Deutsche Börse has announced that it has admitted four new German-registered ETFs from the British provider ETF Securities to trading on the XTF segment of its Xetra electronic platform. Three of these funds are based on equities indices. They are the TFX Dow Jones Brookfield Global Infrastructure (DE000A1H8092), with fees of 0.60%, the ETFX Dow Jones Brookfield Emerging Markets Infrastructure (DE000A1H8084), with a management commission of 0.65%, and the ETFX Dow Jones Global Select Dividend Fund (DE000A1H81A3), for which the fees are 0.50%. The fourth product is the first ETF on the German stock market to allow investment in the volatility of European large caps of the Euro Stoxx 50 index. The fund is the ETFX-BofAML IVSTOXX ETF (DE000A1H81B1), with fees of 0.80%.
The GAIA SRI index, launched in October 2009 by IDMidCaps and EthiFinance, with the support of SFAF and MiddleNext, in its first 17 months in existence has shown outperformance of 5 points over the CAC Mid & Small CMS 190, and 18 points over the CAC 40, with gains of 26%.The index is composed of 70 shares which received top ratings for their ESG (environmental, social and governance) performance, selected from over 233 midcaps from the industrial, services and retail sectors, representing 75% of the shares of the CMS 190.The results of the 2010 edition showed that the extension of the ratings to social and environmental aspects allowed small and midcaps which are the most advanced in their corporate social responsibility policies to share the top end of the rankings with larger caps.
BNY Mellon has appointed Arthur Certosimo as CEO of its Global Markets division. He is currently Chief Executive Officer for alternative investment services (AIS) at BNY Mellon Alternative Investment Services. In his new position, he will replace Richard Mahoney, who is retiring. Brian Ruane will direct AIS, following the promotion of Certosimo.
As of 30 April, assets under management by Legg Mason and its affiliates represented USD672bn, compared with USD677.6bn one month earlier. The decline is due exclusively to money market funds, which fell to USD115.8bn from USD131.4bn. However, assets in equities and bond funds rose, to USD191.3bn and USD364.9bn, respectively, from USD189.6bn and USD356.6bn previously.At Invesco, total assets increased to USD668.5bn, from USD641.9bn, of which USD97.2bn, compared with USD91.7bn, were for ETF funds, unit investment trusts and passive products.Franklin Templeton Investments, meanwhile, has announced total assets under management of USD733.1bn as of the end of April, compared with USD703.5bn one month previously. Equities funds accounted for USD321.3bn, compared with USD308.9bn, while bond products accounted for USD288.5bn, compared with USD275.2bn, and hybrid funds stood at USD116.7bn, compared with USD113.4bn.
The French hedge fund manager Jean-Philippe Blochet has announced that he will be leaving his employer, the fund Moore Capital, to dedicate himself entirely to the charity “Enfin,” which works to educate young African women, Les Echos reports. The 47-year-old Frenchman was one of the co-founders of the hedge fund Brevan Howard in 2002. In 2010, he left the firm to join Moore Capital.
In first quarter 2011, the savings unit at Natixis, which includes asset management, insurance, private banking and private equity, showed good returns in all sectors, particularly asset management, the group announced on 12 May in a statement. Earnings for the savings unit totalled EUR472m, up 11% over first quarter 2010. In asset management, the increase in earnings was 13%, to EUR365m. Assets in the asset management division totalled EUR530bn as of 31 March 2011, up 1% at constant currency rates, compared with 31 December 2010. Net inflows were slightly positive (EUR100m). Excluding money market products, they total EUR3.1bn, spread over the most lucrative asset classes: equities, absolute returns and alternative management. In Europe, assets totalled EUR315bn, down 1.2% for the quarter. Net outflows (-EUR3.5bn) were concentrated on money markets. Excluding money markets, net inflows were positive by EUR0.9bn, with an excellent start for H2O Asset Management, where net inflows totalled EUR0.7bn. In the United States, assets totalled USD304bn, the highest level ever recorded, up 4.3% compared with 31 December 2010. Quarterly net inflows totalled USD5.1bn.
Janus Capital Group has announced the appointment of Christopher H. Diaz as global head of rates, and John Kerschner as head of securitized products, two newly-created positions. Diaz had previously served as director of the global rates group at ING Investment Management, while Kerschner had been a mortgage analyst at Janus since December 2010.
In a filing to the SEC dated 9 May, to supplement the prospectuses of all BlackRock funds (but not iShares funds), as well as the Franklin Templeton Total Return, Marsico Growth, MFS Research International and Van Kampen Value funds from the FDC range, BlackRock has announced that due to the high cost of administering small accounts, it has introduced a fund minimum, a kind of floor balance, of USD00.The management firm has also announced that it will charge USD20 per year to accounts which fall below that limit. If the account falls below USD250 for any reason (even if it is due to market fluctuations), and no subscriptions correct the situation for a 90 day period, despite warnings, BlackRock will proceed with an “involuntary redemption.”This forced redemption will be subject to only a few exceptions, particularly for some retirement savings plans.
BNY Mellon Asset Management has announced the recruitment of Rumi Masih as senior investment strategist in its Investment Strategy & Solutions Group division. Masih, who had previously been global head of the Strategic Investment Advisory Group at JP Morgan Asset Management, will be based in New York.
As of the end of April, assets under management at Julius Baer have increased 2% compared with the end of December 2010, at CHF173bn, the group has announced in a statement published on 12 May. Growth in net inflows was within the mid-term objective of 4% to 6% set by the group, with very good results in Germany. The operating ratio has improved slightly, compared with its level in the second half of 2010 (67.6%). The group says in a statement that a share buyback programme for up to CHF500m will be launched on 23 May.
Financial News reports that RAB Capital, a hedge fund firm based in London, which had once been highly successful, is considering delisting from the Alternative Investment Market. The firm has undergone redemptions, and in addition, it will be losing one of its managers, Gavin Wilson, the newspaper explains.
In first quarter, the British management firm Rathbones has seen an increase of 2.6% to its assets, from GBP15.63bn to GBP16.04bn. This represents a 14.1% increase year on year. The firm earned operating profits of GBP33.9m, which represents a 12.3% improvement over first quarter 2010.
Jonathan Armitage, head of US large cap equities, is leaving Schroders after 19 years. He is returning to Australia for family reasons, according to a press release.Schroders has announced that Joanna Shatney, portfolio manager US large cap equities, will become head of US large cap equities with immediate effect. The team-based investment approach of the global and international equities team will remain unchanged. Virginie Maisonneuve, head of global and international equities, will continue to be the final decision maker on investment decisions for all global and international mandates.
Inflation has a “good chance” of reaching 5% in the UK in 2011, the Bank of England says. Le Temps reports that this level has been called “uncomfortably high” by the governor of the bank, Mervyn King. In its quarterly report, published on Wednesday, the central bank predicts that inflation will reach its 2% target only in 2013.
Under an agreement reached on 11 May between the Chinese and US financial supervisory authorities as part of the Beijing Strategic and Economic Dialogue, foreign banks will be permitted to sell shares in Chinese investment funds in China. They will also be authorised to become custodians, Z-Ben Advisors reports. The measures should be put into regulatory texts by the end of the year, and will be applicable to all foreign firms, regardless of their country of origin, so long as they meet the stipulated conditions.So far, this is a general announcement without more precision as to the varieties of funds which will be allowed for sale, the public to which they will be destined, and the date on which the change will come into force. It is, however, apparent that the funds which will be authorised for sale will be products denominated in Chinese yuan, and registered for sale in China, from Chinese or joint venture asset management firms. However, branches of foreign banks will probably not be permitted to sell shares in funds “manufactured” abroad, even if they are denominated in yuan.
L’Autorité des marchés financiers lance une consultation sur les modifications du Livre IV du règlement général transposant la directive OPCVM IV. Ces modifications portent notamment sur le remplacement du prospectus simplifié par un document clair et synthétique contenant des « informations clé pour l’investisseur ». Les réponses sont attendues pour le 6 juin.
Ecotel Chomette Favor (E.CF) vient d’être repris par Weinberg Capital Partners. Le groupe est aujourd’hui le leader de la distribution de petits matériels et consommables non alimentaires en France auprès des professionnels de la restauration et de l’hôtellerie. E.CF a réalisé sur l’exercice écoulé un chiffre d’affaires d’environ 130 millions d’euros (hors ventes des franchisés).
De grands noms du rachat à effet de levier, dont Carlyle, Blackstone et Bain Capital, s’intéressent à Securitas Direct, le spécialiste de la télésurveillance et des alarmes dont la valeur dépasserait 3 milliards de dollars. Selon Reuters, au moins sept fonds ont déposé des offres indicatives auprès d’EQT, le fonds suédois de la famille Wallenberg.
En réaction à des informations de presse, les dirigeants de Foncia se sont défendus hier d’avoir pris position contre le projet de rachat présenté par Bridgepoint et Eurazeo. Crédit Agricole, Goldman Sachs et Natixis ont mis en place un financement pouvant aller jusqu'à 500 millions d’euros pour soutenir l’offre de rachat du tandem, selon Reuters.
L’Italie doit mettre en œuvre un train de mesures exhaustif afin que la péninsule puisse exprimer son potentiel de croissance, a déclaré hier le FMI. «La croissance est principalement imputable aux exportations, mais elle reste modeste, et seul un programme de grande ampleur permettra à l’Italie d’exprimer son potentiel de croissance». L'économie italienne reste entravée par une série d’obstacles structurels qui font d’elle l’une des plus apathiques en Europe depuis plus d’une décennie. «Des réformes rapides et fermes doivent être prises pour éviter une nouvelle décennie de stagnation», juge le Fonds qui met la faiblesse de la croissance sur le compte des disparités régionales, des lourdeurs fiscales et de l’inefficacité des services publics. Le gouvernement a abaissé le mois dernier sa prévision de croissance pour 2011 à 1,1% contre 1,3%. Pour 2012, il ne table plus que sur 1,3% au lieu de 2,0%.
Le fonds de capital investissement détient 12,91% du capital du groupe de casinos Partouche après souscription à l’augmentation de capital réservée du groupe de casinos, a indiqué hier l’AMF.
Alors qu’il occupait depuis l’an dernier les fonctions de directeur chargé de mission auprès de Carlos Ghosn, après avoir été entre 2004 et 2010 directeur général adjoint et directeur financier de Renault, Thierry Moulonguet doit annoncer tout prochainement qu’il rejoint Oddo Corporate Finance en tant que senior advisor. Il est par ailleurs administrateur de Fimalac et de Valeo.
Le gestionnaire alternatif envisagerait de ses retirer de la Bourse en raison d’un afflux massif de demandes de rachats de parts des investisseurs. Les actifs se sont littéralement évaporés à l’échéance de la période de blocage de trois ans des titres au sein de son fonds vedette. Déjà début 2011 les actifs avaient chuté à un milliard de dollars contre 7 milliards au plus haut en 2007.
La Banque d’Angleterre a relevé sa prévision d’inflation à moyen terme à un peu plus de 1,9% dans son rapport de mai, ouvrant potentiellement la voie à une hausse de ses taux directeurs en novembre. Dans son précédent rapport de février, la banque centrale tablait sur un taux d’inflation à deux ans de 1,6%.