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15/06/2011

ETFs in Europe: iShares and UBS Global AM account for three quarters of net subscriptions

According to BlackRock, as of the end of May, assets in ETF funds domiciled in Europe were down by USD10bn, or 3%, in one month, to USD318.2bn, which remains 12% higher than their levels as of the end of December.In the first five months of the year, the number of ETF funds increased 7.6%, to 1.154 funds (listed 3,954 times), with 108 new funds launched, seven removed from trading, and 19 mergers.Net subscriptions in January-May totalled USD15.3bn, of which USD7.8bn went to iShares, and USD2.8bn to UBS Global Asset Management, with these two actors accounting for 75.2% of total net inflows. Lyxor Asset Management (Société Générale), for its part, underwent the largest net outflows, totalling USD2.1bn, In the month of May alone, net subscriptions totalled USD2.2bn, with iShares posting net subscriptions of USD3.8bn, and Amundi ETF posting net subscriptions of USD0.4bn, while ETFlab Investment (Deka) underwent net outflows of USD1.5bn.In terms of assets, iShares remains the largest provider, with 167 ETF funds and USD115bn in assets (a market share of 36.1%). It is followed by Lyxor, with 161 products and assets of USD53.7bn (a market share of 16.9%), and db x-trackers (Deutsche Bank), whose product range includes 158 ETFs and assets of USD51.3bn, for a market share of 16.1%.
15/06/2011

Macquarie creates an infrastructure fund with Everbright

The Australian bank Macquarie and a branch of the China – Everbright financial group have created an investment fund with USD729m in assets, to profit from increasing strain in the financing of infrastructure projects in Greater China, the Financial Times reports. The Macquarie Everbright Greater China Infrastructure Fund will focus on about 150 infrastructure projects, and aims to be in pole position for potential sales of government holdings in those assets.
15/06/2011

Wealth managers urged to improve advising for retail clients

A survey by the Financial Services Authority of wealth managers based in the United Kingdom has shown that about 80% of retail clients had been sold a product which was not suitable for them, the Financial Times reports. Many advisors recommended products which involved more risk than was appropriate to the client’s situation. Others had information about clients which was so incomplete or outdated that it was impossible to say whether the advice was appropriate.
15/06/2011

ETF assets down in May

As of the end of May, assets under management in ETFs worldwide totalled USD1.4466trn, 1.6% lower than at the end of April (USD1.4698trn), but 10.3% higher than at the end of December (USD1.3113trn). By comparison, assets as of the end of May 2010 totalled USD1.0441trn, according to statistics from BlackRock.The US asset management firm counted a total of 2,747 ETF funds as of the end of last month, listed 6,079 times on 49 stock markets, from 142 providers. Since the beginning of 2011, the number of ETF funds has increased by 11.7%, with 313 fund launches, 7 funds removed from trading, and 19 mergers. There are currently plans to launch 1,022 new ETF funds.The top three providers remain unchanged: iShares (BlackRock) remains the largest by far, with 470 ETF funds and USD628.5bn in assets, followed by State Street Global Advisors (SSgA, 134 products and USD203.4bn), and Vanguard (69 funds and Usd177.6bn). These three firms represent a market share of 69.8%, with 43.5% for iShares, 14.1% for SSgA, and 12.3% for Vanguard. The next two providers in the rankings are Lyxor Asset Management (Société Générale) and db x-trackers (Deutsche Bank), with respective market share of 3.8% and 3.6%, corresponding to USD54.5bn and USD52.6bn.
15/06/2011

PerTrac looks to increase presence serving family offices

PerTrac, a provider of software and services for the asset management and hedge fund sectors, is seeking to develop its presence serving family offices. “Europe and Asia are two priority growth areas for us. In Europe, we would like to develop our activities serving family offices in particular,” Lisa Corvese, managing director in charge of international strategy sunce last month, told Newsmanagers on 14 June on a visit to Paris.PerTrac, which has already developed a number of partnerships, would like to continue that course in the coming years, with the immediate emphasis on the development of data management tools, particularly for UCITS vehicles. PerTrac is also planning to provide quarterly data on developments in the hedge fund sector on a quarterly basis, starting this autumn.Corvese says that renewed interest in hedge funds on the part of investors starting last year (see Newsmanagers of 27 April 2011) will continue this year. “In the next two years, that trend will continue, and hedge funds will become mainstream,” Corvese says, predicting that there will be a major boom in ultra-high net worth (UHNW) clients.Institutional investors such as pension funds are also showing an increasing interest in alternative management, but are limited by internal rules, which little time will be invested in developing. However, managed accounts platforms offer a good compromise from this point of view, in terms of transparency and risk surveillance as well as cost.
15/06/2011

Schroders launches a fund of commodities best ideas

The British asset management firm Schroders is releasing a Luxembourg-registered fund of equities from commodities companies, the Schroder ISF Global Resources Equity, which aims to bring together the best ideas from specialists at the firm worldwide in a portfolio with only 35 to 55 positions, for sale in Germany and Austria. The management of the product will be undertaken by the Australian Sam Catalano, with the assistance of John Coyle and Matthew Franklin. The benchmark index is composite, composed 35% of the MSCI AC World Energy, and 65% of the MSCI AC World Materials. Schroders is offering a class of shares denominated in US dollars, and one on euros hedged for currency risks.CharacteristicsName: Schroder ISF Global Resources EquityISIN code: LU0507597176 (A share class in US dollars)Front-end fee: 5%Management commission: 1.5%Minimal subscription: EUR1,000
15/06/2011

Corinne Ng joins Aviva Investors

Corinne Ng, head of trading, investment and research for European and North American real estate companies at Aims Snowden Global Property Securities, has been recruited as an analyst for the North American REIT (Real Estate Investment Trust) market at Aviva Investors. Ng will be based in New York, and will report to Sherry Rexroad, senior portfolio manager for the North American REIT market, and will work in close collaboration with the rest of the Global REIT team in London, Singapore and Australia.The Global REIT team at Aviva Investors includes 11 investment professionals based in the United States, Singapore, the United Kingdom and Australia. It is led by Paul van de Vaart, and manages USD915m in assets.
15/06/2011

BlackRock appoints a director of Official Institutions

BlackRock has announced the appointment of Terence Keeley as managing director and head of its Official Institutions division, which provides services to institutional investors worldwide. It is a newly-created position. Keeley will be based in New York. Before joining BlackRock, Keeley was director of the consultant Sovereign Trends.
15/06/2011

Media and entertainment make money for some hedge funds

Some hedge funds, including Children’s Investment Fund Management, or TCI (Chris Cooper-Hohn, USD9.5bn), Tiger Global Management (Chase Coleman), and H Partners Management (Rehan Jaffer, USD1bn) have earned total returns since the beginning of the year of 15% to 22%, while the average hedge fund has made only 1%, and equities have made 5%, the Wall Street Journal reports. The money is coming in due to bets on TV networks (CBS, Viacom, Walt Disney, Liberty, Cablevision), and other media (LinkedIn, Netflix), and on amusement parks (Six Flags Entertainment).
15/06/2011

Legg Mason assets down in May

As of 31 May, assets at Legg Mason Inc totalled USD670.9bn, compared with USD672bn as of the end of April, and USD677.6bn as of the end of March. This total is nonetheless higher than USD671.8bn as of 31 December 2010.Long-term assets were down for the month to USD552.7bn, compared with USD556.2bn as of the end of April, but assets in money market funds were up by USD2.4bn, to USD118.2bn.
15/06/2011

Edram recruits a manager from AGI

Edmond de Rothschild Asset Management has recruited Thomas Vlieghe as a diversified manager for its asset allocation team in Paris. The team, led by Françoise Rochette, includes eight managers. “The recruitment is a part of Edmond de Rothschild Asset Management’s initiative to add to its asset allocation team, in response to growth in assets, which as of the end of April totalled EUR2.7bn,” a statement explains. Vlieghe, 33, had worked for Allianz Global Investors since 2005. For 6 years, he served as open-ended diversified fund and dedicated mandate manager for institutional clients, businesses, and retirement planning organisms.
15/06/2011

M&G merges income funds

The British asset management firm M&G Investments is planning to merge two income funds dedicated to UK equities, the M&G Income Fund, with assets under management of slightly over GBP200m, and the M&G Dividend fund (GBP521m).Pending the approval of shareholders, the smaller of the two funds will be merged into the larger one in mid-August.Alex Odd, who has managed the two funds since July 2010, applies the same investment approach to the two vehicles. Hence the idea of merging the two portfolios, whose structures have recently become increasingly similar.
15/06/2011

Henderson merges multi-management funds

Fund Strategy reports that Henderson is to merge three Gartmore multi-manager funds on August 12, 201. The Gartmore Active Fund will be merged into the Henderson Active Fund, while the Balanced fund will be merged into the Henderson Managed Fund, and the Multi-Manager Cautious Fund will be merged into the Multi-Manager Income and Growth Fund.
15/06/2011

Assets under management at Polar Capital up 11% in two months

The alternative management firm Polar Capital has reported an increase of 11% in its assets under management in the past two months, to USD4.3bn, the news agency Reuters reports. Polar Capital had already reported a 53% increase in its assets under management as of 31 March 2011, at USD3.87bn.Though long-only funds have posted net subscriptions for the year to 31 March of USD950m, for a total of USD3.1bn, hedge funds have posted an outflow of USD229m for the year to 31 March, to USD771m, and this trend is continuing, Polar Capital admits, though it says it would like to increase the weight of this unit, which currently represents about 15% of total assets.
15/06/2011

Two new chairmen for groups within Inverco

At the AGM of Inverco, the Spanish association of management firms, on 14 June, Miguel Angel Rodriguez of Ahorro Corporación and Fermín Alvarez of Fonditel Pension, were elected as chairman of the group of collective investment organisms and chairman of the pension fund group, respectively, replacing Carlos Pérez Parada (Barclays Wealth Managers España) and David Carrasco (BBVA Pensiones).The AGM also voted to modify the rules relating to associate members joining the association. An initial list of 25 members in this category has been approved, which includes, among others, Accenture, BNP Paribas Securities, Bolsas y Mercados Españoles (BME), Deloitte, KPMG, Garrigues, Linklaters, Moody’s, Morningstar, PwC, S&P and VDOS Stochastics.
15/06/2011

Julius Baer adds to Asian unit

Bank Julius Baer, which aims to make Asia its second home market, has announced that it continues to strengthen its Investment Solutions Group (ISG) in Asia with the appointments of Mark Matthews as head research, Asia and Dr Lee Boon Keng as sole head investment solutions group, Singapore. Reporting to Dr Lee, Mark, who is a specialist with more than 18 years experience in financial and investment sector, will be based in Singapore with a regional mandate.
15/06/2011

Italian high net worth investors invest mostly in bonds

The wealth of the 611,000 Italian families with assets of over EUR500,000 as of 2010 totalled EUR896bn, according to Il Sole – 24 Ore. The percentage of these portfolios invested in equities is only 11.3%, compared with a European average of 14%. These high net worth investors place most of their assets in bonds, at 48%, more than double the European average. A growing number of investors are placing their assets with private bankers. The sector manages 47% of assets, a 6.8% increase over 2010.
15/06/2011

Neuberger Berman releases an asset allocation fund

The New York management firm Neuberger Berman Group has announced the launch of the Neuberger Berman Global Allocation Fund, which uses macroeconomic top-down and stock-picking, bottom-up approaches in the areas of equities, bonds, and currencies, among others. The strategy is already available in the form of mandates, and weighs in at USD1.9bn.The new asset allocation fund is managed by Wai Lee, CIO of the Quantitative Investment Group at Neuberger Berman, and three other portfolio managers from the Quantitative Investment Group: Bobby Pornrojnangkool, Alex Da Silva, and Ping Zhou.The fund is available in three share classes. The institutional share class (NGLIX) charges 1.29%, while A-class shares (NGLAX) carry a front-end fee of 5.75%, and a management commission of 1.65%. C-class shares (NGLCX) carry no front-end fee, but management commission is 2.40%.
15/06/2011

Lombard Odier plans to double assets under management in Asia

The Swiss management firm Lombard Odier is in the process of adding to its sales staff serving institutional clients in Asia, at a time when it is also planning to construct a team of experts in long/short equities, credit and currencies, and to recruit a regional chief investment officer, Asian Investor reports. The group, which in March appointed Vincent Duhamel as its first head for Asia, has about USD158bn in assets under management, of which USD7bn (4.4%) are from Asian clients. Lombard Odier is seeking to double its Asian assets under management in the next five years.
15/06/2011

ALFI calls for changes to US FATCA law

The Luxembourg investment fund association (ALFI) has claimed in a statement released on 14 June that the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) in the version passed by the US government in March 2010, which is set to come into force on 1 January 2013, may drive European management firms into a long and costly series of adaptations, whose costs would be paid by clients (experts estimate a cose of USD40 per investor), at a time when US investors are hardly invested in European funds at all. Charles Muller, deputy director of ALFI, says that the association does not oppose FATCA, but that some concessions and a longer transition period should be allowed, while retaining the objective of the bill, namely to combat tax evasion in the United States. The law affects all funds which invest in the US market: providers of financial services, investment funds, management firms and foreign banks are required in their annual reports to declare US taxpayers’ earnings to the US authorities, or to pay the US tax authorities a withholding tax of 30% on gross revenues, dividends and interest.
15/06/2011

La Bourse suisse veille au délit d’initié

La Bourse de Zurich mène selon le quotidien une enquête relative à des soupçons de délit d’initié au sujet de l’annonce en avril du rachat pour 21 milliards de dollars de Synthes par Johnson & Johnson. Il s’agirait d’expliquer une «activité inhabituelle de trading» avant cette annonce. Un gage de la vigilance des autorités européennes selon le quotidien.
15/06/2011

La SEC enquête sur un CDO de Merrill Lynch

Le quotidien croit savoir que l’autorité américaine des marchés mène une enquête concernant les conditions de commercialisation par la banque américaine d’une titrisation liée à l’immobilier d’un montant de 1,5 milliard de dollars pour le compte du fonds alternatif Magnetar. La SEC s’interroge notamment sur la pertinence de la valorisation des actifs.
15/06/2011

L'Assemblée adopte l’allégement de l'ISF

Les députés ont adopté hier par 310 voix contre 220 le projet de loi de finances rectificative qui allège l’impôt de solidarité sur la fortune (ISF) et supprime le «bouclier fiscal», dispositif plafonnant l’imposition des revenus à 50%. Cette réforme, que le gouvernement entend faire adopter définitivement avant la mi-juillet, sera examinée à partir du 21 juin par le Sénat.

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