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04/01/2012
Fonds

M&G prépare un nouveau fonds actions monde

M&G rationalise sa gamme Prudential Unit Trust, qui devrait à terme être intégrée au sein de la gamme de produits de M&G Investments. Dans cette optique, la société de gestion britannique prépare le lancement en février d’un nouveau fonds, le M&G International Specialist Equity Fund, qui intègrera le Prudential Global Growth Trust, actuellement d’un encours de 230 millions de livres. Le nouveau fonds sera géré par David Williams, qui pilote le fonds Prudential depuis décembre 2010, a indiqué à Newsmanagers un porte-parole du gestionnaire.
Fonds
04/01/2012

Reconstitution de ligue dissoute chez Ad-Vanced Dynamic AM

Désormais, Thorsten Winkler a officiellement quitté Veritas Investment Trust et son patron Markus Kaiser pour rejoindre la société Ad-Vanced Dynamic Asset Management qu’il a créée au troisième trimestre 2010 (lire Newsmanagers du 22 septembre) avec Marc Sattler et Klaudius Sobczyk, également anciens de Veritas.Depuis le 1er janvier, Thorsten Winkler est responsable chez Ad-Vanced de la gestion de portefeuille des fonds de fonds (en réalité des fonds d’ETF, comme chez Veritas), la recherche, le développement de produit et la gestion du risque.Thorsten Winkler était l’un des gérants-vedettes de Veritas (ex filiale de Boursorama) qui ont mis au point les premiers fonds d’ETF commercialisés en Allemagne. Quand à Ad-Vanced, elle a déjà lancé il y a deux mois et demi deux fonds d’ETF multi-classes d’actifs de droit luxembourgeois (lire Newsmanagers du 20 octobre).
04/01/2012

Robert Schlichting refait surface chez Neuberger

Après avoir démissionné de chez Schroders Investment Management Allemagne, où il a été remplacé par Carlos Böhles en tant que head of institutional business pour l’Allemagne et l’Autriche (lire Newsmanagers du 6 décembre 2010), Robert Schlichting vient d'être nommé managing director et head of distribution pour l’Allemagne et l’Autriche chez l’américain Neuberger Berman. Il sera basé à Francfort et subordonné à Dirk van Lomwel, head of Europe and the Middle East.
04/01/2012

Offensive commerciale de comdirect sur les ETF

La banque directe comdirect bank (groupe Commerzbank) a annoncé le 3 janvier «une offensive ETF» qui consiste à proposer 50 fonds indiciels cotés de db x-trackers (Deutsche Bank), ComStage (Commerzbank) et ETFlab (Deka) avec une commission de seulement 3,90 euros par ordre d’achat ou de vente sur Xetra d’un montant compris entre 1.000 et 25.000 euros.D’autre part, pour les plans d'épargne en unités de compte, comdirect renonce à sa commission sur les ordres concernant les ETF sélectionnés pour sa nouvelle offre.
04/01/2012

Mark Nichols succède à Paras Anand chez F&C

F&C Investments a nommé Mark Nichols en qualité de gérant de deux fonds d’actions européennes précédemment pilotés par Paras Anand, rapporte Citywire. Mark Nichols sera responsable des fonds F&C European Equity et F&C European Growth and Income après le départ fin 2011 de Paras Anand chez Fidelity où il a pris la tête des actions paneuropéennes. Mark Nichols a rejoint F&C en juin 2011.
04/01/2012

Sparinvest quitte le Danemark pour le Luxembourg

La société de gestion danoise Sparinvest a transféré le domicile de sa maison mère, Sparinvest Holdings SE, du Danemark au Luxembourg."Il est devenu de plus en plus évident que le Luxembourg est le domicile «intelligent» pour une société de gestion ayant des ambitions internationales sur le long terme», explique Per Noesgaard, le CEO de Sparinvest. «Les autorités supervisant l’activité de gestion de fonds au Luxembourg sont les meilleures du monde», n’hésite-t-il pas à ajouter. En choisissant le Luxembourg, où elle est déjà présente depuis 10 ans, Sparinvest conforte le rôle du Grand Duché comme plaque tournante de la gestion, mais affirme aussi sa dimension internationale. La société souhaite de fait renforcer son expansion à l’étranger sur les cinq prochaines années, selon son CEO. Dans cette perspective, Sparinvest est d’ailleurs devenue en juillet dernier l’une des premières sociétés de gestion à obtenir l’autorisation des autorités luxembourgeoises pour le statut Ucits IV. En septembre, la Sicav Sparinvest a aussi été déclarée comme étant conforme au format Ucits IV.
04/01/2012

Mark Nichols succeeds Paras Anand at F&C

F&C Investments has appointed Mark Nichols as manager of two European equity funds previously managed by Paras Anand, Citywire reports. Nichols will be responsible for the F&C European Equity and F&C European Growth and Income funds, following the departure of Anand at the end of 2011 to join Fidelity, where he has become head of pan-European equities. Nichols joined F&C in June 2011.
04/01/2012

Hedge fund governance falls short, says USS

Daniel Summerfield, co-head of SRI at the British pension fund Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS, GBP32.6bn), estimates that the governance of British hedge funds remains sub-optimal, although there may have been some improvements in the past few years, IPE reports.He claims that hedge fund directors are “over-stretched and under-experienced,” while boards are supposed to protect the interests of investors. The situation could be improved if the UK Stewardship Code were applied not only to hedge funds, but also to corporate bonds and private equity investments.
04/01/2012

Pimco flagship fund posts outflows for the first time

The flagship bond fund from Pimco, the Total Return Fund, in 2011 for the first time saw net redemptions, according to statistics from Morningstar, cited by the Financial Times. The USD240bn fund managed by Bill Gross had seen inflows every year since its launch in 1987. But 2011 was not a good year for the manager. Redemptions for the year totalled USD5bn.
04/01/2012

Deka Immobilien buys a property in Warsaw

The German asset management firm Deka Immobilien has acquired the office property Mokotowska Square (10,200 square metres) in Warsaw from the developer Yareal International for an undisclosed sum. The property will be added to the portfolio of the open-ended real estate fund WestInvest ImmoValue, which is reserved for institutional investors.
04/01/2012

PEH outsources management of Q-Europa fund to AD-vanced Dynamic AM

Since the beginning of December, the management of the European equity fund PEH Q-Europa, which has for years been provided by PEH Asset Management, has been transferred to the new asset management firm Ad-Vanced Dynamic Asset Management, based in Oberursel, near Frankfurt, and founded by Marc Sattler and Klaudius Sobczyk (see Newsmanagers of 23 September 2011). The fund has assets of EUR3.6m.The Q-Europa fund will now be managed with an “index-picking” management strategy and the Value-Modell valuation method from Ad-Vanced.
04/01/2012

Scoach is top market for structured products in Europe

The structured products market Scoach last year had a trading volume of EUR62bn in Zurich and Frankfurt, making it the leader in Europe. With a total of over 800,000 products vailable for trading, Scoach has the most complete range internationally, the asset management firm says in a statement released on 3 January. In Frankfurt, EUR19.6bn were traded in 2011, while the number of transactions topped the 2010 total by 8.6%, at 2.7 million. One new development is that the Hong Kong dollar (HKD), a trading currency, was introduced in 2011, among others. On the German market, the number of products listed had risen to 780,000 at the end of 2011 (50% more than at the end of 2010). Every day, as many as 6,000 papers are admitted to trading, and an increasing proportion of these are Collateral Secured Instruments (COSI), which minimise issuer-related risks for investors. Earnings for the market have increased 31% to CHF51.8bn, or EUR42.4bn. Wealth managers and institutional clients are increasingly using regulated markets for these trades. The number of listings has increased 27%, to over 52,000 products, a record, while the number of tradeable pproducts has topped 40,000. Since October, Scoach Switzerland is the largest market in the world supporting trading of structured products in currency trading (XAU), and offers the widest range of currencies for trading, with 24 currently.
04/01/2012

Asset managers hoping for a better year in 2012

Asset management firms are hoping for a better year in 2012 than the one which has just ended, but it is not certain that their prayers will be answered, the Financial Times observes. Analysts at Deutsche Bank estimate that the impact of recent downturns on the market will be fully felt in 2012. With this in mind, directors of asset management firms are becoming highly aware of their break-even point, the FT reports. Cutting staff may reduce costs, but the most effective measure is to increase assets. However, growing has become an unlikely proposition for asset management firms owned by European banks, whose parent companies are facing stricter regulations. And many banks are considering the solution of selling off their asset management divisions.
04/01/2012

Robert Schlichting reappears at Neuberger

Robert Schlichting, who left Schroders Investment Management Germany, where he was replaced by Carlos Böhles as head of institutional business for Germany and Austria (see Newsmanagers of 6 December 2010), has been appointed as managing director and head of distribution for Germany and Austria at the US firm Neuberger Berman. He will be based in Frankfurt and will report to Dirk van Lomwel, head of Europe and the Middle East.
04/01/2012

Old team reforms at Ad-Vanced Dynamic AM

Thorsten Winkler has officially quit Veritas Investment Trust, and left his boss Markus Kaiser, to join the firm Ad-Vanced Dynamic Asset Management, he has founded in third quarter 2010 (see Newsmanagers of 22 September) with Marc Sattler and Klaudius Sobczyk, also formerly of Veritas.From 1 January, Winkler is head of portfolio management for funds of funds at Ad-Vanced (actually ETFs, as at Veritas), as well as research, product development and risk management.Winkler had been one of the star managers at Veritas (a former affiliate of Boursorama), which set up the first ETFs to be released in Germany.Ad-Vanced has already launched two Luxembourg-registered multi-asset class ETFs two and a half months ago (see Newsmanagers of 20 October).
04/01/2012

Comdirect in ETF sales drive

The direct bank comdirect (Commerzbank group) on 3 January announced an “ETF offensive” which will offer 50 tracker funds from db x-trackers (Deutsche Bank), ComStage (Commerzbank) and ETFlab (Deka), with a commission of only EUR3.90 per buy or sell order on Xetra, for trades of EUR1,000 to EUR25,000.For unit-linked savings plans, comdirect will charge no commission on orders for ETFs included in the new offer.
04/01/2012

Deka recruits an analyst from Feri

Christopher Wolter on 1 January joined the bond and real estate research team at Deka, the central asset management firm for the German savings banks. Wolter had been a fund and derivatives analyst at Feri EuroRating Services for six and a half years.In his new role, Wolter will focus on research on bond funds, including funds specialised in emerging markets.
04/01/2012

M&G preparing a new global equity fund

M&G is rationalising its Prudential Unit Trust range, which will eventually be integrated into the M&G Investments product range. With this in mind, the UK asset management firm is preparing to launch a new fund in February, the M&G International Specialist Equity Fund, which will integrate the Prudential Global Growth Trust, with current AUM of GBP230m. The new fund will be managed by David Williams, manager of the Prudential fund since December 2010, a spokesperson for the asset management firm has told Newsmanagers.
04/01/2012

RiverCrest launches a UCITS-compliant L/S European equity fund

As announced in September, RiverCrest Capital has now launched the long/short fund RiverCrest European Equity Alpha Fund on the UCITS-compliant fund platform from Morgan Stabley. The product, managed by Giles Worthington and Tim Short, formerly of M&G Investments, aims for annual returns of 12-15%, with volatility of 5-8%. In addition, the maximal monthly losses will be limited to 2.5%, and the managers will constantly aim for a positive result over a rolling three-month period.The portfolio of the Irish-registered product will include 35 to 50 long positions and 30 to 45 short positions.CharacteristicsName: RiverCrest European Equity Alpha FundISIN code: IE00B43NH790Minimal subscription: EUR100,000Management commission: 2%Performance commission: 20% with high watermark
04/01/2012

Qatar Holding may increase stake in Lagardère

The Qatar Holding company has announced that it may increase its stake in Lagardère, but that it is not planning to take control of the group, the French market regulator, the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF) announced in a statement on 3 January. The investment company has recently increased its stake in the firm above the 10% threshold in Lagardère SCA, making it the largest shareholder in the firm (see Newsmanagers of 30 December 2011). In a declaration of intent sent to the AMF, Qatar Holding adds that it is “planning to hold talks with all interested actors, over possible strategic partnerships to create long-term value for shareholders in the firm,” but states that it has no specific plans in this regard at present.
04/01/2012

France has 81 UN-PRI signatories

According to the list published on the website of the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UN-PRI), there are now 81 signatories to the charter in France, including nine asset owners, 60 asset managers and 12 service providers.The most recent French additions are Astorg Partners, Weinberg Capital Partners, Jasmin Capital, Cap Décisif Management and Eurazeo.Overall, the signatories now include 246 investors, 570 asset managers and 161 service providers, for a total of 977 entities, of which only 24 are in Germany, but 133 in the United States and 122 in the United Kingdom. Switzerland has 50.
04/01/2012

Three French managers rank among the 10 most popular in Citywire

Three French managers rank among the 10 managers most liked by readers of Citywire Global in the past twelve months: Nicolas Walewski (Alken), in fourth place, Edouard Carmignac (Carmignac) in fifth place, and Patrice Lemonnier (Amundi) in ninth place. The top three are, in declining order, Gregor Tachsel (Credit Suisse), Markus Brück (Metzler) and Kristoffer Stensrud (Skagen). Carmignac, a regular in these rankings, has risen one place since mid-2011, while Lemonnier, who manages four emerging market funds, has gained one place since the end of 2010. Walewski, in fourth place, has lost one place since the end of 2010. The other managers in the top ten are Jürgen Hackenberg (Union Investment) in sixth place, Nigel Bolton (BlackRock) in seventh place, Devan Kaloo (Aberdeen Asset Management) in eighth place, and Ronald Slattery (Fidelity). Four of the ten managers selected are emerging markets specialists: Lemonnier, Kaloo, Stensrud and Brück.
04/01/2012

Pictet Paris recruits Frédéric Rollin

The asset management team led by Hervé Thiard, CEO of the Paris office of Pictet and responsible for institutional clients, has gained the addition of an eighth member. Frédéric Rollin, who had most recently been chief investment officer at Novalis Taitbout, has joined the Swiss group as an investment advisor for institutional clients and fund distribution professionals.Rollin has previously worked for Robeco Gestion, HSBC Asset Management, JPMorgan AM, Cardif Gestion and BNP Gestion, where he began his career in 1990 as a bond manager.
04/01/2012

REITs may make record acquisitions in 2012

The National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts reports that US REITs raised USD37.5bn in 2011 through initial public offerings and capital increases, 32% more than in 2010.The figure is an all-time record since the segment’s creation in 1960, the Wall Street Journal notes, adding that in the past three years REITs have attracted highly significant sums, but have primarily used the capital to restructure their balance sheets and reduce debts in order to survive the economic downturn.But now that most of the real estate firms have been recapitalised, analyst and investment bankers are predicting that the latest rounds of fundraising will be primarily dedicated to acquisitions.
04/01/2012

Employee unrest at Jefferies

Glen Dailey, who on Tuesday was appointed alongside Matthew Baldassano as co-head of the new division including prime brokerage and securities lending at Jefferies, has confirmed to the Wall Street Journal that there had been talks, “but nobody is leaving the company.”According to the newspaper, half a dozen executives in the prime brokerage arm of the firm (which has 350 clients) threatened to leave the company following its reorganisation. They were apparently convinced to stay with the promise of higher than expected bonuses, even though net profits at Jefferies in fourth quarter 2011 were down 23% compared with October-December 2010.
04/01/2012

Dyal Capital Partners becomes shareholder of French hedge fund CFM

Capital Fund Management (CFM), the largest French hedge fund, has completed a reorganisation of its shareholding structure, following the accidental death of its founder, Jean-Pierre Aguilar in 2009, Agefi reports. Following the sale of a part of Aguilar’s shares to four other shareholding directors (Jean-Philippe Bouchaud, Marc Potters, Jacques Saulière and Philippe Jordan), the remaining minority, non-controlling stake was sold in December 2011 to Dyal Capital Partners. Employees of the fund will continue to hold shares in its capital.
04/01/2012

ETF trading volumes plummet in Spain

In 2011, at a time when the total trading volume on the Spanish stock exchange fell 10.8% compared with the previous year, to EUR925.33bn, despite a 13.2% increase in the number of transactions, at 45.8 million, ETF trades have fallen by 41.4%, to nearly EUR3.5bn, according to Bolsas y Mercados Españoles (BME). Of this total, EUR305m were traded in December, 67% more than in the corresponding month of the previous year.The number of ETF trades has fallen by 31.1% for last year as a whole, to 43,461, of which 2,848 were in December (-6.6%).
04/01/2012

One Lyxor ETF is the only Spanish equity fund to show gains

Of 95 funds in the Spanish equities category monitored by VDOS in Spain, 78 outperformed the Ibex 35 in 2011, meaning that they lost less than 13%.But only one fund has finished the year with gains, Fund People reports: the Lyxor short ETF, launched in summer 2009, which gained 3.3%.
04/01/2012

Swisscanto slightly overweight in equities

Swisscanto has gone into the year 2012 slightly overweight in its exposure to equities, due to their attractive valuation. “We are expecting a continuing recovery in equities. Ongoing aversion to risk on the part of investors, and our valuation models are sending signals to buy. Although profit outlooks for 2012 have been revised downward once again for European businesses due to the recession threatening Europe, their shares are valued at an extremely advantageous level», the Swiss group says in a statement released on 3 January. Regionally, Swisscanto is taking into account the very significant undervaluation of European equities, and has slightly overweighted them by 1.5 points, to the detriment of Japan (-1%). “Stocks have now reached as large an undervaluation as the one which followed the bursting of the tech bubble in 2000,” says Swisscanto. In terms of sectoral allocation, the group has increased its exposure to banking sector shares (+1%) to the detriment of commodities (-1%). In currencies, “the Swiss franc remains considerably overvalued against all other currencies. We are maintaining our overweight position on the Norwegian kroner against the Swiss franc.” The Norwegian kroner is currently benefiting from rising oil prices, while the Norwegian economy and public finances are in solid condition. Swisscanto is also building a long position on the Swedish kroner to the detriment of the Japanese yen, as the Swedish kroner is more heavily undervalued than the Canadian dollar, and is currently generating the fourth-highest additional returns of all major currencies.
04/01/2012

Temasek creates a Chinese fund

The Singapore sovereign fund Temasek Holdings has created a fund which will invest up to USD2.5bn in North Asia, primarily in China, the Financial Times reports. The fund, entitled Pavilion Capital, will be managed by Tow Heng Tan, former chief investment officer at Temasek.

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