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A pair of prominent European hedge funds mixed up in the mutual fund scandals here have left the European community vulnerable to The Securities and Exchange Commission, Financial News reported.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has asked a judge in Denver to give the agency an extra month to file additional charges against fund firm Invesco. The deadline to file additional charges was Monday, July 26.

U.S. Bancorp Asset Management has appointed Charles Manzoni as its new general counsel. In his new role Manzoni is responsible for oversight of U.S. Bancorp’s Asset Management and First American investment products.

Overall assets under management at Federated slumped due to fixed-income and money market withdrawals.

Overseeing service providers and making sure that trading procedures meet all regulations are fund companies’ two biggest compliance concerns, a PricewaterhouseCoopers survey of 200 fund executives finds. Thirty percent cited overseeing service providers as their biggest concern, while nearly as many, 28%, cited making sure that trading and brokerage practices are compliant.

Despite anticipating quarterly earnings growth to drop and weakness in the major indices, Merrill Lynch Investment Managers President and Chief Investment Officer Bob Doll said he expects an equity markets rally in the second half of the year.

The Ontario Securities Commission is planning to bring market-timing charges against a number of mutual fund companies in Canada within the next few weeks, National Post reports. But the charges are likely to be focused on market-timing abuses, rather than illegal late trading, sources told the Post.

Chicago fund tracker Morningstar is recommending that investors steer clear of Federated Investors and Fremont Funds, two firms that have yet to settle with regulators and that have been relatively tightlipped about wrongdoing and remedies.

Funds with an independent chairman at the helm of the board don’t necessarily have lower fees or better performance, fund consultants Geoffrey Bobroff and Thomas Mack tell The Wall Street Journal, in a letter to the editor refuting recent criticism from Vanguard founder John Bogle.

A rebound in stock mutual fund inflows could be the long-awaited harbinger of rejuvenated investor confidence in the market, according to Lipper.

Old Mutual Investment Partners has signed a deal handing the majority of its separately managed accounts operations' back- and middle-office operations to Mellon Global Securities Services, a subsidiary of Mellon. Previously, Old Mutual relied on a number of different outsourcing partners to serve the back offices of its various divisions. Mellon manages $675 million through its investment subsidiaries and collectively administers and custodies at least $3.6 trillion.

Noting that 71% of the retirement savings plans that it services now offer its Freedom Funds lifecycle funds, Fidelity Investments last week issued a report recommending that more sponsors offer such default options. "Many employers have identified lifecycle funds as an opportunity to better equip their employees to achieve long-term investment goals," said Steve Deschenes, executive vice president with Fidelity Institutional Retirement Services Co.

Nuveen Investments last week reported a 14% increase in its second-quarter earnings of $36 million over the same period of a year earlier, on a restated basis. The firm's operating revenues were $120.4 million, up 13% from 2003. Nuveen took in $6 billion in assets and netted $3.1 billion in the quarter, with total assets now reaching $102 billion, up 16% from assets of $88 billion a year ago. The firm reported that the increase in assets was driven by $11.2 billion in net new flows and $2.4 billion of market appreciation.

Robert Manning took the helm of the nation's oldest fund shop during its darkest hour, but five months removed from its monumental settlement with regulators, it's time to refocus on performance, he said.

The noise surrounding hedge fund registration grew to a thunderous clap last week, as Congress heard testimony from several industry professionals and government officials on the merits of such a groundbreaking move.

Just when the mutual fund scandal seemed to be offering little in the way of new twists and turns, the plot thickens.

In a recent letter to SEC Chairman William Donaldson, House Financial Services Committee Chairman Michael Oxley (R-Ohio) urged the chief securities regulator to consider revamping the structure of 529 plans. Oxley said he is particularly concerned with "the lack of consistent transparency of fees and performance, the oversight of the plans and reports that high fees may effectively eliminate the plans' tax benefits."

Integrity Names Kamies, Norris Marketing Directors

MFS Investment Management's 529 plans have eclipsed the $1 billion plateau, the company announced, thanks to what it calls "a wide range of investment choices, gifting and estate tax benefits, and MFS investment management expertise."

With an unprecedented interest rate environment and last year's bullishness gone, Putnam Investments will seek out micro opportunities in the market, according to Jeffrey Knight, managing director and co-head of the firm's capital markets committee.