Funds
Thirty eight per cent of respondents believe investment consultants are behind the curve when it comes to advising their clients on the Ucits hedge fund sector, according to a survey by Alix Capital, the Geneva-based provider of the Ucits Alternatives Index (UAI) family of indices.
The survey also reveals a significant shift in allocation intentions. For the first time since summer 2011, respondents plan to decrease their allocation to fixed income and increase allocation to equity long short strategies.
Ucits hedge funds assets under management are expected to continue to grow in the next six months, with 69 per cent
Principal Global Investors is to acquire a 55 per cent stake in Liongate Capital Management (Liongate), a global alternative investment boutique based in London and New York focused on managing portfolios of hedge funds.
Founded in 2003, Liongate has approximately USD2.1 billion in assets under management across a range of commingled funds and dedicated client portfolios. Its client base includes many of the world’s leading pension funds, insurance companies and sovereign wealth funds. Liongate is recognized for its dynamic approach to asset allocation and managed hedge solutions, which have delivered strong, long-term risk-adjusted returns to its blue-chip investor base.
The
Bank of America Merrill Lynch has added New York-based manager Van Eck to its dedicated UCITS compliant fund platform, Merrill Lynch Investment Solutions (MLIS).
The new vehicle is called the Van Eck Commodities Long-Short Equity Ucits Fund. Van Eck is an industry stalwart having been founded way back in 1955. It specializes in natural resource equities and commodities, as well as emerging markets. The firm presently has over 150 employees, with offices in Germany, Switzerland, China and Colombia. 
 

The fund seeks to leverage Van Eck’s hard assets investment team’s knowledge of the natural resources sector – including experience as geologists
Crispen Odey is planning to launch a multi-asset fund – Odey Swan fund – next month, investing in equities, bonds and currencies, reported FTAdviser this week. The UCITS fund will replicate Odey Asset Management’s flagship European hedge fund and is currently awaiting approval in Ireland.
It’s the first time that retail investors will have the opportunity to invest in Odey’s long/short strategy. The fund will largely focus on developed market equities and will aim to achieve “strong absolute and relative returns” over the long term. The firm currently manages a number of UCITS funds including: the Odey Opus fund, which
Muzinich & Co, the New York-based credit specialist is planning to launch a UCITS version of its Credit Opportunities Fund, managed by Mick McEachern, in Q2 this year. As reported by portfolio adviser, the “go anywhere” strategy was seeded in the US last month.
The strategy invests in global investment grade and high yield corporate bonds and bank loans using robust bottom-up fundamental analysis with a focus on financial creditworthiness. The strategy, said founder and chairman George Muzinich, is not involved in complex derivatives.
“Our clients want to invest in the US, Europe, short duration, bank loans and get the
ModusLink Global Solutions has entered into an investment agreement with Steel Partners Holdings, which together with certain affiliates, including Handy & Harman, beneficially owns 14.9 per cent of ModusLink’s outstanding shares.
Under the terms of the agreement, Steel Holdings would purchase 7.5 million newly issued shares of common stock at a price of USD4.00 per share, representing a cash investment in the company, before fees and expenses, of USD30m.
The USD4.00 purchase price per share represents a 45 percent premium to the closing market price for ModusLink common stock on 8 February 2013.
In addition, at the closing of the
Morgan Stanley this week announced the launch of a new fund on its dedicated UCITS platform, FundLogic Alternatives plc that gives investors exposure to Winton Capital Management’s Diversified Program.
The fund is the third in a series of four CTA strategies to be made available in a UCITS format through Morgan Stanley’s partnership with Equinox Fund Management LLC (“Equinox”), a US-based multi-manager, specializing in constructing portfolios comprised of multiple Commodity Trading Advisor (“CTA”) programs.
“We are proud to provide UCITS investors with access to the Winton Diversified Program, established in 1997 by David Harding,” said Alvise Munari, Managing Director and
ML Capital Asset Management, the investment manager and promoter of the MontLake Ucits Platform, has published the ninth edition of the quarterly ML Capital Alternative Ucits Barometer.
The Barometer is designed to help identify and anticipate key trends in the demand for the major strategies within the alternative Ucits sector.
John Lowry, chairman of ML Capital, says: “The barometer this quarter has recorded some very significant shifts in the demand levels across many of the main strategies. Probably the biggest two winners this quarter have been European and global emerging long/short funds, both of whom received strong levels of support,
More than half the inflows into UCITS hedge funds (56 per cent, EUR13.2billion) went into fixed income strategies during 2012 according to the latest quarterly European research paper published by Alix Capital, provider of the UCITS Alternative Index.
The second most popular strategy proved to be macro, attracting 24.7 per cent (EUR5.8billion) of inflows. 2012 saw total assets under management for UCITS hedge funds increase by an impressive 20 per cent to a new high of EUR140billion. The research found that the three largest single strategy managers saw their AUM increase significantly: Standard Life Investments’ AUM climbed 59.8 per cent
Fiera Capital has closed the acquisition of the Canadian fixed income, Canadian equity and domestic balanced account business from UBS Global Asset Management (Canada).
The deal represents assets under management of approximately CAD8bn for a cash consideration of CAD52m, subject to certain adjustments.
This transaction, previously announced on 11 December 2012, is immediately accretive to earnings.
The transaction has been approved by regulatory authorities and has satisfied other customary conditions.
