European Products
October 2009
Scottish Life has added ten new funds to its core fund range in response to feedback from IFAs and market analysis. Commodities, US Mid Cap, Total Return, Global Property and Global Bonds are accessible through the new funds. Nine of the funds are actively managed. The new fund links are BlackRock Gold and General, JP Morgan Natural Resources, First State Asia Pacific Leaders, Schroder US Mid Cap, JP Morgan Cautious Total Return, Investec Cautious Managed, Schroder Global Property Securities, Invesco Perpetual Global Bond, Invesco Perpetual Corporate Bond and BGI Over 5 year Index-Linked Gilt Index. The new equity funds can be used in conjunction with Scottish Life’s Governed Range.
The world’s first hedge fund secondary market index has been launched onto the market by Hedgebay Trading Corporation. The Hedgebay Global Hedge Fund Secondary Market Index, which provides investors with statistics on the key aspects of the secondary market, also offers the average discount or premium to Net Asset Value (NAV) of hedge fund shares traded over the month.
Schroders has launched a UCITS III hedge fund platform, Schroder Global Alternative Investor Access (GAIA), a transparently operated and regulated platform for UCITS funds. It is designed to give investors easier access to hedge fund expertise, and will bring together the best of the traditional and alternative investment worlds – Schroders’ global distribution network and expertise in managing UCITS products, and NewFinance Capital’s knowledge and experience of the hedge fund industry.
HSBC Global Asset Management has launched
its HSBC GIF Middle East and North Africa (MENA) fund, which was initially
set for launch in October 2008, but postponed due to financial volatility.
HSBC Global Asset Management considers the current market to be more secure
for the region, and has launched the fund for management by Andrea Nannini
and his team at Halbis, the active management specialist within HSBC Global
Asset Management.
Castlestone Management has launched a UCITS III-compliant
version of its global macro fund, Intelligent Portfolio (IQ) Asset Allocation
(UCITS) Fund. The new fund aims to bring the advantages and performance
capabilities of offshore, family office style investing to UK and European
investors in a more transparent and regulated wrapper.
Scottish Life has launched a service
to allow independent financial advisers (IFA) to monitor the progress
of new business cases. All key information about new individual pensions
business will now be available in one place for IFAs, providing real-time
case management for individual policies and aims to reduce the time advisers
spend on administration by reducing the need to get in touch with Scottish
Life with information.
T. Rowe Price has launched a Global Fixed Income Absolute
Return strategy, available to investors via its Luxembourg-domiciled SICAV
or a separate account. The strategy, which forms part of the firm’s
expansion of its fixed income offerings, is currently approved for distribution
in Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway,
Switzerland, Sweden and the UK.
Crédit Agricole Structured Asset Management
(CASAM) has expanded its equity exchange traded funds (ETF) range with
ten new products listed on the Euronext Paris. Three flagship ETFs in
Europe, three new sector ETFs, one REIT ETF and three short ETFs make
up the additional funds, and bring CASAM’s ETF offering up to 65
products.
Curtis Bank has launched the Flexible Family Trust, a
self-invested personal pension (SIPP) product specifically designed to
offer a range of investment and benefit options to one or more family
members, including the ability to pay Scheme Pensions. Each product is
established as a separate SIPP product with its own HMRC registration,
and members would be a group of linked individuals, typically members
of the same family.
Alternative New York and London asset manager, Castlestone Management,
has made direct, unleveraged exposure to physical gold bullion and precious
metals through its Aliquot Gold Bullion and Aliquot Precious Metals Funds,
available to Euro and Sterling investors.
Summit Global Investor Services has
launched its online monitoring and reporting tool, Zenith Reports. The
product, an online investment solution, incorporates analytics, compliance,
investment accounting, bespoke reporting and data management, and uses
technology to manage all back office procedures necessary to collect,
consolidate, verify and reconcile transactional information. The tool
also improves timing with regards to key information delivery to decision
makers.
Pension Capital Strategies Limited has launched a monthly
index to show the funding position of UK defined benefit (DB) pension
schemes under IAS19/FRS17, the standard accounting measure used in company
reports and accounts. The Index will give monthly updates on DB schemes’
management and of their financial strength.
The alternative investment division of the SYZ & CO Group, 3A
SA, has launched a new UCITS III fund of hedge funds. The product,
which preserves the benefits of a hedge fund while offering the advantage
of a transparent and liquid environment, is aimed at professional clients
only and will not be marketed to the retail market. The 3A Dynamic UCITS
III is a sub-fund of the umbrella Luxembourg SICAV Oceano.
