The appetite of investors for exchange-traded products (ETP) is not letting up. In the first eleven months of the year, the industry has posted inflows of USD209.9bn worldwide, a performance near that of the record set in 2012 (EUR262.7bn), according to a study published by BlackRock. Despite increased volatility on the markets, global assets as of the end of November are up by 21% compared with 2012, to a total of nearly USD2.4trn. Growth in the sector has primarily been driven by the good performance of the markets in the United States, which have posted net inflows of USD169bn in the first 11 months of 2013. At a time when the United States now represent 71% of the global ETP market, assets under management in the country are up by 24%, “exceeding the annual growth rate over three years of 19%,” the study notes. At the same time, assets in Asia-Pacific and European markets have seen growth of 235 and 15%, respectively. In terms of products, Strategic Beta Equity has been particularly popular with investors. Since the beginning of the year, these funds have posted a record total of USD61.3bn in net inflows, equivalent to nearly one third of total inflows in the industry, with growth of more than 40% in assets under management. The only dark point in this study is that the creation of new ETPs appears to be slowing. Since the beginning of the fiscal year, 485 new funds were launched on this market, far more than the 659 creations posted in 2012. The study also points out tht more than 900 ETPs were created in both 2010 and 2011. Meanwhile, 211 ETPs disappeared from the market, a figure in line with those in 2012 (217).

Canadian investors will continue to bet against their own real estate market, which is threatened by a bubble, with a new fund, the Spartan/Libertas Real Asset Opportunities Fund, the Financial Times reports. The fund, which is expected to be launched in Toronto in first quarter 2014, will allow Canadian brokers, developers and pension funds to attenuate their exposure to real estate ahead of a downtun. “The idea behind the fund is that the real estate market in Canada is one of the most overvalued in the world,” explains Michael Brown, manager of the fund.

Brompton Asset Management, la société de John Duffield, l’ancien patron de New Star, a acquis la gamme de fonds mondiaux de WAY Group, ce qui lui permet de mettre la main sur 148 millions de livres d’encours, rapporte Fund Web. Le rachat inclut les fonds WAY Global Red Portfolio, WAY Global Blue Portfolio et WAY Global Cautious Portfolio. Ces fonds seront désormais gérés par l’équipe multi-classes d’actifs de Brompton.

Tommaso Corcor has been tapped to become the new deputy director of Eurizon Capital, the asset management firm of the Intesa Sanpaolo group, after Mauro Micillo was appointed CEO of Banca IMI, Milano Finanza reports. Corcos joined Fideuram, which is also part of the Intesa Sanpaolo group, as deputy director of Fideuram Investimenti in 2002. Since 2006, he has been vice president and deputy director of Fideuram Asset Mangement Ireland, and vice president of Fideuram Gestion, and a member of the boards of directors of Interfund Sicav and Eurizon Alternative Investments Sgr.

The Norwegian Government Pension Fund – Global, or GPFG, is currently considering its future: According to the Financial Times, the fund, with USD815bn in assets, will in the next few weeks announce a new strategic three-year plan. At a time when some claim that the fund has become too large, the new centre-right Norwegian government would like to retain the sovereign fund in its current form, the Financial Times notes. More active management may be envisageable, along with a greater weight accorded to socially responsible investment, as specified in the coalition agreement signed at the formation of the government in October. Currently, the fund is 60% invested in equities and 40% in bonds. The fund has expressed interest in private equity and infrastructure, and further details will be revealed in the presentation of the fund’s 2014-2017 plan, the FT predicts.

US hedge funds are preparing to scal eup their investments in Europe next year, betting that stress tests will require banks in Europe to unload large portfolios of assets, the Financial Times reports. Ellington Management, a hedge fund based in Connecticut, has opened an office in London, and will take over British MBS portfolios sold at auction by European banks. Other funds are positioning themselves to acquire securities lending portfolios which banks consider non-strategic.

Roshan Padamadam, a former product specialist at the HSBC group, is preparing to launch a hedge fund which will aim to invest in highly liquid securities, including equities, bonds and derivatives worldwide, Bloomberg reports. The new vehicle, entitled Luminance Global Fund, will be officially lauched on the market from 1 January, with USD2m in capital. Padamadam hopes to increase this sum to USD4.4bn in the space of three mohths according to the press agency. At the launch of the fund, Padamadam will collaborate with the Swiss-Asia Financial Services agency, which will provide investment services to help attract investors. With no management fees, the fund will charge a 25% performance commission, with the first payment due after three years.

Nordic Capital has closed Nordic Capital Fund VIII at its hard cap of EUR 3.5 billion (USD 4.8 billion). Investor demand exceeded the Fund target by nearly 30%.The new Fund will invest in mid-market companies with strong market positions and clear growth potential across the Nordic region and Europe. Healthcare investments will continue to play an important role in the fund’s capital allocation. « Continued strong support from key existing investors, who represent 64% of the committed capital in Fund VIII, combined with significant interest from high calibre new investors from across the globe, were central to the success of the fundraising », according to Nordic Capital. Investors in the new fund are a diverse and well balanced cross-section of public and private pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, financial institutions, endowments and family offices, and other institutional investors in North America, Europe, Australia, Asia and the Middle East. Over 50% of commitments to the Fund come from public pensions and sovereign wealth funds with significant interest from new investors in Asia, the Middle East and the United States.

Four shareholders in East Capital will share SEK45m (or about EUR5m) after an appreciation of one of the stakes in East Capital Explorer, the Russian fashion house Melon Fashion Group, dagens Industri reports. On Friday, East Capital Explorer (ECEX) announced that Melon Fashion Group had seen its value rise by 59% per share. Since ECEX owns 36% of Melon, this represents a windfall for the asset management firm. But those who are making the most on the operation are the owners of East Capital: Peter Elam Håkansson, Kestutis Sasnauskas, Karine Hirn and Jacob Grapengiesser. Observing that Melon Fashion Group is not listed on the stock market, Dagens Industri asked East Capital who decided to revalue the Russian firm. The firm responded that it had employed an external valuation agency.

The Swedish market surveillance authority, Finansinspektionen, has begun to take an interest in funds which claim to be actively managed, but which in reality have passive management, the Swedish newspaper Svenska Dagbladet reports. The regulator has begun to take a closer interest in how Swedish asset management firms inform their clients about actively-managed funds, which develop in a manner similar to that of the benchark index. It is focusing more particularly on the information the asset management firm provides in the prospectus for the fund. “It is important for the information in the prospectus to be correct, and a central piece of information is how the resources of the fund are invested, the risk and the costs of the fund, and whether the description of those corresponds to reality,” says Erik Lindholm at Finansinspektion. The Swedish market autohrity has not yet decided how it would carry out the inspection, but it is planning to do so in the first half of next year, and that will affect several asset management firms which manage funds that are close to the index. “I can’t say what asset management firms we will control, but it isabout having an overall vision,” says Lindholm. Sweden is not the only country to take an interest in actively-managed funds. Denmark has also begun to do so.

Hong Kong and the Chinese regulators are soon expected to sign an agreement which will give funds domiciled in each jurisdiction “mutual recognition” in the other market. Analysts have often described the opening of China as an event that would change the game, and ensure the future of Hong Kong as a financial centre, making it the base base for international asset management firms which had sought to offer their funds for sale to Chinese savers. But this may not come to pass. The United Kingdom will be granted a similar recognition agreement from June next year, which will allow British funds to be sold directly in China, according to the Financial Times, citing a Chinese banker with close relationships to the local regulator. Other marktes, such as Singapore and Luxembourg, may even be concerned.

The Australian asset management firm AMP Capital, which has founded a joint venture in China, China Life AMP Asset Management Company, is planning to launch its first fund in the country in January, its CEO says in an interview with Financial News. It will be a bond fund, which will invest in short-term government bonds. The firm will then consider a more diversified equity offering. AMP has nearly 60 employees in China.

Current president and CEO Johan Ericsson has been appointed as the new head of corporate finance, one of the two operating segments in Catella. The role will be shared with a person who is to be recruited. Anders Palmgren will leave his position as head of corporate finance and, as a consequence, his position in the group management of Catella as of today.

European hedge funds between January and November posted net subscriptions of USD53.6bn, a record level, according to Eurekahedge. Worldwide, inflows have totalled USD127bn since the beginning of the year. With a market effect of USD86bn, assets in the hedge fund sector set a new record as of the end of November of USD1.9trn. Long/short equity strategies accounted for the lion’s share of allocation to hedge funds, with USD78bn since the beginning of the year. This is the highest level of inflows ever recorded for an alternative strategy, Eurekahedge notes.

Paulson & Co last week sold its bonds from Washington Mutual bank, after J.P. Morgan Chase, which has acquired the banking activities of the firm, suited the US government banking deposit guarantee agency, FDIC, over the acquisition, the Wall Street Journal reports. Paulson was one of the bondholders in the running, along with J.P. Morgan, for the USD2.7bn housed in an FDIC vehicle, which Washington Mutual liquidated more than five years ago. It is not known exactly why Paulson sold the bonds, or how many he had held.

La semaine précédant l'annonce du tapering de la Fed, les retraits en dette émergente ont atteint 2,2 milliards de dollars. Un record depuis mai

Le règlement des OAT et BTAN sur le marché secondaire sera raccourci d'un jour. Des réflexions sont à l'étude sur les remboursements de titres indexés

Dans nombre de pays, la hausse inquiétante des prix immobiliers menace la pérennité de la reprise et embarrasse les autorités, selon Amundi

La Banque populaire de Chine souhaite imposer une gestion autonome des liquidités bancaires

La Banque populaire de Chine souhaite imposer une gestion autonome des liquidités bancaires

Alors que le consensus des économistes tablait sur un repli mensuel de 0,2% des prix à l’importation en Allemagne en novembre, ceux-ci ont augmenté de 0,1% après un recul de 0,7% en octobre, a annoncé hier l’Office fédéral de la statistique. En rythme annuel, ils ont diminué de 2,9% après un recul de 3% le mois précédent.

Les collectivités locales françaises ont emprunté 2,5 milliards d’euros sur les marchés en 2013, a indiqué hier à l’AFP la banque HSBC. «L’année 2013 a été très active sur les marchés pour le financement des collectivités locales», a commenté Jérôme Pellet, directeur au sein du département marchés de dette et de capitaux de HSBC France. Ce segment avait connu une accélération nette en 2012, puisqu’il avait alors triplé par rapport à 2011. Outre la contraction de l’offre bancaire, les conditions très attrayantes sur les marchés expliquent l’engouement des collectivités pour cette source de financement, face à des besoins annuels de 15 à 20 milliards d’euros. Jérôme Pellet s’attend à une année tout aussi dynamique en 2014, malgré l'émergence de solutions comme la Société de financement local (Sfil), nouvel acteur du financement des collectivités né sur les décombres de Dexia, ou la future Agence France locale.

Le président du Conseil italien s’est engagé hier à présenter courant janvier un vaste programme de réformes politiques et fiscales coïncidant avec l'émergence d’une nouvelle génération de dirigeants. Il a précisé que ce programme porterait entre autres sur la modification de la loi électorale, qui fait la quasi-unanimité contre elle, la lutte contre la bureaucratie et la fiscalité.

Le Livret A et le Livret de développement durable (LDD) ont poursuivi leur décollecte en novembre, montrent les derniers chiffres publiées hier par la Caisse des dépôts. Les deux livrets d'épargne défiscalisée affichent une collecte nette globale négative mensuelle de 1,06 milliard d’euros pour l’ensemble des réseaux, ramenant l’encours global à 361 milliards d’euros à fin novembre. La décollecte nette du Livret A s’est élevée à 790 millions d’euros le mois dernier, l’encours global ressortant à 261,8 milliards. De son côté, la décollecte du LDD a totalisé 280 millions d’euros, faisant baisser son encours à 99,2 milliards. Sur onze mois, la collecte cumulée de ces deux produits d'épargne populaire s'établit ainsi à 18,37 milliards d’euros. Le rendement du Livret A et du LDD –révisé régulièrement en fonction du niveau de l’inflation– a été abaissé de 1,75% à 1,25% en août, ce qui constitue son plus bas historique.

AFNOR Certification est un acteur historique dans la valorisation des démarches d’entreprises dans les domaines de la qualité et de l’environnement, et depuis plus de 10 ans dans celui du développement durable. La filiale du Groupe AFNOR est également le N°1 français dans l'évaluation de la responsabilité sociétale des organisations (RSE) avec la solution AFAQ 26000, basée sur la norme internationale ISO 26000. C’est donc légitimement qu’AFNOR Certification propose aujourd’hui aux entreprises la vérification de leur reporting RSE. Cette nouvelle prestation vise à leur permettre de crédibiliser leur communication extra-financière, notamment si elles sont concernées par l’article 225 du Grenelle 2 de l’environnement. Celui-ci impose aux sociétés faisant plus de 100 millions d’euros de chiffre d’affaires et employant plus de 500 salariés de faire apparaître des indicateurs sociétaux dans leurs rapports annuels de gestion. AFNOR Certification au service de la compétitivité des entreprises Au-delà des aspects réglementaires, faire vérifier son Reporting RSE par AFNOR Certification permet de prendre conscience des risques encourus dans les domaines sociaux, environnementaux et sociétaux. Ainsi, en identifiant et corrigeant ses points d’amélioration, l’entreprise peut attirer du capital à long terme et des conditions financières plus favorables. De plus, la gamme d'évaluation du Reporting RSE proposée par AFNOR Certification ??uvre, au niveau externe, à plus de transparence auprès des parties prenantes et améliore ainsi la réputation de l’entreprise. Au niveau interne, elle permet de comprendre les attentes du personnel et d’agir sur leur motivation pour une meilleure productivité. En faisant appel à AFNOR Certification pour la vérification de leur Reporting RSE, les entreprises bénéficient de l’expertise et de la notoriété d’une marque reconnue nationalement et internationalement pour le sérieux et la qualité de ses prestations de tiers indépendant.

Le groupe de protection social Humanis a lancé un appel d’offres pour trois mandats de gestion totalisant au moins 1,5 milliard d’euros. Le groupe de protection sociale devrait déléguer la gestion de 900 millions d’euros d’obligations corporate de la zone euro, de 500 millions d’euros d’obligations souveraines, et d’une proche plus petite d’actions de la zone euro. Axa IM, Ofi AM et Aviva Investors feraient notamment partie des candidats auditionnés pour les obligations corporate, rapporte L’Agefi qui cite plusieurs sources concordantes. Conseillé par le cabinet Fixage, Humanis devrait annoncer son choix à la fin de la deuxième semaine de janvier, mais ne souhaite pas faire de commentaires à ce stade. A fin 2012, le groupe gérait 13 milliards d’euros d’actifs.

Virginie Chapron du Jeu, Directrice de l’investissement et de la comptabilité, CDC Retraites à la rédaction de www.institinvest.com : Nous avons commencé à nous diversifier fin 2012 avec le démarrage de nouveaux mandats à la suite des appels d’offres Ircantec et RAVGDT. L’investissement dans l’immobilier a ainsi démarré en 2012 avec la mise en place d’OPCI. La diversification de notre allocation s’est faite aussi en investissant à travers les mandats existants environ 5 % de nos actifs dans les obligations convertibles, qui nous permettent de jouer sur la performance actions, et les entreprises françaises de petite capitalisation.

Christina Rustemeier, sales director pour les clients «semi-institutionnels» chez BNP Paribas, a été recrutée comme sales director pour l'équipe de vente institutionnelle d’Invesco Allemagne, annonce Fondsprofessionell. L’intéressée sera basée à Francfort.

La banque privée hambourgeoise a recruté quatre personnes chez le francfortois Hauch & Aufhäuser (H&A) pour renforcer sa présence sur le segment de clientèle des gestionnaires de patrimoine indépendants, rapporte Das Investment.Thomas Reinhold et Sven Hoppenhöft ont ainsi été recrutés pour le Vermögensverwalter Office. De plus, Berenberg étend le réseau de desserte des gestionnaires de fortune : après Hambourg, Düsseldof et Munich, la plus vieille banque allemande ouvre début 2014 à Francfort, avec deux chargés de clientèle (relationship managers), Frank Eichelmann et Thomas Wehrs.

Avec le fonds luxembourgeois Commerzbank Geldmarkt, la Commerzbank propose aux investisseurs institutionnels un fonds monétaire d’un type nouveau. Ce fonds de droit luxembourgeois (code ISIN : LU0958353921) est géré de manière active en fonction des contraintes sur les investissements imposées par le code de droit social allemand (SGB IV) et les normes de l’Office fédéral des assurances. Il n’investira qu’en titres bénéficiant d’une garantie de droit public.La commission de gestion est fixée à 0,16 %.