Photo: Jacobolus. Western Union Sees Mexico as a Land of Opportunities
Luis Felipe Rodriguez, vice-president and general manager of Western Union in Mexico, spoke to Funds Society about the sector, as well as about the company’s short and medium term plans.
Western Union, the world’s largest remittance services company, which in 2012, at an average of 28 transactions per second, registered Money Orders totaling 79,000 million USD, approximately a 20% share of the market, considers Mexico as a land of opportunity.
Rodriguez said that despite the reduction in the volume of remittances to Mexico, Western Union managed to grow by 9% in the first quarter, and expects further growth in the future, supported by an improvement in the U.S. job market and the strategy of the firm, which is focused on moving towards electronic media channels and products.
Likewise, Rodriguez added that he hopes his operation, which has been recovering since November last year after the adjustment made in October by regulatory changes in the United States, will continue with a “favorable performance”.
For 2015, the executive expects a diversification of services supported by the regulatory developments towards financial inclusion, which will help to “improve industry development.”
According to information, published by Banxico on the 1st of July, more than 2,033 million dollars in family remittances entered Mexico in May this year, which is 6.94% higher than in April, but 13.17% below the same month in 2012, which in monthly terms means four months on the rise, but in annual terms represents 11 months of falls.
Foto: ImUnicke. El mensaje de la FED constituye el mayor apoyo a los activos de riesgo, según Axa IM
Following the sell-off of all asset classes post the FOMC meeting, AXA IM notes that a substantial part of the news is priced in and markets will shift toward a kind of ‘business as usual’. “It seems that the Fed is more confident with regard to the growth backdrop and thus convinced that tapering is justified. We (and the consensus) have a marginally less optimistic view and think markets will in fact continue to struggle over which route to follow – ‘fading easy money’ or ‘weaker (US) recovery’”, signals Axa IM in its July Investment Strategy Report.
Such uncertainty will most likely continue to weigh on the mood of investors in the near term
AXA IM has long held the view that any adjustment to a new regime is usually accompanied by higher volatility, as investors adjust to a new equilibrium. This is exactly what they have seen in the course of the month of June and is presumably best illustrated by their in-house risk appetite barometer (RAB), which moved into mildly negative territory in June but recouped de facto all of the lost ground at the beginning of July.
The combination of lower stock markets and marginally better earnings pushed the overall valuation metrics for the MSCI World down to 16.3x, versus 16.5x last month.
“Overall, we think that some more silver linings have appeared on the horizon and consequently suggest raising the equity weighting back to overweight as the cyclical head winds fade”, remarks the asset manager in its report. “If anything, the very clear message from the Fed Chairman, who reiterated the conditionality for starting the tapering, remains in our view the strongest support for risky assets (and a headwind for fixed income in the longer run).”
Axa points out that the ‘sustainable improvement’ in the labor market will be the acid test for the FOMC in the months to come. Against this backdrop, the liquidity withdrawal should come at a time when the underlying economic momentum is robust (even though not brilliant) enough to bridge the gap between the liquidity-driven market rally and an earnings push With regard to fixed income, Axa IM suggests remaining prudent over the longer-term horizon despite the recent substantial rise in yields. “We view the Fed tapering as the beginning of a normalization process which will distinguish three different episodes: i) less liquidity injection, followed by ii) a period of relative calm (mid-2014 to end 2014), followed by iii) the higher short rates in 2015.”
From a more tactical perspective, Axa IM suggests moving back to neutral as far as safe haven bonds are concerned, as the Fed’s tapering talk will most likely calm down.
Wikimedia CommonsFoto: Dmcccomms. Dubai Multi Commodities Center busca convertirse en la torre comercial más alta del mundo
The Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (‘DMCC’), announced on Wednesday its plans to build the tallest commercial tower in the world as part of its expansion plans designed specifically for large multi-nationals.
Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Executive Chairman of DMCC, said,”When we announced the plans to build Almas Tower in 2002, the Middle East’s tallest commercial tower and DMCC’s headquarters, the entire office space across 63 floors sold out to DMCC end users, mostly in the diamond business, in just a few hours. The world’s tallest commercial tower and the DMCC Business Park are the next natural steps to ensure we continue to welcome companies to the free zone as demand grows – particularly large regional corporations and multi-nationals – in the near future. The initiative is designed to further strengthen Dubai’s position as the global hub for commodities trade and enterprise. Over the past four years DMCC has attracted more than 4,000 new companies to the Free Zone – 90% of which are new to Dubai. In 2013 we have accelerated this growth, with an average of 200 new companies joining DMCC every single month. This increased demand further demonstrates not only the confidence in DMCC and Dubai, but also underlines the need for new commercial space.”
Currently in the concept design phase, the DMCC Business Park and the world’s tallest commercial tower will cater to large corporations and multi-nationals that require significant floor space to buy or rent. The Business Park will comprise of 107,000 square metres of premium commercial and retail space.
Today, almost 7,000 members from start-ups to multi-nationals operate from the DMCC Free Zone. To confirm its confidence in the Free Zone’s future growth, DMCC made a public commitment in early 2011 that it would reach 7,200 member companies by the end of 2013, a target that is expected to be reached in the very near future.
In 2005, DMCC launched a ground breaking gold Sukuk, raising US$ 200 million to help finance the construction of its commercial towers. At the time, the Sukuk was assigned an “A” long-term and “A-1” short-term rating by Standard & Poor’s Rating Services and was oversubscribed. The Sukuk allowed investors to receive payment denominated in gold bullion as an alternative to US dollars. Despite the onset of the global financial crisis, the Sukuk was repaid fully and on time.
With 65 mixed-use commercial and residential towers and over 180 retail outlets in operation, there are currently over 65,000 people working and living within the development. On average, DMCC welcomes over 200 companies per month to its Free Zone, more than 6 companies per day – over 90% of which are new to Dubai.
Wikimedia CommonsFoto: Ashok Prabhakaran . Los ETFs y ETPs registran en junio las primeras desinversiones netas en dos años
Globally ETFs and ETPs had outflows of US$3.98 billion in June 2013,their first net outflows in over two years. Assets invested globally in Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) and Exchange Traded Products (ETPs) are at US$2.04 trillion, down from their all-time high of US$2.13 trillion at the end of May 2013, according to preliminary figures from ETFGI’s Global ETF and ETP industry insights report for first half 2013. There are now 4,849 ETFs and ETPs, with 9,878 listings, assets of US$2.04 trillion, from 209 providers listed on 56 exchanges. Year to date assets in ETFs and ETPs have increased by 4.9% from US$1.95 trillion to US$2.04 trillion.
Average daily trading volumes in ETFs/ETPs in June were US$92.2 billion, representing an increase of 31.1% from May and the highest level since October 2011.
“Market uncertainty surrounding the future of QE programs and volatility in the markets caused investors to withdraw US$3.98 billion from ETFs and ETPs in June” according to Deborah Fuhr, Managing Partner at ETFGI.
Fixed income ETFs/ETPs experienced the largest net outflows with US$7.1 billion, followed by commodity ETFs/ETPs with US$3.8 billion, while equity ETFs/ETPs gathered net inflows with US$4.8 billion.
Year to date through end of H1 2013, ETFs/ETPs have seen net inflows of US$103.9 billion, which is slightly lower than the US$107.2 billion of net inflows at this time last year.
In June 2013, equity ETFs/ETPs saw net inflows of US$4.8billion. North American equity ETFs/ETPs gathered the largest net inflows with US$6.9 billion, and then developed European equity indices with US$3 billion, while emerging market equity ETFs/ETPs experienced net outflows with US$4.9 billion.
Fixed income ETFs/ETPs saw net outflows of US$7.1 billion in June 2013. Inflation ETFs/ETPs experienced the largest net outflows with US$2.1 billion, followed by high yield with US$2 billion, and emerging market bond with US$1.8 billion, while government bond ETFs/ETPs gathered net inflows with US$1.1 billion.
In June 2013, commodity ETFs/ETPs saw net outflows of US$3.8 billion. Precious metals experienced the largest net outflows with US$3.2 billion.
Vanguard ranks 3rd in terms of ETF/ETP assets, is ahead in asset gathering with US$28.9 billion in net inflows year to date, and was the only one of the top 5 providers to receive net inflows in June. iShares ranks 1st in terms of assets, had net out flows of US$7.9 billion in June, and net inflows of US$23 billion year to date. SPDR ETFs ranks 2nd in assets, had net out flows of US$2.4 billion in June, and net outflows of US$6 billion year to date. Powershares ranks 4th in assets, had net out flows of US$586 million in June, and net inflows of US$7.16 billion year to date. DB X trackers ranks 5th in terms of assets, had net out flows of US$751 million in June, and net inflows of US$9 million year to date.
S&P Dow Jones has the largest amount of ETF and ETP assets tracking its benchmarks with US$563 billion, reflecting 27.5% market share; MSCI is second with US$319 billion and 15.6% market share, followed by Barclays with US$188 billion and 9.2% market share.
Wikimedia Commonshttp://hint.fm/wind/. BIGdata: Tres libros que nos enseñan a cambiar la forma de visualizar el mundo
Three new books about data visualization show the world in graphic form, thanks to recent advances in presenting big data. A video by The Economist featuring Kenneth Cukier, data editor at the magazine, shows how to depict information in new ways and look at the world through data visualization.
Some examples of this visualization show the impact of improvised explosive devices in the Afghanistan War, the earthquakes suffered globally during the 20th century or a map of winds of the United States. The three books are: “Facts are Sacred”, by Rogers Simon, who worked at The Guardian but who now works for Twitter; “The Infographic History of the World” by James Ball and Valentina d’Efilippo shows the history of humanity from the big bang through quantification and the visual display of that information; and “Data points: visualization that means something” by Nathan Yau aimed for the professionals who have to work daily with big amounts of data making you think of entirely different ways to present data. This book shows a Wind Map (interactive through the link) made by two people at Google who were able to show data, almost in real time, about the intensity of wind flows through white lines and how they change. It does not take much to think about ways in which these new tools can be used to analyze and support investment decisions.
Wikimedia CommonsBy LunarGlide+ 5 from Nike Running. Renewed or Print
Continuously reinventing and taking advantage of opportunities offered by the advancement of technology is essential for companies to remain at the forefront. Some firms in an industry as traditional as textiles have been able to incorporate the technological advances into their production processes, reducing costs and time through the thereof. Increasing number of shoe companies are making use of the 3D printing, in which their designs are made more efficiently and effective.
The strategy of Robeco Consumer Trends is in line with these companies who are committed to continuous innovations, able to anticipate the needs of the consumers, even create them, obtaining further outperformance.
Through 3D printing, shoe manufacturers take advantage of advances driven technology heavy industries such as aerospace. This type of printing is partially extended in the area of personalized medicine as may be the case of hip prostheses. 3D printer’s particles have plastic, metal or even wood into thin layers that are used to construct objects solids.
Before the arrival of this new way of designing the new shoes, the prototypes of the German Adidas, teams were made up of twelve technicians working by hand. The new technology does not need more than two people. With the use of this technique, Adidas managed to reduce the time needed to evaluate new prototype from four to six weeks to just a day or two.
Shane Kohatsu, innovation director of Nike headquarters in Oregon, said to the Financial Times that for him the most striking of 3D printing is not the volume that you get to develop, but the speed with which you can make changes to prototypes.
The strategy of Robeco Consumer Trends has invested about 15% of its total portfolio in the garment industry and luxury goods. Along with Nike and Adidas helping to excel Robeco consumption strategy there is also Lululemon Athletica, other names or Michael Kors, among others. These big brands are a part, along with many others, one of the betting strategy of Robeco Consumer Trends, the big brands. A through them is to not only take advantage of the returns generated by these firms consolidated but also provide a defensive to the portfolio.
Wikimedia CommonsFoto: JoeJohnson2 . La longevidad y publicidad, los grandes aliados de la riqueza de los jugadores de la NBA
Three-quarters of the top 10 ultra wealthy National Basketball Association (NBA) players were drafted in the mid-1990s, suggesting longevity in the sport and corporate endorsements are key to wealth for today’s athletes.
These are the findings by Wealth-X, the ultra high net worth (UHNW) business development solution for private banks, luxury brands, educational institutions and non-profits, which released its ranking of ultra wealthy players following this year’s NBA Draft.
The NBA’s wealthiest have been playing for an average of 15 years, or since 1998, which is considered a long career by athlete standards.
Leading the pack is Kobe Bryant, LA Lakers shooting guard, with a total net worth of US$220 million. Drafted in 1996, Bryant, who will earn US$27.85 million in the 2012-2013 season, continues to draw the highest salary in NBA. This is supplemented by multi-million dollar endorsements with Nike, Coca Cola, Turkish Airlines, Mercedes-Benz, Lenovo, Panini and Hublot.
Boston Celtics forward Kevin Garnet ranks at number 2 with a net worth of US$190 million. The veteran player with a 17-year NBA career has endorsements with Anta, a Chinese sportswear company, and coconut water brand Zinco, worth US$4 million.
Below is the top 10 wealthiest NBA players by net worth:
“Against the backdrop of the NBA Draft last week, it is interesting to explore the correlation between talent, performance and net worth that is revealed in this ranking. It provides a window into the value that society implicitly places on the skills of these professional athletes and the role of entertainment within our culture,” said Wealth-X President David Friedman.
Wikimedia CommonsFoto: Florent Ruyssen. Los ingresos de las gestoras de fondos alcanzan niveles precrisis
Median pre-tax operating margins rose to 32%, the highest since 2007, according to a new benchmarking analysis surveying 101 money managers worldwide who invest an aggregate $23 trillion for institutions and individuals. The new high in profit margin was driven by market appreciation, which also lifted 2012 revenue in the global asset management industry past the previous 2007 peak.
However, net inflows of 1.2% last year – compared with 3.7% in 2007 – increasing fee pressure, and a widening economic divergence among firms post-financial crisis point to growing industry challenges, according to the new analysis, Performance Intelligence: 2013 Survey Results.
The global survey participants largely came from the U.S. Institute and European Institute, members-only forums established by Institutional Investor’s conference division for CEOs of leading investment management firms. Casey, Quirk & Associates, a leading management consultant to investment management firms worldwide, has conducted the survey (its tenth annual) in partnership with McLagan, the investment management industry’s leading provider of compensation consulting services and pay and performance data. They surveyed privately held, publicly traded and wholly or partly owned firms with assets under management ranging from below $50 billion to over $1 trillion in assets.
“With annual net flows of under 1% anticipated through 2017 these findings, based on one of the largest industry surveys of asset management economics, indicate managers must adapt and innovate to keep up let alone to continue thriving,” said Kevin Quirk, partner at Casey Quirk.
Traditional investment offerings will continue to be challenged, while outcome-oriented and higher alpha strategies will enjoy the highest net flows, according to the benchmarking analysis. These include: hedge funds; balanced strategies; global tactical asset allocation and multi-asset class solutions; emerging markets debt; and global equities.
“In a slow growth environment, asset retention is crucial, and winning firms stand out with more robust staffing in sales and client service and operationally by aligning their economics for superior attraction and retention of talent,” said Adam Barnett, head of the asset management practice at McLagan.
Privately held and publicly listed asset managers enjoyed the strongest revenue growth in the 2007-2012 period, expanding at average annual rates of 8.4% and 7.0%, respectively, according to the benchmarking analysis. Firms owned by larger financial institutions had average annual growth rates of 4.3% over the same period, while revenue at affiliates of asset management holding companies declined on average 4.6%.
Of the firms surveyed, those in the middle, with managed assets between $50 billion and $200 billion, enjoyed the strongest rebound in operating margins, to 32% in 2012 from a low of 15% in 2009, and were most consistent in attracting net flows over the period 2007 to 2012.
“It’s abundantly clear firms must retool to take advantage of market segment opportunities and changing investor demands, or risk losing talent and market share to more adaptable competitors,” said Fred Bleakley, director of the U.S. and European Institutes.
Further expanding its portfolio of derivatives products, the Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange (DGCX) has announced the launch of SENSEX Futures, the first ever Indian equity index futures contract to be listed on an exchange in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. The new contract, which will go live on July 5, 2013, will be cleared by the Dubai Commodities Clearing Corporation (DCCC).
DGCX SENSEX Futures is a futures contract based on the S&P BSE SENSEX, the blue-chip stock index of India’s leading bourse, the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). Recently co-branded in partnership with S&P Dow Jones Indices, the SENSEX is considered the most popular gauge of the Indian equity market and has high brand recall among investors. The SENSEX Index tracks the performance of 30 of the largest and most heavily traded stocks on the BSE.
Gary Anderson, CEO of DGCX said:“The contract is part of a planned expansion of our Emerging Market product offering, and will offer an exciting trading option for investors seeking exposure to one of the world’s largest Emerging Markets. While the retail segment is a key target market, we are also anticipating strong interest from a wide range of regional and international investors including UNHWIs, professional traders and institutional investors. DGCX participants have already shown great interest in trading SENSEX futures.”
DGCX’s new equity futures contract will target retail participants including non-resident Indians (NRIs) across the world, existing DGCX members focused on retail offerings, the NRI desks of banks, professional traders trading and arbitraging Indian markets offshore and large foreign institutional investors seeking exposure to Indian equity markets.
Ashishkumar Chauhan, MD, BSE said:“BSE tied up with DGCX for SENSEX derivatives in October 17 2011. Derivatives on India Stock Indices are very popular in several overseas markets including Singapore. Trading in Indian indices has grown substantially over the last decade in overseas markets. This launch is a key milestone for us since it is the first time we have partnered with an exchange in the MENA region to launch an equity-based derivatives product. DGCX SENSEX Futures will provide investors with an important tool for managing their portfolios benchmarked to BSE’s equity indices.”
“Given that a large number of NRIs reside in the Middle East region, we are confident about the SENSEX futures contract’s potential to generate high interest and trade volumes in line with interest in other jurisdictions,” Chauhan added.
Wikimedia CommonsFoto: Blaise Frazier. H.I.G Capital cierra su II fondo de private equity europeo en 1.100 millones de dólares
H.I.G. Capital announced on Tuesday that it has successfully closed H.I.G. European Capital Partners II at €825 million ($1.1 billion), significantly above its initial target. The fund will follow the strategy of its predecessor fund, focusing on private equity, buyout and growth capital investments in lower middle-market companies primarily in Western Europe.
Sami Mnaymneh and Tony Tamer, co-founders and Managing Partners of H.I.G. Capital, commented: “We are very pleased to have completed this fundraising in less than three months, and, in particular, that the fund was significantly over-subscribed from existing H.I.G. investors. The new fund will continue our successful strategy of investing in privately-held companies and non-core subsidiaries of larger companies, especially those which present significant opportunities for earnings improvement and value creation.”
H.I.G. Europe’s team is based in four offices in London, Paris, Hamburg and Madrid, and consists of over 50 investment professionals with significant operating and turnaround experience. It has completed 28 European investments since it began investing in 2008.
H.I.G. Capital is a leading global private equity investment firm with more than $13 billion of equity capital under management. Based in Miami, and with offices in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, New York and San Francisco in the U.S., as well as international affiliate offices in London, Hamburg, Madrid, Paris, and Rio de Janeiro, H.I.G. specializes in providing capital to small and medium-sized companies with attractive growth potential. H.I.G. invests in management-led buyouts and recapitalizations of profitable manufacturing or service businesses. H.I.G. also has extensive experience with financial restructurings and operational turnarounds. Since its founding in 1993, H.I.G. has invested in and managed more than 250 companies worldwide with combined revenues in excess of $30 billion.
