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27/02/2012

Net subscriptions up at Catella

The Scandianvian financial services group Catella has recorded net inflows in 2011 of SEK794m, compared with SEK273m in 2010. Pre-tax profits totalled SEK21m, down slightly compared with SEK25m in 2010. In asset management, Catella states that it founded a wealth management affiliate in Sweden last year. Meanwhile, a review of Swedish fund activities was launched, in order to renovate the fund product range and working methods. In Germany, several real estate funds have been launched. Catella has also acquired a minority stake in Informed Portfolio Management.
27/02/2012

Baillie Gifford may close an emerging markets fund

The British asset management firm Baillie Gifford has announced that it is planning to close its GBP421m fund dedicated to emerging market large caps to new investors if it tops GBP10m in the next twelve months, Money Marketing reports. Baillie Gifford has already closed an emerging markets gorwth fund in 2011, when it passed GBP1bn in assets.
27/02/2012

Regulator suspends activities of a “Japanese Madoff”

On Friday, the Japanese regulator ordered the asset management firm AIJ Investment Advisors Co., which had lost most of the JPY183bn (USD2.3bn) in pension assets entrusted to it, to cease its operations, the Wall Street Journal reports. Since 2009, the Rating & Investment Information Inc agency had been issuing warnings about “unnaturally stable returns” at AIJ in a falling market.
27/02/2012

Japan to investigate asset management firms

The Japanese financial regulatory will investigate the 263 asset management firms in the country, after one of them, AIJ Investment Advisors, revealed that it had lost JPY200bn (about USD2.5bn) in assets entrusted to it. The asset management firm admitted that it could not explain to investors what had happened to their money. The regulator has ordered AIJ, which managed the pension assets of over 100 businesses, to cease its activities for a month, while the country’s surveillance commission continued its investigation of the structure.
27/02/2012

CNMV registers Banca Civica and Banif funds

On 17 February, in addition to guaranteed products from Unnim and Bankia (see Newsmanagers of 23 and 24 February), the CNMV also issued licenses to the maturity bond fund Banca Civica Renta Fija 2014, which offers annual returns of 3.26% on 3 October 2014, and to the diversified fund Banif Inversión Global from Santander Asset Management.CharacteristicsName: Banca Civica Renta Fija 2014, FIISIN code: ES0115712012Management commission: 0.8% (A share class)0.6% (B share class)Name: Banif Inversion Global, FIISIN code: ES011403306Management commission: 1.49%Performance commission: 9%
27/02/2012

Heavy losses for Bellevue Group in 2011

Bellevue Group has reported a loss of CHF64.7m for the 2011 fiscal year, after profits of CHF1.52m in 2010, according to a statement published on 27 February. The asset management unit, Bellevue Asset Management, finished the year with a net loss of CHF31.5m.Assets under management at the group as of the end of December totalled CHF3.2bn, compared with CHF4.1bn one year earlier. Net outflows totalled CHF330m.The group has also announced the appointment of Urs Baumann as CEO of Bellevue Group, effective from 1 March, replacing Martin Bisang, also a co-founder of the firm.
27/02/2012

Major managers are divided on emerging market debt

Western Asset Management (Legg Mason) and AllianceBernstein are reducing the exposure of their bond funds to emerging markets (USD39bn for the former, USD19bn for the latter). Pimco was a step ahead of them in January, doing the same for its Total Return Fund (USD250.5bn), whose emerging market debt allocation was reduced to 9% from 10%, the Wall Street Journal reports. They estimate that the euro zone crisis will last years, weigh down global growth, and ruin investors’ appetite for higher-risk assets such as emerging market debt.However, Michael Hasenstab has bought South Korean, Malaysian and Australian government bonds for his Templeton Global Bond Fund (USD59.6bn), and the securities join Polish government bonds as the four largest positions for the fund.In 2009-2011, net subscriptions to emerging market bond funds totalled USD29bn, of which USD12.5bn were last year, according to Morningstar. Year to date, EM debt funds earned 6.5%.
27/02/2012

Luxalpha: UBS on the hot seat again

The second examining chamber of the Paris court of appeals has asked Renaud Van Ruymbecke, the investigating judge in charge of the criminal case related to the Madoff affair, ro concentrate on the roles and responsibilities of UBS, the asset management firm and depository bank for Luxalpha, the Luxembourg-registered Sicav which channelled assets from most of the French victims of the pyramid scheme orchestrated by the fraudster Bernard Madoff, Les Echos reports. The order, issued a week ago at the initiative of the prosecutor’s office and some civil parties who had appealed verdicts by the investigating judge, who had declined to enforce legal requests, asks clear questions about the penal responsibility of UBS for the Sicav fund. The examining chamber is seeking to determine “whether UBS had the means to anticipate fraudulent behaviour by Mr. Madoff and BMIS [his brokerage firm – ed].” The financial regulator, the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF), will be consulted by the investigating judge.
27/02/2012

“I am convinced that 'intelligent' indices will develop”

Alain Dubois, chairman of Lyxor AM, in the frontlines on the debate over ETFs and their modes of replication, gives a detailed analysis of the proposals of the European Securities Markets Authority (ESMA) for ETF regulations, and discusses what could still be improved. Dubois also talks about the good health of his own asset management firm and about product developments. He is focused on a single conviction: a bright future awaits intelligent indices.
27/02/2012

ESMA publishes recommendations for automated trading

The European Securities Markets Authority (ESMA) on 24 February published its final recommendations on automated trading, which largely concern high frequency trading (HFT). There will be a two-month transitional period, at the conclusion of which national supervisors will announce if they will comply with the recommendations, or else explain why they are opting not to bring themselves into line with the new rules. The recommendations published on 24 February will come into force on 1 May.
27/02/2012

Aberdeen renames its alternative management unit

Aberdeen Asset Management has changed the name of its Alternative Investment Strategies business to Aberdeen Solutions.The new name «better reflects the component strategies within the business, but also importantly emphasises the Group’s capability in combining these investment tools into meeting client needs whether expressed as relative, absolute or real return, or a liability driven outcome», according to a press release. Within Aberdeen Solutions, the Group currently manages around EUR30 billion (out of a total of EUR208bn) in a range of pooled fund and segregated mandates falling within the following strategies - multi-asset, multi-manager, passive, fund of hedge funds, fund of private equity funds and pan-alternatives - to a variety of benchmarks and objectives.
27/02/2012

RiverNorth to close an income fund

The asset management firm RiverNorth, based in Chicago, is planning to close the RiverNorth/DoubleLine Strategic Income Fund, whose assets have far outstripped USD800m, with USD887m as of 24 February, on 30 March. The fund reached its limit in the space of 14 months. “This is a remarkable result, particularly in the current market environment,” the chief investment officer at RiverNorth, Patrick Galley, says in a statement.
27/02/2012

MSIM closes a mortgage fund with USD450m

The Morgan Stanley Opportunistic Mortgage Income Fund LP, specialised in mortgage-backed securities, has reached its USD450m investment capacity, and has been closed to new investors. The fund from Morgan Stanley Investment Management (MSIM) will be managed by the group of bond managers at MSIM. Sheila Huang, head of the mortgage team at the US asset management firm, says that the strategy combines exclusive analysis of mortgage-backsed securities with a hedging strategy covering the entire portfolio.
27/02/2012

Pimco to launch an ETF based on its flagship fund

Pimco will on Thursday launch an actively-managed ETF based on its flagship Total Return Fund, the Financial Times reports. The new product, which will publish its positions on a daily basis, will also provide bond managers an insight into the thinking of Bill Gross, who has been manager of the USD250bn fund since 1987.
27/02/2012

Jörgen Hartmann quits management of a fund

Jörgen Hartmann will no longer manage the DWS Europe Convergence Bonds fund, on which he had been principal manager, Citywire reports. The product has been entrusted to Xueming Song, who has been working at DWS for 15 years. Hartmann will remain at DWS, but will concentrate on institutional funds and mandates, the website reports.
27/02/2012

Rough ride for Morgan Stanley P2 Value

The open-ended real estate fund Morgan Stanley P2 Value (DE000A0F6G89) from the German asset management firm Morgan Stanley Real Estate Investment GmbH has sold the Trianon office property in Frankfurt (home to the headquarters of the central asset management firm for the German savings banks, DekaBank), for a loss, Financial Times Deutschland reports.This means, in other words, that the net asset value of shares in the fund will be further reduced, on the heels of another recent reduction of 41 cents (to EUR21.68) as of 16 February, following a downward revision to the estimated value of three logistical properties in Spain (La Granada I, II and III), and the Flight Forum office property (11,500 square metres) in Eindhoven. The fund still has assets of EUR648.1m as of 23 February. On 26 October 2010, the asset management firm decided to liquidate the product by 30 September 2013, the fund still had assets of EUR852m, and the net asset value per share was EUR27.54.
27/02/2012

Sale of BHF to RHJ is not yet completed

The private equity investor RHJ, BlackRock and Deutsche Bank had no comment on reports that, on the one hand, RHJ had not yet either officially or unofficially sought permission from BaFin to acquire BHF-Bank from Deutsche bank, and on the other hand, that BlackRock has agreed to help RHJ finance the acquisition, Handelsblatt reports.The transaction would be worth about EUR500m. BaFin requires about two months to determine whether the buyer has the financial resources to conclude the operation, before it eventually gives its approval.
27/02/2012

Five strategy indices for UCITS-compliant hedge funds at Alix

Geneva-based Alix Capital, which already publishes the UCITS Alternative Index, on 21 February launched five strategy indices of the new UAIX range for UCITS-compliant hedge funds. The indices include UAIX Commodities, CTA, Fixed Income, Long/Short Equity and Volatility. The objective is to outperform the corresponding UCITS Alternative indices. Each index is composed of 6 to 15 UCITS-compliant hedge funds. The indices are rebalanced once per quarter.Among the major criteria a fund must meet to be included in the UAIX indices, they must belong to the larger universe of the UCITS Alternative Index, have at least EUR30m in assets, and be accepting new investments.The UAIX indices use a methodology which is compatible with the UCITS directive. They are designed to be investable, and offer weekly pricing.
27/02/2012

FSA orders internal inquiry at Threadneedle

Threadneedle, the asset management firm at the centre of a suspected USD150m fraud, has been ordered by the Financial Services Authority to undertake an internal enquiry into its own controls and systems, according to reports in the Daily Telegraph. The injunction comes as the asset management firm has been working with police investigating an attempt at a fraudulent transaction last year. One man has been arrested and another, Vladimir Gersamia, has been fired, the British newspaper continues. The transaction concerned orders for Argentine warrants by former employees of the Russian Otkritie group.
27/02/2012
Gestion d'actifs

La MAIF devrait déléguer la totalité de sa gestion de private equity

Selon l’Argus de l’Assurance, la MAIF, qui a fait le choix de gérer ses actifs en interne, vient de décider de confier sa gestion de private equity à OFI AM. Contacté à ce sujet, Benoit Jullien, Directeur technique, investissements et placements a confirmé que des réflexions sont toujours en cours sur l’optimisation de la gestion des placements sachant que le non coté ne représente que 0.3% du total des actifs gérés par la MAIF. La mutuelle n’a pas investi sur le private equity depuis 2009, mais envisage à l’avenir de revenir progressivement, pour quelques millions d’euros chaque année, avec l’aide d’un partenaire qui se verra confier la gestion de cette classe d’actifs. OFI est un prétendant de choix qui gère déjà 11% des actifs totaux de la MAIF, mais selon Benoit Jullien, d’autres sociétés de gestion telles que Pictet ou Amundi ont une part de marché plus importante sur l’ensemble des classes d’actifs privilégiées par la mutuelle. Pour rappel, la MAIF gère 97% de sa poche obligataire euro en interne et délègue l’essentiel de la gestion actions à des sociétés de gestion externes. 14 personnes sont en charge de la gestion financière au sein de la mutuelle.
Gestion d'actifs
27/02/2012

Le FMI s'inquiète des effets de la hausse du brut sur la croissance

Le Fonds monétaire international a mis en garde vendredi sur les risques que fait peser sur l'économie mondiale la hausse des prix du pétrole alimentée par les tensions entre l’Iran et les Occidentaux autour des ambitions nucléaires de la république islamique. Le gouvernement Obama a dit de son côté étudier la possibilité d’utiliser les réserves pétrolières stratégiques des Etats-Unis.
27/02/2012

Le FESF lance une opération multi-tranches

Le Fonds européen de stabilité financière a lancé vendredi un emprunt obligataire multi-tranches avec deux tranches de 15 milliards d’euros chacune 2013 et 2014 et une tranche de 5,5 milliards à six ans.
27/02/2012

Nouvelle poussée du chômage en France en janvier

Le chômage a poursuivi sa progression en janvier en France, selon les chiffres publiés vendredi par le ministère du Travail. Le nombre de demandeurs d’emploi en catégorie A (ceux n’ayant exercé aucune activité) a augmenté de 13.400 (+0,5%) en France métropolitaine par rapport à décembre pour s'établir à 2.861.700. Sur un an, la hausse est de 6,2%.
27/02/2012

La Grèce avance au 8 mars la date limite de l’échange obligataire

Athènes a avancé au 8 mars la date limite fixée aux investisseurs pour qu’ils apportent leurs titres dans le cadre de l'échange de dette lancé officiellement vendredi, d’après un document dévoilant ses modalités. Cette échéance pourrait toutefois être prorogée si nécessaire. La Grèce avait initialement fixé comme date limite le 12 mars.
27/02/2012

La Belgique recherche 2 milliards d’euros d’économies en plus

Alors que l’activité du pays devrait se contracter de 0,1% en 2012, le gouvernement belge devrait décider dans la semaine de réaliser 2 milliards d’euros d’économies supplémentaires afin de respecter l’objectif d’un déficit budgétaire annuel contenu à 2,8% du PIB, rapporte l’agence de presse Belga.
27/02/2012

Wolfgang Schäuble s’interroge sur le succès du plan grec

«Il est possible que ce ne soit pas la dernière fois que le parlement allemand aura à examiner une aide financière à la Grèce», écrit le ministre allemand des Finances, Wolfgang Schäuble, dans une lettre adressée aux parlementaires, les invitant à approuver le plan de renflouement à Athènes. Le vote au Bundestag est programmé aujourd’hui. Le président de l’Eurogroupe Jean-Claude Juncker tient un discours similaire, ne pouvant pas exclure qu’il faille un troisième plan d’aide à la Grèce.
27/02/2012

Le moral des ménages américains à un plus haut d'un an

Selon les résultats définitifs de l’enquête mensuelle Thomson Reuters-Université du Michigan, le moral des consommateurs américains s’est légèrement amélioré en février à un plus haut d’un an grâce à un regain d’optimisme sur la solidité de la reprise aux Etats-Unis. L’indice de confiance a atteint 75,3 contre 75 en janvier, à son plus niveau depuis février 2011. Il dépasse l’estimation provisoire de 72,5 publiée il y a deux semaines.
27/02/2012

Warren Buffett a faim d’acquisitions

Le PDG de Berkshire Hathaway se dit dans sa traditionnelle lettre aux actionnaires «en quête» d’acquisitions d’envergure, alors que le trésor de guerre de la société d’investissement a atteint 37,3 milliards de dollars fin décembre 2011. Depuis la fin de 2009, Berkshire a dépensé plus de 35 milliards de dollars en numéraire et en titres pour différentes opérations, dont les rachats de Burlington Northern Santa Fe et de Lubrizol. Au quatrième trimestre, le résultat net a reculéde 30%, à 3,05 milliards de dollars, en raison de gains moins élevés sur les dérivés. Sur l’ensemble de l’exercice, le bénéfice net ressort à 10,3 milliards de dollars, contre 13 milliards en 2010, alors que les profits tirés des activités d’assurance ont fondu de 88% à 154 millions de dollars. Le sage d’Omaha, à la tête de Berkshire depuis 1970, a par ailleurs indiqué que le conseil d’administration avait statué sur le nom de son successeur.
27/02/2012

Le gouverneur de la banque de Hongrie prêt à réduire son salaire

En Hongrie, le gouverneur de la banque centrale a proposé de réduire son salaire à un montant symbolique jusqu'à la fin de son mandat l’année prochaine si le législateur revient sur une réduction unilatérale des rémunérations au sein de la banque centrale, un différend qui compromet une éventuelle aide financière internationale à la Hongrie.

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