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11/05/2009

Saxo Bank s'installe à Dubai

La banque de trading en ligne et d"investissement annonce l"ouverture de son bureau à Dubaï au sein du DIFC (Dubai International Financial Centre). Ce nouveau bureau a pour vocation de renforcer la présence de Saxo Bank dans le golf persique et représente la première ouverture d"une banque danoise dans les Emirats Arabes Unis.
11/05/2009

Les banques vendent des fonds garantis investis dans leur propre dette

Les banques incitent leurs clients à investir leur épargne dans des produit sûrs, ce qui permet à ces établissements de renforcer leurs fonds propres en un moment où la baisse des taux ôte leur charme aux dépôts bancaires, constate Expansión. Six des dix plus grands fonds garantis sur le marché espagnol affectent une partie de leur encours à des dépôts, billets à ordre ou obligations de leur maison mère bancaire. Dans le cas du fonds garanti Caixa Catalunya 2-B, ce sont même 95 % des 170 millions d"euros d"actifs sous gestion qui sont investis en obligations émises par Caixa Catalunya. En Espagne, 90 % de l"encours des fonds sont contrôlés par les banques, contre 34 % en France et à peine 8 % au Royaume-Uni.
11/05/2009
Fonds

Merrill Lynch commercialise le BlueTrend UCITS Fund

Merrill Lynch International va commercialiser en Espagne le compartiment BlueTrend UCITS Fund de sa Sicav luxembourgeoise Merrill Lynch Investment Solutions (MLIS) moyennant une souscription minimale de 1.000 dollars pour la classe de parts «retail», rapporte Funds People. Ce fonds est géré par BlueCrest Capital Management LLP qui applique aux contrats à terme (CTA) une stratégie de suivi de tendance affichant un encours de 7 milliards de dollars. Les objectifs sont une performance comprise entre 15 et 20 % par an, avec un ratio de Sharpe supérieur à 1.
Fonds
11/05/2009
Fonds

Le Sabadell transfère des Sicav au Urquijo

Sabadell Banca Privada a transféré 36 Sicav, des véhicules principalement utilisés par les grandes fortunes espagnoles à sa filiale Banco Urquijo. Cela représente un encours total de 142 millions d’euros ou 9 % du volume qu’il gère dans ce type de produit (1,59 milliard d’euros fin septembre), rapporte Expansión. Entre janvier 2008 et fin févrrier 2009, le Urquijo a subi la défection de 18 Sicav pour un montant de 88,76 millions d’euros qui sont allés chez Arcalia (Bancaja), BNP Paribas, Banif (Santander) ou le BBVA. Dans le même temps, il obtenait le transfert de sept Sicav pour 33,34 millions d’euros provenant du BBVA, de JP Morgan, de Credit Suisse, de Fortis et de Privat Bank.
Fonds
11/05/2009

Spain - Banks sell guaranteed funds invested in their own debt

Banks are recommending to clients that they invest their savings in safe products, which is also allowing these institutions to increase their owners’ equity levels at a time when falling interest rates are making savings accounts look somewhat less attractive, Expansión reports. Six of the largest guaranteed funds on the Spanish market are investing part of their assets in savings accounts, convertible notes, or bonds issued by their parent banks. In the case of the guaranteed fund Caixa Catalunya 2-B, as much as 95% of the EUR170m in assets under management are invested in bonds issued by Caixa Catalunya. In Spain, 90% of assets in investment funds are controlled by banks, compared with 34% in France, and barely 8% in the United Kingdom.
11/05/2009

Spain - Arcano launches a sustainable development private equity fund of funds

Grupo Arcano is launching the Arcano Earth Fund, a fund of private equity funds which focuses on companies involved in sustainable development, and more particularly in funds specialised in sectors such as renewable energies, energy efficiency, and conservation or improved use of natural resources, Funds People reports. The portfolio will be composed of 10-15 funds selected from a universe of 120 funds dedicated exclusively to the target niche. The new product will go on sale in the next few months, with the objective of attracting between EUR200m and EUR250m, largely from investors outside Spain. In total, the fund will be indirectly invested in about 150 companies; 70% of assets will be invested in the United States and Europe. Approximately 15% will be reserved for investments in venture capital and up to 30% will be invested in funds on the secondary market. Arcano is expecting to generate total net performance of 15% to 20%.
11/05/2009

United Kingdom - Putnam recruits Paul Harrison

Putnam Investments has announced the appointment of Paul Harrison as senior vice president of its global institutional management group, where he will be responsible for distribution in the Middle East and Africa, and will report to Joseph Phoenix, head of international growth strategy in London. Harrison was previously head of Middle East and Africa at Fortis Investments.
11/05/2009

United Kingdom - Coutts: Sarah Deaves to be replaced by Michael Morley

Sarah Deaves will be leaving her position as CEO of Coutts to join its parent company, RBS, as managing director of affluent clients for the retail division (see Newsmanagers of 21 April), and the new head of private banking has now been named: it will be Michael Morley, who was previously head of wealth management at Singer & Friedlander.
11/05/2009

Spain - Merrill Lynch releases BlueTrend UCITS Fund

Merrill Lynch International is releasing the BlueTrend UCITS Fund, a sub-fund of its Luxemborug Sicav Merrill Lynch Investment Solutions (MLIS), with a minimal subscription of USD1,000 for the retail share class, Funds People reports. The fund is managed by BlueCrest Capital Management LLP, which applies a trend-following strategy to CTA futures contracts, with assets of USD7bn. The objectives are a return of 15% to 20% per year, and a Sharpe ratio above 1.
11/05/2009

United States - Heavy losses at Berkshire Hathaway

In first quarter, Berkshire Hathaway, controlled by Warren Buffett, has posted a loss of more than USD1.53bn, or USD990 per share, compared with USD940m, or USD607 per share, Expansión reports. Results were dragged down by a USD2.01bn provision for investments considered lost.
11/05/2009

Europe - Crisis increases workload for multi-managers

The crisis has brought more work for multi-managers, according to Ignites Europe. Tony Lanning, head of multi-management at Gartmore, explains that he is meeting with managers much more frequently, not necessarily because he is concerned about more managers, but because he wants to gather as much information as possible about the current market environment.
11/05/2009

World - Provisional increase of 1.29% for Credit Suisse/Tremont index in April

According to estimates based on 55% of the usual sample, the Credit Suisse/Tremont hedge fund index is expected to post an increase in April of 1.29%. Although a number of long/short equity managers have increased their long positions in an effort to capture potential gains in market rallies, many other managers have maintained their exposures to beta at relatively low levels, and have remained relatively defensively positioned, which has led to returns below those of equity indexes.
11/05/2009

Switzerland - LGT CM launches third behavioural finance fund

LGT Capital Management, an asset management affiliate of the bank owned by the Prince’s family of Liechtenstein (LGT Bank) is launching the Liechtenstein-registered fund LGT Equity Fund Europe Sector Trend (EUR), its third behavioural finance product [after the LGT Equity Fund Global Sector Trends (USD) and LGT Equity Fund North America (USD)]. The equities fund is actively managed, and invests primarily in shares in companies whose headquarters are located in Europe or most of whose activities are realised on the European continent. The objective is to outperform the MSCI Europe index, with a long/only portfolio of 40 positions. Management is undertaken directly by two specialists in behavioural finance, Volker Hergert and Oliver Günter, who had previously been dedicated to stock-picking.
11/05/2009

France - SGAM-CAAM merger may be completed in Q4

Jean-Pierre Mustier, chairman and CEO of Société Générale Asset Management (SGAM), on Thursday said consultations with employees on plans to merge SGAM with the asset management affiliate of Crédit Agricole (CAAM) will be concluded by the beginning of summer. Then will come the regulatory approval stage, which will last until October or November. The closing of the merger should thus come in early or mid-fourth quarter.According to sources close to the firm, SGAM will not include its roughly 12,000 mandates in the merger, which will create an entity whose working name is Newco. The fund factory with four distribution units, capable of adapting products to the needs of the four networks (SG, Crédit Agricole, Crédit du Nord and LCL), will exist as a single business entity, whose format is currently being studied jointly, and which will not bear the name of either SGAM or CAAM.In addition to the facts reported in Newsmanagers on 7 May, it may be noted that the perimeter earmarked by Société Générale for Newco had gross operating profits of EUR15m last year, while asset management as a whole showed gross operating losses of EUR41m. Meanwhile, chairman and CEO of Société Générale Frédéric Oudéa stated that the purchase of shares in money market funds from SGAM in order to ensure the liquidity of non-US products for clients had a negative impact of EUR193m on the first quarter results.
11/05/2009

United Kingdom - Crispin Odey prepared to join tax refugees

Crispin Odey is threatening to expatriate his alternative asset management firm Odey Asset Management (50 employees, GBP3bn in assets) to avoid a 50% tax to be introduced in the United Kingdom for high-income brackets, the Sunday Times reports. Kinetic Partners, a firm specialised in moving hedge funds to Switzerland, says it has been inundated with requests for information. Kinetic is currently advising 15 hedge funds which are ?actively? planning to leave the UK.
11/05/2009

United Kingdom - BC Partners raises bid for iShares

Private equity firm BC Partners is offering GBP3.5bn for iShares, which Barclays was about to sell for GBP3bn to CVC, another private equity firm, the Sunday Times reports. Barclays has a 45-day period in which to find a better offer (the famous ?go-shop? clause). CVC will now have to offer as much as BC Partners, or else bow out. If Barclays sells iShares to another buyer, CVC will be entitled to a break fee of GBP175bn.
11/05/2009

Europe - Euro Corporate Bond fund from Schroder ISF attracts EUR1.4bn ytd

The Euro Corporate Bond, a subfund of the Luxembourg Sicav Schroder ISF, launched in 2000, at the end of March for the first time topped EUR1bn in assets, and in April the fund attracted EUR634m, for a total of over EUR1.7bn as of 30 April, compared with EUR1.1bn one month earlier. Since 1 January, net subscriptions have totalled EUR1.4bn (of which EUR216m have come from Germany), the British asset management firm states. The Corporate Bond fund is managed by Adam Cordery. Over five years, it shows returns of 7.62%, compared with 5.34% for the Merrill Lynch EMU Corporate, which it has outperformed by 4.9 percentage points on one year (with returns of 1.35%), and by 3.69 percentage points over three years.
11/05/2009

United Kingdom - Threadneedle launches credit fund

Threadneedle has extended its range of absolute returns products with the launch of the Credit Opportunities Fund, which will be managed by Barrie Whitman, head of high yield, assisted by Roman Gaiser, high yield fund manager, and Alasdair Ross, investment grade credit fund manager.The fund, which complies with UCITS III and offers daily liquidity, is licensed for sale in the United Kingdom and will be registered for sale in other European countries in the next few months. The objective is long-term performance 350 basis points over the overnight money market rate, before commissions and taxes, relying primarily on a bottom-up approach. The manager is permitted to use short-selling and derivative products, and to invest part of the portfolio in cash. He may also make pair trades, basis trades (long physical positions against short derivative positions, or vice versa), as well as arbitrage operations on capital structure.Threadneedle says the fund should interest investors with a horizon of 18 months.
11/05/2009

World - Hedge funds charge lower fees

The Financial Times reports that the hedge fund industry is reacting to massive redemptions and is beginning to lower the management fees it charges investors. Three hedge funds contacted by the newspaper said they had lowered fees for new investors. Management fees have been lowered by half a percentage point to between 1% and 1.5%, while outperformance commissions have been lowered from 20% to 10%.
11/05/2009

World - Hedge funds post gains

The Wall Street Journal reports that, according to Hedge Fund Research Inc., hedge funds have posted an average performance of 4.2% in January-April. However, so far, managers who have been betting that the equities markets will fall further have continued to suffer badly, while bullish investors have posted gains of up to 30% on the April rally alone.
11/05/2009

United States - Bill Miller (Legg Mason) recommends financials

The star manager of the Legg Mason Value Trust, Bill Miller, estimates that after two years of heavy declines during the crisis, US financial sector shares now show a significant upside, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports. His favourites are Wells Fargo, Capital One Financial and American Express. Miller estimates that US equities could gain 20% to 30% this year.
11/05/2009

World - Hedge funds return to upward incline

According to a Credit Suisse/Tremont survey, hedge funds in first quarter posted average returns of 0.9%, compared with losses of 13% for the MSCI World index, and 3% for the Barclays Global Aggregate Bond Index. Assets contracted over the same time period by USD163bn, to a total of USD1.3trn as of 31 March. On that date, 17% of funds had either set up ?gates,? or suspensions of redemptions, or side pockets.
11/05/2009

United States - JPMorgan faces SEC charges

The Financial Times reports that charges may be filed by the SEC against JPMorgan for violating market regulations with a sale of bonds and swaps to Jefferson County, Alabama.
11/05/2009

Siparex : Dominique Nouvellet passe la main

Selon Les Echos, Bertrand Rambaud, codirecteur général de l’activité de capital-développement, prendra la présidence du directoire à compter du 31 juillet. Dominique Nouvellet, le patron fondateur de la société qu"il dirige depuis trente et un ans, pilotera le holding des principaux actionnaires.
11/05/2009

Suisse - Bons résultats pour Banque Privée Espirito Santo

Selon L"Agefi suisse, Banque Privée Espírito Santo, a réalisé en 2008 un bénéfice net de 12 millions de francs suisses, en recul de 12.3% par rapport à 2007. Il s"agit du deuxième meilleur résultat de la banque depuis sa création en 1977. La filiale du groupe basé à Lisbonne a enregistré un apport net de fonds de 262 millions en 2008 et une augmentation du nombre de ses clients de 5,5%.
11/05/2009

Cortal associe un contrat d?assurance vie avec un compte bancaire

Cortal lance une offre associant le contrat d"assurance vie Majeur Vie à un compte bancaire baptisé Smart. Doté d"un chéquier, ce dernier permet au souscripteur de disposer de liquidités tout en conservant les capitaux investis au sein du contrat. Les sommes à disposition correspondent à un découvert en compte, en contrepartie de la mise en garantie de son contrat d"assurance vie. Le chéquier Smart est accessible dès lors que la valeur de rachat globale du contrat d"assurance est de 8 500 euros. Si le contrat est totalement investi sur les fonds en euros, le souscripteur peut disposer de sommes représentant la totalité de sa mise. Si le contrat comporte des unités de compte, la contrepartie est limitée à 60 %. Le calcul des intérêts se fait mensuellement selon l"Euribor à 3 mois + 1,60 points de base. Le découvert peut être remboursé à tout moment, par des versements ponctuels ou réguliers, au choix du client et cela sans pénalité de remboursement anticipé.
11/05/2009

Le rapprochement SGAM-CAAM pourrait être bouclé au T4

Selon Jean-Pierre Mustier, PDG de Société Générale Asset Management (SGAM), la consultation des salariés sur le projet de rapprochement SGAM avec la filiale gestion d’actifs du Crédit Agricole (CAAM) devrait se terminer au début de l'été. Ensuite viendra le stade d’approbation de l’opération par les régulateurs, ce qui devrait durer en principe jusqu'à octobre ou novembre. Le #closing# de la fusion devrait donc intervenir au début ou dans le courant du quatrième trimestre. Selon les proches du dossier, la SGAM n’apportera pas ses quelque 12.000 mandats à la future entité, dont le nom de travail est Newco. Cette usine de production avec quatre unités de distribution capables d’adapter les produits à la demande de chaque réseau (SG, Crédit Agricole, Crédit du Nord et LCL) aura une raison sociale qui fait actuellement l’objet d’une étude conjointe et qui, en tout état de cause ne rappellera ni SGAM, ni CAAM.A noter par ailleurs en complément à notre article du 7 mai que le périmètre apporté par la société Générale à la Newco a affiché un bénéfice brut d’exploitation de 15 millions d’euros alors que l’ensemble de la gestion d’actifs affiche une perte brute d’exploitation de 41 millions d’euros. Par ailleurs, le PDG de la Société Générale a précisé que le rachat à SGAM de parts de fonds monétaires dynamiques pour assurer la liquidité aux clients sur des produits qui n'étaient pas américains a encore eu un un #effet résultat# négatif de 193 millions d’euros au premier trimestre.
11/05/2009

HTP Investments et le FMEA achètent Michel Thierry Group

Le capital-investisseur néerlandais HTP Investments a annoncé jeudi qu’il prend la majorité deMichel Thierry Group (MTG) et qu’il aura comme partenaire le Fonds de Modernisation des Equipementiers Automobiles (FMEA). Les vendeurs sont la Deutsche Bank et le fonds américain Matlin Patterson. HTP Investments et le FMEA s’engagent à investir 25 millions d’euros (respectivement 15 millions et 10 millions) dans MTG, l’un des premiers acteurs mondiaux dans les domaines des textiles et du cuir destinés à l"industrie automobile avec environ 1.700 salariés et 220 millions de chiffre d’affaires. Le directeur général de MTG. Frédéric Chaussat demeurera en poste.
11/05/2009

Les sociétés de gestion moyennes favorisées par la concentration, selon Alain Leclair.

Dans un entretien accordé à La Tribune, Alain Leclair, président de l’Association française de la gestion financière (AFG) observe que le mouvement de consolidation de la gestion d"actifs peut favoriser les sociétés de taille moyenne. «Le rapprochement de certaines maisons de taille moyenne représente une opportunité de se présenter à de grands appels d’offres en tant que challenger», indique-t-il. Le président de l"AFG, qui ne sollicitera pas un cinquième mandat, estime aussi que l» excès de réglementation freine l’innovation et plaide pour une épargne de long terme utile aux investisseurs et à l'économie.

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