Smarter Data Management is Essential for Effective Fund Management

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BNY Mellon has published a new white paper examining Big Data’s credentials and its potential as a transformative tool in the current era of shrinking margins and ever-more sophisticated and powerful analytical tools.

The new paper —Big Data and Investment Management — highlights how custodians, depositary banks and administrators are positioned at the forefront of product development around Big Data solutions that address the complex and commercially critical issues of how to enhance both sales performance and client satisfaction.

The paper also examines how investment managers can utilize Big Data to bring together separate elements — dark pools of data, predictive analysis, behavioral finance — to allow the investment industry to enhance product design, drive sales and improve investor outcomes.

Daron Pearce, global investment manager segment head for Investment Services at BNY Mellon, said: «As the lines between the front, middle and back office continue to blur, smarter data management is essential for effective fund management. Big Data facilitates that – but also poses challenges. Through an understanding of these opportunities and potential obstacles, the investment management industry can use their own data to design, manufacture and market solutions more effectively with a view to generating outcomes that are more aligned to investor expectations.»

Mark Gibbons, chief information officer, EMEA at BNY Mellon, added: «B2C businesses have already embraced Big Data, developing sophisticated, data-driven profiling tools that enable tailored services for different client segments. While client, transactional and portfolio data is collected across the investment management industry for historical, regulatory and analytical purposes, most managers are yet to fully leverage these diverse data pools with a view to identifying key correlations and generating fresh insights. That is a particular area of focus for BNY Mellon, as demonstrated by our own Digital Pulse offering which tracks activities, processes and transactions within our company, resulting in predictive analytics that enable businesses to work smarter and drive improvement.»

Avoid European Equities Leaving a Bitter Taste

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Asset managers need to take steps to avoid losing investors along with the exodus from European equity funds once the sugar-rush effect of quantitative easing (QE) has waned, warns the latest issue of The Cerulli Edge – European Monthly Product Trends Edition.

European equity funds are enjoying their strongest flows in several quarters, thanks in part to the European Central Bank’s monthly liquidity injections of €60 billion (US$66 billion) to bolster the eurozone, but asset managers should be gearing up for the inevitable end of the cycle, says Cerulli Associates.

«Once investors start sensing Europe has had its run, they will want to take out their money. To realize longer-lasting benefits, asset managers must convince clients to stick with the brand by offering strong products in another sector, such as emerging markets, which are now presenting buying opportunities,» says Barbara Wall, Europe research director at the analytics firm.

The firm notes that investors in countries such as Spain and Italy are once again keen on European equities, going through private banking channels. Asia is showing more interest, while funds are also flowing out of the United States after a strong run. U.S. investors who bought when the euro and dollar were nearing parity are enjoying a currency bonus.

Flows into long-term active European equity funds hit €14 billion for the first three months of 2015, the highest quarterly level since the first quarter of last year. The firm believes that further positive flows are likely to continue, but for months, rather than years.

«Asset managers should enjoy the QE bonus flows while they last. But the pattern is unlikely to be different from previous cycles, and the end may already be in sight. Positive developments such as the definitive U.K. election result are being offset by Greece remaining in crisis mode,» says Brian Gorman, an analyst at Cerulli.

Other Findings include that Italy, Germany, and Spain were the most successful European countries for the first quarter of 2015, gathering €12 billion, €14 billion, and €3 billion respectively, driven in the main by investors’ demand for mixed assets and euro bonds, which attracted €12.2 billion and €8.5 billion.

European exchange-traded funds tracking Japanese equities saw net inflows rising to €1 billion in March from €370 million during February, as investors abandoned U.S. and U.K. equities in favor of opportunities in Japan.

Italian funds remain out in front for inflows among European markets, even if March did not quite match February’s stellar achievement. Mixed assets accounted for half the flows, and were slightly down on the previous month. Bond flow rates picked up. Money market funds, which have suffered outflows every month so far in 2015, were the only negative category.

Cass Business School Study Reveals M&A Strategies That Lead to Highest Shareholder Value Creation

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New research, authored by Intralinks Holdings Inc., and City University London’s Cass Business School, has identified the best-performing global businesses in creating shareholder value from mergers and acquisitions (M&A).

The study, ‘Masters of the Deal: Part 2, looks at 20 years of data’, the largest ever analysis of shareholder value creation from M&A, and analyzed 265,000 deals and the performance of over 25,000 global public companies. The research identified 1,469 elite global firms that consistently outperformed their peers in delivering above-average total shareholder returns. A complete list of these best performing companies in M&A can be found on the Intralinks website.

The report also found the common M&A strategies employed by these high performing companies, which had a significant influence on their outperformance. The strategies of these companies, referred to in the report as Excellent Corporate Portfolio Managers (ECPMs), included:

  • Bolder M&A strategies, with greater execution risk – cross-border acquisitions accounted for 38% of the value of all acquisitions by ECPMs versus 28% of the value of all acquisitions by other firms; ECPMs made four times as many hostile acquisitions as other firms.
  • Faster deal completion – 33% of all acquisitions and 33% of all divestments by ECPMs were slow to complete, versus 34% and 39% respectively for other firms.
  • Greater engagement with financial sponsors and public companies – ECPMs engaged in a higher proportion of deals than other firms where the counterparty was a private equity firm or a public company.
  • Greater use of all-cash consideration – 38% of the value of all acquisitions by ECPMs were all-cash, compared to 30% of the value of all acquisitions by other firms.
  • Avoiding large, transformational acquisitions by undertaking smaller acquisitions, relative to their own size, than other firms – the average value of acquisitions by ECPMs was 0.18 times their own sales, versus 0.26 times the buyer’s own sales for non-ECPM firms.
  • Making significantly more acquisitions than divestments – ECPMs made 3.4 times as many acquisitions, by value, than divestments, compared to other firms which, on average, engaged in the same value of acquisition and divestment transactions.
  • Making significant timing adjustments to acquisitions and divestments to align with market conditions and take advantage of valuation opportunities – ECPMs reduced the value of acquisitions relative to divestments during periods when M&A markets and valuation levels are increasing strongly, and significantly increased the value of acquisitions relative to divestments immediately following sharp market downturns.

The Best Performing Companies in M&A

Number of ECPMs per region:

  • US: 588
  • UK: 276
  • Europe, Middle East & Africa excluding UK: 275
  • Asia Pacific: 206
  • Americas excluding the US: 124

The Oil & Gas sector was found to have the highest percentage of firms identified as ECPMs (10.5%), followed by Industrials, Healthcare, and Technology.

Globally, 6% of all companies examined for the report were identified as ECPMS. Regionally, it was European companies that were more likely to qualify as ECPMs. In fact, 12% of listed firms in the UK and France identified as ECPMs, along with 9% of the listed German companies. Even though the US had the highest number of ECPMs (40% of total sample), the US as a region fell below the global average with only 5% of US firms identified as ECPMs.

Firms identified as ECPMs include:

US: Colfax, Concho Resources, Dana Holding, EMC, EV Energy Partners, FleetCor Technologies, Google, IHS, Monsanto, RigNet, Salesforce.com, Targa Resources Partners, TriMas, Vanguard Natural Resources

Europe, Middle East & Africa: Aberdeen Asset Management (UK), Intertek (UK), Mondi (UK), SABMiller (UK), Aros Quality Group (Sweden), HEXPOL (Sweden), AURELIUS (Germany), MBB SE (Germany), SMT Scharf (Germany), Burkhalter (Switzerland), Eurocash (Poland), Eurofins Scientific (Luxembourg), Nizhnekamskneftekhim (Russia), Jeronimo Martins (Portugal), Econocom (Belgium)

Asia Pacific: Hinokiya Holdings (Japan), Maeda Kosen (Japan), Ancom Logistics (Malaysia), C.I. Holdings (Malaysia), Tiong Nam Logistics Holdings (Malaysia), Austin Engineering (Australia), Corporate Travel Management (Australia), M2 Group (Australia), Mineral Resources (Australia), Silver Lake Resources (Australia)

Americas excluding the US: Alimentation Couche-Tard (Canada), Amaya Gaming Group (Canada), Black Diamond Group (Canada), Canadian Energy Services & Technology (Canada), Constellation Software (Canada), GoGold Resources (Canada), SECURE Energy Services (Canada), Trinidad Drilling (Canada), Mexichem (Mexico), TOTVS (Brazil)

 

ANZ and ETF Securities to Launch Six ETFs in Australia in the Coming Weeks

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ANZ and ETF Securities today announced the formation of a joint venture, which will provide a range of exchange traded funds (ETFs) developed for Australian investors and self-managed super funds.

The new company, known as ANZ ETFS Management will list a range of six new ETFs for Australian investors on the Australian Stock Exchange in the coming weeks. The products are designed to be transparent and cost-effective building blocks for Australian investment portfolios, providing exposure to commonly traded equity, commodity and foreign exchange benchmarks.

The joint venture marks the first entry of a major Australian financial institution into the Australian ETF market. It harnesses the securities expertise of ANZ’s Global Markets business, the strength of its Global Wealth and E*TRADE distribution channels and presence in 29 Asia Pacific markets, together with ETF Securities’ global track record in developing innovative exchange traded products.

ANZ ETFS will be based in Sydney and includes employees from both ANZ and ETF Securities. Danny Laidler, ETF Securities’ Head of Australia and New Zealand,  has been appointed Co-Head and Head of Distribution at ANZ ETFS, while Adam Smith, currently Director of Business Execution at ANZ Global Markets, has been appointed Co-Head and Chief Operating Officer of the joint venture.

Eddie Listorti,  ANZ Global Co-Head of Fixed Income, Currencies and Commodities, said: “This partnership unites ANZ’s extensive knowledge of Australian financial markets and the domestic investment base, with ETF Securities’ expertise in constructing and operating ETF products. ANZ ETFS’ objective is to provide a range of high quality and low cost investment products that will in time provide diversified exposure to all major asset classes.”

Joyce Phillips, ANZ CEO of Global Wealth, added: “ETFs are increasingly being used by our customers as an important, often tactical, part of their portfolios. ANZ Wealth will continue to offer these, as part of innovative investment solutions, to our customers.”

Graham Tuckwell, Founder and Chairman of ETF Securities, said: “Australia was amongst the pioneers of ETFs over a decade ago, but since then has watched overseas markets adopt them more widely and faster. We believe this is now changing as Australian investors embrace ETFs, investing record levels over the last year. They are recognising ETFs’ multiple advantages, especially intelligent and low cost access to a broad range of benchmarks. This is why we are excited to be partnering with ANZ to offer a new and comprehensive ETF platform, delivering more choice and greater access to Australian investors.”

 

Fried Frank Extends Asset Management Practice to Europe

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Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson announced today that Mark Mifsud, Kate Downey and Alexandra Conroy will join the Firm as partners in the Asset Management Practice, resident in the London office. Mr. Mifsud, Ms. Downey and Ms. Conroy advise fund sponsors and financial institutions across a broad range of asset classes, including private equity, venture and growth, infrastructure, credit and real estate. They also provide advice on carried interest, co-investment and other incentive arrangements.

«We are pleased to welcome Mark, Kate and Alex to Fried Frank’s London office, where they will be instrumental in extending our premiere funds practice in the US to Europe and building a leading global funds practice,» said David Greenwald, chairman of Fried Frank. «They are excellent lawyers with strong commercial sensibilities, and their track record of leadership and client service complements Fried Frank’s commitment to helping our clients with their most sophisticated and challenging matters.»

«Mark, Kate and Alex bring to Fried Frank strong technical skills, deep knowledge of the law and the market, and sound business judgment that clients need to navigate an increasingly complex environment,» said Kenneth Rosh, head of the Fried Frank’s Private Equity Funds Practice. «They share Fried Frank’s values, which include intellectual vigor and partnering with our clients to come up with creative solutions, and they are an important part of the continued growth of our global funds practice.»

Before joining Fried Frank, Mr. Mifsud, Ms. Downey and Ms. Conroy were private funds partners in the London office of Kirkland & Ellis International LLP.

This team has extensive experience in advising private fund managers in relation to the structuring and establishment of a wide range of private investment funds. They have developed a market-leading practice, acting for high-profile European and global clients across a range of asset classes, with a particular focus on private equity, infrastructure, energy and credit. 

Both Mr. Mifsud and Ms. Downey are consistently recognized as leading attorneys by Chambers UK, Legal 500 and other directories.  Chambers has described Mr. Mifsud as «incredibly intelligent» and a «superb lawyer in this field,» and they have described Ms. Downey as «extremely smart and effective» and a «go to lawyer for fund manager clients.»

La UE y Suiza firman un acuerdo histórico de transparencia

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EU and Switzerland Sign Historic Tax Transparency Agreement
Foto: hierher. La UE y Suiza firman un acuerdo histórico de transparencia

La Unión Europea y Suiza han firmado un nuevo e histórico acuerdo de transparencia fiscal, que mejorará significativamente la lucha contra la evasión de impuestos. Bajo dicho acuerdo, ambas partes intercambiarán automáticamente información sobre los estados financieros de sus residentes a partir de 2018. Esto supone el fin de secreto bancario suizo para los residentes de la UE y evitará que evasores fiscales escondan fondos no declarados en cuentas suizas. El acuerdo fue firmado ayer por el Comisario Pierre Moscovici y por Janis Reirs, ministro letón de finanzas en representación de la presidencia letona del Consejo Europeo y por el secretario de Estado de Suiza para finanzas internacionales, Jacques de Watteville.

Pierre Moscovici, comisario europeo para economía y finanzas, impuestos y aduanas, declaró: “El acuerdo de hoy es el inicio de una nueva era de trasparencia fiscal y cooperación entre la Unión Europea y Suiza. Es otro golpe contra los evasores de impuestos y un paso más hacia una imposición más justa en Europa. La UE ha liderado el camino del intercambio automático de información, en la esperanza de que nuestros colegas internacionales nos sigan. Este acuerdo es una prueba de lo que la ambición y determinación de la UE pueden lograr”.

El intercambio automático de información es ampliamente reconocido como el instrumento más efectivo en la lucha contra la evasión fiscal. Facilita a las autoridades información esencial sobre los ingresos en el extranjero de sus residentes, de forma que pueden valorar y reclamar los impuestos que le son debidos.

Bajo el nuevo acuerdo entre Suiza y la UE, los Estados Miembros recibirán de forma anual los nombres, direcciones, números de identificación fiscal y fechas de nacimiento de sus residentes con cuentas en Suiza, así como balances bancarios y otra información financiera. Esta nueva transparencia no sólo mejorará la capacidad de los estados miembros de seguir y penalizar a los evasores fiscales, sino que actuará como freno contra la ocultación de activos e ingresos en el extranjero con el fin de evitar impuestos.

El acuerdo va en línea con los requerimientos de transparencia mutual que los estados miembros acordaron el año pasado. La Comisión está concluyendo negociaciones para la firma de protocolos similares con Andorra, Liechtenstein, Monaco y San Marino, que espera sellar antes de fin de año.

BNY Mellon Ranked as the Top Mutual Fund Service Provider in 10 Categories

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10
Foto cedidaJosé Ignacio Goirigolzarri, presidente de Bankia, durante la Junta General Extraordinaria de Accionistas de Bankia . Los accionistas de Bankia aprueban la fusión con CaixaBank

BNY Mellon has been ranked as the top mutual fund service provider in 10 categories in the 2015 Mutual Fund Service Guide.

This year’s guide ranked BNY Mellon as the top:

  • Subaccounting services provider in all categories;
  • Full service transfer agency provider, ranked by number of clients;
  • Hedge fund services provider, ranked by total alternative fund assets under administration;
  • Hedge fund services provider, ranked by assets under administration;
  • Custody services provider, ranked by total custody assets, 
  • Custody services provider, ranked by unit investment trust assets; and
  • Custody services provider, ranked by number of Exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

«These rankings underline our strong position as a leader in the fund services arena, including traditional mutual funds, alternatives, and ETFs,» said Robert Mathisen, head of U.S. Financial Institutions for BNY Mellon.  «Our focus on continuous improvement in technology, service and developing integrated solutions for our clients has been reflected in our strong rankings.  It’s important to note that our highly ranked performance has been consistent, as we have achieved these top rankings for up to five years in some categories.»

The Mutual Fund Service Guide has been providing comparative analysis of mutual fund service providers since 1986. The guide surveys and ranks mutual fund service providers in the categories of fund accounting, transfer agency, subaccounting and custody. Additionally, it provides data on hedge fund services, regulatory and compliance services, and shareholder communication services.

La felicidad de planear con anticipación

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La felicidad de planear con anticipación
Foto; Martin Fisch . La felicidad de planear con anticipación

Uno de los temas que vienen siendo más recurrentes en el mundo de la planeación financiera personal tiene que ver con el retiro. Si bien el tema ha sido importante para muchas sociedades desde hace tiempo, empieza a ser muy relevante para sociedades emergentes, donde nos hemos dado cuenta que la expectativa de vida es mayor que hace unos años y que eso crea fuertes retos. Pero algo que me llama poderosamente la atención, es que incluso las sociedades más avanzadas en estos temas, enfrentan serios retos.

Una entidad norteamericana (Northwestern Mutual) hace anualmente una encuesta sobre tendencias financieras en diferentes temas, uno de los cuales es retiro. Y me sorprendió un resultado de este año: la denominada Generación X está muy afanada porque los recursos que tienen ahorrados para el retiro, pueden no ser suficientes. Esto unido al hecho de que, proporcionalmente frente a otras generaciones, están ahorrando menos; lo que convierte el escenario en algo preocupante y que debe enfrentarse lo más pronto posible. De hecho, muchos reconocen que no cuentan con asesoría, que no entienden o no tienen tiempo. Y, lo peor, no tienen un asesor financiero que los ayude con estos temas. Ahí es donde se debe comenzar: buscar un asesor para pensar en tu retiro.

Pero también trae resultados positivos, que refuerza el título de esta columna, y es que las personas financieramente disciplinadas, son más felices durante su etapa de retiro. Es decir, parece existir una fuerte correlación entre tener hábitos saludables financieros durante toda la vida productiva, con las consecuencias positivas que eso trae en la etapa cuando ya se está jubilado. Y la lógica puede saltar a la vista: quien pensó en esos temas durante mucho tiempo y ejecutó un plan efectivo de ahorro e inversión de largo plazo, vive mejor cuando necesita de los recursos.

Esta semana me encontré con un amigo que vive en Australia desde hace muchos años y me contó una buena noticia: acaba de comprar una vivienda. Y la compró a unas personas mayores que ya sabían que no podían seguir viviendo solas, y que necesitaban irse a un lugar donde pudieran cuidar de ellos de la mejor manera posible. Obviamente, iban a financiar esta última etapa, con los recursos que proveyó la venta de la vivienda. Esto parece ser una norme en esa sociedad y muestra cómo debe funcionar la etapa de acumulación y la etapa de disfrute: lo construido en los años productivos, se debe desacumular en los años no productivos. Así funciona.

La pareja que le vendió la casa a mi amigo (pregunté por esto, claro está) es feliz, y lo es porque demostraron en persona propia lo que encontró el estudio de Northwesern Mutual: el que planea financieramente, es más feliz.  

Las opiniones aquí expresadas son responsabilidad exclusiva de su autor y no representan necesariamente la posición de Old Mutual sobre los temas tratados

MANUEL FELIPE GARCIA OSPINA

Por favor ingrese al siguiente enlace para leer la notificación legal de e-mail de Old Mutual Colombia:
Please click on the following link to read the Old Mutual Colombia e-mail Legal Notice:
http://www.oldmutual.com.co/notificacionemail

 

GBI Expands Into Asia

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Gold Bullion International (GBI) has announced the appointment of Jammy Chan as Head of Business Development for Asia. Mr. Chan will be responsible for sales and marketing of the firm’s precious metals solutions in Asia and will be based in Hong Kong.

«The investment appetite and sophistication for physical gold ownership are at an all-time high,» said Jammy Chan. «GBI offers a comprehensive solution for physical precious metals investment, featuring a robust platform for purchasing, global vaulting and insuring a wide range of products. GBI works with some of the largest wealth management firms in the United States and is looking to do the same in China. In fact, in the short time I have been at GBI, we have already added our first Hong Kong based wealth customer and are in a number of discussions with some of the region’s most prestigious institutions.»

Asia accounts for about two-thirds of global gold demand — with China and India the world’s top two consumers. These two countries alone account for about half of the world’s demand for gold.

Mr. Chan comes to GBI after four years as Head of Investment in China with the World Gold Council. He has held senior business development positions with Huaan Asset Management, Amundi and Fidelity. Over his 16 year career, Mr. Chan has covered business in the Greater China region from Hong Kong and also with onshore bases in Beijing and Shanghai. Mr. Chan earned a Bachelor’s Degree in finance from the University of Hong Kong and his MBA from Imperial College in London with full scholarship.

«We are very excited to expand our business into China, where gold is such an important asset class,» said Steven Feldman, Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of GBI. «We continue to replicate our strategy in more regions around the globe. While our focus remains the wealth business, we are also launching GBI Direct internationally, often with local partners. Our Asian launch follows our recent debut in the Middle East, and having Jammy Chan on board makes us very confident that this region will be a great success.»

GBI is the leading institutional precious metals provider to individual investors and the wealth management industry. GBI’s technology and operations platform allows investors to acquire and manage their physical precious metal assets directly through their existing wealth management or e-commerce relationships, as well as directly through GBI Direct.

Ex-director de la división de Pershing Latinoamérica se une a FlexFunds

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Former Director of Pershing Latin America Division Joins FlexFunds
CC-BY-SA-2.0, FlickrFlorent Rigaud nuevo director de la compañía con sede en Miami bFlexFunds - Foto cedida. Ex-director de la división de Pershing Latinoamérica se une a FlexFunds

Florent Rigaud, ex-Director de Pershing Latinoamérica, recientemente anunció su decisión de aceptar el cargo de Director de FlexFunds, compañía basada en Miami que trabaja con gestores de activos en la creación de FlexETPs. FlexETPs son vehículos de inversión, o productos listados, que proveen una nueva solución para la gestión y distribución de activos. Estos son productos empaquetados y distribuidos a través deEuroclear. El vehículo provee el cálculo y distribución del precio o NAV, número ISIN/CUSIP, página Bloomberg, servicios de Trustee y auditoria.

«Esta transición se produce en un momento crucial en el sector financiero cuando los gestores de activos que buscan servicios de custodia, administración y distribución, tienen que someterse a un proceso que exige cada vez más recursos internos e impide su crecimiento y desarrollo» afirma Florent Rigaud «con FlexETP, el gestor se beneficia de una solución llave en mano, de forma rápida y sencilla de establecer. Es el vehículo más ventajoso y flexible para la obtención de capital y gestión de activos. Como el nuevo director de la oficina de Nueva York, estoy muy ilusionado de tener la oportunidad de presenciar como FlexETP se convierte en un nombre familiar» agrega Florent Rigaud.

Mario Rivero, Director de la oficina FlexFunds Miami, declara, “Es un gran privilegio dar la bienvenida a tal adición a nuestro equipo. Florent ya se está demostrando como un gran activo para la compañía y trae con él 20 años de experiencia en la industria y con una reputación exitosamente establecida en el región”.