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02/03/2009

Spain - Assets in securities funds contract

According to the Inverco association of asset management firms, assets under management by securities funds on sale in Spain at the end of February totalled EUR163.44bn, which represents a decline of 1.2%, or EUR1.95bn, compared with their levels one month earlier. Net redemptions totalled EUR1.13bn, compared with EUR1.81bn in January. This is the lowest level of net outflows observed since August 2007. BBVA Asset Management at the end of February posted net outflows of EUR50.3m, while Santander Gestión de Activos posted outflows of EUR535.9m. The two firms had assets at the end of February of EUR32.82bn and EUR31.55bn, respectively. In January-February, assets under management fell 0.6%, or EUR199m, at BBVA, and 2.4%, or EUR761.4m, at Santander.Of the top ten fund managers by volume of assets under management, only Invercaixa Gestión posted net subscriptions in February, of EUR246.3m; its assets of EUR11.58bn put it in third place for the sector as a whole.
02/03/2009

Germany - Sustainable development funds suffered in 2008

According to the Sustainable Business Institute, assets in sustainable development funds in the German-speaking countries (Germany, Austria, and Switzerland) contracted in 2008 by 38% to EUR21bn, largely due to falling equities markets, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reports. The number of funds increased to 274 at the end of December, from 181 twelve months previously.
02/03/2009

United States - New wave of redemptions looms for hedge funds

With the financial markets in disarray and the Madoff scandal in the headlines, US hedge funds are likely to be confronted with further significant redemption demands in the first few weeks of 2009, the Wall Street Journal reports. Morgan Stanley estimates, for example, that redemptions at Och-Ziff may run to USD2.1bn in first half, following USD5.4bn in 2008 (as of the end of December, its assets under management were USD22.1bn). According to sources close to the manager, D.E. Shaw is said to have already registered redemption demands for the quarter ending on 31 March higher than those for fourth quarter of last year. Assets at the management firm fell by USD9bn in the second half of last year to finish the year at USD30bn.
02/03/2009

United Kingdom - GBP70bn deficit for FTSE 100 pension funds

According to estimates by Tower Perrin, the total deficit for pension funds of the 100 largest publicly traded companies in the United Kingdom, the members of the FTSE 100 index, reached GBP70bn at the end of last year. One year earlier, these funds showed a slight surplus.
02/03/2009

Europe - Inflows of EUR1bn to SRI funds in December

According to statistics from Responsible Investor, on the basis of data from Lipper Feri, net subscriptions to SRI funds in December totalled EUR999.4m, and assets at the end of the year totalled EUR35.4bn. The best results in December were for the Moné Etheis money-market fund from BNP Paribas, with EUR321.2m.Environmental funds, which had EUR12.8bn in total assets under management as of 31 December, attracted a net total of EUR181.7m in the last month of the year, after net outflows of EUR68.6m in November.
02/03/2009

France - Natixis AM is not for sale

Natixis is not planning to sell its asset management activities, Ignites Europe reports in its 27 February edition, relaying reports from Reuters France. The announcement was made by Dominique Ferrero, CEO of the group, at a presentation of the firm’s annual results.
02/03/2009

United Kingdom - Jupiter's CEO steps down from running funds

Edward Bonham Carter, the investment manager who led the management buy-out of Jupiter AM two years ago, is stepping down from running funds on a day-to-day basis to focus on his main job as chief executive, according to the Financial Times. He will also retain his role of chief investment officer, but is handing the management of Undervalued Assets to Patrick Harrington.
02/03/2009

United Kingdom - Deutsche Bank sues Sebastian Holdings for USD246m

The Times reports that Deutsche Bank, as primary dealer, is taking the Sebastian Holdings fund, managed by Alexander Vik and registered in the Turks and Caicos Islands, before the London High Court, to claim a reimbursement of USD246m. The legal action is in relation to a margin call following a forex transaction worth NOK1.5bn, undertaken on 10 October 2008, when the markets were at their most volatile.
02/03/2009

United Kingdom - Assets down 16% at Henderson

In 2008, Henderson has seen a decline in its assets of 16%, from GBP59.2bn as of the end of 2007, to GBP49.5bn as of the end of December. Pre-tax operating profits totalled GBP99.7m, down 9% from 2007.Andrew Formica, CEO of the group since November, says 2009 will be tougher than 2008 in terms of profits.On the subject of the firm’s potential acquisition of New Star, Henderson says the complete details of the bid will be revealed to New Star shareholders on 11 March, and that Henderson shareholders will have the opportunity to vote on the operation at a general assembly to be held on 2 April. If all goes well, the manager hopes to complete the transaction in early April.
02/03/2009

World - Small hedge funds continued to outperform in 2008

Peter Urbani, CIO of the fund of hedge fund management firm Infinit Solutions, says ?emerging managers? of hedge funds (less than 36 months of track records, and less than USD300m in assets) saw total losses last year of 16% to 18.2%, whiel the hedge fund sector as a whole lost about 20%, and some of the most well-established and largest products saw severe losses, sometimes of more than 50%, Hedge Week reports. This outperformance, though it was not enough to preserve invested capital, is due to the fact that the small size of these funds and their agility allowed them to react more quickly and vigorously to the crisis. They can also cut back staff and close offices more easily than older firms, though the larger companies are less vulnerable to redemption demands - which may also have prevented them from realising in time that investors were panicking.
02/03/2009

Germany - Axa IM audits portfolio of Immoselect fund

Fondsweb reports that Axa Investment Managers Germany has announced that an audit of eight properties in the portfolio of the Immoselect real estate fund, previously valued at EUR351.89m, has led to a downward adjustment of the fund’s net asset value of EUR11.62m, which explains a reduction of 9 cents in the fund’s per-share asset value on 23 February.The manager also states that assets in the fund, whose redemptions have been frozen since the end of October, now total nearly EUR3.33bn (down from EUR3.97bn at the end of September). Assets in the portfolio, which has a total value of over EUR2.22bn, have already been subjected to a revaluation, and corrections to the value of the portfolio have been limited. Downward revisions have primarily affected four properties in Spain, one in the Netherlands, and two in Luxembourg.However, the value of the shopping centre La Scaglia (Civitavecchia), and of one property in Amsterdam, have been revised upwards.
02/03/2009

Germany - Threadneedle has a new head in Germany

Werner Kolitsch, previously country director for Austria and the countries of central and eastern Europe for Threadneedle, based in Vienna, has been appointed head of Germany and Austria. He will be based in Frankfurt and will report directly to Christian Pellis, head of European distribution. In Germany, he replaces Volker Plate, about whose future Threadneedle cannot yet offer any details.
02/03/2009

United Kingdom - Tables turn as Brian Myerson faces shareholder revolt

Brian Myerson, known for his shareholder activism, is facing a revolt on the part of shareholders in his own Principle Capital Investment Trust, who are seeking to unseat him and three other directors, sell off the shares, and redistribute the money to shareholders, the Sunday Times reports. The revolt is being led by the United States hedge fund QVT, which is dissatisfied with the poor performance of Principle, and also has the allegiance of the investment fund EIM, managed by Arki Busson, and of Invesco. At a general assembly on 26 March, they will propose that Crystel Amber Management be designated to sell off the fund’s investments over a two-year period.
02/03/2009

United States - Warren Buffett: ?I was dumb in 2008??

Berkshire Hathaway earned net profits in 2008 of USD4.99bn, compared with USD13.21bn the previous year, and Warren Buffett, the fund’s owner, has admitted that the firm lost USD11.5bn on its investments, the Sunday Times reports. The ?Sage of Omaha? admits that he made ?dumb things? in 2008, one of which was investing in ConocoPhillips at a time when oil was close to its peak: the investment cost Berkshire Hathaway several billion dollars. The firm’s book value per share lost 9.6% last year, its heaviest fall since 1965, when Buffett took over the company.
02/03/2009

Spain - Fewer than 6 million accounts

In February, net redemptions from Spanish securities funds fell to EUR1.13bn, their lowest level since August 2007. There have been continual outflows since May 2007. Cinco Días notes that the rate of decline in the number of accounts has slowed to 57,254 in February, compared with 10,000 in January. This is also the first time since 1997 that the total has fallen below 6 million (5,999,698).
02/03/2009

Germany - Thomas Mann becomes head of AmpegaGerling Investment

The chairman of the managing board at Gothaer Asset Management, Thomas Mann, was appointed on Friday by the supervisory board at the AmpegaGerling group as CEO of AmpegaGerling Investment GmbH, and as a member of executive committee at AmpegaGerling Asset Management GmbH. He will begin in these positions, as well as the position of CIO for both companies, on 1 August 2008, replacing Walter Schmidt, who will be retiring.Jürgen Wrobbel, COO of AmpegaGerling Investment and Ampega AM, will be leaving the firm on 1 April, by a mutual agreement with the management board. His duties will be redistributed to the directors of the two firms. AmpegaGerling Investment had assets as of the end of December of EUR12.76bn in securities funds, and of EUR264m in open-ended real estate funds.
02/03/2009

Spain - 100 ?global? funds posted positive returns in 2008

Cinco Días reports that approximately 100 of the 480 ?global funds? on the registers were in positive territory in 2008. ?Global funds? are a catch-all category (in Spanish, a cajón de sastre) which largely includes hedge funds. The best performer was Bankinter Kilimanjaro, with returns of 18% in the 12 months to 31 January. The fund played the falling markets from June on, with a portfolio that had a continual ?short? position ranging from 20% to 60%. The Renta 4 Pegasus fund gained 7.1%, with a strong allocation to bonds, and a net exposure to equities of +/- 10%. The Caja Burgos Fondo de Fondos Conservator VaR 3, for its part, has no exposure to equities funds, and gained 6.28%.
02/03/2009

Italy - Fideuram adds to staff

Fideuram Investimenti is adding to its personnel, Bluerating reports. Mario Bortoli, former CEO of Eurizon Alternative, has joined the firm as head of multi-management. There will also be recruitments for the asset allocation team.
02/03/2009

United States - Pimco to redeem ARS

Pacific Investment Management Co (Pimco, Allianz group) has announced that it will redeem USD342bn in auction-rate preferred securities (ARS) issued by come of its closed funds, and analysts are predicting that other redemptions will follow in the next few weeks, the Wall Street Journal reports. US federal law prohibits closed funds from paying dividends if their ARS leverage is over 50% of their assets, which is reportedly currently the case for the five Pimco funds (Pimco Corporate Income Fund, Pimco Corporate Opportunity Fund, Pimco High Income Fund, Pimco Floating Rate Income Fund and Pimco Floating Rate Strategy) for which the redemptions have been announced, and also for two funds from Nicholas-Applegate, another Allianz affiliate, specifically, the Nicholas-Applegate Convertible & Income Fund and Nicholas-Applegate Convertible & Income Fund.
02/03/2009

Europe - Pension funds lending to businesses

Major pension funds are beginning to lend directly to businesses in search of credit, the Financial Times reports. ?The withdrawal of banks has raised the price of borrowing, increasing returns so far that pension funds can generate results by lending directly to very highly-rated companies, at a time when returns on traditional assets are low,? the newspaper reports.
02/03/2009

France - Société Générale upgrades IT infrastructure

L’Agefi reports that Société Générale will this week send out an internal announcement of an initiative known as SG TEC, which will unite management of IT infrasctructures for its major professions and affiliates in a single unit. All of the bank’s professional areas, including asset management, will be involved. The IT restructuring will bring the bank savings of EUR100m beginning in 2010, the news agency reports.
02/03/2009

Germany - Irregularities at DekaBank

On Friday, DekaBank, the asset management arm of the German savings banks and Landesbanken, caused consternation with a downward revision of about EUR100m to its 2008 results. According to sources in the finance sector, market traders blatantly disobeyed orders from the management, Handelsblatt reports. A spokesperson for the fim merely confirmed on Sunday that an investigation is being undertaken by the Bundesbank, and that the board has launched an internal enquiry.
02/03/2009

Switzerland - Gottex to reimburse clients

Gottex Fund Management has send a letter to investors in its USD1.9bn Gottex Market Neutral Plus fund, to confirm that some redemptions will be paid out this Monday, and that fees will be reduced for those remaining in the fund, the Financial Times reports.
02/03/2009

Austria - Government investigates Medici president

The Austrian public prosecutor’s office has launched a criminal investigation of Sonja Kohn, president and majority shareholder in Bank Medici, on suspicion of fraud and betrayal of confidence in connection with the Madoff scandal, the Financial Times reports. The investigation comes in the wake of a complaint filed by Gabriel Lansky, a famous Vienna lawyer, on behalf of anonymous clients who lost their investments in funds managed by Bank Medici and placed with Madoff.
02/03/2009

United States - DE Shaw to appoint an independent administrator

DE Shaw, one of the largest US hedge funds, is planning to appoint independent administrators to reassure investors rendered more cautious by the Madoff scandal, the Financial Times reports. The practice, common in Europe, is still rare in the United States.
02/03/2009

United Kingdom - Hedge fund fundraising halved

According to statistics from the Financial Services Authority cited by the Financial Times, fundraising by hedge funds was reduced to 1.15 times net assets in October, half of what it was one year previously. The survey also shows that hedge funds have never had so little borrowing capacity since 2005, when statistics began to be kept.

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