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20/07/2009

Volkswagen va avaler Porsche

Selon Der Spiegel, le sort de Porsche sera officiellement scellé jeudi en conseil de surveillance, mais Ferdinand Piëch a d’ores et déjà remporté la bataille. Volkswagen prendra dans un premier temps 49,9 % de Porsche (qui détient lui-même 50,1 % de Volkswagen plus des options sur 25 % supplémentaires), puis la totalité du capital. Dans ce nouveau groupe, les familles Porsche et Piëch détiendront 50 %, la Basse-Saxe conservera 20 % tandis que le fonds souverain Qatar Investment Agency possèdera entre 14,9 % et 19,9 % des parts. Le président du directoire de Porsche, Wendelin Wiedeking, serait contraint à la démission mercredi.
20/07/2009

Les souscripteurs se plaignent des frais

Au 1er août, Allianz Global Investors introduit une commission de performance sur seulement 19 de ses fonds, la supprimant pour 16 autres. Chez DWS, ce prélèvement s’applique à un tiers de la gamme, tandis que Deka prévoit de l’introduire l’an prochain sur la totalité de ses fonds d’actions. Union Investment pratique pour sa part depuis décembre cette formule pour 15 de ses fonds, note la Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.En résumé, le secteur de la gestion d’actifs a d’abord anéanti 50 % ou plus de l’argent de ses clients et ,maintenant où on ne peut s’attendre en principe qu'à une hausse sur le moyen terme, il veut prélever son tribut sur des gains mécaniques. Tout se passe comme si banques et sociétés de gestion avaient perdu toute sensibilité, écrit un investisseur. Cette attitude est difficilement compréhensible, puisque les acteurs se trouvent confrontés non seulement aux conséquences de la crise mais à l'émergence de concurrents nettement moins chers, les ETF. Mais il est vrai qu’ils doivent aussi faire face à une hausse de leurs charges.
20/07/2009
Fonds

db x-trackers fait coter son S&P U.S. Carbon Efficient ETF

La Deutsche Börse a annoncé qu’un 461ème ETF a été admis vendredi à la négociation sur le segment XTF de sa plate-forme électronique Xetra. Il s’agit du S&P U.S. Carbon Efficient ETF, un produit luxembourgeois que db x-trackers fait coter sur le London Stock Exchange depuis quelques jours (lire nos dépêches des 15 et 17 juillet).
Fonds
20/07/2009
Fonds

Les fondations de Harvard et Yale freinent Nordwind

Un groupe d’investisseurs dont font partie les fondations des universités de Yale et d’Harvard a refusé de financer l’acquisition par le capital-investisseur munichois Nordwind Capital de Global Fertility AG, une start-up qui avait pour objectif d’acquérir des «cliniques de fertilité» aux Etats-Unis et en Allemagne, rapporte le Financial Times. Certains des investisseurs ont pris comme prétexte que Global Fertility voulait investir outre-Atlantique et ne pas se limiter à sa zone initiale (Allemagne, Autriche, Suisse). L’affaire montre que, dans le private equity, le balancier du pouvoir est en train de revenir du côté des investisseurs. Nordwind avait levé un fonds de 300 millions d’euros en 2004. Comme la période de 5 ans est passée, il doit rendre l’argent à ceux des investisseurs qui en avaient fourni.
Fonds
20/07/2009

Apollo marchande pour se renforcer chez Infineon

Le capital-investisseur américain Apollo négocie actuellement avec plusieurs actionnaires du fabricant allemand de semi-conducteurs Infineon, notamment les fonds d’investissement Dodge & Cox International Stock Fund (10,03 %), Merrill Lynch, Capital Group et Franklin Templeton pour qu’ils renoncent en sa faveur à suivre l’augmentation de capital qui commence ce lundi et doit être bouclée le 3 août (337 millions de titres à 2,15 euros l’unité, pour un cours actuel de 3,32 euros).Die Welt rapporte que, si Apollo parvient à les convaincre, il pourrait monter jusqu'à 29,9 % d’Infineon. Avec un minimum de 15 %, il aurait droit à deux mandats d’administrateur, dont celui de président du conseil de surveillance. On pense que, dans ce cas, Max-Dietrich Kley devra quitter la présidence du directoire au profit de Manfred Puffer, un ancien de la WestLB.Si l’augmentation de capital tourne court et qu’Apollo n’obtient pas au moins 15 %, Infineon devra verser au capital-investisseur un dédit de 21 millions d’euros.
20/07/2009

Golden Cate remporte Eddie Bauer aux enchères

Les enchères pour le distributeur Eddie Bauer Holdings ont été remportées vendredi aux petites heures du matin par le capital investisseur Golden Gate Capital, qui propose 286 millions de dollars en cash en plus de la reprise de plusieurs centaines de millions de dollars de dette, rapporte The Wall Street Journal. Il y avait au total huit candidats repreneurs. Golden Gate Capital a l’intention de conserver au moins 300 des 370 magasins Eddie Bauer.
20/07/2009
Fonds

Legg Mason lance un fonds obligataire

Selon Investment Week, Legg Mason lance un fonds obligataire, Global Blue Chip Bond, qui sera géré par son partenaire Western Asset Management. Le véhicule domicilié à Dublin investira dans des émissions obligataires bien notées en catégorie d’investissement et qui affichent des spreads de crédit historiquement élevés. L’exposition à la dette senior des secteur de l’assurance, de la banque et de immobilier est plafonnée à 10%. Le fonds vise un rendement annuel de 5% à 6%. L’indice de référence sera le Merrill Lynch US Treasuries 1-10 Year. Le fonds sera essentiellement investi dans les pays développés.
Fonds
20/07/2009
Fonds

Citi a des problèmes avec deux fonds de private equity

Selon le Wall Street Journal, Citigroup a des problèmes avec deux fonds de private equity qui étaient sous la responsabilité de Michael Froman, le patron des opérations de Citigroup Alternative Investments avant qu’il ne rejoigne en janvier l’administration Obama. Selon le journal, les clients du premier fonds, qui avait amassé 3,4 milliards de dollars pour investir dans des projets d’infrastructures, lui ont interdit de procéder à de nouveaux investissements après le départ du co-dirigeant et l'échec de plusieurs opérations, affirment des sources proches du dossier. Un second fonds, plus petit, et dédié aux projets développement durable, n’a pas attiré suffisamment de clients et a été fermé.
Fonds
20/07/2009

Nouveau CEO chez Fortress

Fortress Investment Group vient d’annoncer la nomination de Daniel H. Mudd, l’ancien président et CEO de Fannie Mae, en tant que CEO, à compter du 11 août 2009. Il conservera son siège au conseil d’administration de la société d’investissement. Par ailleurs, Peter L. Briger et Wesley R. Edens deviennent co-présidents du conseil d’administration de Fortress.
20/07/2009

Les salariés de BNP Paribas ne veulent pas partir

Selon La Tribune, dans la banque d’investissement de BNP Paribas, le plan de départs mis en place depuis la fin du mois de mai n’a pas le succès escompté. BNP Paribas souhaite supprimer 204 postes en France. Il y a eu moins de 5 départs, explique un responsable syndical. La majorité préfère un reclassement au départ.
20/07/2009

La banque d'investissement de BNP Paribas se réorganise

La banque d’investissement de BNP Paribas se réorganise avec l’intégration des équipes de Fortis dans ces métiers. Ainsi, selon La Tribune qui s’est procurée une note interne, les responsables régionaux auront «davantage d’autonomie en [leur] déléguant une partie du pouvoir de décision», indique la note. Cinq grandes régions seront définies : Europe, Amérique du Nord, Amérique du Sud, Asie et Golfe. La segmentation de la clientèle sera accélérée et la banque d’investissement développera davantage de coordination avec les autres métiers du groupe comme la banque de détail et la gestion d’actifs.
20/07/2009
Fonds

Tassement du chiffre d'affaires de CeGeReal

Pour le premier semestre 2009, le chiffre d’affaires (IFRS) de la SIIC CeGeReal a baissé à 34 millions d’euros contre 34,9 millions. Le résultat d’exploitation a diminué pour sa part à 25,22 millions contre 26,89 millions.L’actif net réévalué a été pénalisé par la baisse de valeur théorique du patrimoine, en ligne avec les tendances de marchés. Les valeurs d’expertise des immeubles fournies par CBRE sont passées de 938 millions d’euros au 31 décembre 2008 à 848 millions d’euros au 30 juin 2009 du fait de taux de rendement prudents en l’absence de transaction comparable.Par ailleurs, CeGeReal rappelle la volonté de Commerz Real de réduire sa participation en dessous du seuil de 60% d’ici à la fin de cette année afin de permettre à la société de se mettre en conformité avec les aménagements «SIIC 5".
Fonds
20/07/2009

Sustainable development generates alpha, according to a SAM study

In a study of about 400 companies worldwide, excluding Canada and emerging markets, the Swiss management firm SAM Sustainable Asset Management and the quantitative strategies department at Robeco (SAM’s parent company) have found that in the period from 2001-2008, investing in the firms most advanced in sustainable development generated average outperformance of 1.48 percentage points, with a positive information ratio of 0.47. Stephanie Feigt, CIO of SAM, says outperformance is the result of the analysis of “understudied” sustainable development factors, which have a positive impact on the value of companies in the long term. The creation of value results from a concentration on the part of these pioneers in sustainable development, as much as it does from the fact that they avoid investments in firms that lag behind. The outperformance of a long/short portfolio of this type would have been accentuated during the credit crisis in 2008. The study is available in English or German on request, from the email address com@sam-group.com.
20/07/2009

Growing numbers of 401(k) funds move toward index-based management

Currently, about 90% of the USD1.5trn in 401(k) retirement plans and other defined-contribution mutual funds are invested in actively managed products, although many studies have clearly proven that passively-managed funds tend to outperform their actively-managed rivals, the Wall Street Journal observes. This is largely due to the fact that actively-managed funds “share revenues,” which helps administrators of funds to offset their costs. But the situation is beginning to evolve, as the acquisition of Barclays Global Investors (BGI) by BlackRock shows. BGI is one of many management firms which have launched 401(k) programs which aim to facilitate the task of employers seeking to insert ETF products into these plans. Mid-sized and smaller employers have not had access to low-cost tracker funds for long, but they are also demanding passively-managed products, and the solution may be for them to follow the example set by the Hawaii Prosperity Plan, which counts several businesses as members, and which has moved over to ETF funds.
20/07/2009

New CEO at Fortress

Fortress Investment Group has announced the appointment of Daniel H. Mudd, former president and CEO of Fannie Mae, as its CEO, effective from 11 August 2009. He will retain his seat on the board of directors at the investment firm.Meanwhile, Peter L. Briger and Wesley R. Edens will become co-chairmen of the board of directors at Fortress.
20/07/2009

DWS releases a diversified bond fund

DWS has released the Diversified Fixed Income sub-fund of its Luxembourg Sicav DWS Invest for sale in Spain. Total assets under management in the product come to EUR34.56m; its objective is to outperform the Euribor 3 month by 1-2 percentage points, regardless of the market environment. The fund, launched on 1 July 2008 and managed by Mark Dowding, deploys the best ideas of DWS/DB Advisors specialists in the areas of fixed income, credit, and currencies, with an ex ante volatility level limited to 2%.
20/07/2009

Pension funds show negative performance on one and three years

The Inverco association of asset management firms on Friday announced that results for individual pension funds have improved considerably, as losses on one year as of the end of June came to only 1.58%, compared with 6.44% as of the end of December. However, results remain negative for the past three years (0.31%). Weighted annual performances for five and ten years come to 1.21% and 0.65%; for the past 15 years, they total 3.83%. Inverco estimates that assets as of the end of June totalled EUR48.78bn, in 1,135 individual retirement savings plans, and 8.37 million accounts. For its part, VDOS Stochastics, cited by Funds People, estimates that pension funds saw net outflows of EUR773m in first half, while market effects were positive for EUR437m. The decline in assets thus totalled EUR336m, to a total of EUR48.21bn as of the end of June.
20/07/2009

A new tax haven for high net worth private investors: unit-linked life insurance policies in Luxembourg

Spanish high net worth private investors have discovered the appeal of unit-linked life insurance policies in Luxembourg, whose primary inconvenience is their high cost (3%). But these assets are more discreet in relation to the Spanish tax authorities than the Sicav funds ordinarily chosen by ultra-high net worth clients, many of whom are directors of businesses, and they are sheltered from seizure by the tax authorities, Expansión reports. In addition, it is possible to invest in virtually any asset class, and there is no need to have at least 100 investors, as there is for a Sicav. Lastly, these assets are highly convenient for inheritance purposes. It is already estimated that EUR2-3bn are invested in Irish and Luxembourg-registered unit-linked policies of this type by high net worth Spanish investors. This remains modest compared with an estimated EUR26bn invested in Sicav funds.
20/07/2009

KKR unveils conditions for stock market IPO

The Financial Times reports that Kohlberg Kravis Roberts will Monday unveil the details of its plans for a public offering on the Amsterdam stock market, after the independent administrators of its publicly-traded fund in the Netherlands approved a merger with the American private equity group. Employees and shareholders at KKR will receive 70% of the merged entity, and will have the right to transfer the trading of shares to New York six months after the merger is concluded.
20/07/2009

Neuberger Berman launches a Greater China equities fund

The Irish umbrella fund Neuberger Berman Investment Funds Plc, which complies with the UCITS III directive, now includes a new sub-fund, the Greater China Equity Fund, which Neuberger Berman Group is planning to release for sale in Europe. The equities fund invests in equities in shares in companies that make more than 50% of their revenues from China. The portfolio will include companies of all sectors, but the management team is planning to place the emphasis on consumer sectors (food and beverages, agriculture, retail, pharmaceuticals, health, real estate, leisure) and infrastructure (mechanical, electrical equipment, alternative energies, coal, and electricity distribution companies). The fund is aimed at institutional investors and intermediaries in the United Kingdom, continental Europe and the Middle East. It is managed in Hong Kong by Yulin (Frank) Yao and Lihui Tang, with the assistance of a team of analysts based in Shanghai. The fund will aim for a tracking error of 3-5%, with a turnover rate of 100% to 150%. Management fees will total 1.50% for the institutional share class, and 1.20% for the “super-institutional” class, with minimum subscriptions of USD/GBP/EUR5m and USD/GBP/EUR25m, respectively.
20/07/2009

db x-trackers releases S&P U.S. Carbon Efficient ETF

Deutsche Börse has announced that the 461st ETF product was admitted to trading on Friday on the XTF segment of its Xetra electronic platform. It is the S&P U.S. Carbon Efficient ETF, a Luxembourg-registered product which db x-trackers has been offering on the London Stock Exchange for several days (see Newsmanagers of 15 and 17 July).
20/07/2009

Henderson adds to structured products team

To keep up with rising demand for structured products, Henderson Global Investors (HGI) has recruited three directors of loans, who will report to David Milward, head of loans. The new recruits are Elissa Johnson (ex Apollo Management International), Nicholas Ware-Frederiksson (ex Highland Capital Management Europe), and Stef Abelli (ex BayernLB). Dan Maynard (ex Morgan Stanley) joins the team as fixed income product specialist, while Jason Walker (ex Bank of Scotland Treasury) joined the firm on 6 July as an ABS portfolio manager.The structured product team (loans, CDO, ABS and Advisory) includes 19 people who report to Jim Irvine.
20/07/2009

Henderson profits down by half

Andrew Formica, CEO, has announced that as predicted, fragile confidence and weak investor demand have had a negative impact on revenues at Henderson Group. These negative elements were compensated for by cost reduction measures and the positive effect of the acquisition of New Star, but profits in first half will total GBP25-28m, including the contribution of New Star for one quarter, compared with GBP50.8m in January-June 2008.The CEO says that the integration of New Star is proceeding in a very positive manner and the contribution of this acquisition to the group’s profits will increase in second quarter. Henderson is pleased to have been able to retain the loyalty of the principal investment specialists and to have been able to retain 77% of assets under management. Meanwhile, Henderson has reduced its expenses on activities taken over from New Star to about 38% since 1 July 2009, while this level of reductions was planned by 1 January 2010.Lastly, the British asset management firm has announced that Toby Hiscock will be resigning from his position as CFO, effective from 1 September. He will be replaced by Shirley Garrood, COO.
20/07/2009

More than USD75m in losses for Bramdean

Bramdean Alternatives, the company led by Nicola Horlick, has lost more than USD75m on investments and currency movements, from its portfolio of GBP258m, in the twelve months to the end of March, the Financial Times reports, citing the financial statement. These losses include large write-downs related to the Madoff fraud.
20/07/2009

Schroders studying potential acquisitions in Europe

Le Figaro Economie reports that Massimo Tosato, vice president of Schroders, is on the lookout for potential acquisitions. “There are many opportunities for consolidation currently, due to global overcapacity in asset management. We are looking at some candidates in Europe, as this is a unique opportunity.” The director also says: “We are listed on the stock market in London, and we will not disclose our figures for first half until the end of the month, but I can already tell you that second quarter has been excellent for our company in terms of inflows.”
20/07/2009

Schroders regarde des dossiers en Europe

Selon le Figaro Economie, Massimo Tosato, vice-président de Schroders, est à l’affût d’acquisitions. «Il y a beaucoup d’opportunités de consolidation en ce moment en raison des surcapacités mondiales dans la gestion d’actifs. Nous regardons des dossiers en Europe car c’est une opportunité unique». Le dirigeant indique par ailleurs : «nous sommes cotés à Londres et nous ne communiquerons nos chiffres du premier semestre qu'à la fin du mois, mais je peux d’ores et déjà vous dire que le deuxième trimestre a été excellent pour notre société en termes de collecte».
20/07/2009

Smith Barney deal boosts asset management profits at Citi

The sale of Smith Barney to Morgan Stanley has generated net capital gains of USD6.7bn for Citi. Citi has also announced that earnings for its brokerage and asset management (BAM) division for second quarter totalled USD12.3bn, compared with USD2.5bn in the corresponding period of 2008, while net profits totalled USD6.8bn, compared with USD218m. As of 30 June, total assets came to USD56bn, which represents a decline of 14% from the end of December, which represents a desire on the part of Citi to reduce volumes in this activity. This amount includes about USD19bn managed at Nikko Cordial Securities, which is one of the activities up for sale. The sale of the Japanese affiliate was announced in May. Globally, Citi shows net profits in second quarter of USD4.3bn, or 49 cents per share.
20/07/2009

Apollo in talks to increase stake in Infineon

The US private equity investor Apollo is negotiating with several shareholders in the German semiconductor manufacturer Infineon, including the investment funds Dodge & Cox International Stock Fund (10.03%), Merrill Lynch, Capital Group and Franklin Templeton, to convince them not to participate in a capital increase which will begin this Monday, and which is set to conclude on 3 August (337 million shares at EUR2.15 each, compared with a current share price of EUR3.32). Die Welt reports that, if Apollo succeeds in convincing the firms, its stake in Infineon may increase to as much as 29.9%. With a minimum of 15%, it would have the right to control two seats in the firm’s management, including the chairman of the supervisory board. It is thought that in this case, Max-Dietrich Kley would be required to resign as chairman of the board, in favour of Manfred Puffer, formerly of WestLB. If the capital increase is concluded before the deadline and Apollo does not obtain a stake of 15% or more, Infineon will be required to pay the private equity investor a EUR21m retraction charge.
20/07/2009

Subscribers complain as fees rise

As of 1 August, Allianz Global Investors will be introducing a performance fee for 19 of its funds, while it will be cancelling fees of this type for 16 others. At DWS, only one third of the product range charges fees of this type, while at Deka, there are plans to introduce performance commissions for all equity fund products next year. Union Investments has been charging commissions of this type for 15 of its funds since December, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports.Overall, the asset management sector has already lost 50% or more of its clients’ money, and now that in the mid-term gains are to be expected, these asset management firms are seeking to introduce percentage charges on gains. This is all proceeding as though banks and management firms had gone mad, one investor writes. This attitude is difficult to understand, since actors are finding themselves contronted not only by the consequences of the crisis, but also by the emergence of considerably more inexpensive competitors, in the form of ETFs. But it is true that they will also need to contend with rising costs.
20/07/2009

Standard Life appoints a new head of Corporate Pensions

The British insurance group Standard Life has appointed Hans-Werner Rölf as director of corporate pensions for Germany, effective immediately. Rölf joined the management team at Standard Life in 1998. He will retain his responsibilities as director business development.

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