Asset management

Capital Calls: Chubb and Hartford, Swimming pools

22 Apr 2021

Concise views on global finance: The company led by Evan Greenberg twice raised its bid for its Connecticut rival, but so far to no avail; a blowout quarter for private-pool maker Pool Corp points to buoyant wealth and spending trends, but only for some.

Viewsroom: The Super League’s short, unhappy life

22 Apr 2021

The richest European soccer clubs, including Juventus and Real Madrid, swiftly aborted plans to create a breakaway competition. But as Liam Proud and Peter Thal Larsen explain, the financial appeal of a U.S.-style sporting cartel remains irresistible. Plus, Huarong’s woes.

Credit Suisse’s safer future poses returns dilemma

22 Apr 2021

The Swiss bank is raising $2 bln of capital and clamping down on risk. It’s the right move following recent blowups. But it undermines CEO Thomas Gottstein’s strategy to boost growth and returns. A major rethink under incoming Chair António Horta-Osório is even more urgent.

Beijing fiddles while Huarong burns

16 Apr 2021

A slow implosion of the state-owned bad debt manager is spooking foreign funds holding $21 bln of its dollar bonds, and beyond. There has been no official signal as the market convulses. Bail Huarong out or let it default; China erodes investor trust leaving it dangling this way.

Capital Calls: Delta Air Lines, L’Oreal

15 Apr 2021

Concise views on global finance: The U.S. air carrier says it was cash-flow positive in March, signaling the beginning of the end of the pandemic; the French cosmetics group has too much cash, which could be useful for dealmaking.

Investment behemoth IPO can fly without Reddit mob

7 Apr 2021

Asset management platform Allfunds will list in Amsterdam. Its model of channelling banks’ clients into funds means it will miss the amateur share trading frenzy. But its 1.2 trln euros of assets, profitability and growth record make a mooted 7 bln euro valuation attractive.

Capital Calls: Trucking IPO

7 Apr 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Startup TuSimple will be listing shares via a traditional initial public offering.

SocGen fund sale is good enough to spur copycats

7 Apr 2021

The French bank is set to sell its passive investing unit to Amundi for 825 mln euros. While below some estimates of 1 bln euros, CEO Frederic Oudea’s price is adequate and he’s solving a strategic problem. Other banks with subscale fund arms, like UBS, may follow suit.

Capital Calls: Volvo IPO, Walgreens, Saudi Arabia

31 Mar 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Geely’s mooted $20 bln valuation for its Swedish brand still looks ambitious; Amazon can't match the transatlantic pharmacy chain's in-store clinics; Mohammed bin Salman grabs private cash to pay for a switch away from oil.

Chancellor: Value investing’s day is coming soon

30 Mar 2021

Between 1926 and 2009, lower-rated stocks outperformed more expensive “growth” shares by over 4% a year. Shifts in recent years to passive investing and tech stocks changed that. But a new study shows they outperform when stock market bubbles burst – as this one inevitably will.

Credit Suisse has PAF to redemption over Greensill

26 Mar 2021

Funds linked to the collapsed supply-chain firm may have billions of dollars in bad debt. The bank and its employees are culpable and should share losses with clients. Reviving a post-2008 asset-backed bonus vehicle would be one way for senior staff to shoulder some of the risk.

Capital Calls: Twitter time-wasting, News Corp

25 Mar 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Congressional hearings on Big Tech get ever less productive; meanwhile, the parent of the Wall Street Journal snaps up Investor’s Business Daily.

Messy Singapore deal strains to lay new foundation

24 Mar 2021

CapitaLand wants to sell its property development arm to backer Temasek and list the rest. Even if investors are willing to embrace a carve-up of the $15 bln company, achieving a desired valuation closer to peers such as Lendlease will be hard in a yield-focused market.

Capital Calls: Chubb/Hartford, Son of Kozmo

23 Mar 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Insurer Hartford rebuffs an offer from rival Chubb without breaking a sweat; snack-delivery outfit GoPuff raises capital at an $8.9 billion valuation, giving new life to an old Silicon Valley idea.

Apollo at least manages one very clean exit

22 Mar 2021

The investment manager is merging Tech Data, a $7.2 bln company that it bought for $6 bln less than a year ago, with Synnex. It will ink a tidy paper profit of $2 bln. Unlike the departure of its founder, Leon Black, this is one its investors should have no trouble comprehending.

Capital Calls: Leon Black, Happiness index

22 Mar 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Apollo’s founder still has his imprint on the Museum of Modern Art and Dartmouth College; people are proving surprisingly resilient in the pandemic, a recent poll suggests.

Credit Suisse is better off without its funds unit

18 Mar 2021

CEO Thomas Gottstein split the Swiss group’s $477 bln asset management business from its private bank and installed a new head. Yet risk-management issues highlighted by the Greensill saga may deter clients. Industry pressures strengthen the case for selling to a rival like UBS.

Vanguard rejigs China plan in wrong direction

17 Mar 2021

The U.S. money manager is giving up on an independent license to focus on a joint venture with Jack Ma’s embattled Ant. China’s $3 trillion industry is tough for foreigners to break into, and passive, low-fee funds are a tricky sell. Even so, now is the time to try harder.

Axa delivers kick up derrière to green investing

15 Mar 2021

The French group will no longer insure RWE or invest in its shares due to its coal exposure. It’s harsh on the German utility, which also has extensive wind and solar power assets. But it may be a wakeup call for other big companies with less impressive decarbonisation plans.

Review: Fund manager’s fall reveals larger flaws

12 Mar 2021

Neil Woodford was once one of Britain’s best-known stock-pickers. Owen Walker’s “Built on a Lie” catalogues his spectacular demise, but also explains how changing pensions and supine regulation enabled his rise. Ultimately, the saga is another argument for index funds.