Andrea Favaloro es responsable de las actividades comerciales de la empresa en todo el mundo. Andrea Favaloro dirigirá las actividades comerciales de Generali Investments Europe
Andrea Favaloro is the new Head of Sales and Marketing at Generali Investments Europe, the Generali Group’s asset management arm with over €340 bn of assets under management. He will be responsible for the company’s global sales activities targeted at institutional and retail customers.
Santo Borsellino, CEO of Generali Investments Europe, said: “Having decided to widen the scope of this role to achieve a truly global orientation, we identified Andrea Favaloro as our top choice. Therefore, I am very pleased to welcome him to GIE. He brings a unique set of skills and extensive experience in distribution and asset management. I am sure he will give further boost to our third-party business, which we are strongly committed to.”
Andrea Favaloro joins Generali Investments Europe from BNP Paribas Investment Partners, where he became Global Head of External Distribution in 2011. Before that, he held senior management positions in Milan and London. Andrea Favaloro holds a B.A. in Business Studies from Brunel University London (UK).
Also, Generali Investments Europe has announced that, with effect from May 15th, Antonio Cavarero will strengthen the company’s Fixed Income team as the new Head of Fixed Income Italy. He will be responsible for a team of 12 portfolio managers managing approximately €160 bn of Italian domiciled fixed income assets. Fixed Income remains Generali Investments Europe’s key area of expertise, accounting for more than 80% of the company’s total assets under management.
Antonio Cavarero has extensive experience in the Fixed Income industry gained within top-tier global investment banking companies and, most recently, he held the position as Senior Inflation Trader at Deutsche Bank in London. Antonio Cavarero holds a Master in Business Administration from the Business School of the University of Torino, and a Degree in Economics and Commerce from the University of Pavia.
Antonio Cavarero will be supported by Fabio Cleva, who has been appointed Deputy Head of Fixed Income Italy. He joined Generali Group in 2003 as Fixed Income manager, and holds a Degree in Economics from the University of Udine.
Foto: Stumayhew, Flickr, Creative Commons.. La distribución de fondos de terceros crece en Europa
Cerulli Associates data suggests that third-party distribution in Europe has grown by 2% in the past year, and it accounts for 33.9% of the total. In other words, one in three euros in the European mutual fund industry has come from intermediaries that are not affiliated with the fund manufacturer.
Since 2013, retail investors have made a comeback in the industry. Inflows have increased markedly-even in the most surprising places, such as the South. Spain and Italy have been driving inflows. An increasing proportion of the new money that finds its way into the industry is directed to third-party products.
And the main winners from this trend are the large, established cross-border managers. They roll out their expertise in more markets and are capturing increasingly higher marketshare in Europe. More often than not these are American companies, which put their best foot forward in Europe and have a lot of cash to spend on marketing and brand building.
The gradual change in mentality of distributors and institutions in continental Europe is partly why third-party distribution is on the rise. They recognize the weaknesses of their in-house asset management arms and instead use external managers.
“Some managers on the Continent cannot believe how much they struggle to sell products to their proprietary distribution channels. To them it would have been unheard of two or three years ago,” said Angelos Gousios, a senior analyst with Cerulli in London, and one of the main authors of Cerulli Associates‘ recent report entitled European Distribution Dynamics 2014: Responding to Change.
Northern Trust announced that it has been selected to provide OCIO (Outsourced Chief Investment Officer) services for Feeding America, the nation’s leading hunger relief organization.
“We feel privileged and proud to serve Feeding America,” said Darius A. Gill, Managing Director – Central Region, Northern Trust Foundation and Institutional Advisors. “We look forward to helping manage the assets of, and being a resource to, the Foundation for years to come.”
Foundation & Institutional Advisors is a dedicated practice within Northern Trust that serves nonprofit organizations through sophisticated investment management solutions, strategic insights and world-class resources.
Feeding America’s mission is to feed America’s hungry through a nationwide network of member food banks and to engage the country in the fight to end hunger. This is done by collective partnerships between Feeding America’s national office and local food banks with the goal of increasing efficiencies and maximizing impact.
As an OCIO, Northern Trust provides investment advice, asset servicing and other related services to help nonprofit organizations achieve their financial and philanthropic goals cost-effectively. Northern Trust collaborates with board and investment committee members to assist them with their investment oversight.
PrudentialKenosha. PREI Hires Lee Menifee to Lead Americas Investment Research
Prudential Real Estate Investors has named Lee Menifee a managing director and head of Americas investment research, the company announced last week. PREI®, among the world’s largest real estate investment management and advisory businesses, is a business of Prudential Financial, Inc.
Menifee, whose appointment is effective immediately, will lead PREI’s research efforts in the U.S. and Latin America and will join the U.S. and Latin American investment committees. He is based in PREI’s global headquarters in Madison and reports to Peter Hayes, global head of investment research.
“Lee brings tremendous depth of knowledge and insight into trends driving the real estate landscape in the Americas as we continue to build a global research capability that delivers innovative, market-leading intelligence to our investment teams and clients,” Hayes said.
Before joining Prudential, Menifee led research for American Realty Advisors, where he supported portfolio, asset management, acquisitions and marketing. Earlier, he was the managing editor of global real estate strategy for BCA Research, where he was responsible for product development. He also spent 14 years in various research roles within CBRE Investors, including senior director of global strategy.
Menifee earned a bachelor’s degree in environmental studies and planning from the University of California Santa Barbara and a master’s degree in urban planning from the University of Southern California.
AllianceBernstein has announced that Robert Hostetter has joined the firm as Global Head of Product Strategy.
In this role, Hostetter will work closely with the firm’s regional product teams to assess market demand for new services, optimize new product development, and prioritize local and global product innovation opportunities throughout the firm. He will also partner with client and investment groups globally to enhance the firm’s new and existing product capabilities across asset classes and channels. He will report to Robert Keith, Head of the Global Client Group at AllianceBernstein.
“Over the past several years, we have been committed to bringing better balance to our product set and providing clients with services that can perform well across market cycles. We have brought Robert on to ensure we remain focused on providing our clients with the right solutions,” said Keith. “With his deep industry experience and impressive track record, we are confident Robert will further elevate our strategy and ability to innovate.”
Hostetter joins AllianceBernstein from William Blair Investment Management, where he led all aspects of product development and distribution strategy for the institutional, retail and private wealth markets. He was responsible for redesigning the firm’s retail distribution strategy, building the alternatives and multi-asset platforms, and extending the firm’s equity and fixed income investment service offerings.
Prior to that, Hostetter worked as a consultant with McKinsey & Company where he advised asset management clients on a variety of investment, distribution and operational initiatives. Hostetter holds a bachelor’s degree from Duke University and a Master’s of Business Administration in Finance from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. He is a CFA Charterholder.
AllianceBernstein is a global investment management firm that offers high-quality research and diversified investment services to institutional investors, individuals and private clients in major world markets. At March 31, 2014, AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. owned approximately 35.8% of the issued and outstanding AllianceBernstein Units and AXA, one of the largest global financial services organizations, owned an approximate 63.6% economic interest in AllianceBernstein.
Photo: Mattbuck. Generali Enters into Negotiations with BTG Pactual for the Sale of BSI
The Italian group Generali has granted exclusivity to Banco BTG Pactual, a leading LatAm investment bank, global asset and wealth manager with a USD13 bn market capitalisation and over CHF100 bn Assets under Management, to conduct negotiations relating to the potential acquisition of the entire share capital of BSI.
BSI is a leading Swiss private bank with a global presence and CHF90 bn (€73.6 billion) of Assets under Management. The Sao Paolo-based group Banco BTG Pactual is a leading Latin American global asset and wealth manager, with $85 billion (€62 billion) in assets under management.
The Italian group is selling its Swiss private banking unit as part of a plan to focus its efforts on the company’s asset management arm, Generali Investments Europe.
Generali will update the market on the outcome of these negotiations when required upon further developments.
Passive investing ranks among the most successful innovations of modern finance. We do not deny that is an appealing concept. In fact, we fully acknowledge that:
a passive manager is likely to outperform an active manager chosen at random, assuming the latter involves higher fees and costs
passive investing is highly transparent, as performance can be evaluated against an index that is independently calculated by a third party
a passive approach can be applied on a large scale because of its high liquidity
passive investing may be considered a safe choice, because by pretty much guaranteeing a return close to the index it eliminates the risk of having to explain a large underperformance sooner or later
However, we also have some serious concerns with regard to passive investing. We argue that if these concerns are also taken into account, the case for passive investing is not so clear-cut anymore.
Concern #1: passive investors are free-riders
Lorie and Hamilton (1973) already noted that the market can only be efficient if a large number of investors actually believe it to be inefficient, the so-called efficient markets paradox. In other words, the existence of a large number of active investors is a necessary requirement for efficiently functioning capital markets. Active investors continuously trade on perceived mispricings, thereby ensuring that the price of each security always reflects the market’s best assessment of its (unobservable) true value, and that the market is highly liquid. As such, active investors play a vital role in financial markets. Passive investors, on the other hand, are basically free-riders, as they do not make any attempt to assess the fair value of a security. Instead, they assume that active investors have done their homework properly, which enables them to simply accept and mechanically follow the observed security weights in the capitalization-weighted market portfolio.
Active investing: a moral responsibility?
A famous quote from Benjamin Graham is that the market can be compared to a voting machine. This is a useful analogy, because, similarly to passive investing, voting in a parliamentary democracy involves a big free-riding problem: voting is basically futile so long as millions of others vote. Free-riding appears to be a rational alternative: instead of going out to vote, spend the time on a more useful activity, such as family or a hobby. Interestingly, however, most people are well aware of this logic but still choose to put time and effort into voting, arguably because they see this as a moral responsibility in a parliamentary democracy. In the same spirit, active investing may be seen as a moral responsibility that comes along with a market economy. An efficient and liquid market benefits everyone, but because this can only arise as a result of large-scale active investing, perhaps every investor should feel obliged to contribute.
Concern #2: passive investing goes against proven factors
Our second concern with passive investing is that it goes against proven factors. The literature provides extensive evidence that securities with certain factor characteristics tend to exhibit a very poor performance, while other characteristics appear to be rewarded with better returns. Because passive investors simply buy the capitalization-weighted market portfolio, which contains all securities, they basically choose to ignore such evidence. In other words, a passive approach involves intentionally investing large parts of one’s portfolio in segments of the market that are known to be associated with disappointing historical performance characteristics.
If you believe in factor premiums, passive investing does not make sense
The logical implication of factor premiums is not to adopt passive investing and thereby intentionally invest large parts of one’s portfolio in segments of the market that are known to be associated with very poor historical performance characteristics, such as growth, past-loser and high-volatility stocks. In fact, it makes more sense to actively avoid unattractive segments of the market and seek more exposure to attractive segments.
David Blitz, PhD, isHead Quantitative Equities Research at Robeco.
Most developed markets have long offered numerous and diverse channels for asset management products—except in South Korea. Until very recently, there have really been just two primary channels in South Korea—banks and brokerage companies, which suffer from conflicts of interest, as they are motivated to sell products run by their affiliates. As of late last month, investors got a new option: Korea’s first online fund supermarket.
The newly launched online fund platform, known as Fund Online, seeks to confront the proprietary sales approach of the big bank and brokerage firms by providing an alternative that is more neutral and widely available. Additionally, Fund Online, which serves smaller, independent asset managers, aims to reduce costs for investors, and create a more competitive distribution landscape.
The concept of investing as a long-term means of wealth generation is slowly developing within Korean households. When I first started working in the industry in Seoul in 2005, investors were beginning to build unrealistic expectations because of the performance of the Korea Composite Stock Price Index. Retail investors typically held high expectations for substantial double-digit returns, so fees of a few percentage points were less of a concern. At the time, fund firms charged fees as high as 2.5%. Particularly popular at the time was a so-called “installment-type equity fund,” which investors could buy into with a fixed contribution deducted from their monthly paychecks. It was a notable phenomenon, as the average Korean found equity funds to be novel new instruments for savings.
After the Global Financial Crisis of 2008, retail investors became more cautious and, not surprisingly, fee-sensitive. Consequently, the average total expense ratio of actively managed equity funds in Korea dropped to 1.41% in 2012. Of that, commissions to distribution channels lost the biggest share.
Fund Online, which is privately held, hopes to allow retail investors more investment choices and also provide better transparency over fees. The fund supermarket says it has halved sales channel commission to approximately 0.35%. In a related development, the Korean government has introduced the concept of Individual Financial Advisor (IFA) to help provide unbiased investment advice to retail investors. Currently, the average Korean investor is accustomed to getting advice for “free” from their local bank branch, where they hold bank accounts; but, as previously implied, few things come for free. A symbiotic relationship between the fund supermarket and the IFAs, if it develops, should lead to greater transparency for the industry, and may promote the virtues of long-term investing—a welcome development for Korea’s capital markets.
Soo Chang Lee, CFA, Research Analyst at Matthews Asia
The views and information discussed represent opinion and an assessment of market conditions at a specific point in time that are subject to change. It should not be relied upon as a recommendation to buy and sell particular securities or markets in general. The subject matter contained herein has been derived from several sources believed to be reliable and accurate at the time of compilation. Matthews International Capital Management, LLC does not accept any liability for losses either direct or consequential caused by the use of this information. Investing in international and emerging markets may involve additional risks, such as social and political instability, market illiquidity, exchange-rate fluctuations, a high level of volatility and limited regulation. In addition, single-country funds may be subject to a higher degree of market risk than diversified funds because of concentration in a specific geographic location. Investing in small- and mid-size companies is more risky than investing in large companies, as they may be more volatile and less liquid than large companies. This document has not been reviewed or approved by any regulatory body.
Barcelona Port. Photo: Flickr, Creative Commons. Hispania Acquires 213 Apartments in Barcelona from Santander’s Real Estate Fund
Hispania Activos Inmobiliarios, through its subsidiary Hispania Real Socimi, has acquired -in a deal out of the market- from Santander Banif Inmobiliario F.I.I., 213 apartments located in the residential complex Isla del Cielo, in Parque Diagonal Mar in Barcelona. The deal has amounted to 63.8 million euros, fully paid with Hispania’s own funds. The acquisition also includes 237 underground parking slots within the same residential complex.
Isla del Cielo residential complex comprises 2 apartment towers – Tower A, with 17 floors and 104 flats and Tower B with 21 floors and 150 flats- as well as an underground car park. The complex also has communal garden areas and outdoor swimming pool. The built surface of the complex amounts to approximately 38,000 square meters, including the underground floors. The acquisition includes all 150 apartments located in Tower B, 63 apartments emplaced in Tower A and 237 underground parking slots.
The acquired apartments currently enjoy an occupation rate of 90% by means of rental contracts.
Diagonal Mar is located in Barcelona’s seafront, at the beginning of the emblematic Avenida Diagonal, and represents the most relevant real estate development in the city. The area includes a commercial area of more than 88,000 sqm, one of the biggest shopping malls in Catalonia, 68,000sqm of office Surface, a number hotels and the second biggest park in Barcelona, with a 14 hectares surface, designed by Enric Miralles, where Isla del Cielo is located.
Hispania business plan’s main focus is to invest in the asset and to increase benefits and services in order to transform it into an emblematic complex of apartments for rent in Barcelona, intended for professional and international customers.
“With this second acquisition in Hispania, we remain loyal to our strategy of investing in quality assets with a clear potential for value creation by means of and investment and management plan. Isla del Cielo, as a flat for rent complex, stands as one of the main competence and focus areas of Hispania. We are very excited with the opportunity of creating value with these assets, which are located in an area of great projection in Barcelona”, said Concha Osácar, Board Member of Hispania and co-founder of Azora, Hispania’s investment manager.
Azora, investment manager of Hispania, has extensive experience in the investment, repositioning and management of residential assets for rent, by means of its team, made up by more than 96 professionals, expert in residential buildings, who manage around 100 buildings comprising more than 10,200 apartments on a leasehold basis.
Finally, Hispania has informed that last 1st of April, 2014 it established, through deed of incorporation, the subsidiary Hispania Real -100% of the latter-which has agreed to fall under the special tax regime envisaged for real estate investment listed companies (SOCIMIs). This has been communicated to the tax authorities to all appropriate effects. It is therefore expected that Hispania Real acts as “Subsidiary Socimi”, as conveyed in the informative prospectus prepared by Hispania on the occasion of the initial public offering of its shares in the Spanish Stock Exchange Market.
Fotos: Funds Society. MFS Hosts its Global Analyst & Portfolio Manager Forum in London With the Assistance of 50 Delegates from Around the World
MFS Investments hosted their 2014 Global Analyst & Portfolio Manager Forumat Syon Park in London last week. The event was attended by approximately 50 delegates representing European, US, and LatAm markets. In attendance were delegates from Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, France, the UK, the US, and Uruguay, Columbia, Chile, Peru, and Brazil.
MFS had portfolio managers present on nine of their Meridian Funds, and also provided a Global Market Outlook as well as their investment philosophies on Lengthening Your Time Horizon and Active Risk Management.
From the delegates perspective, a highlight of the forum was the ‘meet the managers’ breakout sessions where attendees could attend smaller, more intimate sessions with the portfolio managers. Concurrent sessions were conducted focusing on emerging markets equities, emerging markets debt, and developed equity markets.
Please click on the video to see pictures of the event.
