Les souscripteurs du fonds DEGI International clients d’Allianz Allemagne leurs parts de ce fonds immobilier dont la liquidation a été décidée le 25 octobre se voient proposer sous certaines conditions le rachat de leurs titres à 42,78 euros l’unité.Au 3 novembre, le cours théorique de rachat d’une part était de 42,80 euros.Selon Fondsprofessionell, cette offre valable jusqu’au 15 février 2012 est restreinte aux investisseurs qui ont acquis les parts du fonds avant le gel des remboursements le 17 novembre sur les conseils d’Allianz. Il faut en outre que ces parts figurent sur un compte auprès d’Allianz Bank ou d’Allianz Global Investors.

La grande caisse d'épargne de Hambourg, Hamburger Sparkasse ou Haspa, a confié un mandat d’administration de fonds institutionnels à BNY Mellon Service KAG pour le suivi des limites d’investissement concernant un encours de 1,4 milliard d’euros. C’est le huitième client allemand à sous-traiter l’administration de fonds à cette filiale allemande du groupe BNY Mellon.

Le fonds de dotation du Louvre (120 millions d’euros d’actifs) s’intéresse aux actions des marchés frontières. La fondation envisage également de modifier la répartition de ses actifs de 30 à 40 % d’actions. Nous réfléchissons à la meilleure façon d’investir dans les marchés émergents a déclaré le directeur du fonds de dotation, Thierry Brevet au site d’informations Mandatewire. Il affirme sa préférence pour l’investissement dans des entreprises implantées au sein des marchés émergents plutôt que les multinationales qui y sont exposées, en privilégiant l’investissement dans les moyennes entreprises. Mais identifier ce type d’investissement avec un quelconque degré d’incertitude s’avère compliqué ajoute-t-il. Le plus efficace à ce stade serait d’investir dans un fonds Monde, tout en surveillant la qualité des actions qu’il contient. Le fonds de dotation est déjà présent sur les marchés émergents de manière passive avec de la société de gestion BlackRock. Son directeur souhaiterait plus activement détenir des encours sur ces marchés. De plus, la fondation a élargit son horizon jusqu’en 2016 et a revu à la hausse la proportion d’actions dans son portefeuille, afin de passer de 30 à 40 %. Pour Thierry Brevet, une période plus longue autorise de prendre un peu plus de risques et permet ainsi de profiter d’actifs plus attractifs. En contrepartie, la part obligataire du portefeuille a été réduite du côté de la dette souveraine pour ne conserver que des encours d’excellente qualité. En septembre, la proportion de dette souveraine dans le portefeuille de la fondation était de plus de 35 %. L’allocation stratégique est désormais composée de 40 % d’actions (large et mid caps mondiales, small caps aux Etats-Unis en Europe et dans les pays émergents) et 60 % d’obligations (à taux fixe, les obligations gouvernementales étant indexées sur l’inflation en euros ou en obligations couvertes et les entreprises en euros ou couverts).

Emergence, le fonds d’incubation pour les sociétés de gestion, devrait être lancé officiellement fin novembre, rapporte L’Agefi Hebdo. Le fonds était quasiment prêt fin juillet pour un lancement en septembre. Toutefois, après l'été complexe traversée par la Bourse, ce n'était plus le moment, explique Alain Leclair, qui pilote le projet Emergence en tant que membre du comité de direction de Finance Innovation et président d’honneur de l’Association française de gestion financière (AFG). En plus de la Caisse des dépôts, qui a immédiatement manifesté son intérêt, plusieurs compagnies d’assurances et caisses de retraite vont également prendre part au projet. Nous avions initialement envisagé de lever 250 millions d’euros de capitaux mais nous allons nous lancer avec 100 millions, puis effectuer un deuxième appel début 2012, expose Alain Leclair.

Julia Reher, senior institutional sales manager at State Street Global Advisors (SSgA) in Munich, has joined the institutional distribution team at Pioneer Investments Germany as senior director – institutional clients. She will be in charge of relationship management for business clients and pension funds.Pioneer has also recruited a new senior sales officer for Spain and Portugal, Teresa Molins, who will be the alter ego of Almudena Mendaza, and will report to José Castellano, head of the Iberian markets, North America (offshore) and Latin America.Molins had previously been in charge of investor relations for the wedding specialist website Bodaclick.com, after serving as director of bond sales at Dresdner Kleinwort and Merrill Lynch Capital Markets.

Joseph Linhares, managing director, has announced that iShares is currently considering launching ETFs of equity and bond ETFs.The head of the firm for the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region has revealed that the asset management firm is considering importing asset allocation solutions to Europe based on quantitative models, which would invest in ETFs without necessarily being ETFs themselves. iShares may also design products using fundamental methods, but that would probably pose both legal and industrial secrecy issues, related to timing disclosure of the composition of portfolios so as not to reveal the alpha signal too quickly. But this would be something near active management...However, Linhares is hostile to the notion of launching reverse and/or leveraged ETFs, which may be dangerous for retail investors, who find it difficult to understand the methodology and performance of these products over the long term.

Two former bank executives, Robert Zimmermann and Matthias Schulthess, have founded SchulthessZimmermann, a headhunting agency based in Zurich, Agefi Switzerland reports. The firm, which will have offices in London, plans to recruit specialists in private banking, capital markets, and asset management. Zimmermann comes from Goldman Sachs in Switzerland, while Schuthess comes from UBS.

The members of the management and board of directors, and some executives at the private bank Julius Baer have been asked to forego a part of their income. The percentage requested is 5% to 10% of net income, a spokesperson for the bank, Jan Vonder Muehll, told the news agency AWP on 3 November. The remainder of cost savings will come from natural departures, and from a program entitled “HR Tool Box,” according to the spokesperson. The program includes an offer from the bank to its employees to reduce their working hours under certain conditions, or to take unpaid leave. A variety of cost reduction measures were announced internally last month. The Swiss group employs about 3,600 people.

Assets under management at Pictet & Cie increased by 1% in third quarter, the news agency Bloomberg reports. Excluding funds under administration, client assets totalled CHF252bn as of the end of September, compared with CHF249.8bn as of the end of June. The Geneva-based bank has posted net subscriptions to funds from France in particular. “The overall total in wealth management is significantly positive,” says Jacques de Saussure, managing partner at the Geneva-based bank. Including funds under administration, client assets at the private bank total CHF365bn.

La Tribune reports that Overlay AM (OAM), a unit of BNP Paribas Investment Partenrs (IP) specialised in currency management, may be merged into BNPP IP, or into Theam. The aim is for the asset management business line at BNP Paribas to contribute in the reduction of the bank’s balance sheet. If Overlay is integrated, the brand would disappear, and part of the team may not be hired back, the newspaper adds.

The German asset management firm SEB Asset Management on 3 November announced that its open-ended real estate fund SEB ImmoInvest (DE0009802306), from which redemptions have been frozen for one and a half years (see Newsmanagers of 10 May 2010), has successfully sold 10 properties for EUR680m.The properties are located in the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, France and the United States, and are said to have been sold at an average of 0.5% above their current market value. The sales will increase liquidity in the fund to 21.8% of assets (EUR6.33bn as of the end of September), or EUR1.4bn. Total property sales now come to 14 properties, for over EUR910m.In these conditions, SEB AM remains confident that it will be possible to reopen the fund before the deadline of 5 May 2012, beyond which date the firm would be legally required to liquidate the product.

On its website, HypoVereinsbank (HVB, UniCredit group) is recommending an investment in shares in the open-ended real estate fund CS Euroreal from Credit Suisse Germany to investors. However, Die Welt reports, redemptions from the EUR6.1bn funds are frozen.Although the bank considers that this well-managed real estate fund offers attractive prospects of returns for long-term investors, consumer defence associations in Hamburg and Bremen have called the recommendation “scandalous,” because the risks are so high. If the asset management firm does not manage to mobilise enough liquidity, the fund may have to be liquidated from May 2012.Die Welt has also pointed out that shares in the CS Euroreal fund sold by HVB generate 5% commissions for the bank, which neglects to mention to investors that they can buy shares in the fund on the stock market, currently at a 17.7% discount.

Clients of Allianz Germany who subscribed to the DEGI International fund, a real estate fund whose liquidation was announced on 25 October, may be offered redemption of their shares at EUR42.78 each, under certain conditions.As of 3 November, the theoretical redemption price was EUR42.80 per share.Fondsprofessionell reports that the offer, valid until 15 February 2012, is restricted to investors who bought their shares in the fund before redemptions were frozen by Aberdeen on 17 November. The shares also need to be held in an account at Allianz Bank or Allianz Global Investors.

The Liechtenstein private bank Frick has obtained permission from the British authorities to open an office in London, Agefi Switzerland reports. The bank is hoping to make it possible for British taxpayers to legalise their worldwide savings which are not subject to tax.

The Canadian asset management firm Manulife has announced net inflows of USD2.9bn in third quarter for its United States affiliate John Hancock Mutual Funds, up 27% compared with third quarter 2010. In the first nine months of the year, inflows totalled USD10bn, already more than all inflows in 2010 (USD9.7bn). Assets under management at John Hancock totalled USD33.4bn as of 30 September 2011, up 6% year on year. Manulife Asset Management, for its part, finished the quarter with USD173.3bn in assets under management for external clients. These assets are down by USD5.3bn compared with 30 June 2011, largely due to negative market effects, which were slightly offset by net subscriptions and the appreciation of the US dollar against the Canadian dollar. Total assets under management at the group as of 30 September totalled USD492bn, up by USD11bn compared with 30 June, and by USD16bn compared with 30 September 2010. The profitability of investments has contributed to a gain of USD13bn in twelve months. The Manulife group nonetheless saw a net loss of CAD1.27bn in third quarter, compared with a loss of CAD2.25bn in the corresponding period of 2010. In nine months, the group has posted net profits of CAD198m, compared with a loss of CAD3.46bn in the first nine months of 2010.

Aberdeen Asset Management has launched an additional multi-asset class fund for Mike Turner, with an emerging markets bias, Investment Week reports. The Aberdeen Diversified Growth fund will have a reduced exposure to equities, instead favouring bonds and alternative assets.

British retail investors may now complement their allocation to equity and bond products with the Skandia Global Futures Fund, which invests in the managed futures market (with a volume of USD290bn). Sales and distribution of the Irish-registered, UCITS-compliant product, a sub-fund of the Skandia Global Funds Sicav, will be provided for Skandia Investment Group (SIG) by the London-based Aspect Capital, a manager specialised in managed futures, with assets as of 1 October of USD6bn. The fund will start up with USD25m in investments from SIG clients. With the choice of Aspect Capital as a partner, SIG is seeking returns comparable to those of the Diversified Programme from Aspect Capital, Aspect’s flagship strategy, which is available to qualified institutional investors, and which has a track record of over 12 years. Characteristics Name: Skandia Global Futures Fund ISIN codes: IE00B4Z94309 (GBP share class)IE00B6SRG396 (Usd share class) Management commission: 2% Performance commission: 20%, with high watermark

Assets under management at the alternative management firm Och-Ziff Capital Management Group as of the end of September totalled USD28.8bn, compared with USD29.8bn as of 30 June 2011, and USD26.5bn as of the end of September 2010. Growth of USD2.3bn, or 9%, year on year reflects net inflows of USD1.6bn and performance-related appreciation of USD767.6m. Och-Ziff in third quarter earned profits of USD49.9m, compared with USD52.1m in third quarter 2010.

For third quarter 2011, Prudential Financial has announced net profits of USD1.5bn, compared with USD1.16bn in the corresponding period of last year. Operating profits for the asset management activity totalled USD123m, compared with USD148m in July-September 2010. Assets in the asset management division as of 30 September totalled USD599.4bn, up 16% (USD518.1bn) year on year. For the group as a whole, assets totalled USD871bn, compared with USD784bn as of the end of December, and USD750.1bn as of the end of September 2010.

Schroders has recruited two former employees of Axa Investment Managers for its sales teams based in Paris. Aurore Wannesson-Raynaud, who had previously been director, senior product specialist, fixed income at Axa IM, has been appointed as head of sales for institutional clients. She will report to Mustapha Bouheraoua, director of institutional clients at Schroders France. Thomas Strievi, who had served as product specialist at AXA IM in the Invesments Solutions division, becomes head of commercial distribution. He will report to Alexandre Gabus, director of distribution at Schroders France. The recruitments, which were expected, follow a reorganisation of the sales team at Schroders in Paris (see Newsmanagers of 27 April 2011).

PAI Partners on 3 November announced the arrival of Charles Bouaziz in the consumer goods activity based in Paris. He will oversee the Portfolio Performance Group, which is dedicated to optimising the operational performance of companies in the PAI portfolio. Bouaziz had previously been senior adviser to PAI for nearly a year. From 1991 to 2010, he was one of the major architects of growth at PepsiCo in Europe, where he began as head of the French franchise and eventually became CEO for western Europe.

The largest savings bank in Hamburg, Hamburger Sparkasse, or Haspa, has awarded an institutional fund administration mandate to BNY Mellon Service KAG, to monitor investment limits on assets of EUR1.4bn. The bank becomes the eighth German client to outsource its funds administration to the German affiliate of the BNY group.

Eaton Vance Management has announced the launch of a mutual fund investing in a wide range of asset classes. The Eaton Vance Multi-Strategy All Market Fund may invest in equities, bonds, and alternative investments, allocating the fund’s assets to portfolios from Eaton Vance. The product is managed by the Eaton Vance Customized Solutions Group team, which reports to Jeffrey Rawlins and Dan Strelow. Target volatility for the Eaton Vance Multi-Strategy All Market Fund is 4% to 14% per year, a statement adds.

Ashmore Investment Management Limited, specialist manager of emerging market debt and equity securities, with assets under management of USD58.9 billion has announced the launch of the Ashmore SICAV Emerging Markets Global Equity Fund and the Ashmore SICAV Emerging Markets Global Small-Cap Equity Fund, which further complement its existing SICAV fixed income funds. These two new SICAV funds bring the total of equity-focused Ashmore SICAV funds to three and complement the existing Ashmore SICAV Emerging Markets Fixed Income range of 13 funds, with a total of USD6.4bn of assets under management across all SICAVs. All Ashmore funds focus exclusively on emerging markets. The emerging markets fixed income strategies include external debt, local currency, local currency bond as well as corporate debt, blended debt (“total return”) and multi strategy investing. The Ashmore SICAV Emerging Markets Global Equity fund will invest in equities issued by corporates and quasi-sovereigns whereas the Ashmore SICAV Emerging Markets Global Small-Cap Equity fund will invest in equities issued by small-cap corporates with a market cap of up to USD2 billion and quasi-sovereigns. The funds will be managed by AshmoreEMM, a member of the Ashmore Group.

Ashmore, the London based emerging markets asset manager, has appointed Dominick Peasley as head of European third party distribution. Reporting directly to Christoph Hofmann, Ashmore’s global head of distribution, he is based at Ashmore’s London office and responsible for establishing key relationships with retail and wholesale distributors. Dominick Peasley joins Ashmore from Goldman Sachs Asset Management where he was an Executive Director, heading UK third party distribution. This recruitment is part of the ongoing effort to complement Ashmore’s predominantly institutional business. Approximately 87% of Ashmore’s assets under management (USD58.9bn) are from institutional investors from across the globe, including central banks, sovereign wealth funds, public and corporate pensions and insurance companies.

Skandia UK, an affiliate of Old Mutual Wealth Management, on 3 November announced that in the first nine months of this year, it registered net subscriptions of GBP1.8bn, 5% less than in the corresponding period of 2010, while net subscriptions to retail funds in the United Kingdom overall fell by 26%.Net subscriptions for the Skandia Investment Solutions platform increased 4% year on year, to GBP2.8bn.As of the end of September, total assets at Skandia UK came to GBP32.2bn, 5% less than at the end of December 2010, while the FTSE 100 index in the same period lost 13%.

BlackRock has announced that Paul Tebbit has joined its UK Real Estate team as a director. He will take a leading role in the management of BlackRock’s strategic joint venture investments, as well as sourcing new opportunities for the UK Property Fund. He will report to Jeff Morton, head of investment and managing director in BlackRock’s Real Estate team. Most recently Paul Tebbit worked as a director for Telereal Trillium, which is part of the William Pears Group, and specialised in the origination of real estate and corporate investment opportunities, debt raising, valuation and transaction structuring.

Polar Capital has announced the appointment of Ton Tija, who will be in charge of launching a European Market Neutral strategy for the group. Tija will also contribute more generally to enriching the UCITS product range in the next few months. Tija previously worked at Ratio Asset Management, where he managed a European strategy. Polar Capital has also announced the launch of a long-only fund dedicated to US equities, which will be managed by two managers who arrived at the firm in August this year from Threadneedle, Andrew Holliman and Richard Wilson. The Polar Capital North American fund, which will be domiciled in Dublin as a UCITS fund, will be launched on 15 November.

Assets under management at Man Group as of 30 September totalled USD64.5bn, compared with USD69.1bn as of the end of March 2011, the group announced in its interim report on the half year to the end of September, on 3 November. The decline in assets reflects subscriptions of USD1bn, redemptions of USD2.5bn, negative market effect of USD1.4bn, and other movements totalling -USD1.7bn. Assets under management at AHL as of the end of September totalled USD24.4bn, compared with USD23.9bn as of the end of June, while GLG Alternatives had USD16.5bn, compared with USD20.2bn, long-only funds had USD10.9bn, compared with USD13.7bn, and the multi-management unit had USD12.7bn, compared with USD13.2bn. The group emphasizes that redemptions slowed in October, Assets under management totalled USD63.5bn as of 31 October 2011. Pre-tax profits in the six months to the end of September totalled USD154m, compared with USD115m in the half-year to the end of March 2011.

According to a survey by ETF Securities, total assets in commodities ETFs worldwide increased by USD3.7bn in third quarter, to a historic record of USD178.2bn as of 30 September.This increase conceals divergent evolutions, with an increase of USD11.8bn for precious metals ETFs, while ETPs backed by other commodities lost USD8.1bn in assets.For gold ETPs, assets increased by USD13.7bn in July-September, to a total of USD121.7bn. The funds posted net subscriptions of USD5.8bn in the period under review.