Money Management Executive Latest News

Hedge fund-of-funds, registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission to offer more transparency and reach a broader consumer base (see MFMN 9/2/02), have failed on their promise of earning investors a profit, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Fund companies have only been marginally successful at distribution because they are more focused on gathering assets – as opposed to profits, a forthcoming kasina report indicates. Next-generation CRM (see MFMN 3/17/03) and focusing on individual business units, as opposed to the overall enterprise, are two ways firms can improve their distribution, kasina maintains.

The California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS), the nation’s largest pension fund, has drafted a new performance disclosure policy for private-equity investments, answering the call for greater transparency and protection of members’ pension benefits.

As the question on the war becomes clearer, mutual fund managers have become more determined to move out of the energy and bond markets that have been considered safe investments, back to stocks, The New York Post reports.

George Sauter, manager of the Vanguard 500 index fund, will become Vanguard’s chief investment officer at the end of June, upon the retirement of Ian MacKinnon, managing director of Vanguard’s fixed income group, the firm announced yesterday.

The National Association of Securities Dealers has given member firms until May 15 to calculate the breakpoint fee discounts due to mutual fund customers who bought Class A shares in 2001 and 2002.

Merrill Lynch has added four multi-discipline portfolios from CDC IXIX Asset Management Advisors Group to its separately managed account platform. The portfolios are part of Consults Diversified Portfolios, offered through Merrill Lynch Consults, which serves high-net-worth investors. Merrill Lynch offers only one other strategy from an external manager.

All-girls prep schools are teaching the young women of today the skills to invest for tomorrow, a curriculum that has been missing from the education system until now, The New York Times reports. Although fund companies have not done a particularly good job of appealing to the Gen X, Gen Y crowd (see MFMN 11/4/02), they might want to reach out to the new group of investors being groomed at elite schools.

Lawrence Lasser, president and chief executive of Putnam Investments, brought home a $7 million bonus for 2002 after all, dismissing reports over the weekend he would join the zero-bonus club, The Wall Street Journal reports.

The pending war, standoff of neighbor North Korea, sagging domestic consumption and corporate scandals are holding back much anticipated South Korea’s graduation on investment indexes from emerging market into developed market, despite its strong stock market performance, The Wall Street Journal reports.