Afores’ investments in international mutual funds are a reality. Prudently and seeking “that this global diversification is the best for the worker,” Afore SURA was the first Afore to put resources to work using this vehicle.
The Afore, which has a Silver Morningstar Analyst Classification for its solid investment team, decided to start with 1,46% of its assets, or about 500 million dollars, which it distributed to global strategies of Morgan Stanley AM and Investec, as Andrés Moreno Arias, Investment Director of Afore SURA said in an interview with Funds Society.
According to Moreno, “for SURA it is a strategic issue to have managers who can help us with our portfolios in the public and private market, we had to have access to these managers and once authorized [to use them], we almost immediately took the first step”. That is why SURA and other afores spent the last two years talking with the regulator and lobbying about the importance of access to specialists in active management in both public and private markets.
In Moreno’s opinion, “every time you expand the investment regime you are opening up to places where, for example in Asia we have less knowledge than someone who has been there a lifetime, so once the investment regime opens up, it is important that we are given access to tools that allow us access to experts, always keeping costs in check, so that it always represents a net benefit for the clients.”
The way in which they make their investment decisions is based on three stages: “the first stage involves the analysis of the world and the companies’ possibilities regaring profit generation in an overview that begins the allocation process as it defines where we are going to invest in. In a second stage the asset class is defined, in this case equity, then regions, themes… and a final stage involves deciding whether we to do it actively or passively.” As Moreno lets us know, as a result of this analysis, he expects that “in the regions where we will rely on specialized managers we plan to give between 30 and 40% of new investments to active managers.”
Within the active strategies, the manager – who has already closed some mandates, is still open to their use. “The decision between mandates and mutual funds has to do with the issue of costs and benefits for our clients. The mandates open an infrastructure within the managers to attend a particular account, and it becomes much more expensive, so in some cases we decided to close mandates and open funds, but that does not always have to be the case… If what is best suited to our investment strategy is to do it through mandates, we will do so.”
Currently Moreno and his team, which has almost doubled in recent years, likes technology themes and as a region, Asia.
. Funds Society celebra su VII aniversario en Miami
On February 6, Funds Society celebrated its seventh anniversary on the terrace of the EAST Hotel Miami.
In the seventh edition of the already traditional annual cocktail, representatives of the offshore asset management industry gathered to celebrate the news outlet and receive the 2020 version of the asset manager’s guide.
The event was attended by more than 100 professionals.
Omni Orlando Resort at ChampionsGate . ¡Ya están abiertas las inscripciones para la Conferencia INTL FCStone's Global Markets Outlook 20/20!
Between February 27-28, 2020 experts and thought-leaders from around the world will gather at the Omni Orlando Resort at ChampionsGate to participate on the INTL FCStoneVisión 20/20: Global Markets Outlook Conference
There, participants will be offered a global vision of the future for financial and commodity markets, along with detailed market forecasts, insight on the latest technology, and macro-economic outlooks to help them get a clear picture of the factors impacting their bottom line.
Roger Shaffer, Managing Director of Correspondent Clearing at INTL FCStone Financial, told Funds Society that they expect close to 450 attendees at the event, with a mix of about 50% US based and 50% offshore clients.
For the very first time, INTL’s different divisions will combine their conferences, giving the attendee the chance to engage and know about all parts of the business and how they can further serve their needs.
“In the past each division had a separate conference, but our CEO had a vision of putting them all together for an updated event where our customers can learn about INTL’s other divisions and network with a broader group of industry professionals,” Roger mentions.
The conference will be divided into four tracks with focused programming specific to each area.
The Correspondent Clearing Outlook track is an invaluable opportunity for US and international broker-dealers and investment advisors to hear from industry thought-leaders, participate in educational workshops and network with peers. Attendees will experience the latest internal and third-party technology and learn more about INTL’s Correspondent Clearing group.
The Global Agriculture Outlook track will offer a global view toward developing strategy, protecting profits and driving growth with detailed forecasts based on the latest available data. In addition to essential market outlooks, this event provides invaluable opportunities to make new connections and network with peers.
The Dairy Outlook track will offer attendees insights into emerging trends within the industry, along with strategies to protect profits and enable growth in the current environment. In addition to the essential market outlooks and price forecasts, this event provides invaluable opportunities to connect with dairy market experts and make new connections.
The SA Stone Wealth Management track is an invaluable opportunity to listen to some of the best speakers and engage with industry experts to learn about how to build and grow your practice. You’ll also have the chance to make new connections and network with peers.
These tracks will combine for a welcome reception, general keynote sessions, meals and a trade show. For Correspondent Clearing customers, growing assets under management is a critical component of the business, so in addition to presentations regarding economic outlooks, and new technologies, Roger is looking forward to the workshop presentation on how his customers can grow their business.
Bolton Global Capital is pleased to announce that Bernardo Villanueva has joined the firm. Villanueva was formerly an advisor with UBS Financial Services where he managed $225 million in client assets. He will be working with Copernico Capital, a Bolton affiliate.
Villanueva began his career at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney in 2011 in New York City and in 2012 moved to UBS Financial Services. He will be affiliating with his brother Carlos Villanueva, who joined Bolton and founded Copernico Capital in 2014 after leaving Deutsche Bank Securities. Copernico manages $140 million in client assets on the Bolton platform.
Bernardo holds an MBA degree from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and lives with his wife and 2 children in Key Biscayne, Florida.
Since opening offices in Miami and New York City, Bolton has recruited more than two dozen international teams from the major US banks and wirehouses. The firm offers turnkey office space and a full suite of global wealth management capabilities to allow teams to easily transition to the independent business model where they can achieve higher compensation and greater ownership of their business. This model is the fastest growing segment of the US wealth management industry and Bolton has sustained a 20 percent annual growth rate over the last 5 years by focusing on teams at the major banks and wirehouses that specialize in international business.
After a decade expanding its coverage with international Asset Managers in Chile, Peru and Colombia,Capital Strategies Partners will hit Uruguay and Argentina adding Agustin Mariatti as a local business partner.
Agustin will report to Jorge Benguría, partner and responsible for LATAM and Daniel Rubio, CEO of the firm.
The Spain-based group will bring almost 10 asset managers firms to the Uruguayan and Argentinian offshore market.
The company will look to sign new distribution agreements in the next few months in order to be able to develop its product through the huge network of independent advisors.
Mariatti previously worked for Spinnaker Capital Group in Montevideo and Sao Paulo. Prior to Spinnaker he worked at Merrill Lynch as a wire room operator and senior client associate. Agustin is a CFA level 3 candidate.
“We are happy with the incorporation of Agustin and we are sure that with him we will get a good development to provide our customers the best solutions with independence and commitment” the entity said in a statement.
Capital Strategies Partners has 20 years of experience in global markets and more than a decade operating in Latin America:“Our goal is to identify and select global investment ideas of high added value to facilitate the investments decisions of financial institutions with their local needs. The managers that CSP represents have specialized approaches in different asset classes managing in aggregate more than 700,000 Million USD (700 Bn). This allows us to find the alternative that properly helps to achieve the different objectives of each investor” announced the firm.
During the first edition of Funds Society’s Investments & Rodeo Summit, which will take place on March 5, 2020 at the Intercontinental Houston Medical Center, Felipe Villaroel, portfolio manager at TwentyFour Asset Management, a boutique of Vontobel Asset Management, will talk about its TwentyFour Strategic Income strategy, a multi-sector bond strategy, that aims to provide an attractive level of income along with an opportunity for capital growth throughout the economic cycle.
“It is genuinely unconstrained and un-leveraged long only bond strategy, managed independent of the market indices, combining the best sources of fixed income from around the globe, highly focused on relative value and liquidity.” He mentions.
Felipe joined TwentyFour in 2011 and is a Portfolio Manager in the Multi-Sector Bond team. His main responsibility is managing funds within the Strategic Income Strategy. He is also a member of the Investment Committee. Prior to joining TwentyFour, Felipe worked as an Asset Allocation and Strategy Analyst at Celfin Capital in Chile, now part of the BTG Pactual Group. There, Felipe took an active role in developing the team’s strategic view of the global macro economy and asset classes.
Felipe graduated from Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile with a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Business Administration before obtaining a Masters in Finance from London Business School. Felipe is also a CFA Charterholder.
Michael Kearns, Head of US Offshore Distribution for Unicorn Strategic Partners, will also be present at the event, representing Vontobel.
If you are involved in the management of fund portfolios, or the selection and analysis of funds, and want to participate in this event, reserve your place as soon as possible by writing to info@fundssociety.com.
Vontobel Group is an active asset manager with global reach and a multi-boutique approach. Each of their boutiques draws on specialized investment talent, a strong performance culture and robust risk management. The firm has a total of $ 118 billion in assets as of June, 2019.
TwentyFour Asset Management is a specialized fixed income firm, headquartered in London and boutique of Vontobel Group. We are specialists in fixed income, headquartered in London and a boutique of the Swiss based Vontobel Group. Since its inception in 2008, they have built an enviable reputation for performance, expertise and innovation in their chosen sector.
Oliver Röder, courtesy photo. Erste AM nombra a Oliver Röder nuevo director de Ventas Institucionales
Erste Asset Management has appointed Oliver Röder as head of institutional sales, since the beginning of February 2020.
He is now responsible for all institutional sales activities across Erste Asset Management.
This appointment brings the Institutional Sales team of Austria, Germany, and International under his direction. He is also in charge of managing and coordinating the according activities in the Central and East European countries. In this position, he reports to Wolfgang Traindl, member of the Board of Directors of Erste Asset Management.
Heinz Bednar, CEO: “Oliver Röder has convinced us with his strategic ideas about ways of expanding the institutional business of Erste AM further. His international track record and his years of experience are crucial elements of success for this business segment, which is very important to us.”
Oliver Röder (47) has been Director of Erste AM in Germany since 2016 – a position which he will maintain. Previously, he worked for other international houses in International Sales. He holds a degree in Bank Management and earned an MBA from Ashridge Management College. He is member of Deutsche Vereinigung für Finanzanalyse und Asset Management e.V. (DVFA; German Association for Financial Analysis and Asset Management) and Certified Investment Analyst (CIIA).
Participant Capital, a Miami-based real estate investment firm, with over US$3.5B in projects under development, is hosting the Miami Investment Forum 2020, an event that is designed to provide an in-depth overview on prevailing market conditions and forecast investment trends in the new decade. This one-day closed-door event will be held on February 27, 2020, at the PARAMOUNT Miami Worldcenter, a landmark tower nestled in the heart of Miami Downtown, equipped with a Skyport for flying cars. The attendees would be able to explore the futuristic amenities from the very top of the building that boasts some of the best city views.
Miami Investment Forum will convene more than 150 financial advisors, fund managers, business leaders, politicians, real estate experts from South Florida and beyond. One of the keynote speakers is the former U.S. Senator Jeff Flake, who will provide a 2020 political and economic outlook during the election year. Other leading market players, among them FlexFunds, Jones Day, will share their insights on opportunity zones, cover legal aspects of doing business in the US and Latin America, and provide an overview of how different factors affect investment performance.
“The business world is rapidly changing, and it is critical to understand how that creates opportunities to be seized and risks to be managed. That’s why we designed this event specifically to provide a holistic vision for people who manage, advise, allocate to, or oversee alternative assets,” comments Claudio Izquierdo, Chief Operating Officer of Participant Capital. C-suite sessions and networking cocktail hours will allow for deepening relationships, developing partnerships, and fostering business growth. We look forward to meeting you.”
Please confirm your attendance here by February 20, 2020.
About Participant Capital
Established in 2011 as an affiliate of Royal Palm Companies, a developer with an extensive track record of more than 40 years, Participant Capital empowers investors with direct access to premium real estate projects and allows them to invest side-by-side with the developer, from the ground-up. Participant Capital is currently partnered with over 40 distributors operating throughout Latin America and Europe and will be expanding to Asia and the Middle East this year. Its investment portfolio includes multiple development projects, different property types, and various geographic locations, and continues to grow with new world-class developments in South Florida and beyond.
The coronavirus has infected more than 20.000 people and killed more than 400 people in China alone. China’s death toll now exceeds the number of people who died in the country from SARS, a respiratory virus that killed nearly 350 people in the country in the early 2000s – as well as hundreds more beyond.
This has put pressure on China’s equity markets, however, and according toMatthews Asia CIO Robert Horrocks, PhD, and Investment Strategist Andy Rothman, both of which lived in Shanghai during the SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) outbreak that was responsible over 8,000 people contracting the virus and causing 774 deaths worldwide: “All of that plays to headlines and the impact on share prices is consequently exaggerated… While we do not underestimate the potential severity of the outbreak, and it is possible that the numbers of cases increase in the near term, we are encouraged by the response and transparency shown by the Chinese authorities.”
Horrocks believes that in number of cases, is probably likely to peak in March or April. “As I understand it, the more virulent the virus, the quicker it burns out. That is why the comparatively less aggressive common influenza causes much more damage.” To put those numbers in context, the CDC estimates that so far during the 2019-2020 influenza season, there have been at least 15 million flu illnesses, 140,000 hospitalizations and 8,200 deaths from flu.
As he points out, some workers will be out sick days and some will succumb to the disease. “However, as was the case with SARS, beyond the effect on a quarter or two of earnings for some businesses, the overall effects will be hard, if not impossible, to spot in the data… I can only say that my experience, when I lived through SARS first hand, tells me to eat well, stay active, and importantly, stay calm.” in his opinion, the impact of SARS on China’s GDP is hard to find. If you look for the impact on the stock markets, it was brief.”
Rothman believes that “After the initial stumble, the central government has taken strong measures, including quarantining several major cities, in an effort to reduce disease transmission and demonstrate resolve… It is also worth noting that past epidemics, as well as the consequences of a major earthquake, led the Chinese government to boost spending on public health infrastructure, which should make it easier to manage the Wuhan outbreak.”
Matthews Asia’s specialists looked back at the economic impact of the 2002/03 SARS outbreak and the 2005/06 bird flu epidemic, and found that while there was significant short-term economic impact, that impact faded quickly. There also wasn’t much impact on the Shanghai stock market.
“If the Wuhan Coronavirus can be brought under control in a similar timeframe as SARS was tamed, I expect the negative economic impact will be modest over the course of the full year.” Rothman concludes.
Foto cedidaÁlvaro Palenga. El Grupo AMCS amplía su equipo con una nueva incorporación en Uruguay y pone foco en su expansión
AMCS Group, a Miami and Montevideo-based third-party distribution firm, has appointed Alvaro Palenga as Sales Associate.
Palenga joins the firm at an exciting time, as the business is seeking to significantly grow the market presence of its two asset management partners, AXA Investment Managers and Merian Global Investors, while aiming to complete a deal with a third asset manager to further expand and diversify its UCITS offering to its distribution network.
Palenga will report to Santiago Sacias, Managing Partner and Head of Southern Cone Sales, who is also based in Montevideo. He will initially be tasked with supporting Sacias and the wider team in continuing to strengthen Merian and AXA IM’s position in the region.
Palenga previously worked for Sura in Montevideo as a financial advisor. Prior to Sura he worked at Trafigura as Oil Risk and Market Analyst. He also completed an internship at Citi International Financial Services (CIFS) as an Investment Analyst. Alvaro is a CFA level 3 candidate
Santiago Sacias, managing partner, the AMCS Group, comments:
“We are delighted to have Alvaro join the AMCS Group. His experience in the wealth management, alongside his academic achievements will fit perfectly with our investment-centric approach to client development and servicing. We all look forward to his contributions to our ambitious growth plans.”
The AMCS Group team details:
Currently the AMCS team is formed by the following member with the resposabilities described below:
Chris Stapleton, co-founder and Managing Partner, oversees global key account relationships across the region, as well as advisor relationships in the Northeast and West Coast.
Andres Munho, co-founder and Managing Partner, oversees all advisory and private banking relationships in Miami, as well as firms located in the Northern Cone of LatAm, including Mexico.
Santiago Sacias, Managing Partner, based in Montevideo, leads sales efforts in the Southern Cone region, which includes Argentina, Uruguay, Chile, Brazil and Peru.
Fabiola Peñaloza, Regional Vice President, is responsible for select advisory and private banking relationships in Miami, as well as firms located in Colombia.
Francisco Rubio, Regional Vice President, is responsible for the Southwest region of the US, as well as independent advisory firms in South Florida and Panama.
The team is supported by Virginia Gabilondo, Client Services Manager.
