Max Le Roux, président de BNP Paribas Real Estate Advisory (Transaction, Conseil, Expertise), depuis 2007, ayant fait valoir ses droits à la retraite, après plus de trente années passées dans le groupe, Thierry Laroue-Pont, actuel vice-président, lui succède, a annoncé le 15 décembre dans un communiqué BNP Paribas Real Estate.Laurent Boucher, qui était depuis 2008, directeur général adjoint est également promu et devient vice-président de BNP Paribas Real Estate Advisory. Ces deux nominations prennent effet au 1er janvier 2011.A leurs côtés, Alain Schori continue d’assurer ses fonctions de directeur général adjoint en charge des régions.

Selon Citywire, Schroders a décidé de fermer son fonds asiatique, Schroder ISF Asian Total Return, basé au Luxembourg, aux investisseurs retail. Les actifs sous gestion de ce fonds lancé fin 2007 dépassent désormais le milliard de dollars. Le fonds affiche une performance de 47,2% depuis son lancement jusqu'à fin novembre, contre un recul de 8,2% pour l’indice MSCI AC Asia Pacific hors Japon.La décision de fermer le fonds a pour objectif de protéger la performance du fonds alors que la collecte a été très dynamique en 2010. Schroders rappelle avoir souligné que cette stratégie ne pouvait prétendre gérer sans risque plus de 1 milliard de dollars. Schroders précise toutefois que les investisseurs institutionnels pourront continuer d’investir dans l’immédiat dans les actions C et I.

BlueCrest Capital Management a recruté Jaime Valdivia en tant que responsable de la recherche et de la stratégie marchés émergents monde. Il vient d’Emerging Sovereign Group où il était associé, gérant et directeur de la recherche global marco spécialisé dans le crédit souverain monde et la stratégie de taux.

China Development Bank va lancer le premier fonds de fonds de private equity de Chine, rapporte le Financial Times. Le produit devrait lever un total de 60 milliards de renminbi, soit 9 milliards de dollars.

Gervais Williams, l’ancien responsable des petites capitalisations britanniques de Gartmore, rejoint MAM Funds, une société de gestion cotée sur l’AIM à Londres. Il doit être nommé managing director, sous réserve de l’approbation des actionnaires. Dans le même temps, Ian Dighé est nommé président exécutif et Graham Hooper, directeur de la distribution.Parallèlement, MAM Fund a aussi annoncé son intention de lever 20 millions de livres supplémentaires.

Selon les informations de Citywire, Richard Timberlake et Paul Kim auraient démissionné de FundQuest. Ils pourraient rejoindre LV = Asset Management.

Déjà head of equities, Asia-Pacific, depuis avril, Sigurbjorn (Siggi) Thorkelsson a été nommé head of equities, EMEA chez Barclays Capital, qui annonce cette promotion le 15 décembre. L’intéressé sera chargé du développement de la plate-forme actions de la banque d’investissement. Siggi Thorkelsson rejoindra Londres courant 2011. Il reste subordonné à Jerry Domini, global head of equities.Avant de rejoindre Barclays Cap, Siggi Thorkelsson était head of equities Asia Pacific, chez Nomura. Il avait précédemment passé 13 ans comme head of equities, Asia Pacific, chez Lehman Brothers.

BNP Paribas Securities Services a été sélectionnée par la banque sud-africaine Standard Bank Plc pour la fourniture de services de conservation au Royaume-Uni et en Suisse.

Le 15 décembre, le conseil d’administration du groupe Vontobel a nommé Zeno Staub comme CEO à compter du 4 mai 2011 en remplacement d’Herbert J. Scheidt, qui est déjà désigné comme futur président du conseil d’administration depuis fin août (lire notre article du 1er septembre).Zeno Staub est actuellement responsable de l’unité d’affaires gestion d’actifs (depuis 2008), poste auquel il demeurera jusqu'à ce qu’il prenne ses nouvelles fonctions. Membre depuis 2003 du directoire du groupe, il avait rejoint Vontobel en 2001 et avait été nommé directeur financier en 2003.

Le gestionnaire helvétique SAM (groupe Robeco) a indiqué le 15 décembre que ses efforts de mise en conformité avec les Principes de l’investissement responsable des Nations-Unies (UN-PRI) ont été honorés par l’organisme chargé de l'évaluation des signataires dans sa dernière notation individuelle pour 2010. Sa note s’est améliorée sur pratiquement tous les chapitres.En particulier, SAM est passé du deuxième au premier quartile pour le Deuxième Principe (exercice actif du droit de propriété et engagement) et le gestionnaire s’est maintenu dans le premier quartile pour l’intégration des critères environnementaux, sociaux et de gouvernance (ou ESG) dans le processus de recherche et de décision en matière d’investissement.La fiche individuelle UN-PRI de SAM est disponible à l’adresse :http://www.unpri.org/report10/2010_PDFs/PRI%202010%20-%20Full%20Responses%20for%20publication%20-%20SAM%20Sustainable%20Asset%20Management%20AG%20(0017000000N7czw).pdf

Selon Les Echos, de nombreux fonds souverains ont été ou vont être créés prochainement de telle sorte que, aujourd’hui, les pays ne disposant pas d’une telle institution sont presque devenus minoritaires. Ainsi, le Bangladesh veut créer son fonds sur le modèle de GIC, un des deux acteurs de Singapour, avec l’objectif d’investir dans un premier temps ses réserves de change (de l’ordre de 500 millions de dollars). En envisageant de monter son fonds pour faire fructifier ses réserves de change et de revenus tirés des exportations de métaux, le Pérou lorgne, de son côté, sur l’exemple du Chili, qui a lancé son véhicule de placement en 2006.

Après le premier pas annoncé l’été dernier avec la prise de participation dans la société de gestion d’actifs N+1 Syz Gestión, le groupe bancaire suisse Syz & Co a annoncé le 15 décembre un renforcement de sa présence en Espagne à travers une seconde entité, N+1 Syz Agencia de Valores, dédiée à la gestion des grandes fortunes. Pour ce faire, outre des collaborateurs provenant de N+1 et de Syz & Co, le nouveau partenariat s’est associé à plusieurs personnalités de premier plan du secteur financier en Espagne. Dirigée par Alfonso Gil, l’équipe de la nouvelle société compte une vingtaine de collaborateurs, avec une expérience de plus de 15 ans en moyenne dans la banque privée auprès d’entités domestiques et internationales. Dans un premier temps, N+1 Syz sera active à Madrid et à Bilbao, mais d’autres implantations sont prévues. Elle est détenue à 50% par Syz & Co, le reste étant réparti entre N+1 et des cadres de la nouvelle société. «Du fait du mouvement de consolidation massif intervenu au cours des dernières années, il existe de nombreuses opportunités de développement pour un véritable acteur de niche. En combinant sa compétence de gestion internationale et son expérience du private banking haut de gamme avec la connaissance approfondie du marché local de ses partenaires, Syz & Co est à même de répondre aux besoins, aujourd’hui largement insatisfaits, des clients fortunés espagnols et entend devenir une référence dans le pays», explique la banque suisse dans un communiqué. Pour y parvenir, N+1 Syz applique en Espagne les principes de gestion qui ont permis le développement de Syz & Co depuis 15 ans, à savoir une orientation claire sur la solidité et la performance, à travers une gestion indépendante et sophistiquée, totalement alignée avec les intérêts de ses clients. «Les difficultés actuelles que connaît le marché domestique incitent les investisseurs à se tourner de plus en plus vers la gestion internationale et N+1 Syz pourra répondre avec succès à cette attente», a déclaré Santiago Eguidazu, Président de N+1. «Après les soubresauts importants des dix dernières années, de nombreux investisseurs ont été déçus par les investissements traditionnels et recherchent désormais des spécialistes sans conflits d’intérêt, qui offrent une gestion orientée sur la protection du capital et la performance absolue, plutôt que sur la comparaison avec des indices boursiers. Avec son système de rémunération lié aux résultats obtenus, son absence de conflits d’intérêt et sa gestion basée sur des convictions fortes, N+1 Syz répond clairement à ces nouvelles attentes», a ajouté Alfonso Gil, CEO de N+1 Syz.

Plus de deux mois et demi après le départ d’Iñigo Bilbao-Goyoaga, qui avait créé la filiale et l’avait dirigée durant huit ans, Axa Investment Managers a annoncé la nomination de Beatriz Barros de Lis comme directrice pour l’Espagne et le Portugal, sachant que l'équipe «Ibérie» (5 personnes) sert de soutien opérationnel aux activités du groupe en Amérique latine.L’impétrante était auparavant responsable d’AllianceBernstein pour l’Espagne et le Portugal.

BlueCrest Capital Management has appointed Jaime Valdivia as head of global emerging markets research and strategy. He joins from the Emerging Sovereign Group where he was a partner, portfolio manager and director of global macro research specialising in global sovereign credit and rates strategy.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } According to reports in Citywire, Richard Timberlake and Paul Kim have resigned from FundQuest. They may join LV = Asset Management.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM) has appointed Andy Clark as head of the distribution team for the Middle East. Clark, who will be based in London, previously worked at Northern Trust Global Investments.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Citywire reports that Schroders has decided to close its Asia fund, Schroder ISF Asian Total Return, based in Luxembourg, to retail investors. Assets under management in the fund, launched in late 2007, now exceed USD1bn. The fund shows returns of 47.2% from its launch to the end of November, compared with losses of 8.2% for the MSCI AC Asia Pacific ex Japan index. The decision to close the fund aims to protect the performance of the fund, as inflows were highly dynamic in 2010. Schroders says that the strategy cannot claim to manage over USD1bn in assets without risk. Schroders states, however, that institutional investors will be able to continue to invest in C and I class shares for the near future.

China Development Bank is set to launch the country’s first private equity fund of funds, according to the Financial Times.The product is scheduled to raise a total of Rmb60bn (USD9bn).

A Preqin survey of more than 100 alternative management firms and investors finds that slightly over one third of respondents support the final version of the AIFM directive. This is a “significant minority,” says Preqin, which also reports that 89% of respondents say the directive should be amended to take into account the differences between various asset classes.Nearly one respondent in two (45%) says it is probable or highly probable that management firms will leave Europe as a result of the directive, while 26% say that their firm is likely to make that move.28% of respondents say that the introduction of the European passport will have the largest impact on the sector.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Legg Mason has signed an agreement with Südtirol Bank, by which the financial distribution firm for the Italian region of Bolzano-Bozen will distribute its funds. Among the products which will be offered to clients of the Italian establishment are the Legg Mason Western Asset Global Multi Strategy Fund and the Legg Mason Western Asset Asian Opportunities Fund, both of which are managed by the Legg Mason affiliate Western Asset Management, a press release states. The range will also include the Legg Mason Permal Global Absolute Fund, which is managed by the fund of hedge fund firm Permal.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Both general partners and limited partners are anticipating a 5 to 10 percent decrease in the internal rate of return (IRR) for private equity programmes in the next few years, according to the first international survey by bfinance on the subject of private equity. In addition, eight out of ten limited partners (81%) say the performance of investments in private equity will be more diffuse and volatile in the future. As a result, 71% of institutional investors surveyed are planning to reduce the number of partnerships they enter into with general partners, as well as the number of private equity funds in their portfolios, in order to limit the dispersion and the expected decline in returns. The survey also finds that 74% of limited partners are expecting an IRR of over 15% for their investments in private equity. The asset class will continue to be privileged by institutional investors with an eye to diversification and the overall improvement of the performance of portfolios. Despite a decline in expected returns, the weight of private equity in allocations is expected to remain stable overall. In their responses, limited partners and general partners gave three major reasons for declining returns in this asset class. Significant amounts of uninvested capital are leading program heads to be more aggressive, and to offer higher prices when they see an investment opportunity. Leverage levels for funds have tended to be reduced. And lastly, the growth of businesses is expected to be sustainably affected by the economic context. The same reasons also go to explain the expectation that the performance of funds will be more varied in the future. Private equity will remain a major source of portfolio diversification for institutionals. However, in a context of falling returns, the choice of general partners will become even more important. According to Oliver Cassin, managing director and head of the research and development department, “limited partners no longer have a passive approach to their investments in private equity and are increasingly seeking to identify sustainable competitive advantages of managers who will generate consistent returns in the future. As a result, we are seeing an increase in demand for advising for this asset class, as investors seek to maintain the quality of their exposures.”

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } The Hamburg-based independent management firm Varengold Wertpapierhandelsbank on 15 December annoiunced the launch of a managed futures hedge fund which complies with the UCITS III directive, with daily liquidity. It is the first “newcits” fund from Varengold, and replicates an “innovative” managed futures index developed in-house, the Varengold Alternative Alpha Index. The concept is based on highly stable performance and zero correlation with equities and bond markets.The new Varengold Alternative Alpha is available immediately in the form of institutional shares, while retail shares will be released in early 2011. The objective is to earn returns 10 percentage points higher than the Euribor 3-month.In order to be included in the index, managers must be present on managed accounts platforms with daily liquidity, have a real track record of at least two years, and assets equal to or higher than USD100m. In addition, they have to have achieved top results in the risk management ratings system developed by Varengold.Currently, the index includes seven asset management firms, of which 45% are in short-term trading, 30% in event-driven, and 25% in global macro.CharacteristicsName: Varengold Alternative AlphaISIN code: DE000A1C5D54 (institutional share class)Management commission: currently 1.34%Performance fee: 10% with high watermark and hurdle rate (Euribor 3-month)

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Aberdeen Asset Managers announced on 15 December, without disclosing the purchase price, that it has acquired a real estate complex which was fully renovated this year, located in the commercial district of Pforzheim, with 4,200 square metres of retail space and 700 square metres of office space, for its Aberdeen European Balanced Property Fund. The vendors are Centrum and the B&L group.The fund has already attracted EUR302m from institutional investors. Its commercial and office real estate portfolio as well as its logistical centres represent EUR380m, in Germany, Belgium, Finland, France, and the Netherlands.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } As announced previously (see Newsmanagers of 1 October), the Munich-based RE fund management firm KanAM has paid out a first round of USD250m to shareholders in the real estate fund KanAm US grundinvest, which was the first German fund of its kind to be liquidated (over two and a half years, to conclude on 31 March 2012).Following the distribution to shareholders, the net asset value of the fund is reduced by half, to USD22.48.So far, the management team has succeeded, despite the difficult situation prevailing on the US real estate market, in selling 11 of the 17 properties in the portfolio in only eight months. The property sales have so far been made at a markdown of only 2% compared with the most recent expert valuations.The next payment is scheduled for June 2011. By that time, six other properties will be sold, with the exact amount of the distribution to be determined by the tax status accorded to the operations by the US and Canadian tax authorities.Since the launch of the fund on 20 May 2003 until 15 December this year, performance totals 20.1%, equivalent to 3% per year for an average investment duration of 5 years. KanAm states that 97% of assets have been in the fund for over two years; the fund has been closed to subscriptions for one year.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } Sigurbjorn “Siggi” Thorkelsson, who has already been head of Asia-Pacific equities since April, has been appointed head of equities, EMEA at Barclays Capital, which announced the promotion on 15 December. Thorkelsson will be in charge of the development of the equities platform for the investment bank. He will move to London in 2011, and will continue to report to Jerry Domini, global head of equities.Before joining Barclays Cap, Thorkelsson was head of equities, Asia Pacific, at Nomura. He previously served 13 years as head of equities, Asia Pacific at Lehman Brothers.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } More than 70% of European institutional investors think that funds that comply with the UCITS directive may represent a growing proportion of absolute return products, as their liquidity and transparency presents a definite advantage, according to a survey by Aviva Investors of investors in several countries with EUR280bn under management. Respondents included institutional investors and financial establishments in Germany, Switzerland, France, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Norway, Ireland and Denmark. 67% say that they are also attracted to the products due to the regulatory security provided by UCITS status. These findings come at a time when 90% of investors say they are prepared to increase their exposure to absolute return strategies in the next three years. The absolute return strategies which interest them most are: global macro (67%), volatility trading (67%), long/short equity (60%), and market neutral (53%). When asked about the characteristics they look for in managers using absolute return strategies, European institutionals point to unanimity and rigour of the risk management framework. 80% also prefer a manager who is familiar with alternative management techniques, while 67% say the existence of an outperformance track record for the strategies is essential.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; }a:link { } The Swiss management firm SAM (Robeco group) on 15 December announced that its efforts to bring itself into compliance with the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI) were distinguished by the organism in charge of evaluating signatories in its most recent individual rating for 2010. Its rating has improved for virtually all chapters.In particular, SAM has risen from the second to the first quartile for the Second Principle (active exercise of shareholder rights & engagement); the manager has also held onto its place in the top quartile for integration of environmental, social, and governance, or ESG, criteria in the research process and investment decisions.The individual UN-{RI evaluation of SAM is available at this address:http://www.unpri.org/report10/2010_PDFs/PRI%202010%20-%20Full%20Respons…

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } On 15 December, the board of directors of the Vontobel group appointed Zeno Staub as CEO from 4 May 2011, replacing Herbert J. Scheidt, who was already named as the future chairman of the board of directors in late August (see Newsmanagers of 1 September).Staub is currently head of the asset management business unit, a position he has held since 2008, and which he will retain until he takes up his new role. He has been a board member at the group since 2003, and joined Vontobel in 2001, before being appointed CFO in 2003.

p { margin-bottom: 0.08in; } More than two and a half months after the departure of Iñigo Bilbao-Goyoaga, who created the affiliate and directed it for eight years, Axa Investment Managers has announced the appointment of Beatriz Barros de Lis as director for Spain and Portugal. The Iberia team (5 members) also provides operational support for the group’s activities in Latin America. Barros de Lis was previously head of AllianceBernstein for Spain and Portugal.

La filiale de la Caisse des dépôts a annoncé mercredi la cession d’Exxelia / Eurofarad, leader européen des composants passifs spécifiques, à LBO France. Le groupe devrait enregistrer en 2010 un chiffre d’affaires d’environ 73 millions d’euros. Qualium Investissement avait acquis en mars 2004 la majorité du capital aux côtés des fondateurs et des dirigeants.