Investment News

Former head of William Blair Investment Management, Michelle Seitz, has replaced Len Brennan as Russell Investments global chief. Seitz, a 21-year veteran at the investment arm of Chicago-based William Blair including 16 as its CEO, joined Russell last week stepping into a role Brennan has held for over six years. Brennan will remain as chair… [Read More…]

Vanguard could soon start offering exchange-traded fund (ETF) versions of its actively-managed products on the US stock exchange following regulatory approval last week. According to a Reuters report, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) said on Friday it would approve a Vanguard application to offer the ETFs in a move analysts labelled “a potential… [Read More…]

There are various studies – one a regular one by Ray Dalio when he used to write many of the Bridgewater Associates newsletters focusing on US elections – that show political decisions, even wars, are not as influential on market directions as normal cycles and animal spirits. Well, maybe this time it really is different…. [Read More…]

Morningstar has put a hold on three AMP Capital Australian share funds after the manager instigated a review of its in-house capability in the asset class. According to a Morningstar report published last week, the AMP Capital “strategic review” will impact the manager’s Australian Equity, Sustainable Shares, and Equity Income funds, which collectively have about… [Read More…]

Nasdaq, the US tech-dominated “second” stock market, will acquire eVestment, the institutional fund industry performance database service for US$705 million (A$875 million). The deal is a move for Nasdaq to widen its information services to institutional investors. eVestment claims to have the largest global database for both traditional and alternative strategies, including about 2,800 individual… [Read More…]

The Financial Markets Authority (FMA) may rein-in the ‘wholesale’ investor definition under a review scheduled within the next 12 months. In its ‘Annual corporate plan’, published for the first time last week, the FMA says it will investigate “whether categorisation methods for ‘wholesale’ customers are appropriate, with a view to following up with individual firms… [Read More…]

After a three-year hiatus from formal portfolio management duties, Frank Jasper, has replaced Mark Brighouse as Fisher Funds chief investment officer (CIO). Under the top-level change implemented post the firm’s recent TSB-led buy-out, Brighouse has been named Fisher chief investment strategist, with tactical asset allocation and risk management responsibilities across the group’s diversified portfolios. Prior… [Read More…]

Australian multi-boutique firm, Pinnacle, has hired David Batty as its man in New Zealand. As reported in July, Pinnacle, which houses a stable of seven boutique funds with a collective A$26 billion under management, was seeking someone to develop “new business opportunities in NZ… across retail and wholesale distribution networks”. The ASX-listed Pinnacle’s underlying managers… [Read More…]

They have given big super funds sufficient, and reasonably clear, warning over the past couple of years but APRA last week finally said it was calling in the trustees of a number of super funds to question them on their governance, past performance and likely future performance. If they don’t stack up, the regulator will… [Read More…]