Triple Point assesses investment management arrangements

In a stock exchange notice today (9 May), the trust explained the review involves a benchmarking process to bring any agreement alternations in line with “best practice” and deliver results to shareholders. The manager is currently entitled to an annual management fee, calculated quarterly in arrears based on a percentage of the group’s net asset value as of the end of each quarter – 31 March, 30 June, 30 September, and 31 December. Triple Point Social Housing eyes portfolio sales to resume share buybacks After publishing the half-year or full-year NAV, the manager then invests 25%…

Bank of England is ‘buying time’ with expected decision to hold rates at 5.25%

According to George Lagarias, chief economist at Mazars, said the BoE is possibly waiting for wage inflation to come down “a bit further” for the Federal Reserve to make its own monetary intentions clearer before beginning its cutting cycle. Bank of England mirrors Federal Reserve and holds interest rates Markets had widely expected the Bank of England to hold rates yet again today (9 May), despite speculation that the first cut could have come in the MPC’s May meeting in Q1. Two out of the nine members voted to cut the Bank rate by 25 basis points to 5%, which some saw as a signal…

abrdn manager departs for Janus Henderson as North American Income swaps investment manager

The move follows an extensive review of NAIT’s management arrangements and comes on the back of recent discussions with “a number”‘ of management groups. NAIT said Janus Henderson will give the trust’s shareholders “a variety of benefits”, including access to US equities, of which the firm manages around $180bn in assets. Marc Pinto returns to Janus Henderson as Maris departs As part of the move, Fran Radano left abrdn to join Janus Henderson and maintain his role as portfolio manager of the trust. Radano worked at abrdn for 16 years as a senior portfolio manager in North Americ…

Arjun closes Infrastructure Alliance Europe 2 fund at €1.1bn

Independent European infrastructure fund manager Arjun Infrastructure Partners has held the final close of its Infrastructure Alliance Europe 2 fund with total capital commitments of €1.1bn, with an additional €300m allocated to its co-investment program.

Arjun received commitments from its existing, long-term institutional investor base in Europe as well as substantial investor interest in both fund and co-investment opportunities from North America.

Launched in 2022 as a successor to the €1bn Infrastructure Alliance Europe 1 fund, IAE-2 adopts a mid-market investment strategy focusing on long-term asset management of core and core-plus infrastructure assets across Europe. The fund spans Arjun’s sector specialisms, which include renewables, digital, transport and utilities, with the aim of delivering inflation-protected returns over the long-term through control and co-control positions.

The fund is classified as Article 8 under SFDR, ensuring that its investment strategy aligns with the UN Sustainable Development Goals and supports efforts toward achieving Net Zero by 2050.

IAE-2 has already invested a significant proportion of its commitments in a portfolio of assets through a series of bilateral transactions.

TPG raises nearly $8bn for Asian PE and real estate

Global alternative asset management firm TPG has closed its eighth Asia-focused private equity fund, TPG Asia VIII, and TPG AG Asia Realty Fund V and the TPG AG Japan Realty Value Funds, with combined commitments in excess of $8bn.

The real estate funds are the firm’s first since it completed its acquisition of TPG Angelo Gordon in November 2023.

The fundraising brings TPG’s total Asia AUM to over $35bn, which is diversified across dedicated Asia-focused private equity, real estate and secondaries, as well as the firm’s investments in the region through its global growth and impact funds.

TPG Asia VIII secured approximately $5.3bn in aggregate capital commitments, closing around 14% higher than its predecessor fund and making it the firm’s largest Asia fund in its 30 years of investing in the region. The fund will continue to pursue a geographically distributed strategy of thematic growth investing.

The two real estate funds – TPG AG Asia Realty Fund V and the firm’s first Japan Realty Value fund – closed with more than $2.5bn of capital in aggregate, with both funds exceeding their respective fundraising targets.

Asia Realty V, which closed more than 50% higher than its predecessor, seeks to capitalise on attractive opportunistic real estate investments with a focus on sourcing off-market transactions in the Japan, Korea, China, Hong Kong, and Singapore markets.

The Japan Realty Value Fund will target value-add real estate opportunities in Japan, focused primarily on the acquisition of equity interests in real estate across various product types, including industrial, office, residential, and retail.

Benefit Street Partners closes second special situations fund

Alternative credit asset manager Benefit Street Partners has held the final close of BSP Special Situations Fund II and its affiliated vehicles which were oversubscribed with approximately $850m in capital commitments.

Fund II will seek to continue the investment approach of its predecessor fund.

BSP’s special situations platform aims to provide solutions to borrowers unable to access traditional markets, leveraging its vast experience in stressed and distressed situations. Since inception of the platform, the special situations team has deployed over $3bn.

Allfunds and MainStreet Partners team up on SFDR tool for wealth managers

The Sustainability Navigator tool allows managers to upload existing portfolios or build them from scratch in line with Articles 8 and 9 of the EU’s SFDR regulation. Investors can filter criteria based on ESG screening practices, such as controversies, principal adverse impact (PAIs) and alignment with the UN SDGs. ‘A new low’: Government slammed as court rules climate plans are unlawful Its main features include a database of over 8,500 issuers providing insights on portfolio risk and positive contribution, real-time analysis and simulation, and streamlined portfolio construction …

Blackstone and Vista complete Energy Exemplar acquisition

Private equity funds affiliated with Blackstone and Vista Equity Partners have completed their previously announced acquisition of Energy Exemplar, a global provider of energy market simulation software solutions.

Energy Exemplar’s cloud software suite, headlined by PLEXOS and Aurora, is used for short-term analysis to long-term planning studies.

In a press statement, David Wilson, CEO of Energy Exemplar, said: “Completing our transaction with Blackstone and Vista marks the beginning of an exciting partnership that will accelerate investment in our leading SaaS platform providing accurate simulation and decision support for our customers in today’s rapidly changing energy landscape.

CFPB rule to save Americans $10 billion a year in late fees faces possible last-minute freeze

A Consumer Financial Protection Bureau regulation that promised to save Americans billions of dollars in late fees on credit cards faces a last-ditch effort to stave off its implementation. Led by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the industry in March sued the CFPB in federal court to prevent the new rule from taking effect. A judge in the Northern District of Texas is expected to announce by Friday whether the court will grant the industry’s request for a freeze just days before it was to take effect on Tuesday. Epoxydude | Fstop | Getty Images

A Consumer Financial Protection Bureau regulation that promised to save Americans billions of dollars in late fees on credit cards faces a last-ditch effort to stave off its implementation.

Led by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the card industry in March sued the CFPB in federal court to prevent the new rule from taking effect.

That effort, which bounced between venues in Texas and Washington, D.C., for weeks, is now about to reach a milestone: A judge in the Northern District of Texas is expected to announce by Friday evening whether the court will grant the industry’s request for a freeze.

That could hold up the regulation, which would slash what most banks can charge in late fees to $8 per incident, just days before it was to take effect on Tuesday.

“We should get some clarity soon about whether the rule is going to be allowed to go into effect,” said Tobin Marcus, lead policy analyst at Wolfe Research.

The credit card regulation is part of President Joe Biden’s broader election-year war against what he deems junk fees.

Big card issuers have steadily raised the cost of late fees since 2010, profiting off users with low credit scores who rack up $138 in fees annually per card on average, according  to CFPB Director Rohit Chopra.

New fees, higher rates

As expected, the industry has mounted a campaign to derail the regulations, deeming them a misguided effort that redistributes costs to those who pay their bills on time, and ultimately harms those it purports to benefit by making it more likely for users to fall behind.

Up for grabs is the $10 billion in fees per year that the CFPB estimates the rule would save American families by pushing down

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