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24/04/2009

BofA contraint d?acquérir Merrill Lynch

Ken Lewis, le directeur général de Bank of America, a uniquement accepté d"acquérir Merrill Lynch parce que Hank Paulson, alors secrétaire au Trésor, agissant à la demande de Ben Bernanke, avait menacé de le limoger ainsi que son conseil d"administration, rapporte le Financial Times. C"est ce qu"a déclaré Andrew Cuomo, procureur général de New York, dans une lettre aux officiers fédéraux. A l"époque, les dirigeants US craignaient que la faillite d"une nouvelle banque d"investissement de Wall Street ne provoque la panique des investisseurs.
24/04/2009

Morgan Stanley pourrait externaliser PDT

Selon les proches du dossier, Morgan Stanley étudie l'éventualité d’une cession de sa plus grosse équipe de négoce en compte propre (proprietary-trading desk) connue sous le nom de Process Driven Trading ou PDT, qui a généré 6,5 milliards de dollars de bénéfice avant impôt depuis 1993. The Wall Street Journal rapporte que PDT, qui utilise des méthodes quantitatives, pourrait être confié à un hedge fund dans lequel Morgan Stanley conserverait une participation importante. Les dirigeants de Morgan Stanley réfléchissent à cette solution pour deux raisons : d’une part, le gouvernement américain veut limiter les rémunérations dans les entreprises qui ont bénéficié d’une aide de l’Etat. De l’autre, Washington exige des sociétés qui ont profité du programme TARP (Troubled Asset Relief Program) qu’elles prouvent avant d’embaucher des étrangers qu’elles ont effectivement proposé le poste à un Américain?
24/04/2009
Fonds

Les actifs de Stanford ont été gonflés

La valeur de la plupart des actifs des sociétés liées à Sir Allen Stanford, le milliardaire accusé d"un plan Ponzi, a été gonflée, selon Ralph Janvey, le mandataire liquidateur nommé par la justice américaine pour superviser les affaires du groupe, cité par le Financial Times.
Fonds
24/04/2009

Accord sur un plan social chez Franklin Templeton

Les négociations entre Franklin Templeton International Services SA et les représentants de son personnel se sont soldées le 21 avril par la conclusion d’un accord sur un plan social. L’effectif va diminuer de 16 personnes sur un effectif de 141 collaborateurs, dont 14 départs «involontaires» alors qu’il avait été initialement prévu 17 départs involontaires.
24/04/2009

VTB voit son bénéfice divisé par sept

La banque publique russe VTB, la deuxième du pays en termes d’actifs, que son bénéfice net pour 2008 a été divisé par plus de 7, à 212 millions de dollars contre 1,5 milliard fourni l’an dernier. La banque se dit affectée notamment par la hausse de ses provisions pour créances douteuses.
24/04/2009
Fonds

Gestions alternative et traditionnelle convergent, selon le CIO de SEB Wealth

Peter Branner, CIO global de SEB Wealth en Suède, estime que la convergence entre hedge funds et fonds traditionnels va se poursuivre, rapporte Citywire. Le dirigeant constate un engouement croissant pour les produits de style hedge funds ayant une enveloppe Ucits III. Il pense que l’offre de grandes maisons comme SEB continuera à attirer les investisseurs friands de rendements de type hedge funds mais avec moins de risques opérationnels.
Fonds
24/04/2009

Baisse du bénéfice de SEB Wealth Management

Au premier trimestre, la division Wealth Management de la banque suédoise SEB, qui comprend les activités clients institutionnels et banque privée, a vu son revenu d"exploitation reculer de 36 % par rapport au trimestre précédent à 881 millions de couronnes suédoises, «principalement en raison d"une baisse de 10 % des encours sous gestion par rapport à l"année précédente et d"une baisse des revenus issus des commissions de performance et des frais de transaction», explique le communiqué. Malgré une baisse des dépenses d"exploitation de 6 % à 666 millions de couronnes, le bénéfice d"exploitation chute de 68 % à 215 millions de couronnes sur les trois premiers mois de l"année. Les encours sous gestion de la division se sont tassés de 1 % par rapport à la fin d"année dernière à 1.128 milliards de couronnes, «principalement en raison de la baisse des marchés». «L"effet taux de change et des souscriptions nettes de 8 milliards de couronnes ont permis de limiter le déclin des encours», souligne le communiqué.
24/04/2009

Fidelity to close its multi-management funds

Ignites Europe reports on 23 April that Fidelity International will close its OEICS multi-management funds Special Situations and Equity Income. Subscribers will be offered a free transfer to other funds of the product range.
24/04/2009

Banks reorganise fund management activities

As elsewhere in Europe, Spanish banks are planning to sell off or reshuffle their fund management activities, Cinco Días reports. For the moment, the only firm to have announced that it would like to sell its asset management unit is Santander, but the sale has not taken place, since the bank is asking EUR3bn, which is too much, and because some of the potential buyers are suffering due to the crisis. Meanwhile, Santander Asset Management has cut back the number of funds in its range by 10% since the end of 2007, and it is now beginning to merge funds which use the same strategies at different fee levels, depending on whether they are sold by Santander, Banesto or Banif. Sabadell, for its part, is reducing the number of its funds to 87 from 100, and has created a new affiliate, BanSabadell Securities Services, to manage the entire securities services process; the firm may provide securities services to other management firms also. Caixa Tarragona has opted for another solution, by outsourcing management of its funds (to Intermoney Valores), while continuing to offer its products and receiving the commissions for them.
24/04/2009

Stanford assets were inflated

The value of most assets held by companies related to Sir Allen Stanford, the billionaire accused of operating a Ponzi scheme, was inflated, says Ralph Janvey, the liquidator appointed by US courts to supervise the group’s affairs, cited by the Financial Times.
24/04/2009

Inflows to life insurance rise

Life insurance contributions climbed 22% in March 2009 compared with the same month of the previous year, after 27 consecutive moths of decline since December 2006, according to the most recent internal study by the French federation of insurance companies (FFSA), viewed by La Tribune. Cumulative payments into policies in the first three months of the year are up 3% to EUR37.5bn, despite decreases in January and February.
24/04/2009

Wave of restructuring to come in asset management, says Fitch

In a special study published on Thursday, Fitch Ratings predicts that the German asset management sector will continue to experience difficult market conditions throughout 2009, both in terms of growth and profitability, and that this will result in a process of consolidation and strategic reorientation.Management firms have been noticeably affected by the global financial crisis, though they have conservative risk profiles, with a significant portion of their activities in money market, bonds, and protected capital funds, while the proportion of equities funds is low, and funds are using only limited levels of leverage.Roger Schneider, director of the fund & asset manager rating group at Fitch, says cost reductions to bring them in line with falling revenues are inevitable, and that asset managers will need to find a balance between adjusting their business models and the consequent costs without compromising the depth and quality of their research or their investment processes, which are decisive parts of their capacity to profit from a rebound on the markets at a later date. This pressure is opening the door to consolidation, and creating new horizons for more frequent cooperations and partnerships both nationally and internationally, which the sector has been reticent about in the past.
24/04/2009

External distributors play a key role

Third-party distributors, particularly global banks and local financial advisors and brokers, are key partners in distribution of UCITS funds in all regions, according to a study entitled ?UCITS as a Global Brand,? undertaken by Lipper Feri on behalf of Efama, which surveyed 22 major asset management firms.The findings point to the importance of understanding the consequences of the financial crisis for third-party distributors and to the elaboration and redefinition of cross-border distribution of UCITS funds. Given this importance, Efama notes, participants in the study consider that one of the strategies that is helping them to confront the financial crisis is to seek new distribution partners. This concern comes after cost reductions, but before launches of new products.
24/04/2009

BKB and Bank Coop join forces in asset management

Less than a week after an alliance of three cantonal banks with Wegelin was announced, the cantonal bank of Basel (BKB) and Bank Coop on Thursday announced the creation of a joint centre of expertise in asset management, which will provide services to the two establishments, which will continue to operate separately. The asset management divisions of the two banks will be united on 1 January 2010, to form a new centre of expertise which will be placed under the direction of the private clients and private banking division of BKB. The process will be completed with the move to a joint portfolio management tool known as Avaloq. The project will be led by Alfred Ritter, who becomes CIO of the BKB group, and who was previously director of equities trading at the bank. His deputy will be Martin Volekle, director of asset management at Bank Coop.
24/04/2009

Alternative and traditional management are converging, says CIO of SEB Wealth

Peter Branner, global CIO of SEB Wealth in Sweden, claims that the convergence between hedge funds and long only funds is likely to continue, Citywire reports. The director notes that there is a growing demand for hedge fund-style products in an UCITS III-compliant format. He thinks that product ranges from major management firms such as SEB will continue to attract investors hungry for hedge fund type returns with fewer operational risks.
24/04/2009

Some bright sides to the news at Janus Capital

Net profits for first quarter may have fallen 93% to USD2.7m or 2 cents per share, but operating costs at Janus Capital contracted by 29%, thanks to 112 layoffs in fourth quarter 2008. In addition, the Wall Street Journal points out, net outflows were limited to USD900m, of which USD300m were due to reallocations by clients who will return, compared with USD3bn in outflows in October-December. As of the end of March, assets of USD110.9bn were down 10% compared with their levels at the end of December, and down 41% in one year.
24/04/2009

India - BNP Paribas to sell asset management activities to Fortis

The Financial Chronicle reports that BNP Paribas may sell the asset management activities of Fortis in India, following its acquisition of the Belgian bank. The two groups currently have separate fund management activities in the country, which is not allowed by Indian law, Dow Jones reports.
24/04/2009

Agreement on staff reduction plan at Franklin Templeton

Negotiations between Franklin Templeton International Services SA and representatives of its personnel on 21 April concluded in an agreement over a cutback plan. Staff will be reduced by 16 people, out of a total of 141, of which 14 will be involuntary departures; 17 involuntary departures had initially been planned.
24/04/2009

Deborah Doyle McWhinney to lead PWM division of Citi

Citigroup has announced the appointment of Deborah Doyle McWhinney as head of Citi Personal Wealth Management, which includes both the existing network of agency-based financial advisors in the United States and other financial planning and wealth management services. McWhinney was president of Charles Schwab Institutional until 2007, and then served as CEO and president of the Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation.
24/04/2009

Fidelity buys stake in Deutsche Borse

Fidelity has bought a 2.91% stake in Deutsche Börse via its British affiliate, the German stock market company has confirmed, according to reports in Handelsblatt. Fidelity becomes the second investor to become known since it was learned that the hedge funds TCI and Atticus had sold their stakes (totalling 16%), Handelsblatt notes. The first was the American management firm Wellington, which acquired slightly over 3% of capital in the firm.
24/04/2009

Brian Hogan promoted to head of equities management at Fidelity

Two weeks after the announcement of the departure of its equities CIO, Walter Donovan, to Putnam Investments, Fidelity Investments has announced that the new chief investment officer for equities fund management (USD491bn in assets) will be Brian Hogan, who has 15 years’ seniority, and who has served as vice president of equity research since 2006, the Wall Street Journal reports.
24/04/2009

Assets down at Schroders in Q1

In first quarter 2009, Schroders has seen a decline in its assets under management of GBP7bn compared with the end of 1008, to GBP103.1bn. The management firm has undergone redemptions of GBP2.4bn from institutional investors.In the first three months of the year, pre-tax profits and exceptional elements in Asset Management and Private Banking are down to GBP35.9m, compared with GBP77.8m in first quarter 2008. After one-time elements are taken into account, profits total GBP12.2m, compared with GBP42.2m in Q1 2008. This decline in profits is largely due to Asset Management, while results for the private bank have remained relatively stable.Schroders notes that the ?level of volatility on the financial markets in first quarter is expected to persist, and will continue to affect demand on the part of investors.? In this context, ?we have reduced our personnel costs, which will lead to a reduction in other costs later in the year and in 2010.?
24/04/2009

Arobas Finance launches a platform

The independent wealth management platform Arobas Finance will launch a platform for FCPI, FIP, SOFICA, and SCPI products dedicated to IFAs. ?We will offer a base for prospective clients and targeted clients, which will direct them to agencies geographically near to them. This will allow us to bring us closer to our clients,? says a statement. ?We are also on the lookout for ‘investments or acquisitions of agencies with which we would be able to cooperate’ in a commercial and administrative partnership to provide optimal continuation of our activities,? the statement continues. The announced objective is to sign ?25 quality agreements? in the next 18 months.
24/04/2009

Albert Cobti leaves Natixis Multimanager

Citywire reports on 23 April that Albert Cobti has left Natixis Multimanager, where he was CIO. Xavier Laurent will now become head of long only multi-management, the website reports.
24/04/2009

BNP Paribas to sell asset management activities of Fortis

The Financial Chronicle reports that BNP Paribas may sell the asset management activities of Fortis in India, following its acquisition of the Belgian bank. The two groups currently have separate fund management activities in the country, which is not allowed by Indian law, Dow Jones reports.
24/04/2009

Profits down at SEB Wealth Management

In first quarter, the Wealth Management division of the Swedish bank SEB, which includes institutional clients and private banking activities, saw a decline in operating income of 36% compared with the previous quarter, to SEK881m, ?largely due to a 10% fall in assets under management compared with the previous year, and falling revenues from performance and transaction fees,? explains a statement. Despite a 6% decline in operating expenses to SEK666m, operating profits were down 68% to SEK215m in the first three months of the year.Assets under management by the division dipped 1% compared with the end of last year to SEK1,128bn, ?largely due to the downturn on the markets.? ?The effects of exchange rates and net subscriptions of SEK8bn made it possible to limit this decline in assets,? the statement says.
24/04/2009

UBS Global AM to release a fund of funds for institutionals

UBS Global Asset Management has announced that it will be releasing a fund of funds in Germany, which has already been on sale in Switzerland for 10 years. The fund invests in 15-20 funds, and 120 brownfield infrastructure properties worldwide, fondsweb reports. The product, aimed at institutional investors, is entitled UBS AFA Global Infrastructure Multi-Manager (AFA is an abbreviation for Alternative Funds Advisory). 20% of the portfolio is reserved for greenfield infrastructure projects.
24/04/2009

Mubadala publishes its first annual report

Mubadala, one of the most active investment vehicles in Abu Dhabi, has published its first annual report, the Financial Times reports. The investor reports losses of EUR2.5bn in 2008.
24/04/2009

Brussels seeks to cut bankers' bonuses

According to recommendations which have been seen by the Financial Times, the European Commission will seek to cap bonuses and golden parachutes for bankers in the 27 countries of the European Union. The countries would be required to adopt stricter regulations for financial institutions that have an office within their borders. Employees whose activities affect the risk profile of the firm would be affected.

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