Is the “Santa Rally” real? December 18, 2019 | City Talk Investors found their festive spirits dampened at the end of 2018. With concerns over the health of the global economy looming large, global stocks fell 13.7 per cent in the final quarter of the year, according to the MSCI World Index. It wasn’t a merry advent period, indeed it was the worst December for markets [...]
BoE: $5bn leaves Hong Kong funds amid protests December 17, 2019 Political unrest in Hong Kong has triggered traders to pull as much as $5bn (£3.8bn) of capital from the region since April, according to the Bank of England (BoE). The outflows account for nearly 1.25 per cent of Hong Kong’s GDP and began when protests broke out following the proposal of a controversial extradition bill [...]
SRI investing and Islamic finance: the same but different December 17, 2019 | City Talk Sustainable, responsible, and impact (SRI) investing and Islamic finance share similar origins and aspirations. Yet for the most part, these two modes of finance have existed as distinct approaches in parallel worlds. Common to both is an ethical underpinning that puts stewardship and societal value creation at the forefront of finance. CFA Institute has recently [...]
Private equity fundraising to fall in 2020 after record year, analysts predict December 16, 2019 Private equity fundraising next year may fall below the record levels seen in 2019 as large firms shift their focus on to capital deployment, analysts have predicted. Firms will also try to hold on to some of their top performing assets for longer in 2020, according to a note from private equity data firm Pitchbook. [...]
Timetable set for Neil Woodford fund repayments December 13, 2019 Administrators have finalised details for the winding up of Neil Woodford’s Equity Income Fund (WEIF), the suspension of which triggered a scandal that led to the collapse of his investment empire. In a letter to investors today, Link Fund Solutions said the process of winding up the fund will begin on 18 January. The final [...]
Soros hedge fund bets £16m against Daily Mail owner shares December 12, 2019 The hedge fund of billionaire investor George Soros has taken out a £16m short position against media group Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT), which owns the Daily Mail. The London arm of Soros Fund Management, SFM UK Management, made a bet worth 0.9 per cent of DMGT’s shares, showed filings published by the Financial [...]
Softbank-backed Oneconnect slashes IPO and lowers valuation December 12, 2019 Chinese fintech Oneconnect has slashed its target valuation and downsized its planned initial public offering (IPO) in the US, in yet another blow for Softbank. The fintech, which is a subsidiary of Chinese insurance giant Ping An, downsized its planned stock market debut in New York by 28 per cent. Read more: Another dog for Softbank [...]
Opportunities in an evolving financial industry December 12, 2019 | City Talk In today’s investment landscape, a paradigm shift is underway. Economic headwinds, ever-changing financial regulations, and the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and financial technology are transforming the industry. What clients want is evolving, too. Returns alone are not enough. Clients today are looking for asset managers who can meet a comprehensive set of needs and deliver greater value [...]
John Laing shares drop after warning net assets will fall below expectations December 12, 2019 Shares in John Laing dropped this morning after the greenfield infrastructure investor said its net asset value (NAV) for the year would be below expectations. In a trading update issued this morning, the group said that uncertainty over a number of factors will impact its full-year results, including progress with ongoing transactions and the outcome [...]
Edinburgh Investment Trust sacks Invesco’s Mark Barnett over poor performance December 11, 2019 Edinburgh Investment Trust has fired Invesco stockpicker Mark Barnett as its manager following poor performance, in a further blow to the former Neil Woodford protege. Barnett, who took over the managing of the trust from Woodford in 2014, will be replaced by Majedie Asset Management in the first quarter of 2020. Read more: Woodford protege [...]