Recherche
S'abonner
Connexion
Asset Management
Accueil Asset Management Actualités
23/04/2014

Harvard foundation joins PRI

The Harvard foundation has signed the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI). Harvard becomes the first US university to join the organization. The asset management firm for the foundation, Harvard Management Company, will apply the principles which the university decided to impose after a 12-month process. Harvard has also announced a decision to publish information about its greenhouse gas emissions to the former Carbon Disclosure Program (CDP). Nearly 800 institutional investors, whose assets under management total about USD92trn, co-operate with CDP to encourage the publication and management of greenhouse gas emissions.
23/04/2014

GPIF expected to increase support for Japanese growth

Japan is overhauling the investment commission for its public pension fund GPIF, to include 3 members of the government of Shinzo Abe, who would like the fund to reduce its dependence on domestic bonds which deliver low returns, and that it should invest in more high-risk assets so as to support Japanese growth more effectively. Among the 3 people close to Aby who will be joining the management of the fund are the health minister, Norihisa Tamura, who appoints the members of the investment commission, and who has decided to reduce their number from 10 to eight. Only two members of the old team will remain in place. GPIF is the public returement fund, the largest in the world, with USD1.26tr in assets under management.
23/04/2014

UBP adds a family office to its product range

The Swiss private bank Union Bancaire Privée one month ago acquired the faily office Family Office Services Switzerland (Foss), Finews reports. Foss has joined the Wealth Planning department. The division assists clients of UBP to select family offices in Switzerland. Jan van Bueren and Thomas Ming, founders of Foss, have joined the teams at UMP, and are now responsible for the activity within the private bank.
23/04/2014

Release of Draft Regulations for Hedge Funds

The National Treasury and Financial Services Board («FSB») released for public comment, the draft Regulations and related Explanatory Memorandum for hedge funds. In 2012, South Africa, as a committed member of the G20, embarked on a process to enhance and expand the scope of regulation and oversight over hedge funds, following the Global Financial Crisis in 2008. This process culminated in the release for public comment, on 13 September 2012, of the Treasury and FSB proposed framework for regulating hedge funds in South Africa. The extensive comments received from industry participants, industry bodies, regulatory bodies and other interested parties were carefully considered by the Treasury and FSB, and laid a good foundation for these draft Regulations. Industry participants and bodies were also invited to provide input during the Regulations drafting process. The intention is to still finalise the Regulations by the second quarter of this year. However, this will be dependent on the nature and extent of the comments received, which could necessitate the finalisation in the third quarter of 2014. The draft Regulations are available on the official websites of the Financial Services Board (www.fsb.co.za) and National Treasury (www.treasury.gov.za) for public comment. Comments should be submitted by no later than Friday, 23 May 2014.
23/04/2014

Foreign investors flock to Spanish debt

Due to strong demand from international investors for bonds from euro zone economies which were affected by the crisis, the holding rate for Spanish government bonds has returned to its record levels of three years ago, the Financial Times reports. Exposure of foreign invetors to Spanish government bonds has increased by more than EUR70bn since the beginning of 2012 to EUR182bn, according to Barclays. The amount was EUR188bn in April 2011.
23/04/2014

Chinese money market funds tripled in size in first quarter

In first quarter, a money market fund affiliates with the Internet giant Alibaba Group triped in size, the Wall Street Journal reports. As of the end of March 2014, assts in the Yu’e Bao fund totalled CNY541.28bn, or about USD87bn, compared with CNY185.34bn as of the end of December 2013. On Friday last week, funds managed by Tianhong Asset Management for Alipay, a company affiliated with the Alibaba group, posted annual performance of 5.25%, compared with 7% soon after its launch in June 2013.
23/04/2014

State Street GA recruits for institutional unit in Europe

State Street Global Advisors (SSgA) is redoubling its efforts to win over institutional investors. The US asset management firm has recruited three new employees for its European activity dedicated to institutionals, Funds Europe reports. The recruitment target the United Kingdom, Italy and Benelux as a top priority. Joe Riddaway joins the British team as senior consultant relations manager. He had previously served at Mercer Investments, where he was responsible for client service in the United Kingdom for fiduciary management activities. Meanwhile, Jaspert Bugter has been appointed as senior relationship manager in charge of institutional activities in the Benelux team. He joins from Generali Investments Europe, where he worked at head of sales for institutionals in the same region of Benelux. Michele Marchese has joined SSgA as senior sales manger for institutional activities in Italy. He previously spent nine years in the asset management division at Credit Suisse, in charge of development for institutional clients in Italy, and more recently, as head of development for the Iberian peninsula, Latin America and South-East Asia.
23/04/2014

Allfunds Bank tops GBP100bn in assets

The European fund distribution platform Allfunds Bank has topped the symbolic threshold of GBP100bn in assets under administration, Citywire reports. This performance is partly due to the gain of a new client, the consulting and accounting firm BWCI. On the British market, Allfunds Bank has over GBP11bn in assets under administration, and 20 clients. In June 2013, Allfunds Bank had GBP82bn, or EUR100bn, in assets.
23/04/2014

HSBC GAM closes a frontier markets fund to new investors

HSBC Global Asset Management and Lloyd George Management have closed the HSBC GAM Frontier Markets Equity fund, whose assets under management are over USD1bn, to new investors, Investment Week reports. The group took the decision in order to preserve the performance of the strategy, Investors, who have flocked to emerging markets in the past year, have often turned to emerging markets. In July last year, Franklin Templeton temporarily closed the Templeton Frontier Markets fund from Mark Mobius, whose assets under management totalled USd1.9bn. Assets in ETFs dedicated to frontier markets rose to more than USD500m in 2013, with a total of USD860m, according to data released by Markit, which states that the trend continued in the last few months of 2014.
23/04/2014

New record for offshore fund assets in Taiwan

According to statistics released by the Securities Investment Trust & Consulting Association (SITCA), assets under management in offshore funds in Taiwan totalled a record USD103.33bn (TWD3.1trn) as of the end of February 2014, Asia Asset Management reports. Offshore equity funds saw growth in their assets of 5% month on month, to a total of TWD3.1trn. That puts them ahead of high yield bond funds, whose assets total TWD1.090trn. According to statistics from SITCA, the three largest offshore asset managers are Franklin Templeton, AllianceBernstein and JP Morgan Asset Managemnet, which have assets of TWD507.4bn, TWD481.9bn and TWD370.6bn, respectively.
23/04/2014

Libyan sovereign fund splits three ways

The Libyan sovereign fund, which has USD66bn in assets, will split in three next year, Les Echos reports. One fund will be responsible for accumulating capital for future generations, another will be responsible for stabilising the budget, and a third will invest in local projects (infrastructure, transportation, etc.). The reshuffle comes a few days after a decision by the sovereign fund to place nearly USD11bn with external asset management firms (see Newsmanagers of 18 April 2014).
23/04/2014

Amundi sells a sopping centre in Italy

Amundi Real Estate Italia Sgr today signed a preliminary sale contract for the real estate funds Amundi Re Italia and Amundi Re Europa to sell to Auchan a shopping centre in Bussolengo in the province of Verona in Bussolengo, Bluerating reports. The sale price is EUR48m.
23/04/2014

Allianz GI launches a short duration emerging market debt fund

Allianz Global Investors has launched a short-term bond fund dedicated to emerging markets, Citywire Global reports. The Allianz Emerging Markets Short Duration Defensive Bond fund, which is designed to better withstand volatility provoked by a rise in interest rates, is aimed at institutional clients as a top priority, and was launched in early April. It will be managed by Greg Saichin, who joined the German group in July 2013 as head of emerging market debt. This new strategy will invest at least 70% of its assets in government bonds and corporate debt from throughout the emerging markets universe. All bonds will be denominated in US dollars, and must be rated B- or better in the ratings scale from Standard & Poor’s or another agency. The fund is domiciled in Luxembourg, and is currenrly registered for sale in Germany.
23/04/2014

Schwab slashes fees for ETFs

Charles Schwab has announced a reduction in the total fees for the Schwab International Equity ETF, from 0.99% to 0.08% from 18 April, according to a regulatory document, ETF.com reports. The international equity ETF from Schwab, with a lower price than the Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets ETF, becomes the least costly vehicle on the developed markets segment outside the United States, according to statistics from ETF.com. Schwab had already cut fees in September 2013 for a range of ETFs, including the Schwab International Equity ETF.
23/04/2014

KKR signs an asset management agreement with UniCredit and Intesa Sanpaolo

UniCredit and Intesa Sanpaolo have signed an agreement with the US private equity fund KKR and the restructuring specialist Alvarez & Marchal, to manage a portfolio of restructured credit. In a joint statement, the parties concerned say that the plans call for management of selected assets, and injection of new financial resources. The partnership is still subject to discussions and details will be provided in due time, they add.
23/04/2014

Two companies post inflows of over EUR1bn in Italy in Q1

In first quarter, two asset management firms have posted net inflows of over EUR1bn in Italy; Eurizon (EUR1.166bn) and Aletti Gestielle (EUR1.163bn), according to statistics from Morningstar cited by Funds People Italia. In third place is Anima, with EUR917m. Pioneer Investments and Mediolanum follow with EUR618m and EUR498m, respectively. Overall nine companies recorded inflows of over EUR100m.
23/04/2014

Record inflows for hedge funds in first quarter

Investors allocated USD26.3 billion of new capital to the hedge fund industry in the first quarter of 2014, according to the latest HFR Global Hedge Fund Industry Report, released on April 21 by HFR. Inflows were the largest since investors allocated USD32.5 billion in the second quarter of 2011. The results also follow inflows of USD63.7 billion for 2013. Global hedge fund capital increased to USD2.70 trillion.The HFRI Fund Weighted Composite Index gained +1.1 percent in the first quarter, navigating an increase in volatility over calendar year 2013 with gains across Relative Value Arbitrage and Event Driven strategies.
23/04/2014

Tundra merges two funds

Tundra Fonder AB has decided to allow the Tundra Agri&Food fund to merge with the Tundra Frontier Opportunities Fund. The merger was approved by the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority (Finansinspektionen) on February 25, 2014 and means that Tundra Agri&Food will be merged through absorption into the Tundra Frontier Opportunities Fund, an actively managed equity fund with a focus on frontier markets. The fund management company has decided to merge the funds as yields for Tundra Agri&Food have not lived up to the management company’s expectations and interest from unit holders has consequently been minimal.
23/04/2014

Tough first quarter for Swedish hedge funds

The Swedish hedge fund index Hedge Nordics, which inclues 93 funds, gained only 1.42% in first quarter, Dagens Industri reports on its website. Several of the flagship funds from the specialist Brummer & Partners have had a morose beginning to the year. The Zenit and Nektar funds, which have SEK17bn and SEK31bn in assets, respectively, have earned a mere +0.85%.
23/04/2014

Hedge funds hungry for social networks

Social networks are increasingly present in the hedge fund sector, according to Donald Steinbrugge, founder and managing partner at TPM Agecroft Partners, a specialist in alternative management, HedgeCo.Net reports. Social networks are used by investors as part of their due diligence process for hedge funds, by service providers as part of their efforts to sell to hedge funds, and by hedge funds themselves to improve their marketing strategy, their research and the general quality of their companies. According to Steinbrugge, “the most used social network in the hedge fund sector by far is LinkedIn, which is used, by our estimaes, by about 90% of employees at hedge funds with over USD100m in assets.”
23/04/2014

BlackRock recruits in Boston

The iShares division of BlackRock has recruited Phil Juliano, formerly of MSCI, in Boston, Financial News reports. This recruitment comes as part of efforts at the group to sell more ETFs to asset management firms, hedge funds and family offices. Juliano joins a team of 16 people who advise clients on ways to integrate ETFs into their portfolios. Four of these are dedicated to the Boston region.
23/04/2014

Victory Capital Management rachète Munder Capital Management

La société de gestion Victory Capital Management, basée à Cleveland, rachète Munder Capital Management et sa filiale à 100% Integrity Asset Management. La transaction qui réunit deux sociétés de gestion basées dans le Midwest et opérant selon des modèles multi-boutique, va donner naissance à un nouveau groupe dont les actifs sous gestion devraient s'élever à plus de 37 milliards de dollars. Les modalités de l’opération n’ont pas été divulguées. David Brown, président et directeur général de Victory, devrait occuper les mêmes fonctions à la tête de la nouvelle entité à l’issue du bouclage de la transaction qui devrait intervenir vers la fin du troisième trimestre 2014.
23/04/2014

Christopher Thompson joins AllianceBernstein

AllianceBernstein on 22 April announced that it has appointed Christopher Thompson as senior managing director, head of the US Retail Client group. Thompson, who will be responsible for all activities related to US retail clients, will report to Robert Keith, global head of retail clients. Thompson previously worked at Columbia Management as head of marketing, products and intermediated distribution.
23/04/2014

Janus Capital benefits from market appreciation

At March 31, 2014, Janus Capital ’s total assets under management were USD174.1 billion compared with USD173.9 billion at December 31, 2013 and USD163.8 billion at March 31, 2013. The increase in complex-wide assets during the first quarter 2014 reflects net market appreciation of USD1.9 billion partially offset by long-term net outflows of USD1.7 billion. Fundamental equity and mathematical equity long-term net outflows totaled USD2.3 billion and USD0.2 billion, respectively, while fixed income long-term net inflows totaled USD0.8 billion. Janus Capital reported first quarter net income of USD30.5 million, or USD0.16 per diluted share, compared with fourth quarter 2013 net income of USD38.3 million, or USD0.21 per diluted share.
23/04/2014

Creation of a sovereign fund in Taiwan moves forward

A decision by Taiwan to merge the investment activities of its four largest public pension funds has given new force to speculation that the country may create a sovereign fund, Financial Times fund management. The four funds, which together have USD100bn in assets, have had performance problems. They are now managed by a single department within the new Bureau of Labor Funds.
23/04/2014

La prévision de croissance française pour 2015 est jugée à risque

Le Haut Conseil des finances publiques a rendu public, mercredi 23 avril 2014, son avis sur les prévisions macroéconomiques associées au projet de programme de stabilité pour les années 2014 à 2017. Pour l’année 2014, il considère que la prévision de croissance du gouvernement de 1,0% «est réaliste et que le scénario sur lequel elle repose n’est affecté d’aucun risque baissier majeur». Pour l’année 2015, le Haut Conseil estime que l’hypothèse d’une croissance de 1,7% «n’est pas hors d’atteinte, mais que le scénario macroéconomique du gouvernement repose sur la réalisation simultanée de plusieurs hypothèses favorables», qui suppose «à la fois un regain de confiance chez les ménages et un impact rapide sur l’emploi et les revenus des mesures d’offre récemment annoncées». «Les effets positifs de ces mesures pourraient ne pas se matérialiser aussi rapidement que l’anticipe le Gouvernement, et ne pas suffisamment atténuer les effets à court terme de l’ajustement budgétaire», ajoute l’avis.
e3zlc6o0-haut-conseil-des-finances-publiques-726x433.gif
23/04/2014

La dette publique poursuit sa hausse en zone euro

Le déficit public s’est réduit en termes absolus en 2013 par rapport à 2012, tant dans la zone euro que dans l’Union européenne, mais la dette publique a augmenté dans les deux zones, indique l’office européen des statistiques, Eurostat. Le ratio du déficit public par rapport au PIB a baissé dans la zone euro, passant de 3,7% en 2012 à 3,0% en 2013. Le ratio de la dette publique a poursuivi sa hausse, de 90,7% à la fin de l’année 2012 à 92,6% à la fin de l’année 2013. La Grèce reste le pays le plus endettté (175,1%), devant l’Italie (132,6%), le Portugal (129,0%) et l’Irlande (123,7%).
23/04/2014

Les membres de la Banque d'Angleterre divergent sur l'économie

La reprise accélère en Grande-Bretagne, mais les responsables de la politique monétaire divergent sur les perspectives, montre le compte rendu de la dernière réunion de la Banque d’Angleterre (BoE). «Il y a eu une incertitude considérable sur le niveau des capacités de production inemployées et les membres du comité avaient un éventail d’opinions sur cette question et sur celle des perspectives d’inflation à moyen terme», dit le compte-rendu publié mercredi. La BoE dit s’attendre à ce l'économie britannique ait progressé de 1% au cours des trois premiers mois de l’année par rapport au dernier trimestre 2013, une estimation légèrement supérieure à la hausse de 0,9% qu’elle anticipait jusque là . Les minutes indiquent également que les neuf membres du Comité de politique monétaire s’accordent à dire qu’une hausse sensible des salaires réels, allant de pair avec une croissance durable, est en cours.
23/04/2014

Le secteur privé accélère en avril en zone euro

L’indice composite PMI Markit est ressorti en hausse à 54,0 en avril, après 53,1 en mars, restant au dessus de la barre des 50 pour le dixième mois consécutif et renouant avec un plus haut sans précédent depuis mai 2011. Dans le seul secteur des services, l’indice s’est inscrit à 53,1 contre 52,2 en mars et 52,4 prévu par les économistes. Aucun d’entre eux n’avait prévu un chiffre aussi élevé. L’indice du secteur manufacturier a atteint 53,3 après 53,0 en mars. Le consensus laissait entrevoir un indice stable.
23/04/2014

Le Portugal adjuge sa dette à 10 ans

Lisbonne a adjugé facilement mercredi matin pour 750 millions d’euros d’obligations à 10 ans, la première adjudication réalisée par le pays depuis 3 ans sur cette maturité. La demande a représenté 3,5 fois l’offre de titres et a permis au Portugal de décrocher un rendement de 3,57%, inférieur aux prix du marché secondaire. Le pays peut ainsi revendiquer un accès plein et complet aux marchés de dette.

Sujets d'actualité

Tous les sujets