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07/02/2013

30% increase in pre-tax profits for the half at Hargreaves

The wealth management platform Hargreaves Lansdown has reported pre-tax profits for the half year ending on 31 December of GBP93m, up 30% compared with profits for the corresponding half of 2011, according to a statement released on 6 February. Hargreaves attributes the increase to a trend for clients to invest directly, as a result of RDR regulations which were introduced on 1 January this year. Hargreaves notes in its statement that the number of financial advisers has fallen 4% in the past 18 months to 31 December, without citing sources. Assets under administration increased by 16% in the half, to GBP30.4bn.
07/02/2013

Commodity hedge funds have lost 20% of their assets

Commodity hedge funds lost at least 20% of their assets last year, due to significant redemptions from investors in the wake of poor returns, the Financial Times reports. On average, commodity hedge funds lost 3.7% in 2012, according to a Newedge index. It is the largest decline since the creation of the index 10 years ago.
07/02/2013

Safe awards USD1.2bn in QFII quotas

In January, the Chinese State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) issued qualified foreign institutional investor (QFII) quotas for an additional USD500m and USD700m, respectively, to the sovereign wealth funds Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) and the Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA). This brings their total quotas to USD1bn each, Asian Investor notes.Meanwhile, SAFE has also awarded “primo-quotas” of USD300m to ABS Asset Management and Hillhouse Capital Management, USD200m to CDH Investment and Genesis Asset Managers, USD150m to JP Morgan Asset Management Taiwan, USD100m to EFG Bank, USD60m to Public Mutual, and USD50m to Uni-president Assets Management Corp.
07/02/2013

Raiffeisen Capital Management registers two funds in Switzerland

Raiffeisen Capital Management is now offering two additional funds to Swiss investors. The Austrian asset management firm has received a sales licence for the Raiffeisen-Europa-HighYield fund (ISIN code AT0000796529) and the Raiffeisen 337 – Strategic Allocation Master I, a tactical risk allocation product (ISIN code: AT0000A090G0).
07/02/2013

NYSE Euronext agitates for more transparency

In the interests of greater transparency on the financial markets and improvements to governance, the market operator NYSE Euronext has called on the SEC to shorten the deadline for announcement of stakes in companies for investors with over USD100m in assets to two days, from 45 currently.
07/02/2013

Jupiter adds to Merlin product range

Jupiter is adding to its Merlin product range with the launch of the Merlin Real Return, a fund domiciled in Luxembourg. The portfolio is primarily invested in international equities and bonds, via a fund of fund structure, Investment Week states. The minimal investment for the product, which is aimed at institutional investors, is GBP10m. Management fees total 0.75%. The currency of the fund is the euro, but Jupiter is also offering shares denominated in US dollars and pounds sterling.
07/02/2013

Mergers and acquisitions in China at their lowest level in five years

In 2012, mergers and acquisitions in China reached their highest levels in five years. According to the most recent statistics released by PwC, they fell by 28% in value and 23% in volume. However, the value of Chinese investments abroad reached a record of USD65.2bn. As in 2011, Japan remains the most active foreign investor in the area of mergers and acquisitions in China, despite a decline of 30%, exacerbated by the Daioyu/Senkaku islands crisis. The United States and Europe, however, continue to be the source of the largest transactions in terms of value.
07/02/2013

Investors to keep up pressure on hedge funds

The hedge fund market is expected to see significant activity in 2013, with the return of major investors to the market, the offshore law firm Walkers states in its 2013 outlooks. The factors which may make for a more sombre outlook are regulatory requirements such as FATCA laws and the AIFM directive, which will increase the cost of activities in the alternative management sector.In this environment, Walkers estimates that major investors this year will continue to put pressure on hedge funds to make them cut commissions, maintain their efforts at transparency, and promote more flexible functioning in terms of liquidity. In other words, negotiating power will remain on the side of investors.According to the law firm, data from the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority show that monthly liquidity supply has increased from 35% of regulated funds in 2011 to 53% in 2012. Meanwhile, the percentage of funds which provide quarterly liquidity has fallen from 55% to 31%.At the same time, lock-up arrangements, which restrict access to funds in certain periods, are now less frequent, and 71% of funds no longer have limitations of this type.Another trend observed by Walkers is the increasingly frequent use of independent administrators, as 72% of new administrators, have one, compared with only 6% in 2011.
07/02/2013

Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena details losses due to derivative trading

Banca Monte die Paschi di Siena yesterday announced that the final amount of losses due to derivative trading is estimated at EUR730m as of the end of 2012, Agefi reports. The Alexandria product, structured with the Japanese bank Nomura, led to EUR308m in losses, while the Santorini product, created in collaboration with Deutsche Bank, lost EUR429m. The third incriminated product, Nota Italia, created with JPMorgan, had a negligible impact. For the first nine months of 2012, Monte dei Paschi has reported a cumulative net loss of EUR1.66bn, the newspaper reports.
07/02/2013

Good quarterly results for asset management at Credit Suisse

The private banking and wealth management division at Credit Suisse between October and Deceber 2012 has posted pre-tax profits of CHF911m, compared with profits of CHF467m in fourth quarter 2011, as net inflows totalled CHF6.8bn. The Wealth Management Clients unit posted net inflows of CHF2.9bn, as pre-tax profits totalled CHF238m, up 11% compared with third quarter 2011. The Asset Management unit, for its part, earned pre-tax profits of CHF183m, and net inflows totalled CHF2.5bn. For last year as a whole, the private banking and wealth management division earned pre-tax profits of CHF3.7bn, compared with CHF2.9bn last year. For 2012 as a whole, the group has reported net profits of CHF1.48bn, compared with CHF1.95bn in 2011.
07/02/2013

Cramer bank sells 52% of its stake in Cramer AM

The Cramer & Cie Bank, an affiliate of the Geneva-based Norinvest Holding (NIH), will eventually sell 52% of its stake in Cramer Asset Management SA (CAM) to current minority shareholders, NIH announced on 6 February. CAM, based in Lugano, is a collective capital investment manager licensed by Finma. It curreently manages the funds of the Pegaso Capital SICAV, based in Luxembourg. Alongside partly divesting from CAM, Cramer bank is planning to create its own SICAV infrastructure in Luxembourg. “The intention of the partis is to continue their current collaboration to develop Asset Management services for Banque Cramer & Cie SA,” a statement says.
07/02/2013

CHF8.6bn net inflows in 2012 for Vontobel

Net inflows at Vontobel totalled CHF8.6bn in the fiscal year 2012, compared with CHF8.2bn the previous year, according to a statement released on 6 February. Assets under management at Vontobel as of the end of December totalled CHF150bn, compared with CHF139.4bn at the end of first half 2012, an increase of 14%. Wealth management contributed 67% of the group’s pre-tax net profits, Vontobel states. Consolidated net profits for Vontobel were up 15% to CHF150.6m, of which CHF75.5bn were from wealth management activities. Vontobel also states that at its next general shareholders’ meeting, shareholders will vote on a proposed election to the board of directors of Dominic Brenninkeyer and Nicolas Oltramare. The two men will replace the outgoing Ann-Kristin Achleitner and Philippe Cottier, who have declined to seek new terms for personal reasons, after many years of activity on the board.
07/02/2013

Good quarterly results for asset management at Credit Suisse

The private banking and wealth management division at Credit Suisse between October and December 2012 has posted pre-tax profits of CHF911m, compared with profits of CHF467m in fourth quarter 2011, as net inflows totalled CHF6.8bn.The Wealth Management Clients unit posted net inflows of CHF2.9bn, as pre-tax profits totalled CHF238m, up 11% compared with third quarter 2011. The Asset Management unit, for its part, earned pre-tax profits of CHF183m, and net inflows totalled CHF2.5bn.For last year as a whole, the private banking and wealth management division earned pre-tax profits of CHF3.7bn, compared with CHF2.9bn last year. For 2012 as a whole, the group has reported net profits of CHF1.48bn, compared with CHF1.95bn in 2011.
07/02/2013

Coverage rate for pension funds continues to rise

The average coverage rate for the liabilities of US corporate pension funds rose by 4.9 percentage points in the month of January, to a total of 81.2%, its highest level since March 2012, according to BNY Mellon. In the month under review, assets in pension funds increased by 3%, due to the strength of the stock markets, which gained more than 5% in the United States and other international developed markets. Liabilities fell by 3.2%, as the discount rate increased by 24 basis points to 4.13% for businesses rated Aa.
07/02/2013

Libor: RBS finds money for USD615m in fines

Following Barclays and UBS, the British bank Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has set aside provisions to cover large penalties due to its role in the libor inter-bank lending rate manipulation scandal. It will pay a total of USD615m (CHF359m), according to a statement released on 6 February.In detail, GBP87.5m will go to the British Financial Services Authority (FSA), USD325m will go to its US counterpart (CFTC), and USD150m will go to the US Department of Justice, to “settle enquiries,” RBS states.From 2006 to 2010 at the latest, brokers at RBS in London, Singapore and Tokyo participates in manipulations of the money market benchmark rate. These actions continued even after they learned that an initial investigation was underway.The manipulations, primarily in Japanese yen and Swiss francs, were carried out by 21 RBS employees, all of whom have left the group or been subjected to idsciplinary measures.RBS, which is 81% controlled by the British government since a GBP45.5bn bailout during the financial crisis of 2008, has decided to finance the fines by reducing the bonuses paid to RBS personnel. RBS on 6 February states that reductions or cancellations of bonuses had allowed it to save about GBP300m.
07/02/2013

Handelsbanken acquires a UK wealth management firm

Sw Sweden’s Handelsbanken on February 6 announced the acquisition of British wealth and investment management company Heartwood whose assets under management total GBP1.5bn at the end of January 2013. The agreement will see Heartwood become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Handelsbanken, forming the foundation of its UK wealth management offering. The bank has also reported net profits for 2012 of SEK14.5bn, or about EUR1.7bn, up 18% over the previous year.
07/02/2013

Rumours of restructuring boost share price of Man Group

Agefi reports that the share price for the asset management firm Man Group rose 4.8% to 95.1 pence per share after UBS announced that its new CEO would be announcing significant strategic changes at a presentation of annual results on 28 February. A sale of the firm remains a possibility, UBS adds.
07/02/2013

HSBC Emerging Markets index goes monthly

On the basis of the GDP of the 16 largest emerging markets (Saudi Arabia, Brazil, China, South Korea, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Poland, Czech Republic, Russia, Taiwan, Turkey and Vietnam), the HSBC Emerging Markets index (HSBC EMI) will move to a monthly, rather than quarterly, frequency, HSBC has announced. In January, the index rose to 53.9, from 53 in December. “This is the highest level since February 2012, which is a sign of real acceleration in growth in emerging markets,” the firm has stated, adding that the growth is particularly strong in the manufacturing sector, and in China, where the EMI growth rate is the most dynamic it has been for 2 years.
07/02/2013

Higher inflows for Pimco than all German asset management firms combined in 2012

Last year, net sales to German open-ended funds, excluding real estate funds, totalled EUR21.6675bn. The Allianz group alone had EUR27.0738bn in net inflows, of which EUR21.8024bn were for Pimco, which alone has taken on more capital than all German firms that provide statistics to the German BVI association of asset management firms put together.The other major firm to have posted net inflows is Union Investment (co-operative banks), with subscriptions of EUR3.1731bn.The other two major players had significant net outflows: Deka (savings banks) suffered net redemptions of EUR4.4782bn, and the asset management unit of Deutsche Bank has posted outflows of EUR3.1888bn.In ETFs, only ETFlab (Deka) has seen net subscriptions (EUR477.6bn). However, ComStage (Commerzbank), iShares (BlackRock), and db x-trackers (Deutsche Bank) show respective net outflows of EUR1.0068bn, EUR629.6m, and EUR573.9m in 2012.
07/02/2013

German asset management firms had EUR103bn in inflows in 2012

As of the end of 2012, total assets under management by German asset management firms came to EUR2.03668trn, compared with EUR1.78327trn one year previously. Of this increase of EUR257.41bn, net subscriptions accounted for EUR102.88bn, while market effects accounted for EUR151.53bn. Net inflows from institutionals totalled about EUR75bn, an all-time record, while retail inflows totalled EUR25bn (compared with outflows of EUR15bn in 2011).Statistics published by the German BVI association of asset management firms on 6 February reveal that institutional funds (Spezialfonds) had a volume of EUR981.58bn as of the end of December, compared with EUR964.58bn twelve months previously, while open-ended funds had gained only EUR729.66bn, compared with EUR723.44bn, and that mandates outside of funds totalled EUR325.44bn, compared with EUR322.15bn.As to open-ended funds, bond products saw net inflows of EUR31.92bn, compared with net outflows of EUR5.8bn in 2011, while equity funds posted net outflows of EUR4.62bn, compared with EUR2.2bn. Net redemptions from guaranteed funds totalled EUR4.61bn, compared with EUR2.56bn the previous year, and money market funds saw outflows of EUR3.14bn, compared with net subscriptions of EUR0.98bn in 2011.Thomas Richter, director general of the BVI, said that negotiations with US authorities succeeded in convincing them to award the status of “deemed-compliant” to German open-ended funds, meaning that they are deemed to comply with FATCA laws.
07/02/2013

SEB may part with fund managers

At SEB, other departures may follow that of Peter Norhammar, manager of the SEB Sverigefond and the SEB Swedish Focus Fund, following a decision to transition the funds to quantitative management, Affärsvärlden reports. Other funds may be affected by the changes, including the Global chans/risk and Stiffelsefond Utland funds. Thor Udenaes, Henrietta Theorell, Hans Johnsson and Magnus Högström are cited by the newspaper as having worked on the latter funds. Their future at the firm is thus in question.
07/02/2013

Hedge funds made 1.61% in January

For last month, the hedge funds that make up the Dow Jones Credit Suisse Core Hedge Fund Index posted average returns of 1.61%, compared with 0.99% in December.All seven strategies showed gains, with the best two being long/short equity (+2.14%) and event-driven (+2.05%).
07/02/2013

ETF assets remain over USD2trn

Both the BlackRock Institute and the ETFGI agency founded by Deborah Fuhr on 5 February estimated that global assets in ETPs as of the end of January totalled a record of USD2.045trn and USD2.050trn, respectively, above the USD2trn threshold, which was passed on 18 January (see Newsmanagers of 28 January).Net subscriptions in January totalled USD40.2bn according to BlackRock, and USD37.3bn, according to ETFGI, compared with USD37.8bn (for both houses) in December, and USD33.5bn or USD34.5bn in the corresponding month of 2012.According to BlackRock, net subscriptions in Europe in January reached an 18-month high of USD6.6bn.ETFGI finds that iShares at the end of January remained the top ETP provider in the world, with USD798.5bn in assets, or a market share of 39%, followed by SPDR ETF (State Street Global Advisors), with USD347.3bn and 16.9% of the market, and Vanguard, with USD265.5bn, and a market share of 13%. This means that the three firms had a total of USD1.41trn in assets under management as of the end of January, or 68.9% of the total. In other words, the other 206 providers each have a market share of less than 4%.
07/02/2013
Fonds

Jupiter renforce sa gamme Merlin

Jupiter renforce sa gamme Merlin avec le lancement de Merlin Real Return, un fonds domicilié au Luxembourg. Le portefeuille est principalement investi dans des actions internationales et les obligations via une structure de fonds de fonds, précise Investment Week. Destiné aux investisseurs institutionnels, l’investissement minimum est de 10 millions de livres. Les frais de gestion s'élèvent à 0,75 %. La devise du fonds est l’euro mais Jupiter propose également des parts en dollar et en livres sterling.
Fonds
07/02/2013

Collecte nette de 8,6 milliards de francs en 2012 pour Vontobel

La collecte nette de Vontobel s’est inscrite à 8,6 milliards de francs suisses durant l’'exercice 2012, contre 8,2 milliards de francs l’année précédente, selon un communiqué publié le 6 février. Les actifs sous gestion de Vontobel s'établissaient à fin décembre à 150 milliards de francs contre 139,4 milliards de francs au terme du premier semestre 2012, soit une progression de 14%.La gestion de fortune a contribué à 67% du bénéfice avant impôts du groupe, précise Vontobel. Le bénéfice consolidé de Vontobel s’est inscrit en hausse de 15% à 130,6 millions de francs, dont 75,5 millions de francs émanant des activités de gestion de fortune.Vontobel indique par ailleurs qu'à l’occasion de la prochaine assemblée générale, les actionnaires se verront proposer l'élection au conseil d’administration de Dominic Brenninkmeyer et de Nicolas Oltramare. Tous deux doivent remplacer les sortants Ann-Kristin Achleitner et Philippe Cottier, qui ont renoncé à solliciter un nouveau mandat pour des raisons personnelles, après de nombreuses années d’activités au sein de cet organe.
07/02/2013
Fonds

Raiffeisen Capital Management fait enregistrer deux fonds en Suisse

Raiffeisen Capital Management propose désormais deux fonds supplémentaires aux investisseurs suisses. La société de gestion autrichienne a obtenu un agrément de commercialisation pour les fonds Raiffeisen-Europa-HighYield (code Isin AT0000796529) et Raiffeisen 337 - Strategic Allocation Master I, un produit d’allocation tactique du risque (code Isin :AT0000A090G0).
Fonds
07/02/2013

La banque Cramer vend 52% de sa participation dans Cramer AM

La banque Cramer & Cie, filiale du groupe genevois Norinvest Holding (NIH), va céder à terme les 52% de sa participation dans Cramer Asset Management SA (CAM) aux actionnaires minoritaires actuels, a indiqué le 6 février NIH.CAM, installé à Lugano, est un gestionnaire de placements collectifs de capitaux autorisé par la Finma. Il gère actuellement les fonds de Pegaso Capital SICAV, installé au Luxembourg.En se désengageant en partie de CAM, la banque Cramer compte créer sa propre infrastructure (SICAV) au Luxembourg. «L’intention des parties est de poursuivre l’actuelle collaboration visant au développement des prestations d’asset management de Banque Cramer & Cie SA», précise un communiqué.
07/02/2013

Vontobel : "Notre stratégie organisée autour de boutiques a porté ses fruits"

Zeno Staub est directeur de Vontobel. Dans un entretien au quotidien suisse Le Temps, il revient sur le succès de la gestion d’actifs dont la rentabilité a bondi en 2012. Ce succès il l’attribue à une approche de niche et une organisation en boutiques indépendantes. «Nous avons renoncé à avoir un chef global des investissements qui définit la politique de placement du haut vers le bas. Nos boutiques peuvent ainsi pratiquer des styles d’investissement plus différenciés. C’est le cas du segment Quality Growth aux Etats-Unis», explique-t-il.Dans la banque privée, la collecte nette s’est limitée à 0,9 milliard l’an dernier. Zeno Staub explique ce chiffre décevant par l’impact négatif de 1,2 milliard induit par le retrait des activités de Vontobel en Autriche. «Sans cela, les entrées de capitaux auraient atteint 2 milliards sur des fonds de près de 30 milliards gérés par l’unité, ce qui est acceptable», analyse le directeur, pour qui une cession de la banque privée est «hors de question».
07/02/2013

Bons résultats trimestriels pour la gestion d'actifs de Credit Suisse

La division Banque privée et Gestion de fortune de Credit Suisse a enregistré entre octobre et décembre 2012 un bénéfice avant impôts de 911 millions de francs, contre un bénéfice de 467 millions au quatrième trimestre 2011, la collecte nette s'élevant à 6,8 milliards de francs suisses.Le pôle Wealth Management Clients a enregistré une collecte nette de 2,9 milliards de francs, provenant en particulier des marchés émergents et du segment de clientèle Ultra-High Net Worth Individuals (UHNWI), partiellement neutralisés par des sorties de capitaux en Europe de l’Ouest. Son bénéfice avant impôts s’est inscrit à 238 millions de francs, en hausse de 11% par rapport au troisième trimestre 2012.Le pôle Asset Management a dégagé pour sa part un bénéfice avant impôts de 183 millions de francs, en baisse de 18% par rapport au trimestre précédent. Sa collecte nette s’est élevée à 2,5 milliards de francs, avec des apports dans le crédit, les stratégies indicielles et les placements alternatifs, partiellement neutralisés par des sorties de capitaux dans les produits à revenu fixe.Sur l’ensemble de l’année, la division de banque privée et de gestion de fortune a dégagé un bénéfice avant impôt de 3,7 milliards de francs suisses, contre 2,9 milliards l’an passé.Le groupe a fait état pour l’ensemble de l’exercice 2012 d’un bénéfice net de 1,48 milliard de francs, contre 1,95 milliard en 2011. Au seul quatrième trimestre, le bénéfice net ressort à 397 millions. La grande banque relève de 4 à 4,4 milliards son objectif total de réduction des coûts d’ici à fin 2015.
07/02/2013

Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena détaille les pertes liées aux opérations sur dérivés

Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena a annoncé hier que le montant définitif des pertes relatives à des opérations sur dérivés était estimé à 730 millions d’euros à la fin de l’année 2012, rapporte L’Agefi. Le produit «Alexandria» structuré avec la banque japonaise Nomura a accasionné 308 millions d’euros de pertes et «Santorini», monté avec Deutsche Bank, 429 millions. Le troisième produit incriminé, «Nota Italia», noué avec JPMorgan, a eu un impact négligeable. Pour les neuf premiers mois de 2012, Monte dei Paschi a fait état d’une perte nette cumulée de 1,66 milliard, précise le quotidien.

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