Alternative investments

Salient Partners, a $21.5 billion investment firm, plans to buy Forward Management to expand its liquid alternatives business, a fast-growing product that offers hedge fund-like strategies to individual investors.

Jerry Murphey recalls trying to apply tactical risk management solutions after the 2001 market shocks. "It was clear that financial markets would continue to move faster than investor expectations and financial advisors would need tactical risk management."

Kevin Carter's passion for emerging markets quickly put him at odds with the available ETF options for investors. Even in the largest offerings from established providers, he says the problem was apparent: investors weren't getting exposure to the innovative companies garnering global attention, such as Baidu, but rather staid, government-owned entities.

Deborah Fuhr, a veteran ETF industry observer, says the explosive growth of ETFs is vindication for a product once dismissed by some investment professionals. In a discussion with Money Management Executive, Fuhr outlines factors that have led to the market's enthusiastic acceptance of ETFs.

The top regulator of mutual funds, private equity and hedge funds at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will step down later this month.

A group of nine fund managers is said to be planning to start a dark pool dedicated to large stock trades later this year. The new market -- named Luminex -- will admit asset managers who bet on prices to increase, sources said.

The industry in 2014 saw Pimco bleed billions after the abrupt departure of Bill Gross in September, while BlackRock reaped the benefits of that disarray. BlackRock's iShares ETFs captured $102.8 billion in investments in 2014. Also, Vanguard announced it would offer its first ETF focused on the $3.6 trillion U.S. municipal bond market, and a Cerulli study detailed the state of the annuities market.

Acadian Asset Management, the Boston-based quant fund that says it shares its investment secrets with clients, has set up in Japan as the nation starts to embrace smart beta strategies.

Dimensional is among a small group of managers toppling the dominance of firms such as Fidelity Investments and Capital Group, which have built their reputations on picking individual stocks. Among the fastest-growing U.S. mutual fund firms after assets surged almost six-fold in the past decade, Dimensional attracted almost $28 billion in new money in 2014.

Eric R. Ervin didn't take long to make a decision to leave Morgan Stanley and co-found San Diego, Calif.,-based ETF provider Reality Shares. Ervin recounts some of the challenges that he faced from the beginning of the venture and how he was able to overcome his self-doubts.

Investors may be able to generate extra returns (without extra risk) by betting on unpopular equities. Here’s how.

Four ETP launches in 2014 crossed the $250 million asset milestone before the end of the year, while five ETPs launched in 2014 were closed before the end of the year.

Pacific Investment Management Co., the firm that has been pushing into equities since 2009, is expanding its stock offerings by adding seven new strategies with Robert Arnott’s Research Affiliates.

Many firms manage the distribution of summary prospectuses and upkeep of the related websites in-house via a painstaking manual process. However, these firms may not be aware of how much this effort is costing them and whether they are truly complying with Rule 498 and delivering a positive investor experience.

Vanguard Group Inc. plans to offer its first exchange-traded fund focused on the $3.6 trillion U.S. municipal-bond market.

Investors poured $102.8 billion into exchange-traded funds run by BlackRock Inc., the world’s largest asset manager, as they made record use of the fastest-growing product in the money management industry.

In 2015, much of the industry's growth outlook will depend on how competition fares between the cascade of funds entering the market, currency hedging and smart beta trends, and the momentum new non-transparent ETFs can gain with investors and offerings.

Year-to- date, energy ETFs have attracted $9.25 billion of new money, the most of any sector behind real estate funds and more than triple the same period in 2013.

A big jump in clients’ risk appetite is why the Retirement Advisor Confidence Index climbed 2.3 points in December, reaching a five-month high of 54.

The SPDR Nuveen Barclays Build America Bond ETF proved the best choice during a record-setting year for muni exchange- traded funds. Its 20.6 % gain through Dec. 23 was highest among the 26 muni ETFs tracked by Bloomberg.