European Mandates

September 2008

BNP Paribas has been appointed by European Multilateral Clearing Facility N.V. (EMCF) for its settlement outsourcing in Italy and Spain. The custody bank will allow underlying EMCF clients to trade Italian and Spanish securities on multiple multilateral trading facilities (MTF) platforms.

Russell Investments has awarded Pan-European and Europe ex-UK equity mandates totalling more than €100 million to Sourcecap International. The mandates are for Sourcecap’s European Alpha strategy, which was launched in June 2007.

Specialist global high yield bond manager Muzinich & Company (Muzinich) has seen an increase of £35 million in its mandate from the ICI Pension Fund. The relationship between the two organisations goes back to 2003, and ICI has confirmed that it now as around 2.5 per cent of the Fund invested in the high yield bond asset class.

Credit Suisse Benelux has been awarded a €140 million private equity fund of funds investment mandate by the pension fund of Dutch retail business Ahold Pension Fund. Ahold said it will help them get more exposure in the European and US private equity markets.

The Dutch pension fund for the printing industry, Grafische Bedrijfsfondsen (PGB), has awarded a €60 million SRI mandate to Threadneedle. The mandate, an ‘Absolute Return Global Environmental Intensity’ mandate, highlights, said GBF, this exciting time in socially responsible investment (SRI).

State Street Global Advisors (SSgA) has been appointed to manage US$200 million of pension fund assets for Denmark’s Bankpension of Copenhagen, which offers company pensions to Danish financial sector employees. The mandate expands SSgA’s existing four-year investment management relationship with Bankpension.

Principal Global Investors has been awarded a €200 million Global Emerging Markets equity mandate from Ireland’s National Pensions Reserve Fund (NPRF). The mandate will be managed by Mike Reynal, head of Emerging Markets Equities and Principal Global Investors.

BNP Paribas Securities Services has announced that WestLB AG has appointed TEB Securities Services, Istanbul as local clearing and custody services provider for their wholesale and proprietary businesses in Turkey. TEB is a fast-growing bank in Turkey, and BNP Paribas acts as WestLB AG bank’s sub-custodian in 19 countries across Europe.

FOUR Capital Partners has been appointed by Russell Investments to manage a mandate in its RIC UK equity fund, at an initial size of £80 million. FOUR will invest the mandate in line with its Active UK Equity strategy, investing in 40 to 60 holdings on a bottom-up basis.