Regions

SOUTH AFRICA/US - Group operating profit was up 8% in rand to R11,431m, but down 15% in sterling to £724m at Old Mutual for the year ended 31 December 2002.

GLOBAL - Over 30 international pension schemes have applied for authorisation under the Isle of Man's pensions legislation, a little over a year after it came into force.

EUROPE - Northern Trust Global Investments has bagged a third party securities lending mandate from the European Investment Bank (EIB).

UK/EUROPE - Unsurprisingly, for the third straight year in a row, fixed income securities proved to be a better investment than shares, according to the Barclays Equity Gilt Study.

EUROPE - Investment bank Bear Stearns is backing a new hedge fund seeding vehicle unveiled by Liberty Ermitage.

LUXEMBOURG - BNP Securities Services and Franklin Templeton have become customers of Clearstream's investment fund processing solution Vestima, which has over 10,000 funds available on the service and covers most of the Luxembourg market.

ASIA-PACIFIC - FTSE Group, the independent global index company, will expand its business activities in Asia Pacific throughout 2003 with a focus on Japan.

EUROPE - Celogix Property Fund, the eurozone logistics and distribution property fund managed by Aberdeen Property Investors, has raised a further E70m from two new institutional investors, one Danish and one Norwegian, as well as from four current shareholders....

EUROPE - The EU Pensions Directive, which sets a framework for cross-border European pensions, has finally received approval from MEPs.

GLOBAL - Baring Asset Management has launched a new Asian fund of hedge funds as investors continue to look East for opportunities.