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HSBC Global Asset Management this week launched the latest in its range of Global Investment Funds – HSBC GIF Frontier Markets Fund.
Deutsche Bank has teamed up with Omega Advisors to launch a new fund in December on its dbalternatives UCITS platform (which also supports managed accounts an
Natixis Global Associates, the fund distribution arm of Natixis Global Asset Management, this week announced the launch of the Harris Associates Concentrated US Value Fund.
Wells Fargo & Company has completed its previously announced acquisition of LaCrosse Global Fund Services (LaCrosse), an independently managed hedge fund administration and middle-office service provider, from Cargill.
This acquisition provides Wells Fargo’s Corporate Trust Services division with a complete service offering to the hedge fund and alternative investments markets. LaCrosse’s robust platform and technology offers traditional fund administration services as well as operational support, derivatives processing, bank debt processing and cash/collateral management.
Wells Fargo will maintain the LaCrosse name as well as its global footprint with operating centers and offices in New York, Minneapolis, London, Dublin, Singapore and
Commodities and clearing activity rose in November from a year earlier while securities trading fell, according to the Singapore Exchange (SGX).
Securities turnover fell 37% year on year to SGD25.4 billion as global uncertainties lingered. Securities daily average value was SGD1.2 billion, down 40% from a year earlier.
ETF turnover fell 52% to SGD532 million but structured warrants trading rose 57% to SGD931 million.
Total derivatives volume increased 7% year on year to 5.8 million contracts; derivatives daily average volume was 281,038 contracts, up 6%.
MSCI Taiwan Index Futures volume was 33% higher from a year earlier at 1.6 million
As part of an initiative to combat hedge fund fraud by identifying abnormal investment performance, the Securities and Exchange Commission has announced enforcement actions against three separate advisory firms and six individuals for various misconduct including improper use of fund assets, fraudulent valuations, and misrepresenting fund returns.
The parties in question are: Michael Balboa and Gilles De Charsonville; ThinkStrategy Capital Management and Chetan Kapur; Patrick Rooney and Solaris Management; and LeadDog Capital Markets, Chris Messalas and Joseph LaRocco.
Under the initiative — the Aberrational Performance Inquiry — the SEC Enforcement Division’s Asset Management Unit uses proprietary risk analytics to evaluate
Interdealer broker ICAP has appointed Gary Pettit to the new position of Global Head of Financial Futures and Options. Pettit was formerly Global Head of Futures and Options at MF Global.
ICAP has also recruited, so far, an additional 25 former MF Global staff across London, New York, Chicago and Sydney. Gary Pettit will be based in London, reporting to Gary Smith, Deputy CEO, ICAP London and EMEA.
Smith says: “We are delighted to welcome such a respected executive as Gary to ICAP. We are also very pleased to have attracted a high-quality team to build on the significant
Alcentra Limited, part of BNY Mellon Asset Management, is to launch the Alcentra European Floating Rate Income Fund Limited in early 2012.
The Guernsey closed ended investment company, will be listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange and it will invest predominantly in senior secured loans and floating rate senior secured bonds issued by European corporates. The company aims to produce a quarterly dividend of 5.5% per annum in the first year of full investment. It is intended that a significant proportion of the portfolio will be sourced at a discount to par, allowing the opportunity for
The international derivatives exchanges of Eurex Group recorded an average daily volume (ADV) of 10.0 million contracts in November (November 2010: 10.2 million). Of those, 7.2 million were Eurex Exchange contracts (November 2010: 7.2 million), and 2.8 million contracts (November 2010: 3.0 million) were traded at the US-based International Securities Exchange (ISE). In total, 159.1 million contracts were traded at Eurex Exchange and 59.8 million at ISE.
At Eurex Exchange, equity index derivatives – the largest segment – recorded 85.1 million contracts (November 2010: 71.2 million), an increase of approximately 20 per cent y-o-y. Futures on the EURO STOXX 50
The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has filed an enforcement action charging Gary Futch and his son, Bradley A Futch and their firm Tradewind Investments, LLC (Tradewind), with commodity options fraud. Tradewind was registered as a Commodity Trading Advisor from February 2008 through June 2009.
According to the CFTC’s complaint, filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi on 29 November, 2011, from early 2007 through October 2008, Tradewind took in approximately USD5.6 million from about 25 clients, mostly family, friends, or acquaintances of the Futches. Tradewind offered a trading program focused on selling option spreads. During their client
