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09/10/2012

Fidelity planning to merge two multi-management funds

Fidelity Worldwide Investments is proposing to merge two multi-management funds, the Fidelity MultiManager Balanced Portfolio and Fidelity MultiManager Income Portfolio, Fund Web reports.More precisely, the first fund, whose assets under management total GBP3m, will be integrated into the second, which has a 50% exposure to growth assets (equities, commodities and real estate), and 50% to value securities (bonds).The merger is pending the approval of shareholders and supervisory authorities.
09/10/2012

Deka Investment signs UN-PRI

On 8 October, Deka Investment GmbH, the central asset management firm for the German savings banks, announced that it has officially signed the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI), which in practice it had been following for some time, says Victor Moftakhar, CEO.The complete range of open-ended funds from Deka already respects certain exclusionary criteria, such as a man on makers of cluster bombs. Since the beginning of 2012, Deka has also launched a range of sustainable development products, Deka-Nachhaltigkeit, in which financial and extra-financial criteria are taken into account together.Overall, assets in open-ended sustainable development funds at Deka total about EUR2bn.
09/10/2012

Hedge funds prudently return to Greece

A few intrepid hedge funds have tiptoed back to Greek government bonds, the Financial Times reports. A 10-year issue of reference by the country has seen its price more than double since the end of May, to slightly over EUR0.30. The rally was largely provoked by a promise on the part of Mario Draghi, chairman of the European Central Bank, to save the euro zone, and has been dominated by hedge funds, particularly funds based in New York. One of these is Third Point, the FT reports.
09/10/2012

ETF price war: European retail market will be largely unaffected

If the ETF price war kicked off in the United States by management commissions being cut at Vanguard (which has also negotiated a reduction in index costs by leaving MSCI) ever crosses the Atlantic, it will be at the initiative of BlackRock, which is now in a comfortable position with MSCI, says Detlef Glow, of Lipper, cited in Handelsblatt. And if BlackRock manages to get MSCI to lower its prices, all European promoters who use indices from this provider will profit.However, there should be few illusions: retail investors in ETFs in Europe should hardly hope to profit in the near future from the price war now raging in the United States. Even if promoters manage to get a reduction in the fees charged by purveyors of indices, retail investors may never profit at all, as promoters are not obliged to pass on cost savings.
09/10/2012

Lyxor cuts fees for money market ETF

Lyxor is for the third time in less than two months reducing management fees on its money market ETF, the Lyxor ETF Euro Cash, to 0.065%. The firm had already lowered its commission by 0.15% to 0.085% on 1 August, and to 0.075% on 3 September.
09/10/2012

UCITS-compliant hedge funds gained 0.29% in September

According to Swiss-based Alix Capital, UCITS-compliant hedge funds in September posted average performance as measured by the global UCITS Alternative Index of 0.29%, following a gain of 0.18% in August. In the first nine months of the year, it shows gains of 0.98%. The index of UCITS-compliant funds of hedge funds gained 0.11%, following 0.12% the previous month, but it shows losses of 1.36% in the first nine months of this year.Of the eleven strategies measured by sub-indices, four show losses for last month, with losses of 2.39% for commodities and 0.98% for CTAs. The best returns in September were for emerging markets (+1.78%).In January-September, the two heaviest losses were for CTAs (-1.85%) and commodities (-1.74%), with the strongest gains for fixed income with 3.77%, followed by emerging markets (+2.67%).
09/10/2012

Very slight increase in default rates in third quarter

The global default rate for speculative-grade debt increased 0.1 percentage point during the third quarter to 3 percent in September, the highest level in almost two years, according to Moody’s Investors Service. U.S. junk-rated defaults increased to 3.5 percent in September from a 3.2 percent rate in the second quarter. In Europe, the pace of high-yield defaults fell to 2.6 percent last month from 2.8 percent in the second quarter, Moody’s said. High-yield global corporate defaults will end 2012 unchanged at 3 percent, before decreasing to 2.9 percent by September 2013, according to Moody’s. Since the beginning of the year, 46 companies defaulted, compared with 17 in the corresponding period of 2011.
09/10/2012

Natixis GAM recruits two

Natixis Global Asset Management has recruited two people for its international products unit, Investment Europe reports. James Beaumont joins from Standard Life Investment, and becomes head of product consulting and solutions, durable portfolio consultant. Catherine Morat joins from Wellington Management. She becomes head of the product marketing team. Both will be based in London.
09/10/2012

Source nabs Samaran from Man Investments

A senior member of the product structuring and financing group at Man Investments in Switzerland, Nicolas Samaran, has been appointed head of investment content at Source (EUR11.5bn in AUM at end-September).Samaran will have responsibility for the search and selection for new and innovative investment content from external providers and report to Peter Thompson, head of distribution and strategy.
09/10/2012

Rathbones acquires 20% stake in a financial adviser

Rathbone Brothers has acquired a 19.9% stake in Vision Independent Financial Planning, a financial advising company, and its sister company, Castle Investment Solutions, for GBP2m. The specialist in wealth management is planning to acquire all of the two entities by 2015, Investment Week reports.
09/10/2012

Paradigm launches asset management operation

The Paradigm group is planning to launch an asset management operation which will include the fund product range from Paradigm, discretionary fund management services, and model portfolios.The firm is currently in the process of recruiting an investment team to manage third-party fund mandates.
09/10/2012

FSA plans to enforce rules for absolute return funds

The British Financial Services Authority (FSA) is planning to require of fund managers that information on absolute return funds contain warnings about the risks related to these funds, when their presentation implies that there are guaranteed returns or protection of capital, even though this is not necessarily the case.In its most recent quarterly consultation, published just before the weekend, the FSA announces that it would like to introduce additional information on absolute return and total return funds. “We have already in the past presented absolute return funds as a subject of potential concern, pointing out that clients may interpret the terms ‘absolute return’ and ‘total return’ as a guarantee of positive returns on their investments. We would like it to be absolutely clear to investors that their capital is at risk in these funds,” the FSA states.
09/10/2012

Russell closes 2 ETFs earlier than contemplated

On August 20th, Russell Investments announced that its full suite of 25 US domiciled, passively managed ETFs would be liquidated by October 9th (see Newsmanagers of August), but the company on October 5th gave a new closure date for the Russell Low P/E ETF and Russell Small Cap Contrarian ETF. Actually, the Russell Low P/E ETF was closed to new investment October 4, 2012 and October 4, 2012 was the last day the Russell Low P/E ETF was traded on the NYSE Arca. The Russell Small Cap Contrarian ETF was closed to new investment effective on October 5th, which has been the last day the Russell Small Cap Contrarian ETF has been trading on NASDAQ. The new closure dates are the result of the in-kind redemption of all outstanding shares of these funds. Unless there is an earlier redemption of all of the outstanding shares of any of the remaining 23 funds, those funds will be closed to new investment on October 9, 2012. The last day of trading for the remaining funds will be October 16, 2012 and full liquidation of those Funds is intended to be completed by October 24, 2012.
09/10/2012

Internal promotions at Tressis

Following the departure of Ángel de Molina (see Newsmangers of 4 October), Tressis has promoted Javier Monjardin as director of analysis, and Montserrat Formoso as director of management, thus dividing the responsibilities of the outgoing man, who has joined Santander Asset Management as director of market intelligence.
09/10/2012

AIFM: Netherlands becomes first country to adopt directive

The Netherlands became the first country to implement the AIFM directive, after approval of the law by Parliament, IPE.com reports. “With the new legislation, asset management firms based in the Netherlands may optimally apply a relaxation of tax rules in order to reduce unnecessary costs in existing fiscal and legal structures,” says Marco Frikkee, of KPMG.
09/10/2012

CNMV issues round of licenses

On 5 October, the CNMV issued sales licenses for Spain to the Bankinter Renta Fija Jade Garantizado, Ibercaja BP High Yield 2015-2 and Taltrack Alternative Investment funds.The Spanish regulator also issued licenses to the foreign-registered products Amundi Treso 3 mois and Treso Eonia ISR, to several sub-funds from iShares Germany (iShares Dax, Divdax, Dow Jones-UBS commodity Swap, EB Rexx Money Market, MDax, Stoxx Europe 600, and TecDax) , to Julius Baer Special Funds and to the LFP Credit Flexible International and LFP Rendement 2017 funds.
09/10/2012

Dutch pension funds will have to reduce benefits

More than 80% of pension funds based in the Netherlands will have to reduce their payments to pensioners for the first time from April next year, unless they can improve their financial situation by then, Financial Times Fund Management reports. The Netherlands central bank is requiring assets at pension funds to represent at least 105% of liabilities by the end of 2013. In order to achieve that objective, 81% of them will have to reduce benefits to current pensioners, according to the most recent available figures.
09/10/2012

AGI single-handedly posts inflows twice higher than the industry

In January-August, asset management firms belonging to the German BVI association for the sector posted net subscriptions of EUR7.85bn for their security funds. With EUR12.35bn going to Pimco, the Allianz Asset Management group alone posted inflows of EUR15.41bn.The other big winner in the first two thirds of the year is Union Investment (Co-operative banks), with net subscriptions of EUR2.37bn.However, the other two top actors in the sector show outflows, with net redemptions of EUR3.57bn for Deka (savings banks) and EUR3.82bn for Deutsche Bank.ETFs posted outflows, aside from products from ETFlab (Deka group), which posted net inflows of EUR427.6m: the other three major promoters belonging to the BVI have seen outflows of more than EUR800m each: EUR879.7m from iShares (BlackRok), EUR807.8m from db x-trackers (Deutsche Bank), and EUR802.2m from ComStage (Commerzbank).
09/10/2012

Record AUM for German asset management industry

As of the end of August, assets under management by companies belonging to the German BVI trade group totalled a new record of EUR1.93698trn, compared with EUR1.92624trn as of the end of July, and EUR1.76221trn one year previously.Net subscriptions totalled EUR4.39bn in August, compared with EUR6.69bn the previous month, to a total of EUR48.99bn in the first eight months of the year, compared with EUR13.13bn in January-August 2011.However, in the first eight months of the year, open-ended equity funds underwent net outflows of EUR5.9bn, while net redemptions total EUR3.72bn for garanteed funds and EUR1.73bn for money market funds. Open-ended bond funds, however, benefited from net subscriptions of EUR18.44bn.Institutional funds had inflows of a net EUR40.375bn, compared with EUR20.379bn for the corresponding period of last year. Mandates managed outside funds underwent net redemptions of EUR1.81bn in January-August, compared with EUR3.64bn in the first eight months of 2011.
09/10/2012

MainFirst launches first bond fund

On 12 October, the German firm MainFirst Asset Management will launch its first bond fund, an emerging market corporate debt fund domiciled in Luxembourg, the MainFirst Emerging Markets Corporate Bond Fund Balanced. The product has received a sales license from BaFin (Germany), FMA (Austria) and Finma (Switzerland).The portfolio, managed by Thomas Rutz and Cornel Bruhin, will invest in corporate bonds from Latin America, Eastern Europe, Africa and Asia. The fund will be “balanced,” because it will invest in high yield securities as well as in quality investment grade bonds, and because the weighting per country will be limited, as will be the weight of each holding (3%).Currency risks are hedged for all currencies, US dollars, euros or Swiss francs.CharacteristicsName: MainFirst Emerging Markets Corporate Bond Fund BalancedISIN codesRetailA shares (in USD) : LU0816909013A1 shares (in CHF) : LU0816909286A2 shares (in EUR) : LU0816909369Minimal subscription: USD/CHF/EUR2,500Management commission: 1.2%InstitutionalC shares (USD) : LU0816909955C1 shares (CHF) : LU0816910292C2 shares (EUR) : LU0816910375Minimal subscription: USD/CHF/EUR500,000Management commission: 0.8%
09/10/2012

Julius Baer: 80% of assets at Merrill Lynch will have been transferred by the end of 2013

The Julius Baer private bank on 9 October released an informational supplement on the integration of wealth management activities of Merrill Lynch outside the United States. Baer states that 80% of assets under management related to this transaction will have been transferred by the end of 2013.At an investor day in London, Julius Baer will also announce that job cuts related to the operation will represent 15% to 18% of staff, and that the cost-income ratio for international wealth management (IWM) activities will come in at about 70%.The impact of the transaction on per-share profits is expected to be neutral in 2014, but to favour an increase of 15% in 2015.As of the end of August 2012, assets under management at Julius Baer total CHF184bn, up CHF14bn, or 8%, compared with the end of December 2011.
09/10/2012

Yves Thieffry appointed as CEO of Société Générale Private Banking (Switzerland)

As announced by Newsmanagers on 3 August 2012, the management of Société Générale Private Banking has this year undergone a reorganisation. As a part of this process, the appointment of Yves Thieffry as CEO of Société Générale Private Banking (Switzerland) has recently been announced by the firm. Thieffry is responsible for the management and development of Societe Generale Private Banking (Suisse) SA and its subsidiaries. Yves Thieffry succeeds Guillaume Lejoindre, who becomes chairman of the board of directors of Société Générale Private Banking (Switerland) SA, replacing Jean-François Mazaud, head of the Société Générale Private Banking, who remains a member of the board of director in Switzerland and becomes its vice president.
09/10/2012

EFG Financial Products launches IPO

The Zurich-based banking group EFG International is launching an IPO process on the Swiss stock exchange for its unit dedicated to structured investment products. The subscription price for equities will total between CHF40 and CHF50, with the first day of listing scheduled for 19 October.The placement operation for EFG Financial Products, announced on 25 Sptember, will bring in CHF51m to CHF64m for EFG International. If the full greenshoe option is activated, the total will be in a range from CHF63m to CHF78m, the company announced in a statement on 8 October.The proceeds will have no impact on profits at EFG International, insofar as the entity placed on the stock market will continue to be fully consolidated within the group, a statement says. Tier 1 equity will be improved with the move, with a BRI total capital ratio up to about 17%.Once the IPO is complete, EFG International will still control at least 20% of capital in EFG Financial Products Holding, compared with about 58% currently. The stake will continue to be locked in for a 12-month period starting from the first day of trading.The deal is based on a basic offering of a maximum of 2,937,137 shares. EFG International will sell 1,270,472 at most of the existing shares it holds. Subscribers may profit from a greenshoe option of 293,713 shares at most, within 30 days from 19 October.The bookbuilding began on Monday, and will complete on 18 October at noon. The issue price will be set on Friday, 19 October, before the market opens. The initial capitalisation will total between CHF267m and CHF333m, with a float of 44%, or 49% with the greenshoe option.
09/10/2012

Cyrille de Montgolfier appointed head of European and institutional affairs at AXA

AXA on 8 October announced the appointment of Cyrille de Montgolfier as director of European and institutional affairs for the group. De Montgolfier, previously head of the Central and Eastern European region, replaces Jérôme Hamilius, who has decided to leave the group. In his new role, he will report to Denis Duverne, deputy CEO of the Axa Group.Jef Van In is taking over as director of the Central and Eastern European region. These new responsibilities come in addition to his current responsibilities as CEO of AXA Bank Europe. In both cases, he reports to Jacques de Vaucleroy, CEO for the Northern, Central and Eastern European region, and international head of life, savings, retirement and health insurance activities.The two appointments will take effect from 15 October 2012.
09/10/2012

BNY Mellon builds up in Asia

BNY Mellon on Monday announced it has appointed Navin Suri as Asia-Pacific (APAC) Head of Intermediary Distribution to spearhead the expansion of the company’s distribution partnerships in the region. He will be responsible for developing and managing the build out of the APAC intermediary sales strategy and distribution channel network and relationships, mainly new partnerships with consumer banks, private banks and family offices, insurance and pension providers, securities companies, IFAs and other financial intermediaries.Based in Hong Kong, Suri will report into Alan Harden, CEO for BNY Mellon’s APAC investment management business, and to PeterPaul Pardi, BNY Mellon’s head of global distribution, based in London. Suri joins BNY Mellon’s APAC Investment Management Executive Committee and BNY Mellon’s APAC Operating Committee.Suri joins BNY Mellon from ING Investment Management where he was MD and CEO for the firm’s business in India.
09/10/2012

Alfred Berg takes over management of funds of funds

On 15 November, the Swedish group Länsförsäkringar, specialised in insurance, will be outsourcing the management of its funds of funds to Alfred Berg, the Scandinavian affiliate of BNP Paribas. These activities represent assets of SEK4.8bn. The fixed income and asset allocation team, led by Stefan Gothenby, will be responsible for managing the funds.
09/10/2012

BGAM launches platform to accomodate UCITs hedge funds

HedgeWeek reports that Bryan, Garnier Asset Management (BGAM) has recently launched the Bryan Garnier Umbrella Fund SICAV plc domiciled in Malta and managed by Paris-based BGAM. This platform aims to introduce a range of US hedge funds into the UCITS universe. The first US sub-fund to join the platform is Denver-based Madison Street Partners (USD175m in AUM), an equity long/short shop
09/10/2012

Investec opens office in Singapore

Investec Asset Management has opened an office in Singapore and installed Tobie van Heerden as head of institutional sales for South-East Asia and Korea, Asian Investor reports.
09/10/2012

SSgA Jacqueline Pang as head of CM for SPDR ETFs

State Street Global Advisors (SSgA) announced it has appointed Jacqueline Pang as the Head of Capital Markets for SPDR ETFs, Asia Pacific.Based in Hong Kong, Pang will be responsible for overseeing and driving SSgA’s exchange traded funds (ETF) global capital markets’ group activities.
09/10/2012

PriorNilsson launches Swedish equity fund

PriorNilsson Fonder, a Swedish asset management firm which manages two hedge funds, is launching a Swedish equity fund, Fondbranschen reports. The management firm is hoping to attract investors with active management and competitive fees (1% management fees).

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