Canadian mutual fund manager Francis Chou is preparing to enter the U.S. market for the first time, having registered global value and global bond funds with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Claymore Securities has launched three exchange-traded funds based on broad market indexes provided by Wilshire Associates and will partner with Wilshire on other offerings.
A collection of asset managers, service providers, consultants and lawyers in the defined contribution industry have banded together to create the Defined Contribution Institutional Investment Association.
RidgeWorth Investments is pushing mid-cap investing through a newly published white paper and “microsite” launched this week.
United Technologies Corporation has selected Hewitt Associates as the recordkeeper for its approximately $14 billion 401(k) plan, replacing Fidelity Investments, according to a source familiar to the search process.
Michelle Keeley, who had been tapped to lead fixed-income investments when RiverSource Investments and Columbia Management merge some time this spring, will instead leave the firm, according to an institutional client memo obtained by FA.
Fred Alger Management is bulking up its international team, looking to add mid- and senior-level analysts to work on the New York firm’s two international mutual funds and position it for growth, CEO Dan Chung told FA in an interview.
American Beacon Funds has adopted a global real estate fund and is planning on developing more real estate offerings.
John Hancock Funds is focused on achieving its goal of becoming a top 10 fund firm by sales in two years and has shaken up its distribution, tweaked its fund lineup through adoptions and recently launched a marketing campaign pushing funds focused on quality companies.
Staples has issued a request for proposals for a provider for its more than $510 million 401(k) plan, according to a source familiar with the search process.
A showdown is brewing up on Capitol Hill that could decide whether 401(k) fee disclosure legislation passes or not.
National accounts management teams are expected to become increasingly important, but fewer than 70% of firms anticipate staffing increases and less than half expect national accounts budgets to increase in the near future, according to a new report from kasina.
Brown Brothers Harriman named Shawn McNinch to the newly created position of global exchange-traded fund product and sales head.
Federated Investors has launched a password-protected, invitation-only Web site designed exclusively for registered investment advisors, analysts at wirehouses, consultants and other high-level clients.
The Orange County (Calif.) Transportation Authority is searching for a provider for its $58 million 457 and 401(a) plans. Bids are due March 10 and a decision is expected in mid-June.
Mercer has hired Christine Carolan, formerly v.p. and senior sales executive for T. Rowe Price Retirement Plan Services, effective immediately.
The Dreyfus Corporation is stepping up its push for international diversification, sending CIO Phil Maisano out to prep the firm’s regional sales teams.
The Hartford is adding Class I shares to its Balanced Income and Short Duration funds.
Legg Mason plans to launch a mutual fund designed for investors who fear that inflation is set to increase and are looking for a way to protect assets.
Jamie Baxter, independent vice-chair of the Putnam Funds board, has been elected chair of the Mutual Fund Directors Forum, replacing David Ruder, who had been chairman since the Forum’s inception in 2002.
Cohen & Steers, known best for its real estate investment trusts and other real estate-related mutual funds, is preparing to launch an open-end fund that will invest in preferred securities.
The Orange County (Calif.) Transportation Authority is searching for a provider for its $58 million 457 and 401(a) plans.
Money market funds are going to have to crack the mystery of who their customers are to spot "hot money" coming in the door, the Securities and Exchange Commission told them last week.
Divestitures by large asset managers and the return of independent asset managers to the deal table are expected to propel a resurgent mergers and acquisitions market in 2010.
Prince William County Public Schools has issued a request for proposals from providers for its $306.3 million 403(b) and 457 plans.
Sprint has selected Northern Trust's target-date index funds as an investment option for its 50,000-life $2.4 billion 401(k) plan.
Pioneer Investments has promoted one sales team member and plans on hiring another to strengthen its efforts in the registered investment advisor space.
Dodge & Cox is in the midst of a leadership change as John Gunn, chairman and chief executive, prepares to step down as ceo, handing the reins to Kenneth Olivier, president.
Hennessy Funds is aiming to acquire boutique firms with an expertise in equities.
An Iowa-based registered investment advisor has teamed up with the National Corn Growers Association to launch a unique fund designed to give retail investors exposure to the green energy sector and agribusiness.
Mike Wyatt, head of stable asset management for T. Rowe Price, will retire from the firm Dec. 31, according to an internal announcement.
PIMCO has named Anne Gudefin and Charles Lahr—two portfolio managers hired in December from Franklin Templeton Investments to aid the bond firm’s push into active equities—to manage its first-ever stock fund.
Dreyfus is preparing to launch a mutual fund that will replicate strategies used by hedge funds, a structure already offered by Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Natixis Funds and IndexIQ in the form of mutual and exchange-traded funds.
Al Frank Asset Management is pushing its line of Dynamic Portfolio Series separately managed accounts with large broker/dealers and registered investment advisors.
The Securities and Exchange Commission should tell Congress to end the inherent conflicts of interest that occur when issuers pay for the ratings credit rating agencies give to their securities, the North American Securities Administrators Association told the agency in a Feb. 16 comment letter.
The Vanguard Group more than doubled its exchange-traded fund assets under management in the 12 months ending Jan. 31, growing its share of the market to more than 12% from 8.5% a year ago, according to Morningstar.
Montgomery County Public Schools is seeking proposals for an administrator and providers for its $790 million 403(b) and 457 Voluntary Defined Contribution Program.
Due diligence requests from institutional investors looking at asset management firms are focusing more closely on compliance issues.
The Department of Higher Education for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is evaluating providers for its $311 million Optional Retirement Program and plans to make a decision by May.
The Depository Trust & Clearing Corp. plans to update the reports its members receive following settlement-related transactions, such as delivery and payment orders, among others.
Invesco is gearing up its presence in the large and mega-large defined contribution marketplaces with increased attention on prospect meetings and the RFP process, according to Peter Gallagher, national sales manager for institutional business development.
AdvisorShares will partner with credit investment manager Peritus Asset Management to create actively managed exchange-traded funds.
Emerging Global Shares has launched the first exchange-traded fund focused solely on infrastructure in China, where Richard Kang, cio and director of research, expects sustained growth as projects are built out and maintained.
Gemini Fund Services has added a marketing program to the services it offers registered investment advisors, a move president Andrew Rogers said will help the RIAs raise assets in the mutual funds they offer through Gemini’s Northern Lights Distributors platform.
Nearly half of financial advisors are billing for providing advice on client assets held away from their firm, boosting annual revenue by as much as 20% or more, according to a new survey from ByAllAccounts.
Van Eck Global today launched the first exchange-traded fund focused on Egypt.
AllianceBernstein has created a volatility management component to be added to the firm’s Retirement Strategies target-date mutual funds in early April.
Investors Against Genocide is lauding American Funds’ recent $190 million divestment in PetroChina, the publicly traded arm of China National Petroleum Company that the activist group says is linked to ongoing genocide in Darfur.
Principal Funds will launch a fund designed to combat inflation some time in mid-March.
A group of investors led by Guggenheim Partners will acquire Security Benefit Corporation for $400 million in a deal that is expected to close in the second half of this year, the two companies announced this morning.
Investors poured $46 billion into stock and bond mutual funds last month, twice the amount invested in December and nearly twice that of January 2009, according to Strategic Insight.
Dunham & Associates Investment Council in April will launch its second absolute return fund.
Direxion Funds plans to launch the first mutual fund that will take long and short positions in initial public offerings.
Bank of America Merrill Lynch Retirement and Benefit Plan Services is seeing a spike in participants who started or increased contributions within their retirement savings plans after it set up an online co-enrollment program with plan sponsors' healthcare providers.
The City of Atlanta is searching for a recordkeeper for its $165 million 401(a) and deferred compensation plans.
ING Insurance will launch a new phase of its “Retirement Number” advertising campaign Feb. 12 during opening ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games and will run throughout the two weeks of events.