In the 2011 fiscal year, consolidated net profits at Carmignac Gestion have fallen to EUR281.71m, from EUR478.32m in 2010, a contraction of 41.1%.Assets as of 31 December, for their part, totalled EUR45bn, compared with EUR55bn. The French asset management firm has seen net redemptions of EUR6.98bn, compared with EUR16.9bn in net subscriptions in 2010.The AGM on 31 May resolved to distribute a dividend for 2011 of EUR130 per share, unchanged compared with the 2010 dividend.
Assets under management at Acropole Asset Management as of the end of May totalled EUR700m, compared with about EUR750m at the end of December 2011. The firm states that it has not seen redemptions in the past few months. A decline in assets compared with the end of 2011 is largely due to significant market effects.The new volatility long/short fund, launched in November Acropole Vol Opportunities (see Newsmanagers of 31 October 2011), managed by Brice Perrin, has now attracted about EUR25m in investments, without seed money.At a breakfast seminar, Emmanuel Martin, director of management at Acropole AM, claimed that convertibles in the midcaps segment are still sensibly priced.“The markdown is less extreme than at the end of 2011, but it is about 5% in annual terms,” says Martin, adding that the pricing of large cap convertibles is currently in line with their value.
The law firm Franklin is continuing its development with the creation of a real estate practice, bringing the number of lawyers on its staff to slightly over 50. François Verdot, previously at the law firm Salans, is joining the law firm with a team of specialists, including Jérémy Chiche and Laurence d’Orso, as “Of Counsels,” and Jérémy Goldblum et Laurence Yamnaine. With more than 15 years of experience in property law, Verdot is aiming to offer an international quality standard service in five areas: Asset Management, Private Equity Real Estate, Corporate Real Estate Service, Legal Actions and Real Estate Auditing.
BNP Paribas Real Estate in 5 June announced that it has signed a partnership in Turkey with the Kuzey Bati company. The contract between the two groups covers trading, advising expertise and real estate property management. The BNP Paribas group is already present in Turkey via the TEB bank, at the head of a network of about 500 branches, with about 10,000 employees, with which BNP Paribas Real Estate is hoping to develop major synergies.
The German real estate investment firm Alstria Office Reit-EG Has acquired the “Dive Portfolio,” which includes five properties located in Dusseldorf, Frankfurt and Hamburg, BNP Paribas Real Estate announced on 5 June. The transaction was undertaken by BNP Paribas Real Estate Germany under an exclusive mandate. The acquisition price was about EUR90m.
Mark Howard-Johnson, CIO of Building & Land Technology, and previously global head & CIO of Reit management at Goldman Sachs Asset Management, is joining BlackRock as global head of real estate securities management. He becomes head of the global real estate securities, an investment platform which has recently been created to draw the benefits of the long experience of the asset management firm in the area of real estate investment and fundamental equity.By the end of the year, Howard-Johnson will have constructed a global team of six investment professionals who will work in close collaboration with the research teams at BlackRock in the areas of real estate, and with other investment specialists at the group.Jack Chandler, global head of real estate, says that BlackRock is already the largest asset management firm in the Reit segment, and may soon offer institutional and retail clients actively-managed products.
In the first four months of this year, Oddo Asset Management has posted net subscriptions of EUR225m, largely to Oddo Rendement 2017 (EUR330m in inflows), despite EUR300m in institutional redemptions, which largely penalised equity products.As of the end of March, assets totalled about EUR12bn, compared with EUR11.22bn as of the end of 2011.Currently, the asset management firm in in the sales process with Oddo Haut Rendement 2017, the “little brother” of Oddo rendement 2017,” which is focused on high yield investments (see Newsmanagers of 10 May).In an environment of considerable uncertainty, the balanced model portfolio at Oddo AM has about 50% money markets, where recent profit-taking on US equities has been reinvested, until risk is taken on again after visibility improves. Mirela Agache-Durand, head of diversified and multi-management, explains.In the mid-term, after the end of June, Oddo AM intends to selectively position itself on emerging markets and euro zone equities (where the bad news is virtually all priced in), and to return to emerging market debt denominated in strong currencies (“no debt from virtuous countries”), to increase exposure to credit, “a good substitute for equities,” and convertibles. Agache-Durand is also planning to selective return to some public debt, such as Italian 2-year bonds, which pay returns of 4.5%, putting the attraction of high yield bonds in perspective...
The Swiss asset management firm Partners Group is investing an undisclosed amount in Thailand on behalf of its clients, in Wind Energy Holdings, a wind energy project, the firm announced in a statement on 5 June. The business includes two neighbouring wind arms, located in Korat province, one of the windiest regions of the country.
Alexander S. Friedman, who is already chief investment officer at UBS Wealth Management (UBS WM) since 1 March, after several years of service as chief financial officer at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, has been appointed as «global» CIO for wealth management at the UBS group, according to an internal memo obtained by Bloomberg and relayed by finews. With this appointment, Friedman becomes responsible for investments and analysis in all regions of the world, where previously he had been responsible for all regions except the American continent. The appointment of Friedman has been approved by Jürg Zeltner, CEO of UBS Wealth Management, and Robert J. McCann, CEO of UBS Group Americas.Mike Ryan will remain as director of research for wealth management in the Americas, where he will also be chief investment strategist. Anthony Roth, director of wealth management strategy, will take over as head of asset allocation and portfolio structuring for the Americas. They will both report to Friedman, and regionally, to Bill Carroll, head of investment solutions for the Americas.Andreas Höfert, who will continue to serve as CIO for Europe, becomes also chief economist for the Americas.
Sallfort Privatbank has appointed Mike Baur as head of private banking activities. Baur, who will begin in his new role in early October, will also join the board at the firm. Baur had most recently been head of private banking for Switzerland at Calriden Leu, an affiliate of Credit Suisse.
Gestora de Fonds del Mediterraneo (Gestimed), the asset management firm for Caja de Ahorros del Mediterraneo (Banca CAM), on 1 June filed that all of its capital is now controlled by Banco de Sabadell, which has acquired CAM, the CNMV announced on 4 June. Sabadell also becomes owner of Gestión de Activos del Mediterraneo, the depository for Gestimed funds.The transaction brings assets at Gestimed, totalling EUR410m, within the perimeter of the asset management firm Bansabadell Inversión, whose assets under maangement now total EUR4.148bn (as of the end of May), in addition to which EUR1bn are under management in the real estate fund Sabadell BS Inmobiliario. This is not enough for Bansabedell to overtake Ahorro Corporación (EUR4.665bn) to become the seventh-largest Spanish asset management firm by assets in securities funds.Meanwhile, the number of Bansabadell Sicav funds has increased to 43, including the four Gestimed funds, Funds People reports, not counting the EUR872m in the 134 Sicav funds from Urquijo Gestión, also an affiliate of Sabadell.
The investment board of the Oregon state public pension fund has pledged USD225m for a second Asian fund managed by the private equity group KKR. The Oregon fund had previously invested USD110m in the first Asian fund managed by KKR in 2007. The second Asian fund from KKR will concentrate its investments on consumer goods, the manufacturing and healthcare industries, and infrastructure projects in emerging and developed Asian markets.
Siparex on 5 June announced the final closing of its Siparex MidCap II fund at EUR130m. Idinvest Partners and a Canadian investor were the final additions to the initial circle of investors announced in January with EUR120m in total. The final size of the fund exceeds the previous record (EUR124m) and is at the top of the target range. Siparex MidCap II has the suport of the Crédit Agricole group (Crédit Agricole Centre Est and Predica, loyal subscribers to Siparex, and the seven regional banks of the Crédit Agricole group: Champagne Bourgogne, Franche Comté, Nord Est, Sud Rhône Alpes, Loire Haute Loire, Ile de France and Atlantique Vendée), the largest investor in the vehicle, for a total of EUR40m. This engagement includes a commercial partnership to increase opportunities to assist businesses in the region. Among the other major subscribers to Siparex MidCap II are Siparex Associés, sponsor of the Siparex fund, CDC Enterprises via the France Investissement programme, which it leads on behalf of the FSI and family offices (with a total of EUR30m). Siparex MidCap II aims to participate in private equity and transmission operations, at independent, growing businesses valued at between EUR10m and EUR40m, for a total of 20 investments of EUR2m, EUR5m or EUR10m. The first investments are in the process of being finalised.
Exane Asset Management has signed an agreement with BNP Paribas Wealth Management, which will offer the long/short market neutral European equity fund Exane Cristal fund of funds for sale in Spain. The fund was launched a year ago, and was registered with the CNMV in late 2011, Funds People reports.The product, with daily liquidity, is an “exact clone” of the Pleiade 5 fund, launched in 2007. It also invests exclusively in Exane funds, and aims for absolute returns (300 to 500 basis points above the Eonia) and volatility of less than 5%.
The Swiss group Syz & Co has announced that it has recently received permission to release the Global High Yield and European Selection sub-funds of its Oyster Sicav in Spain, Funds People reports. The former fund is managed by Seix Investmnts, while the latter is managed by Eric Bendahan. Oyster now offers 23 strategies to Spanish professionals.
On 1 June, the CNMV issued permission for the asset management firm Renta 4 and the Spanish arm of BNP Paribas Securities Services, as depository, to undertake a merger by absorption of the fund of funds Renta 4 Minerva into the Spanish-registered hedge fund Swing Trading KA’U Value, a specialist in long/short equities and relative value. As of the end of April, Minerva had only EUR1m, and Swing Trading Ka’U had assets of EUR1.3m, Funds People reports.
The French asset management sector is going to face intensified competition, on the one hand from the “consumer-oriented” financial industry (banks and insurers) and market-oriented banks (investment and financial banks), due to new regulatory requirements, such as Basel III and Solvency II, which these competitors will be required to comply with, and on the other hand from management or fund domicile centres in Europe and internationally, the French financial management association (AFG) warns in an editorial in its annual report, published this Tuesday.In order to remain competitive, the French asset management sector needs balanced European regulation including packaged retail investment products (PRIPs), and an application of European directives by various countries “with strict competitive equality.”In addition, the AFG recommends that European react even more forcefully than it is now to the US authorities on the subject of regulations outside European territory, such as the Dodd-Frank Act, the Volcker Rule and FATCA, which will be likely to affect French asset management firms. The AFG warns that Europe will have to learn how use legislation as a competitive weapon on behalf of industries under its control.The association has also called for encouragement of long-term savings with regulatory and tax incentives. “The longer-term savings are and the more they are invested in equities, the lower taxes should be.”
Le fonds de private equity va racheter à Advent International, Berkshire Partners et Weston Presidio, ainsi qu’au management, une participation majoritaire dans Party City, le numéro un américain des articles liés à la fête. L’investissement s’élève à 2,7 milliards de dollars. Les actionnaires actuels conserveront des « participations minoritaires significatives ».
Le marché boursier américain devrait présenter aujourd’hui même son projet de dédommagement des investisseurs à la suite des problèmes rencontrés à l’occasion de l’introduction en Bourse de Facebook le mois dernier. Le Nasdaq en a informé selon le quotidien certains courtiers. Le projet sera déposé auprès du gendarme des marchés, la SEC.
Les présidents russe et chinois ont dessiné hier les contours d’un plan ambitieux de coopération commerciale visant à faire passer les échanges entre les deux pays de 83,5 milliards de dollars en 2011 à 200 milliards en 2020. Ils ont également lancer officiellement un fonds commun pour des investissements en Russie. Les deux pays pourraient initier prochainement des échanges directs rouble-yuan, à l’instar des premiers échanges yen-yuan.
Le ministre des finances russe, Anton Siluanov, a indiqué au journal Echo of Moscow qu’il n’anticipait plus de «fluctuations significatives» concernant le taux de change du rouble. La devise a dévissé de 15% le mois dernier contre un panier de devises, selon Bloomberg. Et Anton Siluanov de s’inquiéter des effets inflationnistes de cette tendance.
Le fonds Morgan Stanley Infrastructure Partners serait en négociations préliminaires avec Lanco Infratech concernant la cession par ce dernier de quelque 401 kilomètres de projets autoroutiers à différents stades d’avancement en Inde. Après s’être «brulés les doigts» dans le secteur de l’énergie, les acteurs du private equity s’intéressent désormais à des projets moins risqués selon le quotidien.