset value calculation and fund administration service at Intesa Sanpaolo.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Swiss banking group Syz & Co has registered three new sub-funds of its Luxembourg Sicav Oyster in Italy. They are the Oyster LatAm Opportunities, which invests in South American equities, Oyster ForExtra Yield (EUR), which invests in high yield currencies, and Oyster Absolute Return (EUR), a balanced fund which aims for positive returns independently of market conditions. The three new strategies are now available to Italian investors. They will be available from Banca Albertini Syz & C. and other firms.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } José Luis Ezcurra, previously representative of the hedge fund Harcourt Investments, an affiliate of Vontobel, for the Iberian peninsula and Latin America, has been appointed as director of sales for Vontobel AM in the same regions, Funds People reports. Ezcurra will report to José M. Olabarrieta, CEO of Vontobel AM for Spain, and will continue to sell Harcourt products alongside Vontobel products in Spain, Portugal, Andora, Chile, Peru and Colombia.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } For fourth quarter 2010, the Credit Suisse Group has reported an adjusted net profit of CHF1bn, and a net inflow of CHF13.9bn. For the year as a whole, net profits totalled CHF5bn, and net inflows came to CHF69bn. The Private Banking unit in fourth quarter earned pre-tax profits of CHF834m, on net inflows of CHF9.6bn. For the year as a whole, pre-tax profits totalled CHF3.4bn, while net earnings came to CHF11.6bn, and net inflows came to CHF54.6bn. The Asset Management unit posted pre-tax profits in fourth quarter of CHF180m, and a net inflow of CHF4.5bn, of which CHF3.6bn went to alternative investments, largely in real estate, ETFs, and credit strategies. For the year as a whole, pre-tax profits totalled CHF503m, while net earnings came to CHF2.3bn, and net inflows to CHF20.6bn. Total assets under management by the group totalled CHF125.3bn as of the end of fourth quarter 2010, which is stable compared with the end of third quarter and up CHF24bn (2%) since the end of fourth quarter 2009.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Between 2007 and the present, assets in German wealth funds have increased from EUR2.5bn to EUR26bn. For this reason, the German association of independent wealth management firms (VuV) is calling for a definition of these products, so that they can be placed in the same specific category by ratings agencies and the BVI association of management firms. At present, they are considered diversified funds. A working group at VuV has established four criteria to determine whether or not a fund falls into the wealth fund category: the fund should be invested in several asset classes, must have a portfolio fund investment, must aim for risk-adjusted returns, and must be managed without conflicts of interest.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The alternative management group Man on 9 February announced the launch of Man IP 200 GLG Ltd, a product which for the first time offers investors access to a combination of managed futures strategies from AHL and discretionary strategies from GLG. The vehicle is the latest in the IP 220 range, launched in 1996. Man IP 220 GLG Ltd will invest both in the AHL Diversified Programme, which aims to make gains on price movements and market trends, and the GLG Global Opportunitey Portfolio, an international multi-strategy portfolio. Man says in a statement that the two vehicles have excellent long-term performance track records, and low correlation. AHL is a specialist in quantitative management, with assets under management of USD22.6bn as of 31 December 2010. Assets under management at GLG totalled USD25bn as of the end of December 2010.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The IFRS Foundation, the organisation which oversees the IASB, on 9 February announced the appointment of Dick Sluimers as trustee at the foundation, with a mandate beginning immediately and expiring on 31 December 2013. Sluimers is chief executive officer at the Dutch APG group, a provider of asset management services and fund administration for pension funds. The APG group manages about 30% of collective retirement programs in the Netherlands, with assets under management of about EUR280bn.

Selon les informations de l’Agefi 14 heures, Sébastien Barbe, récemment promu gérant de Rothschild & Cie, vient d’être nommé directeur général délégué de Schelcher Prince Gestion, société de gestion détenue à 34 % par Federal Finance. Christian Prince restera PDG de Schelcher Prince Gestion jusqu’en juillet, date à laquelle Federal Finance pourrait monter à 51 % du capital de la société de gestion.

Bruno Crastes et Vincent Chailley ont donné le coup d’envoi «officiel» de leur société de gestion, H2O AM, après le feu vert de la Financial Services Authority délivré fin décembre. Ainsi, mercredi 9 février, le CEO et le CIO de la société de gestion basée à Londres ont présenté dans le détail les caractéristiques de leur maison, de sa gestion et de sa gamme à l’occasion d’une conférence organisée avec l’actionnaire principal, Natixis AM. Avec un recul de six mois, Bruno Crastes a tout d’abord annoncé un encours de 522 millions d’euros auxquels s ‘ajoutent 500 autres millions «dans le pipeline», a-t-il indiqué. Et sur l’ensemble, les montants investis par Natixis AM au titre de l’amorçage représentent entre 50 et 75 millions d’euros. Concernant les actifs sous gestion, Bruno Crastes a d’ailleurs reconnu qu’avec un milliard d’euros, la croissance des actifs sous gestion était plus forte que prévu. Une situation qui ne plait pas outre mesure à l’ancien gérant d’Amundi qui a rappelé que les fonds VaR qu’il gérait chez son ancien employeur avait représenté au plus haut 42 milliards d’euros, «un montant beaucoup trop élevé», a t-il précisé. «La taille des encours est l’ennemi de l’alpha», a expliqué Bruno Crastes qui cherche d’abord à faire de la qualité. «Aussi, entre 10 et 15 milliards d’euros d’encours, nous nous poserons des questions», a-t-il ajouté.Interrogé à son tour, Vincent Chailley a enfoncé le clou en rappelant que les grosses structures sont souvent handicapées par un pouvoir de décision plus long et qu’il était important de ne pas «devenir trop gros». Néanmoins, le cadre de la société a reconnu qu’il était aussi important de considérer la capacité des produits dans laquelle on investit…Outre le développement de la société de gestion, Bruno Crastes et Vincent Chailley sont revenus sur leur gestion «global macro» basée non pas sur une allocation d’actifs mais sur une allocation de risque. «L’idée selon laquelle votre horizon détermine votre classe d’actifs est une idée ancienne», a martelé Bruno Crastes qui a mis en avant les atouts d’une gestion multiclasses d’actifs, nettement plus favorable à la production d’alpha et permettant un meilleur contrôle en matière de diversification. «Nos produits sont basés sur ces principes et tous seront globaux et de type Ucits, a ajouté Bruno Crastes, «la transparence et la liquidité étant assurées."Restait à présenter la gamme de fonds – tous de droit français - proposés par H2O AM tant auprès d’une clientèle d’institutionnels que d’entreprises et de particuliers – certains d’entre eux étant éligibles à l’assurance vie. En l’occurrence, H2O AM dispose de quatre produits sur lesquels les 522 millions d’euros sont répartis uniformément. Avec un horizon de placement d’un an, la société propose H20 AM Adagio qui est présenté comme un fonds de pur alpha et peu corrélé aux actifs risqués avec, notamment, une volatilité proche de 1,25 %. Avec un horizon un peu plus lointain (2 ans), et une volatilité cible plus élevée (2,5 %), les investisseurs peuvent souscrire H2O Moderato. Dans les deux cas, la gestion n’est pas benchmarkée et se fixe un objectif de performance annualisée représentant Eonia capitalisé + 1% l’an pour le premier fonds et Eonia capitalisé + 2% l’an (part I) pour le deuxième. Avec une gestion de type performance absolue, incluant à la fois une recherche d’alpha et du directionnel (bêta), la société de gestion propose également H2O AM Patrimoine. Le fonds suit une gestion diversifiée flexible avec, sur 3 ans, un objectif de maximiser la performance au‐delà de son indicateur de référence (30 % MSCI World All Countries DNR en euros + 70 % JP Morgan Government Bond index Broad exprimé en euros). Enfin, le quatrième produit, H2O Multibonds, mène une gestion obligataire internationale multi‐devises avec, sur 3 ans, un objectif de surperformance par rapport à l’indicateur de référence JPM Government Bond Index Broad de 200 points de base par an (part I).A noter que la constitution de la gamme ne devrait pas s’arrêter là puisque la société de gestion réfléchit actuellement à l'élaboration de nouveaux fonds, l’un proche dans sa structure à H2O AM Multibonds mais reposant sur des actions, et l’autre – contracyclique par nature – ayant pour objectif la gestion de la volatilité «multiactifs». Enfin, concernant les caractéristiques de chaque produit, Bruno Crastes a rappelé que les principes de transparence de sa maison s’appliquent aux caractéristiques de ses fonds. Avec un «high watermark» sur les frais variables, l’absence de commissions de mouvement et un engagement sur la volatilité ex-post.

Le chiffre d’affaires consolidé des filiales opérationnelles de Viel & Cie a atteint 902,2 millions d’euros au 31 décembre 2010 contre 922,6 millions d’euros l’année précédente, soit une baisse de 2,2% à cours de change courants. A cours de change constants, le chiffre d’affaires consolidé affiche une baisse de 7,4%.Au quatrième trimestre 2010, le chiffre d’affaires consolidé des filiales du Groupe s'élève à 213,6 millions d’euros, contre 208,5 millions d’euros sur la même période de 2009 soit une hausse de 2,5% à cours de change courants.

Tikehau Investment Management, la société de gestion spécialisée sur le marché du crédit a annoncé, mercredi 9 février, le lancement de Tikehau Subordonnées Financières (TSF), un fonds dédié à l’investissement en dettes subordonnées bancaires et assurances d'émetteurs européens de premier plan. Avec un rating moyen minimum de BB+, le fonds a pour objectif de délivrer une performance annuelle brute de 7 à 8 %. Caractéristiques : Code ISIN : FR0010985549 (part C) / FR0010985556 (part D) Liquidité : quotidienne Montant à la souscription : 1 000 eurosParts institutionnels/Parts retail : oui/oui

Récemment, l’Union Financière de France (UFF) a stoppé à 120 millions d’euros la commercialisation de son fonds haut rendement à échéance 2018 qui promet un rendement minimum de 7 %. Parallèlement, la banque, qui commercialise une soixantaine de FCP d’une vingtaine d'émetteurs en architecture ouverte («nous travaillons avec tout le monde, mais pas avec n’importe qui», précise Nicolas Schimel, directeur général) a entamé depuis quelques semaines la distribution du fonds UFF REFflex géré par Edmond de Rothschild Investment Managers (Edrim).Il s’agit d’un «investissement anti-crise», d’un fonds diversifié «dont l’objectif est de chercher à dégager de la performance particulièrement en période de crise quand les classes d’actifs traditionnelles (actions et obligations) ont plutôt tendance à souffrir», a indiqué l’UFF lors de la présentation de ses résultats 2010 le 9 février (lire Newsmanagers du 9 février).Concrètement, le REFflex est un fonds d’allocation d’actifs dont la gestion se fonde sur une «allocation dynamique flexible et systématique» en valeurs refuges. Pour ce faire, Edrim et l’UFF ont retenu sept classes d’actifs refuge : l’immobilier (trackers), l’or (fonds), les taux long terme de la zone euro (achats et ventes de futures Bund), les obligations d’Etats européens indexées sur l’inflation (trackers), les monétaires dollar et euro.Sur ces bases, Edrim a construit un modèle quantitatif et systématique de sélection des meilleurs valeurs refuges aux meilleurs moments, avec une actualisation mensuelle. Chaque mois, le portefeuille sera investi en totalité à parité (50/50) dans les deux classes refuge qui se sont révélées les plus performantes le mois précédent, le temps de s’assurer que le momentum est bien présent.CaractéristiquesDénomination : UFF REFflexCode Isin : FR0010962621Frais de gestion :Part C : 2,25 %Part V (souscription minimale 300.000 euros) : 1,75 %Commission de performance : 20% de la surperformance au-delà de 7,5% de performance annuelle

Rothschild & Cie Gestion annonce avoir signé en janvier les Principes pour l’investissement responsable des Nations Unies (UN PRI). «En signant les Principes pour l’Investissement Responsable des Nations-Unies, nous confirmons notre volonté de prendre davantage en compte les questions environnementales, sociales et de gouvernance dans les processus d’analyse et de décision en matière d’investissement. Nous reconnaissons en effet qu’ils peuvent influencer la valeur à long terme des sociétés dans lesquelles nous investissons», commente Jean-Louis Laurens, associé gérant et président du directoire de Rothschild & Cie Gestion.

Patrimoine Consultant, un réseau de Conseillers en gestion de patrimoine indépendants (CGPI) a annoncé, mercredi 9 février, la signature d’un contrat cadre avec Harvest, éditeur de logiciels spécialisé dans la gestion patrimoniale. Il est question d'équiper l’ensemble les conseillers du réseau (environ 80 personnes) avec les logiciels O2S et BIG Expert d’Harvest. Selon un communiqué, les solutions proposées par Harvest pour Patrimoine Consultant comportent : une plateforme technologique adaptée des investissements en recherche et développement importants permettant de proposer des outils évolutifs et innovants des ressources humaines aux multiples compétences favorisant la mise en conformité en temps réel des solutions avec les différentes réglementations, notamment fiscales,  enfin, un cadre contractuel précis et transparent régissant les échanges de données avec les dépositaires pour l’activité O2S.

Keren Finance a annoncé, mercredi 9 février, l’arrivée de Bruno Bernstein au sein de son équipe de gestion. Il y occupera le poste de gérant Actions et aura en charge le suivi et la gestion des valeurs européennes. Auparavant, Bruno Bernstein a exercé ses fonctions chez CCF Securities puis HSBC.