Money Management Executive Latest News

Alternative investment products, including hedge fund of funds, long/short funds, and market-neutral funds are increasingly sprouting up in the marketplace. Mutual fund sponsors are busily launching, in record numbers, private investment vehicles that are being registered as limited liability companies and closed-end management companies.

China represents a potential windfall for foreign asset managers, but firms entering the Chinese market must have patience and faith, according to industry observers.

During a time when mutual fund complexes have been slashing their marketing budgets, The Hartford has launched a lavish $20 million television and print campaign that pulls directly from Hollywood's pool of talent.

As the ongoing bear market cramps advertising budgets, bank fund executives are looking to book appearances on cable TV financial channels as a cheaper way to tell investors about themselves.

A story in the Feb. 25 issue of Mutual Fund Market News about a new hire at Metropolitan West Financial misstated Robert Shustak's title. He is the company's CFO.

Some financial planners can't say a good thing about annuities. They prefer to use mutual funds to form the basis of a financial plan. And an annuity, whether variable or fixed, would be close to the bottom of their recommended investment list.

Pioneer Investment Management has broken up its distribution marketing unit into two separate divisions, distribution and strategic marketing, the firm announced last week. In a related announcement, the firm has also hired two former Fidelity executives for the two new divisions.

Merrill Lynch Investment Managers has named Neal Howe managing director and head of consultant relationships for its U.S. and Canadian institutional business, the Merrill unit announced last week.

AIM Distributors, Inc. named William Raynor VP of its retirement and education products division, a newly created position, the company announced last week.

eSecLending, a global securities lending manager in Boston, has named Karen O'Connor its CFO. eSecLending, which is majority-owned by London-based Old Mutual, provides multiple-manager securities lending programs to mutual fund families, public and corporate funds and other major institutional investors around the world.