Rachid Medjaoui, directeur de la gestion tactique de l'allocation d'actifs de La Banque Postale AM

In February, collective investment organisms and specialised investment funds in Luxembourg have seen an increase in assets to EUR37.246bn, compared with EUR19.695bn in January, according to the local regulator CSSF. Of this increase, EUR1.688bn is due to net inflows, while the remainder is related to the positive impact of the financial markets. In January, net inflows totalled EUR21.474bn. This brings assets as of 28 February 2010 to EUR1.897934trn, a 2% increase compared with the end of January, and 24.02% in one year.

Morgan Stanley country head of Italian operations Domenico Siniscalco Wednesday denied a press report the bank is in talks with Intesa Sanpaolo to take a stake of its soon-to-be-listed asset management unit Banca Fideuram SpA.

The Canadian insurance group Manulife has recruited Annette King as president and chief executive for Singapore, head of financial services for the high net worth client market and wealth management. According to Asian Investor, King began in her new position on 23 March, and is now head of the investment committee. She succeeds Darren Thomson, who remains in Singapore in the newly-created position of regional head of strategic development. King was previously at Axa Life in Singapore, where she was head of strategy and marketing, but left her job in early 2008 to dedicate more time to her family.

The asset management firm Alto Invest announced on Thursday, 15 April that it has signed up to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UN PRI), for management of all its FCPI, FPI and FCPR format funds. In 2007, Alto Invest set up the first Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) analysis grid dedicated to investment in small and medium businesses by FCPI/FIP funds, the firm says in a statement.

US investors places USD47.5bn in mutual funds in the month of March, bringing total net inflows in first quarter to USD125.2bn, according to statistics from Morningstar. Investors continued to prefer bond funds to equities funds by a considerable margin, a trend which has continued for 27 consecutive months. In equities funds, inflows were positive in March, but for the quarter as a whole, net inflows totalled only USD1.6bn, despiite teh recovery of the stock markets. Foreign markets were preferred by investors: global equities funds posted net inflows of USD19.7bn in first quarter, the best quarterly result since fourth quarter 2007. Outflows from money markets funds totalled USD148.2bn in the month of March alone: for the quarter as a whole, outflows totalled USD324.4bn, a level never before observed since Morningstar statistics began. For ETFs, inflows totalled USD19.7bn in the month of March, which resulted in net inflows of USD7.7bn for the quarter as a whole. As of the end of March, ETF assets totalled USD815bn, compared with USD764.6bn at the end of february and USD484bn one year earlier.

Banco Sabadell has become the most recent Spanish asset management firm to pay rewards for transfers of funds from competing firms. It is offering a 1.25% bonus on the total amount transferred, and as Funds People reports, its offer is more aggressive than those of its competitors, as there is no limit to the amount that may be transferred under the offer. Other asset managers are also offering similar payouts, especially Unigest, BBVA, Cajasol, Caja Canarrias, Banco Madrid, Bankinter, and Openbank.

Barclays Capital, the Investment Banking division of the British Barclays Bank group, has appointed Sigurbjörn Thorkelsson as head of equities for Asia-Pacific. Thorkelsson previously served at Lehman Brothers and Nomura, Finance Asia reports.

F&C has announced the appointment of Sandra Carlisle as head of governance and sustainable investment (GSI). The decision is a result of growing demand on the part of clients for SRI products. Carlisle was previously at Brunswick, where she set up a department dedicated to climate change and sustainable development.

Whitehall Street International, Goldman Sachs’ international real estate investment fund, has lost almost all of its USD1.8bn of equity following soured property investments in the US, Germany and Japan, according to the fund’s estimates cited by the Financial Times. By the end of 2009, the fund was down to its last USD30m, a paper loss of about 98 cents on the dollar. Goldman was Whitehall’s largest investor, with a commitment of USD436m.

In 2009, the German affiliate of the HSBC group HSBC Trinkhaus & Burkhardt posted net profits of EUR109.2m, up from EUR89.6m. Assets increased to EUR99.1m, from EUR87.2m at the end of 2008. Net profits from wealth management fell 29.3% to EUR20m, while assets increased to EUR19.7bn from EUR17.2bn. Net profits from institutional management increased 9.1% to EUR45.6m.

At a presentation of th ’09 resultats on Thursday, the chairman of the board at HSBC Trinkhaus & Burkhardt, Andreas Schmitz, announced that in the next two to four years, the firm is planning to double the number of advisers employed at its corporate banking operation to be able to serve a client base of high net worth heads of small and mid-sized businesses with highly international orientations, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports. In private banking, Trinkhaus will invest massively in increasing its staff size in order to actively recruit new clients. This may involve the recruitment of former employees of Sal. Oppenheim, among others.

Amundi ETF has announced the launch of the AMUNDI ETF CAC 40 (D), an ETF based on the CAC 40 which redistributes dividends, bringing the number of products in its range to 79. Characteristics ISIN code: FR0010878033 TER: 0.25%

En février, les fonds européens ont enregistré des souscriptions nettes de 28 milliards d’euros, selon Lipper dans son dernier Fund Flash, qui constate que les investisseurs cherchent à reprendre un peu de risque.Ces derniers ont privilégié les fonds obligataires, dont la collecte s’est élevée à 11,8 milliards d’euros, ce qui reflète une attitude encore relativement prudente, note Lipper. Cela posé, au sein de la catégorie, les épargnants se portent vers les segments les plus risqués, comme les fonds obligataires marchés émergents et les fonds obligataires monde qui ont représenté la moitié des souscriptions. En revanche, l’appétit pour les fonds obligataires «investment grade» recule. Les fonds actions ont été la deuxième meilleure catégorie de produits sur février, avec 8 milliards d’euros. Là encore, les marchés émergents ont le vent en poupe, avec 1,9 milliard d’euros de souscriptions. Lipper observe aussi un regain d’intérêt pour le Japon, les fonds actions nippones ayant attiré 1,6 milliard d’euros. S’agissant des sociétés, Franklin Templeton a été celle qui a affiché les plus fortes souscriptions nettes en février avec 1,8 milliard d’euros, devant Allianz (1,75 milliard) et Carmignac (1,6 milliard). Sur les actions, c’est SocGen qui arrive en tête avec 1 milliard d’euros.

Le spécialiste des obligations convertibles Acropole Asset Management (600 millions d’euros d’encours) vient de remporter son premier mandat international auprès d’un investisseur institutionnel anglais (une famille) au travers d’un fonds dédié, Pareturn Acropole International Convertibles. Cela porte sur un montant de 15 millions d’euros.Ce mandat s’inscrit dans la continuité de la politique de développement à l’international de la société de gestion, qui compte aujourd’hui des clients en Suisse, en Espagne, en Autriche, en Angleterre et en Belgique. Les encours hors France représentent aujourd’hui 20 % des actifs d’Acropole AM, qui se donne un objectif de 50 % à horizon 5 ans, comme l’avait annoncé Jacques Joakimides, président de la société, dans un entretien récent à Newsmanagers.Dans le détail, à l’international, Acropole AM dispose du passeport européen en Grande Bretagne, en Allemagne et en Autriche. Par ailleurs, Acropole Convertibles Monde et Europe sont agréés à la commercialisation en Espagne et en Autriche et leur enregistrement est en cours pour l’Allemagne et le Benelux. Alors que son fonds à échéance Acropole Optimum est déjà enregistré en Autriche, les démarches ont également été entreprises pour Acropole Convertibles Asia. Enfin, Acropole AM a aussi créé directement à Luxembourg deux fonds (Acropole 2012 en février 2009 et Acropole Convertibles Asia en octobre 2008) pour faciliter leur distribution internationale.

Barclays Capital, la division Investment Banking du groupe britannique Barclays Bank, vient de nommer Sigurbjörn Thorkelsson au poste de head of equities for Asia-Pacific. L’intéressé était auparavant en poste chez Lehman Brothers et Nomura, précise Finance Asia.

F&C a annoncé la nomination de Sandra Carlisle au poste de responsable de la gouvernance et de l’investissement responsable (GSI). Une décision liée à la demande croissante de la clientèle sur les produits ISR.Sandra Carlisle était précédemment chez Brunswick où elle avait mis en place un département dédié au changement climatique et développement durable.

Il y a quelques semaines, Neptune Investment Management, basée à Londres, a fait agréer neuf fonds en France. Une stratégie qui s'inscrit dans le cadre du développement de la boutique de gestion en Europe continentale, pilotée depuis Londres par Paul L. Boughton, qui a rejoint Neptune Investment Management en 2007, après plusieurs années chez Legg Mason. Dans un entretien à Newsmanagers, il nous explique ses projets.

Whitehall Street International, le fonds d’investissement immobilier international de Goldman Sachs, a perdu la quasi totalité de son capital de 1,8 milliard de dollars après des investissements malheureux aux Etats-Unis, en Allemagne et au Japon, rapporte le Financial Times, citant les estimations du fonds. Fin 2009, le fonds ne représentait plus de 30 millions de dollars, soit une perte sur le papier de 98 cents par rapport au dollar. Goldman était le plus gros investisseur de Whithall, avec un engagement de 436 millions de dollars.

Lundi, Changsheng va faire ses débuts avec un fonds QDII : ce sera le Global Propserous Industries Large Cap Equity Fund. Le fonds sera investi à 80 % en actions des 23 plus grands marchés développés du monde, et l’exposition aux actions devra en permanence être comprise entre 60 et 95 %. Selon Z-Ban Advisors, Goldman Sachs a été retenu comme conseiller offshore et les deux gérants de portefeuille ont un historique très lié à DBS, qui est l’actionnaire minoritaire de Changsheng. La souscription est ouverte pour un mois et plafonnée à 4,7 milliards de yuans (700 millions de dollars). La conservation est assurée par Bank of China et sa filiale de Hong-Kong. La distribution sera assurée par cinq banques et par sept firmes de courtage.Il s’agit du premier fonds axé spécifiquement sur les marchés développés à être lancé sur le marché chinois, de surcroît référencé à l’indice MSCI Large Cap, alors que jusqu'à présent les produits étaient centrés sur l’Asie et sur les marchés émergents.

In February, fund sales in Europe topped EUR28bn, according to Lipper FMI. «Investors are clearly still keen to stash their cash where it can earn a better return than on deposit. However, investor attitude to risk is somewhat difficult to read,» says Lipper. Fixed income funds continue to lead the field with sales of EUR11.8bn indicating a relatively cautious approach, but investor choice is veering towards higher-risk bond sectors. Emerging Market and Global bonds funds together accounted for around 50% of sales. The second best selling asset class was equities which attracted EUR8bn. Once again it was Emerging Market funds which proved the top choice. But Japan funds were also in considerable demand. Allianz made it into the ranks of the top-selling groups in February with sales of EUR1.79bn. It was marginally behind Franklin Templeton, the leader, with inflows of EUR1.8bn and ahead of Carmignac with EUR1.6bn, says Lipper. SocGen took the top spot in the equity fund stakes with sales of EUR1bn.

Die Welt reports that Aberdeen Asset Management Deutschland is in talks with Fidelity, and possibly also with Deutsche Bank, Deka and Union Investment, over a sale of the open-ended real estate funds Degi Europa and Degi International. The CEO of Aberdeen Germany, Hartmut Leser, was in London on Thursday, which may be a coincidence, and his deputy Robert Bauer declined to comment on the “rumours.” Many, however, estimate that the acquisition of the Degi real estate funds from Dresdner Bank was not necessarily a successful move for Aberdeen. The two open-ended funds Degi Europa (EUR1.67bn) and Degi International (EUR1.96bn) suffered due to the loss of the Dresdner Bank network, as Commerzbank acquired Dresdner Bank and resold cominvest to Allianz Global Investors. Rickard Backlund, CEO of Aberdeen Property Investors, recently told Property Investor Europe that he is planning to reopen the Degi Europa fund to redemptions this summer.

With the STS Schroder Global Dynamic Balanced Fund, a sub-fund of the Luxembourg Sicav Schroder Strategic Solutions, Schroders is now releasing a second multi-asset class, balanced fund of funds in Germany, 40% of which is invested in a defensive portfolio, and 60% in growth assets, though the fund may increase its allocation to defensive investments to 100% in difficult market conditions. The product, launched on 28 September 2009, is managed on the model of the STS Schroder Global Diversified Growth Fund, launched in 2006, but with a defensive dimension. It is managed by Gregor Hirt, CIO for multi-asset class management for continental Europe. One of the objectives of the product is to limit losses in case of difficult markets to 10% over a sliding 12-month period. Characteristics Name: STS Schroder Global Dynamic Balanced Fund ISIN: LU0451417645 (A-class shares) Front-end fee: 5% Management commission: 1.25% Minimal initial subscription: EUR1,000

As announced a few weeks ago (see Newsmanagers of 26 March), the Austrian-German management firm C-Quadrat on Thursday unveiled its future range of “intelligent” ETFs with the brand name “iQ,” the first of which is expected to receive a sales license for Germany in the near future, and will then be released on the XTF segment of Deutsche Börse. The fund will deploy a leveraged long/short/cash strategy investing from the universe of the Euro Stoxx 50, while the benchmark will be the C-QUADRAT European Equity Index. The objective will be to outperform the Euro Stoxx 50. The first ETF of the iQ range will be launched by the Luxembourg firm Commerz Derivatives Funds Solutions. The strategy is based on seven daily indicators developed by C-Quadrat, which will bring together in a single product limited risk, transparency, liquidity, and flexibility of use. Thomas Rieß, founder and CEO of C-Quadrat, says that iQ ETF products based on the FTSE 100, S&P 50-0 and future bunds may be launched in the second or third quarters of this year.

Due to strong demand in private banking, where clients were demanding a more conservative product than the FT MultiAsset VolaTarget 9 (see Newsmanagers of 16 March), Frankfurt Trust (BHF-Bank) on Thursday launched the FT MultiAsset VolaTarget 5, another multi-asset class ETF (equities, bonds, commodities, private equity, real estate, and money markets), with a more defensive volatility objective, of 5 instead of 9. The product is managed by Christoph Kind and Corinne Ament, like the Target 9. ETF and ETC products will be used largely to hedge positions. Characteristics Name: FT MultiAsset VolaTarget 5 ISIN: DE000A0YCBK1 Front-end fee: 5% Management commission: 1.50% Depository banking commission: 0.1% Minimal initial subscription: EUR2,500 Available from savings plans with monthly contributions starting at EUR50 Depository bank: BHF Asset Servicing

According to the most recent Robeco survey of 350 client advisers at banks, savings banks and co-operative banks, the index of adviser morale (BSI) has fell 0.5 points in first quarter to 100.3 points. This reflects a deterioration in the overall climate, as only 30% of respondents estimate that sales of shares in open-ended funds is currently satisfactory, while 33% said so in fourth quarter 2009. Meanwhile, the number of respondents who are optimistic about future sales of fund shares fell to 36%, from 43% the previous quarter. The situation is particularly severe for equities funds: only 12% of advisers considered the current sales situation good for these products in January-March 2010, compared with 13% in October-December 2009. The percentage of advisers who estimate that sales of equities funds will increase in the next six months has fallen 5 points, to 45%.

On Monday, Changsheng will make its debut with a QDII fund, the Glboal Properous Industries Large Cap Equity Fund. The fund will invest 8% in equities from the 23 largest developed markets in the world, and exposure to equities will be permanently set at 60% to 95%. Z-ben Advisors states that Goldman Sachs has been retained as offshore advisor to the fund, and the two portfolio managers have a history with close ties to DBS, which is the minority shareholder in Changsheng. Subscriptions will remain open for one month, and will be limited to CNY4.7bn (Usd700m). Custody will be provided by the Bank of China and its Hong Kong affiliate. Distribution will be provided by five banks and seven brokerage firms. This is the first fund specifically focused on developed markets to be launched on the Chinese market, and it will even be benchmarked against the MSCI Large Cap index, while products have previously been focused on Asia and emerging markets.

Pictet is planning to launch a long/short Chinese equities fund that complies with UCITS III standards by this autumn. The new fund is a further sign of a need to attract investors to the country. The theme of China continues to be highly popular, but Lan Wang Simond, fund manager for the Pictet Greater China fund (about USD450m in assets as of the end of March), which has been uniquely Chinese in focus since one year ago, says that she is optimistics about the mid- to long-term, but more moderate in her outlooks for the short term. “A lot will depend on the evolution of inflation. Everything will play out in third quarter,” says Simond. Inflation, at 2.7% in the month of February, may rise sharply in the next few months due to the strength of the economic pillars in China: exports, investment, and consumer spending. Exports have nearly returned to their pre-crisis levels, and have offset the impact of the Lehman Brothers collapse. Consumer spending is also recovering, and the movement is not likely to lose steam, as “China will develop from a growth driven by exports to a growth led by domestic consumption,” which now represents only 35% of GNP, compared with 70% in developed countries. In this environment, Simond prefers the consumer and health sectors, and is steering clear of financials and technologies. The fund, which has 70 to 90 positions, also includes some midcaps, including consumer sector shares which may become heavyweights in their sectors in the longer term. However, the fund, launched in 2003, is still overweight on China, and continues to be highly attached to its bottom-up process. “In the current environment, stock-picking makes more sense than ever. One can do a lot with active management,” says Simond, adding that the fund has posted growth of nearly 260% since its launch.

Deka Immobilien has announced that it has invested EUR65m in the acquisition of the office building Rheinauhafen (16,500 square metres) in Cologne, from a joint venture of the city of Cologne and Deutsche Immobilien. The property will be added to the portfolio of the open-ended real estate fund Deka ImmobilienGlobal, which as of the end of January had assets of EUR2.62bn. The property is more than 75% occupied by the law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer. It is the first investment in Germany for the fund since the sale of two properties in 2006.

Threadneedle announced on Thursday that it has been granted sales licenses for its new Luxembourg-registered technology funds Threadneedle (Lux) Global Technology Fund and Threadneedle (Lux) US Communications and Information Fund in Germany and Austria (see Newsmanagers of 6 April). The two sub-funds of the firm’s Luxembourg Sicav were launched and continue to be managed by Seligman, which, like Threadneedle, is also an affiliate of Ameriprise. The Global Technology fund, managed by Richard Parower, was launched in 1994, and may invest in tech firms of all cap sizes, while the Communications & Information Fund, managed by Paul Wick, was launched in 1983, and invests through bottom-up stock-picking. So far, the funds are both of a small size, as the Global Technology has USD40.03m in assets, and the Communication & Information fund has USD50.0m.