News

(Pictured: Steve Miller) The headwinds to growth in Australia are more challenging than most people think, according to Steve Miller of BlackRock, who presented the firm’s latest global markets outlook last week. It’s a sombre view of the world. Miller, investment strategist for BlackRock Australia, who has a long pedigree as a fixed income manager, said…

by David Chaplin The Financial Markets Authority (FMA) has contacted local subsidiaries of Australian banks in the wake of the most recent financial advice scandals to hit across the Tasman. According to Kirsty Campbell, FMA head of supervision, the regulator has been “having conversations” with Australian-owned NZ financial institutions following a string of high-profile investigations…

(Pictured: Tamar Hamlyn) Inflation-linked securities – CPI bonds – are likely to attract renewed interest because of the demographic shift happening in the super industry as it approaches the baby-boomers’ decumulation phase of their investment spans. Super funds should take note too. Tamar Hamlyn, a principal of fixed interest specialist Ardea Investment Management, has an interesting…

(Pictured: Steve Potter) After years of servicing Australia and New Zealand, successfully, with a fly-in/fly-out team, Northern Trust Asset Management has opened a three-person office in Melbourne under regional senior vice president for institutional business and strategy, Bert Rebelo, who will relocate from Hong Kong. Rebelo, who has been with Northern Trust for about 16 years…

(Pictured: Patrick Colle) BNP Paribas Securities Services has invested more in Australia, in terms of people and systems, than in any other country in the past few years, Patrick Colle, the Paris-based chief executive told a media briefing last week. The firm is now getting about half of all new business from outside Europe. Colle said…

(Pictured: Andrew Kleinig) TIAA-CREF, a US firm with which many Australian industry funds have had discussions over the years, has opened an Australian office and last week held two roundtables – one on ESG issues and the other on investing in ‘real’ assets. But it’s TIAA-CREF’s expertise in retirement services that may most interest Australian funds….

(Pictured: Jesper Bruun-Olsen) Algomi Ltd, the fintech start-up backed by Lakestar Venture Capital, has commenced marketing its fixed income information platform in Australia, following the opening of a Hong Kong office earlier this year. The platform is like a social media hub for bond sellers – usually banks – and big investors – either fund managers…

(Pictured: Andrea West) Chant West has secured insurance group AIA Australia as its major sponsor for the third annual Chant West Super Fund Awards, to be held at a black-tie dinner at Sydney’s Ivy Ballroom on May 6. Chant West director, Andrea West, says: “AIA Australia is one of the country’s leading life insurers. They have…

(Pictured: George Carter) AMP Capital has delayed the handover of its NZ equities mandate to Salt Funds Management by up to a month. George Carter, AMP Capital NZ head of distribution, said transition of NZ$690 million-odd portfolio, originally scheduled for March 31, has been put back as the fund manager deals with “a few internal things”….

(Pictured: Louise Davidson)  Louise Davidson, the ESG investment manager at Cbus, has been appointed chief executive of the Australian Council of Superannuation Investors, a position made vacant by the resignation of Gordon Hagart in February after 18 months in the role. Davidson had been at Cbus since 2009. ACSI has 31 Australian super funds members,…

(Pictured: Jeffrey Levi) Listed fund management companies delivered an average of 33 per cent profit margin in 2014, the highest in five years, on revenue growth of 13 per cent, accord to a study by Casey Quirk & Associates. Australia’s seven listed firms outperformed all others in terms of revenue growth, with an average of 25…

(Pictured: Fiona Mackenzie) by David Chaplin The New Zealand Superannuation Fund (NZS) will be managing close to NZ$850 million (A$845 million) of local equities in-house after suspending one of its two remaining external managers in the asset class last week. In a highly unusual move, NZS pulled a NZ$281 million active New Zealand shares mandate from…