Zurich-headquartered private bank EFG International has agreed to acquire the Luxembourg based private banking activities of UBI Banca International from Unione di Banche Italiane.
UBI Banca International (Luxembourg) has around EUR 3.6 billion in assets under management.
EFG International specified that the transaction is structured as a cash acquisition of UBI Banca International (Luxembourg) S.A. and will have no material impacts on EFG International’s regulatory capital position.
The deal is expected to close during the first half of 2017, and the company will merge into EFG Bank (Luxembourg) S.A..
UBI’s branches in Madrid and Munich are not part of the transaction, as well as its fiduciary and corporate banking activities.
It forms the second move of EFG International in the M&A activity since the start of 2016 as the company is to soon acquire the Lugano based private bank BSI, after an agreement has been signed on 21 February 2016 with BSI’s sole shareholder BTG Pactual.
The EFG International annual general meeting, scheduled on 29 April 2016, shall result in a shareholder approval for the transaction. The deal is to be closed in Q4 2016 and BSI is expected to entirely merge into EFG International at end 2017.
The Bank of Japan’s regular policy meeting ended in Tokyo on Thursday with the policy committee deciding to take no action. In the event, this was a major surprise considering that in recent weeks the consensus expectation had formed solidly behind the view that the central bank would extend its negative interest rate policy which was introduced in January, and also extend the asset purchase programme. According to Nathan Gibbs, Fund Manager at Schroder Investment Management and renowned contrarian specialized on Japanese stocks, “today’s decision seems to imply that the policy committee feels more time is needed to judge the impact of the most recent changes before extending policy further.”
Japanese inflation, which was also released today, showed a marked slowdown in progress towards the central bank’s own inflation target of 2%. Indeed, in its statement the committee implicitly extended the deadline to reach that 2% target into the latter part of 2017. “This admission that the target has become harder, without any additional policy response, led to an immediate decline of around 4% in the stockmarket from the levels seen in the morning session. At the same time there was a sharp strengthening of the yen as currency markets priced-in the effective change in expected interest rate differentials. Some of the current deflationary impact is clearly due to external forces, including the weakness in the price of oil which forms a major part of Japan’s imports. Nevertheless, financial markets had already reflected the change in expectations with the implied inflation rate in index-linked bonds declining this year from around 0.8% to 0.3%. Most surveys of individual consumers in Japan also suggest that the gradual increase in inflationary expectations which has been generated in the last three years has begun to tail-off,” says Gibbs.
In his view, inconsistency introduces uncertainty and although Governor Kuroda has successfully surprised investors with the timing of previous decisions, the direction of his policy has always been absolutely clear. As a result, most investors have been prepared to accept his assertion that he would do “whatever it takes” to raise inflationary expectations. With those inflationary expectations now in decline, “the lack of response today introduces an element of uncertainty which the financial markets may view negatively. Of course, the central bank’s policy objective is to influence the real economy, not the stockmarket, and we must wait longer to see if the current policy is indeed sufficient to maintain the positive underlying trends we have seen so far,” he concludes.
Current Managing Director of Apex’s Maltese operation, Anthony O’Driscoll, has been promoted to Chief Operating Officer for the group. O’Driscoll, a member of the Certified Public Accountants of Ireland, has been with Apex for 10 years during which time he has worked at various Apex offices around the world; including Mauritius, Hong Kong, Ireland and Malta.
O’Driscoll has been instrumental in the rapid growth of the Malta office which he helped launch in 2008. Opening with just 5 employees, Apex Malta has grown exponentially now boasting a team of 70 employees servicing over 124 funds. Paulianne Nwoko current Operations Manager for Apex Malta replaces O’Driscoll as Managing Director for the office and David Butler becomes Chairman. Butler is the founder of Green Day Advisors LLP and Kinetic Partners, bringing over 20 years of industry experience with him to the role at Apex Malta.
Peter Hughes, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer said: “Anthony has been a driving force behind operational innovation for the Apex Malta office. His dedication and commitment to the success and growth of the office are evident in its rapid expansion since establishment 8 years ago. Through implementing progressive projects, such as successfully ensuring Apex Malta becomes the first paperless Apex office, Anthony has demonstrated an aptitude for operational excellence that we want the rest of the group to benefit from. I’m delighted that he can now support me in the role as COO for the group and ensure these progressive developments are implemented quickly and effectively across the rest of the Apex group.”
Anthony O’Driscoll, Chief Operating Officer said: “I am delighted to take on the role of COO for Apex. The group as a whole delivers a really distinctive service to its clients through continually evolving and adding to its product suite and delivering solutions spanning the full value chain of a fund. Understanding the day-to-day requirements of each unique asset manager, alongside the wider impact of market change on their businesses overall, is what fosters longevity in relationships and forms real trust in our ability to service and support our clients. I look forward to further developing our operating strategy on a global basis and implementing some of the procedures already successfully in place in Malta, to benefit both the other local Apex offices and in turn their clients.”
David Butler, commenting on his role as Chairman for Apex Malta, said: “I am thrilled to be joining the Apex Malta team in the position of Chairman. At this exciting time of growth for the company I will look to supporting its local development and helping reinforce Apex’s position as the leading administrator in Malta”.
Foto: José Carlos Cortizo Pérez
. BMO Global AM lanza el Global Equity Market Neutral Sicav Fund
BMO Global Asset Management has launched BMO Global Equity Market Neutral Sicav fund, in its popular ‘True Styles’ series, a strategy that combines value, momentum, low volatility, size and GARP (Growth at a Reasonable Price) styles.
The investments are all made on the large cap global developed markets universe as represented by MSCI World. The choice of this universe as well as the strict liquidity limits that are applied in portfolio construction ensure that investors in the fund have access to a truly liquid alternative strategy.
“Excess returns of portfolios can often be attributed to exposure to certain styles,” said fund manager, Erik Rubingh, Head of Systematic Equitiesat BMO Global Asset Management. “True Styles is used to focus our portfolios, only targeting the desired styles, without interference from other factors.”
Mandy Mannix, Head of Client Management, BMO Global Asset Management (EMEA), declares: “Our clients believe the BMO Global Equity Market Neutral (SICAV) will deliver an ideal building block for their multi-asset portfolios as it is liquid, highly diversified, with proven low correlation to major asset classes and the strategy has delivered considerably better returns than a passive index with lower volatility.”
The objective of the fund, co-managed by Erik Rubingh and Chris Child, is to generate an annual gross return of 4.5% in excess of cash with a target volatility level of 6%. Euro and US$ hedged share classes are available from launch.
CC-BY-SA-2.0, FlickrFoto: Luckycavey, Flickr, Creative Commons. BlackRock y Jyske Invest destacan entre los ganadores de los premios Lipper
The winners of the Thomson Reuters Lipper European Fund Awards 2016 have been announced. These highly-respected awards honour funds and fund management firms that have excelled in providing consistently strong risk-adjusted performance relative to their peers – the merit of the winners is based on entirely objective, quantitative criteria.
BlackRock and Jyske Invest collected the top Group Award. The full list of Group Award winners follows:
“We at Lipper would like to congratulate all of the 2016 award winners for successfully navigating the exceptionally stormy waters of the 2015 capital markets. Once again we are proud to recognize the outstanding skill and expertise put forth by these managers to deliver outperformance for their shareholders,” said Robert Jenkins, global head of Research at Thomson Reuters Lipper.
“All the winners of the Lipper Fund Awards deserve to be congratulated for delivering consistently good risk-adjusted performance, relative to their peers. The influential and prestigious Lipper awards are based on regularly superior performance by investment fund managers and groups. We are proud that our measurement of such an achievement enables us to grant these awards withcredible recognition and emphasis on consistency,” said Detlef Glow, head of EMEA Research at Thomson Reuters Lipper.
Please click here to see the full list of winners. Individual classifications of three-, five-, and ten-year periods, as well as fund families with high average scores for the three-year period are also recognized. The awards are based on Lipper’s proven proprietary methodology, which can be viewed here.
Lipper data covers more than 306,000 share classes and over 128,000 funds in 63 markets. The free Lipper Leader ratings are available for mutual funds registered for sale in over 42 countries.
As it is becoming increasingly clear that the central banks’ expansive monetary policy is not leading to a sustainable recovery in economic activity, the recent rally on the equity markets is based yet again on fragile foundations. This is the view of Guy Wagner, Chief Investment Officer at Banque de Luxembourg, and his team, published in their monthly analysis, ‘Highlights.’
The global economy is continuing to grow at a modest pace. In the United States, growth is largely due to the increase in personal disposable income spurred by weak oil prices, the favourable job market and a slight increase in wages, whereas corporate investment is diminishing. In Europe, economic growth rates are weak but positive. In Japan, the expected escalation in wages has not materialised, increasing the likelihood of a fresh government stimulus programme despite the already excessive level of public debt. The extension of the quantitative easing programme in Europe and Fed Chairman Janet Yellen’s reticence on future interest-rate hikes in the United States have led investors back into risk assets again.
The US S&P 500 index even closed the first quarter in the black, although the other indices lingered in the red. “As it is becoming increasingly clear that the central banks’ expansive monetary policy is not leading to a sustainable recovery in economic activity, the recent rally on the equity markets is based yet again on fragile foundations,” says Guy Wagner, Chief Investment Officer at Banque de Luxembourg and managing director of the asset management company BLI – Banque de Luxembourg Investments.
Further quantitative easing measures in Europe Given the weakness of inflation in Europe, the President of the European Central Bank, Mario Draghi, announced further quantitative easing measures in March: the ECB’s headline rate is being cut from 0.05% to 0%, the volume of its debt purchases has been ratcheted up from 60 to 80 billion euros per month, and the programme has been extended to include buying up investment-grade corporate bonds. The ECB also cut its deposit rate and launched a new bank-lending programme to enable banks to refinance on very favourable terms provided they then lend it on to revive economic activity.
Despite their weak yields, bond markets remain attractive Bond yields saw little change in March. Over the month, the 10-year government bond yield inched up in Germany and in the United States, but dipped in Italy and in Spain. “In Europe, the main attraction of the bond markets lies in the prospect of interest rates going, because the ECB’s negative interest policy could be expanded during 2016,” believes the Luxembourgish economist. “In the United States, the higher yields on long bond issues give them some residual potential for appreciation without having to factor in negative yields to maturity.”
No strengthening of the euro in the near future Against the dollar, the euro appreciated in March. Janet Yellen’s dovish words on future interest rate rises in the United States weighed on the dollar and nudged the euro/dollar exchange rate to the upper end of the last 12 months’ fluctuation bracket. “The expansion of the ECB’s quantitative easing programme does nothing to suggest a strengthening of the euro in the near future,” concludes Guy Wagner.
European Smart Beta ETF market flows continued to be strong in Q1 2016. Net New Assets (NNA) year to date (until 31/03/2016) amounted to EUR 2 billion. Total Assets under Management are up 4% vs. the end of 2015, reaching EUR 16.7 billion. Smart Beta assets have doubled since the end of 2014. Year to date, ETF flows were sustained especially in the Risk based & Factor allocation categories as investors looked for defensive strategies and alternative sources of return in an uncertain environment.
Smart Beta definition: Smart Beta indices are rules-based investment strategies that do not rely on market capitalization. To classify all the products that are included in this category we have used 3 sub segments. First, risk based strategies based on volatility, and other quantitative methods. Secondly, fundamental strategies based on the economic footprint of a firm – through accounting ratios- or of a state – through macroeconomic measures. Then factor strategies including homogeneous ranges of single factor products, and multifactor products designed for the purpose of factor allocation.
Q1 2016 flows were positive for Smart Beta ETFs at EUR 2 billion, with a one-year record high at EUR 907 million in February 2016, and a strong month of March at EUR 807 million. The quarterly figure is equal to the amount gathered in Q1 2015, in a context where equity ETFs globally registered significant outflows. Year to date, risk based ETFs registered the highest inflows with a record high on Minimum volatility ETFs at EUR 1.2 billion.
Due to high uncertainties on the economic and monetary environment worldwide,low volatility ETFs continued to attract significant interest especially on US and global indices. In the factor allocation space, multifactor ETFs continued to gather inflows, EUR 357 million year to date, mainly on European indices as investors are looking for diversification in a context of poor equity market performance. In the fundamental space, quality income ETFs benefited from the low yield environment due to their attractive yield/risk profile.
Foto: Yoshihide Nomura
. Broker dealers, banca privada y trusts controlan el 72% del mercado de los grandes patrimonios
Wirehouses and banks control nearly three-quarters of all high-net-worth assets in the United States, according to the research “High-Net-Worth and Ultra-High-Net-Worth Markets 2015: Understanding and Addressing Family Offices”, published by Cerulli Associates.
“As of year-end 2014, wealth managers controlled approximately $8 trillion inHNW and UHNW client assets,” states Donnie Ethier, associate director at Cerulli. “The longtime market leaders – the wirehouses, private banks, and trust companies – have maintained their reign with a collective marketshare of 72%.”
The wirehouses and banks must stop relying on intra-channel recruiting (e.g., wirehouse-to-wirehouse) or these channels will likely experience moderate growth. Moreover, heirs of their existing clients may be the biggest wildcard as they will likely boost growth within the independent and direct channels.
State-chartered trust companies and multi-family offices have experienced significant growth. These are exclusive, independent practices focused on sophisticated estate planning. These firms are often established around the softer elements of wealth, including family governance and succession planning.
Traditional registered investment advisors are also now included in Cerulli’s HNW asset sizing because, similar to several broker/dealers and investment councils, they may not qualify as MFOs but are successful among HNW families.
“Wirehouses, private banks, and trust companies remain the three largest HNW channels, respectively,” Ethier explains. “Wirehouse assets lessened from past years; however, this is not always due to a loss of assets. Instead, it can be due to a change in Cerulli’s methodology, including redistributing a wirehouse’s assets to an affiliated channel. An example is separating U.S. Trust’s marketshare from Merrill Lynch.”
The times when chocolate was a luxury good are long gone. Consumption has increased continuously and amounts to about 5.2kg per person and year in Europe. While demand has been on the rise, climate change and social problems in production constitute challenges that cause an imbalance of supply and demand. For the cocoa farmers, the chocolate dream can easily turn into a nightmare. We talked to Stefan Rößler, quantitative analyst in the ESG team of Erste Asset Management, about how this situation could be changed.
Mr Rößler, many of us have a sweet tooth for chocolate. However, most people are not aware that the cultivation of cocoa and its processing can cause problems. Rößler: That’s right. Our analysis clearly shows two main problemat- ic areas, i.e. the environment and the social impact. With regard to the latter, we are specifically talking about child labour and low work- ing and social standards. Initial steps have been taken to remedy the situation, but the implementation leaves a lot to be desired. The vast number of cocoa farmers in West Africa makes organisation difficult.
As far as the purchase of cocoa goes, the producers are also faced with structural challenges. There are eight global companies that buy almost the entire crop. The nontransparent and convoluted supply chain adds to the difficulties of implementing adequate measures in terms of social and environmental standards.
You just mentioned the environmental aspect – what are the challenges in this area? Rößler: It is important to bear in mind that cocoa is not the only in- gredient used in the production of chocolate. Other raw materials such as sugar, hazelnuts, and palm oil are also required; and they cause problems similar to those of cocoa. The high demand for chocolate and thus cocoa has led to a status quo where investments are largely funnelled into higher productivity. However, this strategy is extremely one-sided. What would be necessary and preferable is a double-edged strategy: investment in know-how that facilitates a rise in productivity, but also investment in sustainable cultiva- tion skills. According to forecasts climate change will make it impossible to cultivate cocoa in West Africa by 2050. This will also affect the chocolate producers down the road, as their security of supply will be taken away from them.
Investments are always also a question of what price can ultimately be charged. What are we looking at from this angle? Rößler: That is correct, more funding is necessary for investments in know-how and the modernisation of pro- duction in order to facilitate sustainable cultivation. From our point of view, the cocoa price would have to dou- ble in order to compensate the cocoa farmers fairly, make education possible, and modernise cultivation.
Your prediction: will we still be able to indulge our longing for chocolate in the future, or will we at some point run into a supply shortage? Rößler: We have spoken with various research agencies, NGOs, and market participants. The good news is: there will be cocoa in the future – and therefore chocolate as well. Numerous initiatives and certificates such as FairTrade, UTZ, and Rainforest Alliance are going in the right direction. Everybody should support this on an individual basis by buying chocolate with such labels. And we as investors, Erste Asset Management, can do the same thing: we only invest in the shares of companies that maintain certain minimum standards and that do not violate labour laws or human rights in the supply chain. Environmental controversies are also criteria that we take into account. Thus, everyone can contribute to the best of their abilities to ensure that cocoa farmers make a decent living and that they therefore have a future.
If the transformation to sustainable cocoa cultivation fails, the perspectives for the cocoa farmers will be gloomy. Because then production will be moved to regions where cocoa cultivation is still possible in spite of the climate change.
For more on cacao and chocolate, you can read Erste AM’s ESG Letter on Environmental, Social and Governance issues, which focuses on this commodity, following this link.
CC-BY-SA-2.0, FlickrFoto: RCRW. La francesa Orange compra el 65% de Groupama Banque
French telecom company Orange has signed an agreement with Groupama Banque to develop a full mobile banking service that will be launched in France at the beginning of 2017.
The deal, subject to regulatory approval, will also lead to the acquisition by Orange of a 65% stake in Groupama Banque. Groupama will retain the remaining 35%.
Following the completion of the transaction, expected during Q3 2016, Groupama Banque should become Orange Bank.
This service will be marketed under the Orange brand within Orange’s own distribution network and under the Groupama brand within Groupama’s distribution networks.Services provided will cover current accounts, savings, loans and insurance services, as well as payment.
Orange and Groupama seek to attract two million customers in France.
Stéphane Richard, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Orange, said: “This agreement is a major step forward in our ambition to diversify into mobile financial services as we outlined in our Essentials2020 strategy. Groupama Banque will bring an existing banking structure as well as considerable experience in managing customer relations remotely within a banking context. This will enable us to move forward rapidly in order to provide our customers with an innovative, 100% mobile banking service, first in France and then in Spain and Belgium. By leveraging the power of its brand, its distribution network and its extensive experience in digital services, Orange aims to bring mobile banking into a new dimension.”
Thierry Martel, CEO of Groupama, said: “This partnership represents an important step for Groupama. It will enable us to leverage Orange’s technical know-how and its expertise in digital services to accelerate our existing online banking activity. Through this partnership, we are effectively combining two powerful and complimentary brands in order to offer our customers a disruptive banking service. We are aiming to put the highstreet bank into our customers’ pockets, turning tomorrow’s bank into today’s reality.”
