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Odyssean investment trust proposes tender offer as part of ‘seventh year’ promise

This was promised to shareholders when the trust first launched in 2018, with the board setting out intentions to give shareholders an opportunity to realise the value of their investment at net asset value, excluding costs, in the seventh year following its listing and every seven years thereafter. The board said in a stock exchange filing today (21 May), that the best realisation option at its disposal was a tender offer. OIT will publish a circular with the details later today and hold a general meeting on 6 June for shareholders to vote on the proposed tender. Number of investm…

Franklin Templeton UK head Martin Gilbey to exit in distribution leadership overhaul

From 1 August, Gilbey will be succeeded by Franklin Templeton Canada board chair Andrew Ashton, who will relocate to London to assume responsibility for the UK business, subject to regulatory approval.  Under his expanded remit, Ashton will continue to be responsible for Canada, which, coupled with the UK, collectively represent $76bn in assets under management.   In his 27 years at Franklin Templeton, he has held several leadership roles in the US and the Americas region, CEEMEA, Korea and the UK, most recently as head of Americas (ex-US) and head of the global financial institutions…

Active allocation fails to outperform in more than 85% of multi-asset funds

According to the firm, in a study of 160 muti-asset strategies within the IA Mixed Investments 40-85% Shares sector, less than 15% managed to outperform a standard global equity index over the ten years to March 2024. The results were slightly more positive when considering a benchmark with a UK bias, where almost 20% provided greater returns than the index. As a result, Fundhouse argued that in over 80% of cases “it would have been better to have done nothing, rather than something”, when referring to active allocation. How is potential central bank monetary policy divergence affe…

Silverfleet sells OneStock stake

Pan-European private equity firm Silverfleet Capital will sell its minority stake in OneStock, a European order management system SaaS provider, to private investment firm Summit Partners.

Financial details of the transaction, which is expected to close during May 2024 subject to certain regulatory approvals, have not been disclosed.

OneStock is headquartered in Toulouse, France and operates offices in London, Paris and Milan. According to a press release, its platform facilitates over €2.5bn of orders each year.

Silverfleet invested in the business in 2021, marking the last investment from its lower mid-market European Development Fund.

Silverfleet and the selling shareholders were advised by Alantra and Hogan Lovells.

Oddo BHF closes second PE secondaries fund at €715m

Oddo BHF Asset Management’s private assets team has held the final close of the second vintage of its private equity secondaries strategy with €715m in total capital commitments exceeding its original €500m target, according to a report by Citywire.

The new fund, which is the largest PE vehicle raised by the private assists team, attracted support from existing and new investors, both individual and institutional.

The report quotes Anne Bismut, Global Head of Private Assets at Oddo BHF AM: “With this second vintage, we are continuing our strategy of addressing all types of secondary transactions worldwide, with a particular focus on mid- and large-cap assets.”

Oddo BHF Secondaries Fund II is three times the size of the previous vehicle, which raised €240m in 2020.

North American fund managers looking to Europe to broaden investor base

North American fund managers are increasingly looking to raise funds in Europe as they seek to broaden their investor base, according to new research from Ocorian, a specialist in fund administration, capital markets, corporate, private client and regulatory services.

Ocorian surveyed private equity, private debt, real estate, venture capital and infrastructure fund management executives in the US and Canada responsible for $1.591tn AUM. The survey found that 83% already raise capital in Europe, while more than a third (35%) of those who do not are planning to start within the next 12 to 24 months.

Around 61% say the growing recognition among North American fund managers of the benefits of broadening their investor base is among the top three reasons for increased capital raising in Europe over the next two years, while more than half (53%) say the high level of investment opportunities in North America are attracting European investors.

Around half questioned (48%) say there is a preference for US managed products compared with European, while 43% say the growing levels of dry powder at European institutional investors is among the top three reasons likely to boost capital raising in Europe.

Ocorian’s research questioned fund managers on what would prevent increased capital raising in Europe and found 62% as seeing the cost of entry against market upside as one of the top three reasons that could hit capital raising, while 49% cited problems recruiting people to lead capital raising in Europe in their top three reasons.

Other issues identified include the attractiveness of their strategy to European investors, cited by 46%, with 42% citing difficulties distributing cross-border, and 40% challenges with choosing the right jurisdiction.

Ocorian’s study found one in five (19%) fund managers questioned have been raising capital in Europe for five years or more while 31% have started doing so within the last two to three years.

Currently 65% of investors say up to 25% of their capital raising is from Europe and around a quarter (26%) say 25% or more of their capital raising is from European investors. In two years’ time 63% estimate around up to 25% of their capital raising will be from Europe and a third (33%) say 25% or more of their capital raising will be from European investors.

Fund managers questioned picked renewable energy and real estate the most among the top five asset classes they expect to see the biggest

Here’s how to buy renewable energy from your electric utility

Many renters and homeowners can opt to get their electricity from renewable energy sources like solar and wind. Such customers choose a green energy program offered through their electric utility. Consumers should select a green power option or renewable energy certificate that has been verified by an independent third party. Wind turbines in Dawson, Texas, on Feb. 28, 2023.  Mark Felix | Afp | Getty Images

As carbon emissions from fossil fuels keep warming the planet, eco-conscious consumers may wonder if there’s a way to buy electricity from renewable sources without installing technology like solar panels or windmills on their property.

In short, the answer is yes.

However, the option isn’t necessarily available to all homeowners and renters. It also often comes with a slight price premium, experts said.

Few people are aware they can buy green energy

Renewable energy sources — including wind, solar, hydropower, geothermal and biomass — accounted for about 21% of U.S. electricity generation in 2023, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Most, 60%, came from fossil fuels like coal, natural gas and oil. These energy sources release carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that traps heat in the atmosphere and contributes to global warming.

The White House aims for electricity generation to be free of greenhouse gas emissions by 2035.

A growing number of individuals and organizations are opting to shift away from fossil fuels: About 9.6 million customers bought 273 Terawatt hours of renewable energy through voluntary green power markets in 2022, according to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. That’s up fivefold from 54 TWh in 2012.

In the voluntary market, customers buy renewable energy in amounts that exceed states’ minimum requirements from utility companies. Over half of U.S. states have policies to raise the share of electricity sourced from renewables, though most targets are years away.

Voluntary purchases accounted for 28% of the renewable energy market (excluding hydropower) as of 2016, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. They help increase overall demand for renewable electricity, thereby driving change in the energy mix, the EPA said.

Photovoltaic solar panels at the Roadrunner solar plant near McCamey, Texas, on Nov. 10, 2023.  Jordan Vonderhaar/Bloomberg via Getty Images

The bulk

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Fed Gov. Waller wants ‘several months’ of good inflation data before lowering rates

Fed Gov. Christopher Waller said Tuesday that he does not think further interest rate increases will be necessary. However, cuts are probably “several months” away, the central bank official said during a speech in Washington. Christopher Waller, governor of the US Federal Reserve, during a Fed Listens event in Washington, D.C., on Friday, Sept. 23, 2022. Al Drago | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Federal Reserve Gov. Christopher Waller, citing a string of data showing that inflation appears to be easing, said Tuesday that he does not think further interest rate increases will be necessary.

However, the policymaker added he will need some convincing before he backs cuts anytime soon.

“Central bankers should never say never, but the data suggests that inflation isn’t accelerating, and I believe that further increases in the policy rate are probably unnecessary,” said Waller, who has been generally hawkish in his recent views, meaning he supports tighter monetary policy.

The comments came in prepared remarks for an appearance before the Peterson Institute for International Economics in Washington.

Waller pointed to a string of recent data, from flattening retail sales to cooling in both the manufacturing and services sectors, to suggest the Fed’s higher rates have helped ease some of the demand that had contributed to the highest inflation rates in more than 40 years.

Though payroll gains have been solid, internal metrics such as the rate at which workers are leaving their jobs show that the ultra-tight labor market that had driven up wages last a level consistent with the Fed’s 2% inflation goal has displayed signs of loosening, he added.

Yet Waller said he’s not ready to back interest rate cuts. As a governor, Waller is a permanent voting member of the rate-setting Federal Open Market Committee.

“The economy now seems to be evolving closer to what the Committee expected,” he said. “Nevertheless, in the absence of a significant weakening in the labor market, I need to see several more months of good inflation data before I would be comfortable supporting an easing in the stance of monetary policy.”

April’s consumer price index showed inflation running at a 3.4% rate from a year ago, down slightly from March, with the 0.3% monthly increase slightly below what Wall Street economists had been expecting.

The Labor Department report was “a welcome relief,” Waller

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Majority of PE firms see technology as a value-creation lever

The overwhelming majority (96%) of private equity firms believe that technology is a “value-creation lever” and can add value throughout the investment lifecycle, although the industry remains overly reliant on manual systems and processes, according to a new survey from investor services group IQ-EQ.

Some 93% of respondents ranked technology transformation as one of their top three business priorities over the coming 12 to 24 months.

The survey drew on around 30 senior executives, with more than two-thirds of those surveyed managing more than $1bn AUM, IQ-EQ said. 

According to the survey, some 82% of firms still employ manual tools in their operations and, despite advances in technology and artificial intelligence, are still dependent on data spreadsheets and legacy tools for data collection, reporting and onboarding.

Given the rising digital expectations from LPs, firms are looking to develop in-house data platforms to consolidate data and drive better investment decisions.

According to the survey, over 60% of respondents already use an in-house data platform and reported improved operational efficiencies in timesaving (82%), enhanced data quality (76%) and quicker information provision (64%).

Meanwhile, 76% of those already using an in-house platform are contemplating outsourcing this service to a provider to reduce compliance risk and ensure scalability, according to the survey.

Investment in data warehouses was a high priority for respondents, with 46% either having or currently implementing an in-house data warehouse.

In a press statement, Vera Huang, Head of Data Integration Programs, Asset Owner Solutions at IQ-EQ, said that the report showed “promising signs that firms are looking to revamp their technology stack and channel much-needed investment into data platforms”.

She added: “These platforms are a crucial next step to alleviate the administrative burden on fund managers, giving them time to focus on more strategic, value-adding activities.”