Investment Adviser articles from November 2007

Investment Adviser archives from November 2007

Henderson considers UK fixed income fund.
November 5, 2007... Byline: UK version of Horizon Absolute Return Fixed Income aims to beat UK Libor by 300bps Henderson Global Investors is planning a new onshore version of its AGBP250m Horizon Absolute Return Fixed Income fund. Like its European...

Standard Life, Pearl trade blows over bid.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Battle reaches impasse as Resolution Group ponders offers The battle for Resolution Group appeared to reach an impasse last week, as the company maintained a noncommittal stance and Standard Life and the Pearl Group traded verbal...

Henderson renames core equity products.
November 5, 2007... Henderson Global Investors is rebranding two of its core equity funds to more accurately reflect their mandates. On 15 November the AGBP148m UK Capital Growth fund will become UK Opportunities, while the AGBP399m European Capital Growth...

Two arrested in boiler room investigation.
November 5, 2007... The FSA's investigation into alleged illegal boiler room activity produced its first arrests last week. Assisted by police across the UK, the watchdog arrested two men suspected of helping illegal overseas boiler rooms through a group...

Chand Lall takes on new role.
November 5, 2007... Fund manager and stockbroker Hargreave Hale has appointed Sid Chand Lall as an analyst on its fund management team. Working alongside Giles Hargreave, chief executive of the firm, and four other analysts, he will provide analytical support...

BNY Mellon to offer global 130/30 fund.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Global Extended Alpha will target returns of 3 per cent above the MSCI World index Bank of New York Mellon has revealed it will be the next asset management house to launch a 130/30 fund. The Global Extended Alpha fund will...

Government accepts ECJ VAT ruling.
November 5, 2007... The Association of Investment Companies and JPMorgan Claverhouse Investment Trust have won their 10-year legal battle to have investment trusts exempted from VAT. Her Majesty's Revenue & Customs has accepted the European Court of Justice's...

IFAs call for 130/30 fees to be reliant on performance.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Advisers warn against funds which charge performance fees regardless of positive or negative returns IFAs are cautioning against 130/30 funds that take performance fees even when fund managers only marginally beat the benchmark or...

Worldwide equity trading portal comes to the market.
November 5, 2007... BidRoute - an online portal for worldwide equity trading - launched last week to coincide with the implementation of Mifid. The site allows dealers to create an audit trail of the price discovery process for equity portfolio transactions,...

Bryson rejoins Swip family.
November 5, 2007... Greig Bryson has been hired by Scottish Widows Investment Partnership for a second stint, in order to strengthen its European equities team. Mr Bryson is re-joining the company after leaving in 2004 to join Dublin-based investment...

Prelude share price falls.
November 5, 2007... Venture capital vehicle AGBP47m Prelude Trust has seen its share price fall to a discount to NAV of 27 per cent, following the release of its interim results. Managed by DFJ Esprit, the trust invests in unquoted, high growth, technology...

Griffiths back to boost CF Odey Japan.
November 5, 2007... Odey Asset Management has parachuted Alex Griffiths back in as lead manager on the AGBP30.88m CF Odey Japan fund, following a year of poor performance after he stepped down. Nick Sharp took over as manager of the fund in September last...

JOHCM says AGBP527.9m fund is in safe hands.
November 5, 2007... Byline: James Lowen exits Northern Rock and other financials to bring performance back JOHambro Capital Management reassured investors its AGBP527.9m UK Equity Income fund was in safe hands last week. Co-manager James Lowen, who took...

Aifa slams regulator.
November 5, 2007... The Association of Independent Financial Advisers has attacked the FSA, claiming it has an unrealistic grasp of the IFA industry. Aifa's comments came in response to the FSA's proposal to introduce a risk-based approach of assessing IFAs to...

Aegon Scottish Equitable resurrects 5 for Life plan.
November 5, 2007... Aegon Scottish Equitable International has announced the relaunch of its 5 for Life product for near-retirement investors. The product, originally launched in September 2006, offers investors a guaranteed income of 5 per cent of invested...

Beware volatile Japan market, says Investec.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Manager Philip Whittome warns foreign investors not to second guess the market Foreign investors into Japan are wrong to attempt timing their moves because the market is so unpredictable, Investec Asset Management has said. ...

Barclays rolls out protected product.
November 5, 2007... Barclays Capital has designed a capital protected product that gives investors exposure to European property. Returns on the Barclays Five Year Protected fund deposit account, designed for use with offshore bonds, are linked to Swip's...

Delo bids Close Investment's multi-manager team adieu.
November 5, 2007... Steve Delo, who played a key role in unifying Close Investment's multi-manager businesses, is to leave the company less than a year after its single multi-manager division was created. He was appointed managing director of Close Multi...

Cru focuses on Africa with latest offerings.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Manager to launch Africa Invest fund and Africa Invest Malawi structured product Cru Investment Management is launching a fund and a structured product that will invest in one of the poorest countries in sub-Saharan Africa. ...

Bond fund managers face inflation woes, says M&G.
November 5, 2007... Inflation will become an increasing concern for bond fund managers once again, M&G Investments has warned. Jim Leaviss, head of retail fixed interest for M&G, said combating inflation will be the major challenge for fixed interest managers...

Regulation break needed: Apcims.
November 5, 2007... The Association of Private Client Investment Managers and Stockbrokers has called on the FSA to give the industry a break in regulatory changes. Following the implementation of Mifid last week, the industry is also faced with the...

Managers team up to launch property fund.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Portfolio Capital and Instant Access Properties roll out Park Lane Property fund LAUNCH by James Kenny South Africa-based fund manager Portfolio Capital has teamed up with Instant Access Properties in the UK to launch a...

Dalton to bring fund onshore.
November 5, 2007... Dalton Strategic Partnership has revealed it is to bring onshore its AGBP11.8m Melchior Selected Trust Japan Advantage fund. Until now, the Tokyo-managed fund has only been available to UK retail investors as a Luxembourg-domiciled Sicav....

Premier manager explores large-cap universe for value.
November 5, 2007... The manager of Premier Asset Management's AGBP12.6m Dividend Growth fund has moved the fund into the large-cap space in a bid to uncover value. Paul Branigan, manager and recently-appointed chief investment officer of Premier Asset...

Scottish Friendly eases tax burden.
November 5, 2007... Scottish Friendly has launched a 10-year investment plan aimed at reducing the tax burden for higher and basic rate taxpayers. The UK Select Investment Plan is a single arrangement, consisting of two individual accounts. The first is a...

Ucits III opens a new can of worms: S&P.
November 5, 2007... Byline: S&P says rules will spur mass use of derivatives, in which managers lack expertise Equity income managers will face a fresh Ucits III dilemma when the tide turns against large caps, according to S&P Fund Services. Peter Fuller,...

F&C expects record year for retail funds.
November 5, 2007... F&C Asset Management recorded net outflows of AGBP650m from its Europe-wide retail funds in the nine months to 30 September, but expects a record year overall. Approximately AGBP775m bled from F&C's Spanish sub-advisory business, while...

Bestinvest says RDR could spell the end for small IFAs.
November 5, 2007... Small and non-specialist IFA groups could be forced out of the investment advice industry over time, according to Bestinvest. John Davey, analyst at Bestinvest, said depending on the outcome of the FSA's Retail Distribution Review...

Morley fund opens up to retail investors.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Retail investors to access Diversified Strategy through group's wraps and platforms Morley Fund Management is to open its Diversified Strategy fund to retail investors, the group has confirmed. The fund, which was launched to...

Investec adjusts for alignment of retail, institutional needs.
November 5, 2007... Investec Asset Management is streamlining its client services as retail and institutional markets move closer together. David Aird has been given the role of heading up the company's retail and institutional business in the UK and Ireland....

Experience pays off.
November 5, 2007... Manager style and experience was behind the outperformance of Invesco Perpetual's AGBP420m UK Smaller Companies Equity fund, according to Morningstar. Stephen Marriot, an analyst at Morningstar, said the fund, managed by Richard Smith, had...

Climate, energy needs fuel trend.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Environmental, energy stories converge for mega-trend: Pictet The climate change and energy supply stories have converged to create a mega-trend, according to Pictet Funds. The Swiss-based house, which has seven thematic funds,...

New Star's Hedge ETS is transferable security.
November 5, 2007... New Star Asset Management's Hedge ETS now qualifies as a transferable security and can be invested in within a Ucits fund, the firm has announced. The Hedge ETS, which is undertaking an issue of C class shares, is the brand name for...

LVAM hires UK equity team head.
November 5, 2007... Liverpool Victoria Asset Management has appointed a new head of UK equities in its bid to become a major player in the retail space. Neil Worsley joins the firm this week from the hedge fund industry. He previously ran money at Lombard...

Retirement relief will not solve CGT issues, IFAs say.
November 5, 2007... Groups representing IFAs and businesses have voiced concerns that proposed plans to re-introduce retirement relief would not go far enough to allay fears about capital gains tax changes. Chancellor Alistair Darling came under heavy fire...

Apcims questions if Mifid worthwhile.
November 5, 2007... The benefits of Mifid may not be clear for some time, the Association of Private Client Investment Managers and Stockbrokers has warned. Mifid, which came into force last week, allows firms to passport their services to people living in...

Artemis reshuffles its High Income portfolio.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Credit crunch prompts the co-managers to slash their exposure to riskier assets The AGBP849.2m Artemis High Income fund has shed some of its riskier assets post-credit crunch and ploughed the cash into a spread of new holdings....

New Norwich Union FoF targets own property funds.
November 5, 2007... Norwich Union is launching a property fund of funds that will invest in its own UK, global and European property funds. The fund, expected to be launched this month, will initially only be available through Norwich Union's unit-linked life...

Morgan Stanley to offer Asian access.
November 5, 2007... Morgan Stanley has launched a structured product aimed at giving investors access to Asia. The Asia ex-Japan Protected Growth Plan is designed to provide a full return of capital, plus 150 per cent of growth in an equally weighted basket...

IMA calls for platform disclosure.
November 5, 2007... The IMA has called on the FSA to focus any further regulation on platform transparency. The trade association said greater disclosure was necessary to help investors make better-informed decisions. The IMA stressed the type of service...

Thariyan joins the Henderson team.
November 5, 2007... Henderson Global Investors has recruited Stephen Thariyan to lead its 17-strong credit alpha team. Mr Thariyan will join on 9 November from Rogge Global Partners, where he worked for the last three years as a portfolio manager responsible...

James Hay says women are still shying away from Sipps.
November 5, 2007... The market for self-invested personal pensions continues to be dominated by men, according to James Hay. The Sipp provider said, based on its accounts, 85 per cent of Sipps were used by men. It added that, according to government...

Snowdonia prepares process to go it alone.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Private placement of share plans put together with view to break with Buckles Snowdonia Asset Management is preparing for a private placement of shares as part of its ongoing movement towards independence. Currently Snowdonia...

BNP Paribas fund-hosting service to launch next year.
November 5, 2007... BNP Paribas is to launch a fund-hosting service for those wanting to outsource the regulatory and administrative processes. The company's service, called Investment Fund Services, will go live in the first quarter of next year. Tina...

Aberdeen to launch raft of fixed income funds.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Company developing range of fixed income core-plus funds for the retail market Aberdeen Asset Management is looking at ways to open up its institutional fixed income expertise to the retail market as it prepares to launch a raft of...

Schroders' profits up by 45 per cent.(Financial report)
November 5, 2007... Schroder Investment Management has announced pre-tax profits for the first nine months of 2007, up 45 per cent to AGBP283.7m. Last week the company issued a trading update for the three months to 30 September. The company saw continued...

Restructure boosts performance.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Manager cuts back number of holdings and increases mid-cap exposure of Lincoln Opportunities Trust to improve returns A radical restructuring under a new manager has led to two years of strong performance for the AGBP486m Lincoln...

Emerging markets help trust to soar.
November 5, 2007... The AGBP2.4bn Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust has seen returns soar after increasing exposure to emerging markets. In its results for the six months until 30 September 2007, the company's share price rose by 19.6 per cent and its net...

Jersey fund industry doubled over five years, survey finds.
November 5, 2007... The Jersey fund industry has more than doubled in the last five years, with property and alternative investments accounting for the largest share of funds domiciled on the island. According to Lipper's annual encyclopaedia of the Jersey...

Property falls behind in popularity contest.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Funds investing in commodities outsold property funds for first time in September Funds investing in commodities have outsold property funds for the first time, according to the IMA. Funds investing in natural resources...

Abbey fund surfs the FTSE100 wave.
November 5, 2007... Abbey has launched a structured product to capitalise on strong growth in the FTSE100. The Stockmarket Growth Plan offers investors 100 per cent of any rise in the index over a five and a half year term, with a maximum cap of 80 per cent....

Fidelity's Global Special Situations energises fund.
November 5, 2007... Fidelity's AGBP2.7bn Global Special Situations fund will remain at least 6.5 per cent overweight energy for the foreseeable future, according to manager Jorma Korhonen. He said: "At a sector level, my biggest overweight during the whole...

Midas cuts equities, predicting slowdown.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Dubious of credit crunch rally, Balanced Income and Balanced Growth increase cash Midas Capital Partners has restructured its AGBP586.8m Balanced Income and AGBP449m Balanced Growth funds' portfolios in anticipation of UK and...

Reconstruction plans to build up its capital.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Eastern Europe trust to raise AGBP69.7m to take advantage of opportunities in the region Reconstruction Capital II has announced its intention to raise AGBP69.7m through a share placing. The AGBP68.3m Eastern Europe private...

Aberdeen pays for low PTT exposure.
November 5, 2007... Low exposure to Thailand's petrochemical giant PTT and its sister companies led to disappointing performance for Aberdeen's AGBP35.1m New Thai Investment Trust, the group has said. For the six months to August, the investment company...

US Fed cuts rate to boost ailing market.
November 5, 2007... The US Federal Reserve cut interest rates from 4.75 to 4.5 per cent last week in an attempt to breathe life into the country's ailing housing and credit markets. The cut, which was widely expected, came a week before the Bank of England...

Active investors reluctant to up stock market investments.
November 5, 2007... Fewer active investors are committing new money to the stock market, the Association of Investment Companies has found. A poll in September revealed just 33 per cent of investors planned to increase their investments over the coming months...

Stocks are falling short of analysts' high expectations.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Research finds nearly a quarter of European firms failed to meet analysts' hopes despite beating forecasts Several European companies have fallen short of analysts' expectations but fund managers still expect earnings to grow...

Allianz manager says Bric markets are outperforming.
November 5, 2007... Markets in Brazil, Russia, India and China are outperforming general emerging markets and continue to benefit from strong economic growth, according to Michael Konstantinov, manager of the Allianz RCM AGBP197m Bric Stars fund. He said:...

Think-tank warns on growth.
November 5, 2007... UK growth will slow next year but the global growth outlook remains promising, according to an economic think-tank. In its quarterly economic report, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research revised its UK growth forecast for...

Citi favours sectors able to counter inflation.
November 5, 2007... European equity analysts at Citi Investment Research are favouring those sectors able to pass on higher costs caused by inflation. Jonathan Stubbs, head European equity strategist at Citi Investment Research, said inflation fears, stemmed...

Aberdeen rolls out a SRI fund to sit in Global Sicav.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Socially-responsible product will run quantitative overlay across portfolio to screen out negative criteria Aberdeen Asset Management has launched a new socially-responsible equity fund, which will sit in its AGBP7.6bn...

Standard & Poor's launches indices for Islamic investors.
November 5, 2007... Standard & Poor's Index Services has announced the launch of three new indices designed to meet demand from Islamic investors. The products, which launched last week, include the S&P Global Infrastructure Shariah, S&P Global Healthcare...

Close confirms Agricultural Commodities Trust details.
November 5, 2007... Close Investments has confirmed details of its Agricultural Commodities Trust, which will go live before the end of the year. The product will be split equally between wheat, red wheat, sugar, corn and soybeans in a bid to exploit a growing...

Mercer to open AI funds.
November 5, 2007... Mercer Investment Management is looking to open up three of its new alternative funds to the retail market for the first time. UK High Income, European Property and Diversified Alpha received FSA approval in September and will be up and...

Convergence will take toll on returns: KPMG.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Growth forecasts for asset classes in long-only and alternative assets hit single digits The ongoing convergence of hedge fund strategies will eventually drive down returns in the industry, KPMG International has warned. The...

Morley looks to Asian property.
November 5, 2007... Morley Fund Management is planning to launch a raft of property funds investing in Asia, starting with the Morley Japan Property fund later this year. The fund management group said other funds would follow, covering different parts of the...

Merrill Lynch, Trucost place companies on carbon scales.
November 5, 2007... Merrill Lynch and environmental research company Trucost have launched a new carbon index identifying companies with a low carbon footprint. The Merrill Lynch Carbon Leaders Europe index ranks companies by their carbon emissions and...

Bridge offers Global Opportunities hedge.
November 5, 2007... Bridge Asset Management has launched a hedge fund focusing on special opportunities within the emerging markets sector. The Bridge Global Opportunities fund will follow an event driven strategy and be managed by Nick Corby and Gary...

Slow and steady wins the performance race.
November 5, 2007... Byline: MLC forgoes top quartile performance to generate consistent, long-term returns MLC Investment Management works with a select number of IFAs in the UK and aims to provide consistent, rather than eye-popping, performance to help...

F&C says UK funds resilient to slowdown.
November 5, 2007... Byline: Luke Newman argues the British stock market is usually unaffected by its economy Funds that invest in the UK are unlikely to be affected by a slowdown in the British economy, according to F&C Investments. Luke Newman, manager...

Indices continue to fall.
November 5, 2007... Global indices fell again last week after a number of banks announced further sub-prime related write-downs. At close on Friday the FTSE100 was down a further 1 per cent, while the S&P500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average also dropped....

City to suffer most job cuts, says New Star.
November 5, 2007... Any job losses caused by a UK economic downturn are likely to be confined to the City and financial areas, according to New Star Asset Management. As fears of an economic slump in the UK have continued, job cuts have been predicted in a...

Kim Goodwin.
November 5, 2007... Kim Goodwin is known within the asset management industry as someone who fixes broken companies. When she joined Credit Suisse Asset Management as a managing director and head of equities last year, the investment management division had...

Jamie Ware.
November 5, 2007... Q: What are your initial considerations for your clients when it comes to determining their portfolio construction? What do your clients expect from you? Jamie Ware: First of all, we ask clients to complete a full fact find and, most...

Guy Morrell.
November 5, 2007... Investment Adviser: Why is now a good time to launch a global property fund? Guy Morrell: It is a good time because we believe the UK commercial property market to be unattractive. It is therefore timely for investors to consider opportunities...

Watching for a European property bubble.
November 5, 2007... Byline: There are strong indications European property will follow the US to a severe correction That house prices can have a profound effect on the economy is by now widely known. In the US, Professor Robert Shiller has for some time...

Meteor reveals further details of senior life Oeic.
November 5, 2007... Structured product specialist Meteor Asset Management has revealed further details of its first Oeic, which will invest in senior life settlements. The Meteor Senior Life Settlements Sterling fund will go live on 12 November. The...

The same party.
November 5, 2007... So Warren Buffett believes he should pay more tax. In an informal survey of his office staff he determined he was paying the least amount - and without employing any tax planning. It's an interesting issue, one right at the heart of our...

Smart investors pack a light portfolio.
November 5, 2007... Byline: In an ever-expanding fund universe, the simplest portfolio can be the most profitable Less is more. That old saying is really applicable when it comes to consumer choice. Studies show that shoppers are overwhelmed by too many...

Industry finds a scape-pheasant.
November 5, 2007... Politicians, journalists and businessman alike have been keen to find a scapegoat for the Northern Rock debacle and many have found it, in the form of chairman Matt Ridley. But perhaps they shouldn't have been looking for a goat at all, perhaps...

Handbook leads to confusion.
November 5, 2007... Apologies to Jonathan Fry, as reports in this column stating the adviser had left the employment of his eponymous London and Yorkshire-based office were, alas, incorrect. After 20 years of building up a good reputation in the industry he was...

Debunking the flexible exchange rate myth.
November 5, 2007... Byline: The claimed advantages of giving the renminbi a more flexible exchange rate are overrated The Chinese renminbi has come under intense scrutiny in the last four years, and calls for greater flexibility of its exchange rate have...

Name may attract a niche market.
November 5, 2007... Diary was amused to read that investment group Spencer House Capital Management has launched a new Malacca fund. Hopefully the fund is not being marketed in Greece, because in that part of the Mediterranean, Malacca has a slightly more...