Europe

EUROPE - The Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) market in Europe runs the risk of saturation as the big four players aggressively target the market with a proliferation of products, said Marie-Pierre Ravoteur, co-head of the EasyETF development platform jointly...

UK - Nomura Asset Management is set to launch a new global emerging markets equities commingled fund for institutional investors at end October.

EUROPE - Bear Stearns has made two further senior appointments as the firm seeks to grow its European focus, with Antoine Dijkstra and Dominique Favillier joining as senior managing directors to assist clients throughout the continent.

UK - The £59m Swan Hill Pension Scheme has annnounced it has awarded Stenham Advisors a fund of hedge funds (FoHF) mandate worth £10m, or 17% of its assets.

EUROPE - Pension funds should not be included under Solvency II, and proponents of such a move must recognise that pension funds are different to insurance companies, said Tim Reay, international pensions consultant at Hewitt Associates.

UK - Mercer Human Resource Consulting has appointed three senior retirement consultants to its London office.

EUROPE - San Diego-based equity boutique Nicholas-Applegate Capital Management has four new funded products in the incubator which represent an extension of its long-only offering.

UK - The £740m Gwynedd Council Pension Fund is tendering for a private equity fund of funds manager for a £35m mandate - five percent of the total fund.

US/EUROPE - The California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) is to invest US$200m (€157m) in the Governance for Owners Group's (GO) European Focus Fund, which invests in a small number of under-performing quoted companies across Europe.

UK - After what was described as a "competitive tender process", Paternoster has chosen State Street Corporation for its custody and securities lending services.