Pia Hagen et Christian Sterndahlen ont quitté Skandia Fonder pour rejoindre le groupe financier suédois Max Matthiessen Värdepapper AB. Pia Hagen, qui était directrice des investissements et gérante chez Skandia, a été recrutée pour occuper les mêmes fonctions au sein de Max Matthiessen. Elle aura aussi des responsabilités au sein de la filiale Navigera.Christian Sterndahlen, quant à lui, est nommé gérant. Les deux prendront leurs fonctions en aout 2010.
On 25 May, the Vontobel Fund – Target Return Euro received a sales license for Italy, Bluerating reports. The product becomes the first fund to be managed entirely by the Italian branch of Vontobel, led by Francesco Tarabini Castellani. The fund, which complies with UCITS III, is invested primarily in high-quality bonds, equities, and other financial instruments from various countries and issuers. The objective is to achieve returns 3% higher than the Euribor 3-month.
Luciano Diez-Canedo, who was previously head of bonds and Sicav products at the Spanish firm UBS Gestion, has been promoted to president and CEO of the entity. Funds People reports that he replaces Jorge Colomer, who becomes head of sales for private banking activities at the group, replacing Pablo Rodríguez, who left the firm in March. The Global Asset Management business unit will continue to be led by Juan Infante.
JP Morgan has recruited Adam Wallace as executive director and product head for activities covering hedge fund services in Asia-Pacific. Wallace will be based in Hong Kong, and will oversee hedge fund administration services, transfer agency, fund of hedge fund custody, and middle-office services for hedge funds and funds of hedge funds. Wallace previuosly worked at Citi as regional product manager for alternative investments.
Martin Scholz, who for the past five years has been a member of the board of directors at Allianz Global Investors KAG and Allianz Global Investors Advisory, serving institutional clients, family offices and high net worth retail clients, have joined HSBC Global Asset Management (Deutschland), effective immediately, as a member of the board of directors responsible for relationship management. He will be in charge of developing relationships with institutional clients and wholesale distributors.
Bosera announced on Wednesday morning that its Bosera New Growth Equity Fund has raised CNY3.42bn in 15 days, with over 100,000 client accounts. The results appear to Z-Ben Advisors to be a sign that Chinese retail investor demand is recovering. Without prejudice to the virtues ot Bosera as a management firm, more reputable and higher-performing management firms have seen lower levels of subscriptions recently, including Morgan Stanley Huaxin, which raised CNY2.26bn for 27,000 accounts, and China Post & Capital, which raised CNY2.23bn for 90,000 accounts.
Tobam, formerly known as Lehman Brothers Asset Management France, has hired three people as additions to its sales team. Elizabeth Breaden becomes produce and client service specialist. The American-born Breaden previously spent several years at Fortis, as a Euro and US bond specialist, from 2005 to 2008, and then at Axa Investment Managers Paris, in product marketing (2008-2009). Laura Vu Thien joins Tobam as head of development for the UK. She previously worked at Morgan Stanley Investment Management, in UK sales, since 2006, and was responsible for both institutional and retail clients in all asset classes. Morella Hessels has been appointed head of development for Benelux. She will be based in Amsterdam, and will be in charge of development for Tobam in Benelux. She previously held a variety of positions, as head of client relations and development at Wilshire Private Markets (2002-2005), Goldman Sachs Asset Management (2005-2006), and Northern Trust Global Investments (2006-2008), in Amsterdam and London. The appointments come as part of Tobam’s development strategy. The firm now manages EUR930m in assets in France and abroad.
HSBC this Wednesday launches the HSBC MSCI USA ETF tracker fund, which aims to replicate the performance of the MSCI USA index. The ETF is listed on the London Stock Exchange, and domiciled in Ireland. It is denominated in US dollars. Characteristics ISIN: IE00B5WFQ436 Total expense ratio: 0.30%
T. Rowe Price has announced the closure of two of its funds, in order to maintain the integrity of the investment strategies of its vehicles, and to protect the interests of shareholders, who may continue to invest in the funds affected. The funds are the Mid-Cap Growth Fund, which as of 30 April this year had assets under management of USD18bn. Since the product reopened in December 2008, assets in the fund have risen by USD8.7bn, of which USD1.6bn was due to net inflows. The other fund, the Mid-Cap Value Fund, had assets under management of USD8.8bn as of 30 April this year. Since reopening in May 2009, assets in the fund have risen by USD3.7bn, of which USD1bn was due to net inflows.
BNY Mellon has announced that it will provide collateral management services for derivatives to German management firms, via its platform DM Edge. DM Edge offers management services which make it possible to standardise the collateral management process for all over-the-counter derivatives transactions.
Pour janvier-avril, Allianz Global Investors (AGI) affiche des souscriptions nettes supérieures à 5,95 milliards d’euros tandis que l’ensemble DWS/DB Adivsors/DB (Deutsche Bank) a drainé 2,79 milliards d’euros. Au total, ces deux acteurs ont ainsi attiré 7,74 milliards d’euros, pendant que le total constaté pour la période sous revue par l’association allemande BVI des sociétés de gestion se montait à 7,81 milliards d’euros.Trois des promoteurs d’ETF ont enregistré des souscriptions nettes. Il s’agit notamment de db x-trackers du groupe Deutsche Bank (1,62 milliard d’euros), de ComStage (Commerzbank avec 411,9 millions et d’ETFlab (Deka) avec 315,7 millions. En revanche, BlackRock et ses iShares accuse une sortie nette de plus de 1,35 milliard d’euros.Parmi les autres grandes maisons, Deka (caisses d'épargne) a subi des sorties nettes de 2,41 milliards, Union investment (banques populaires) accusant des remboursements nets de 2,16 milliards d’euros.A noter qu’en matière d’encours, Franklin Templeton pesait fin avril 11,97 milliards d’euros, avec 615,8 millions d’euros de souscriptions nettes, alors que Pioneer est tombé à 11,52 milliards après des sorties nettes de 385,2 millions pour les quatre premiers mois de l’année.
In April, according to statistics from the German BVI association of management firms, the investment fund sector saw net subscriptions of EUR2bn, of which EUR1.5bn went to institutional funds and mandates, while open-ended funds received only EUR0.5bn, despite EUR2.4bn in net inflows to diversified funds. This means, among other things, that equities and money market funds have seen net redemptions of EUR1bn and EUR1.8bn, respectively. In the first four months of this year, diversified and open-ended real estate funds have seen inflows of EUR7.8bn and EUR3.31bn, respectively, while bond and equities funds have seen net inflows of EUR2.5bn and EUR1.38bn, respectively. Even hedge funds have attracted EUR945.3m. However, money market funds have seen outflows of EUR5.08bn. In the twelve months to the end of April, total assets in the sector have increased 14%, to EUR17.621bn, of which EUR317.9bn were in mandates, EUR683.2bn in open-ended funds, and EUR761bn in institutional funds.
The Swiss asset management firm GAM (CHF54.1bn in assets as of the end of March) has launched the absolute return fund GAM Star Absolute Europe, a long/short equities fund that complies with the UCITS III directive, which offers daily liquidity. It is the UCITS-compliant version of a hedge fund managed by Mark Hawtin, investment director. The fund allies fundamental research to identify market inefficiencies, with technical analysis to exploit trends and expertise in the area of transactions, to obtain price variations. Long and short positions are opened on individual shares and on baskets of shares. Characteristics Name: GAM Star Absolute Europe ISIN: IE00B5BJ5C73Share classes: EUR, CHF, GBP, USD, JPY, SEK Minimal subscription: EUR10,000
The Spanish asset management firm BBVA Asset Management has announced that, due to assets of only EUR3.2m as of 1 June, it will be liquidating its ETF Acción Ibex Top Dividendo, in a process which will take four months to complete. The firm will suspend payment of dividends from 1 July 2010. With the move, the ETF range from BBVA shrinks to seven products, Funds People reports: Acción IBEX 35 ETF, Acción DJ Eurostoxx 50 ETF, Acción FTSE Latibex Top ETF, Acción FTSE Latibex Brasil ETF, AFI Bonos Medio Plazo Euro ETF, AFI Monetario Euro ETF, and FTSE4Good IBEX ETF.
On Wednesday, released an official statement in Europe announcing that on Tuesday it completed its acquisition of the retail asset management activities of Merrill Lynch, including Van Kampen Investments, for USD800m in cash and 30.9 million shares in Invesco Ltd. The firm estimates that the deal will contribute more than the initially predicted USD0.04 to profits per share in the twelve months to the end of May. Bernard Aybran, head of multi-management at Invesco Paris, says the first Morgan Stanley funds will be released in Europe after the summer, in September. The range will be enlarged with the addition of new strategies, under the Invesco name, particularly in the areas of commodities (in equities or in physical form via derivatives), quantitative products, and precious metals.
Since January 2009, assets in US money market funds have fallen by USD1trn, to a total of USD2.8trn, due to the fact that interest rates are low, and equities performed well last year, the Wall Street Journal reports. Vanguard Group has even closed some of its funds, estimating that it could no longer profitably operate them in the current environment. In addition to those troubles, new rules imposed by the SEC in January to protect investors are making it even more difficult for funds. Generally, these rules require money market funds to retain higher levels of liquidity, and to restrict their investments in top-quality shares, while shortening the average time to maturity for securities in the portfolio. All of these things can only reduce returns. And to deliver returns of at the highest 0.2% to 0.25%, managers are now required to operate at a loss. For the client, it pays better to put money in savings accounts, which pay 4 to 5 times more in interest.
BNP Paribas Investment Partners on Wednesday, 2 June announced the arrival of Martin Fridson, a licensed financial advisor in the United States, as an international credit strategist at BNP Paribas Asset Management, Inc. As an international credit strategist, Fridson will conduct research and define the macroeconomic vision of the international credit team, which now includes all credit management expertise at BNP Paribas Investment Partners, including 22 credit analysts. He will also work to add to the credit solutions product range, and to optimise performance, a statement from the bank says. Fridson previously was CEO of Fridson Investment Advisors, LLC, a licensed US firm providing investment advising based on fundamental research. Fridson will be based in New York.
With the introduction of the “Volcker” banking laws, many Wall Street specialists are preferring to leave the banks in order to launch their own hedge funds, the Wall Street Journal reports. Blackstone is in the process of raising USD2bn in seed capital for funds, and Citadel Investment Group has already attracted more than a dozen portfolio managers for a second seeding platform, entitled Surveyor. Millennium Management and SAC Capital Advisors have also attracted several Wall Street traders. Greg Lippmann on Friday left his position as global head of asset-backed securities trading at Deutsche Bank, to create the Libre Max hedge fund with Fred Brettschneider. Libre is short for LIppmann and BREttschneider, while Max is the middle name shared by both men.
The asset management firm created in early 2008 to manage the securities portfolios of MGEN, entitled Egamo, which stands for Européenne de gestion d’actifs mobiliers, is now opening its doors to external clients. The wholly-owned subsidiary of the national education mutual has recruited a development specialist from Dexia, Vanessa Karvela, to oversee this development. For the moment, Egamo, which has 14 employees, manages EUR2.1bn for MGEN, and EUR100m for third parties. As a result of the asset allocation of its parent company, the asset manager has nearly half of its directly-managed assets in bonds. The remainder, including equities, alternative investments, and cash, are managed through multi-management. Egamo is now planning to offer its expertise in bonds, multi-management and asset allocation to other investors. Naturally, the management firm is planning to address mutuals first and foremost, “a population which we resemble and which we understand,” explains Nicholas Demont, former CFO of MGEN, and current CEO of Egamo. Institutionals such as retirement planning institutions, pension funds, associations and institutional charities will also be among the target clients of the MGEN subsidiary.
Following the announcement on 18 May of this year that it is launching an initial public offering, Jupiter announced on 2 June that the price range for the offer of ordinary shares in the firm would be set at between GBP1.50 and GBP2.10 per share, valuing Jupiter at between GBP718m and GBP868m. The offer will include 122.4 million newly-issued ordinary shares, and a sale of 11.9 million to 58.8 million shares by current shareholders. On the basis of an average price of GBP1.80 per share, the proceeds of the sale of new shares would come to about GBP220m, while proceeds from the sale of existing shares could run between GBP21.5m and GBP105.9m.
Royal Bank of Scotland is to shed one in seven jobs at its wealth management arm over the next three years, says the Financial Times. The part-nationalised bank plans to cut 500 of the 3,500 staff who work for Coutts, based in London, and Adam & Co, its smaller wealth management division which has its headquarters in Edinburgh, as it moves to introduce a more efficient IT system across these businesses.
Assets under management in the Baring Dynamic Asset Allocation Fund, the multi-asset class flagship institutional fund from Baring Asset Management, launched in January 2007, have topped EUR2bn. In the three years to 31 March this year, the fund has earned returns of 8.3% per year, with volatility of 8.9%. In the same period, the FTSE All Share index lost 0.2%, with volatility of 19.3%.
In a new sign of the development of private banking activities in Asia, Clariden Leu has recruited several staff as additions to its Asian teams. Finance Asia reports that Matthew Man and Christy Bheung will this month join the Hong Kong private bank, as senior investment client advisor, and head of operational risk activities, respectively. Man previously worked at Deutsche Bank Private Wealth Management, while Cheung had worked in the operational risk team at HSBC since 2008. Last month, Clariden Leu recruited two senior heads for its wealth management activities. Clariden Leu has also recruited three relationship managers in Singapore: Alex Lau and Sundar Ramani previously worked at HSBC Private Bank, while Nikita Rossinsky worked at Société Générale.
Pia Hagen and Christian Sterndahlen have left Skandia Fonder to join the Swedish financial group Max Matthiesen Värdepapper AB. Hagen, who was previously chief investment officer and manager at Skandia, has been recruited for the same responsibilities at Max Matthiesen. She will also have additional responsibilities. Sterndahlen, for his part, has been appointed as a manager. The two will begin in their new positions in August 2010.
Les actifs sous gestion du Baring Dynamic Asset Allocation Fund, le fonds phare institutionnel multi-classes d’actifs de Baring Asset Management lancé en janvier 2007, viennent de dépasser la barre des 2 milliards de livres. Sur les trois ans au 31 mars dernier, le fonds a réalisé un rendement de 8,3% par an pour une volatilité de 8,9%. Sur la même période, le FTSE All Share a reculé de 0,2% pour une volatilité de 19,3%.
Selon Wansquare qui cite des sources bancaires belges, KBC Asset Management, filiale du groupe bancaire KBC - qui vient de vendre sa filiale luxembourgeoise au groupe indien Hinduja - aurait également cédé sa filiale britannique à son patron Simon Radford. L’entité composée d’une vingtaine de personnes gère, d’après Wansquare, près de 800 millions de livres d’actifs.
Suite à l’annonce du 18 mai dernier de son intention de s’introduire en Bourse, Jupiter a précisé le 2 juin que la fourchette d’introduction pour les actions ordinaires de la société avait été fixée entre 150 pence et 210 p, ce qui valorise Jupiter à partir de 718 millions environ jusqu'à 868 millions de livres.L’offre comprend 122,4 millions d’actions nouvelles et la vente de 11,9 à 58,8 millions d’actions par des actionnaires vendeurs. Sur la base d’un prix moyen de 180 p, le produit de la vente de nouveaux titres s'établirait autour de 220 millions de livres, les gains liés à la vente de titres anciens représentant entre 21,5 millions de livres et 105,9 millions de livres.
Axa Rosenberg va fermer son fonds UK Small Cap Alpha fund, dont les encours ont fondu à 3 millions de livres, rapporte Investment Week. Le produit géré par Gideon Smith a en effet perdu la moitié de ses encours en 12 mois. Les investisseurs qui n’ont pas encore racheté leurs parts seront payés le 25 juin.
Royal Bank of Scotland va supprimer un emploi sur sept dans son activité de gestion de fortune sur les trois prochaines années, rapporte le Financial Times. Dans le détail, la banque, en partie nationalisée, prévoit d’éliminer 500 emplois sur 3.500 qui travaillent dans sa banque privée Coutts & Co, basée à Londres, et dans sa petite division de gestion de fortune Adam & Co, sise à Edimbourg, à la faveur de l’introduction d’un nouveau système informatique.
Le suisse GAM (54,1 milliards de francs d’encours fin mars) vient de lancer le fonds de performance absolue GAM Star Absolute Europe, un fonds long/short actions conforme à la directive OPCVM III et à liquidité quotidienne. Il s’agit de la version coordonnée d’un hedge fund géré par Mark Hawtin, investment director. Ce dernier allie la recherche fondamentale pour identifier les inefficiences de marché à l’analyse technique pour exploiter les tendances et au savoir-faire en matière de transactions pour obtenir des variations de cours. Les positions longues et courtes sont ouvertes sur des actions individuelles et sur des paniers d’actions.CaractéristiquesDénomination : GAM Star Absolute EuropeIsin : IE00B5BJ5C73Classes de parts : EUR, CHF, GBP, USD, JPY, SEKSouscription minimale : 10.000 euros