2024-05-06 18:07
LONDON, May 6 (Reuters) - Investors withdrew an estimated net $9.9 billion from hedge funds in March, up from $780 million in February and the 22nd consecutive month where industry outflows totalled more than inflows, a report from Nasdaq eVestment said on Monday. While the scale of the March outflows was not historically high, money coming in from investors remained "consistently low" because of a "reluctance" to make meaningful new allocations, the report said. The outflows came even as hedge funds posted positive performances across every strategy tracked by the data firm. Alternative risk premia, a hedge fund strategy that trades stocks and derivatives in order to remain neutral to markets, had an almost 12% return for the quarter, said Nasdaq eVestment. Managed futures, the next most successful trading strategy returned about 4% in March and were up about 9% for the year to March 31. However, only four out of the 10 different kinds of trading strategies saw inflows including two kinds of bond trading hedge funds, making directional bets and trading between the relative prices of different bonds. Multi-strategy hedge funds, which include some of the largest hedge funds in the world, saw the largest outflows in March of $2.7 billion, said Nasdaq eVestment. However, estimated assets overseen by multi-strategy funds surpassed $700 billion in March to reach an all-time high. This number includes leverage and performance as well as client inflows. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/investors-pull-99-bln-hedge-funds-march-nasdaq-evestment-2024-05-06/
2024-05-06 15:47
FRANKFURT, May 6 (Reuters) - An unusually public boardroom dispute in Germany took a new turn on Monday, with the founder and major shareholder of a leading online broker telling Reuters why he wants to oust the company's chair and advocating for his candidate to replace him. Bernd Foertsch, the publisher who controls nearly 20% of the German broker FlatexDegiro (FTKn.DE) New Tab, opens new tab, informed Flatex on Friday that he would seek to oust the company's current chair, Martin Korbmacher, at a shareholder meeting in June. "I would like to see a fresh start for FlatexDegiro - and he is not the right man for the job," Foertsch said on Monday in response to emailed questions from Reuters. Flatex, which operates in 16 countries with 2.8 million customers, declined to comment. Korbmacher, who has previously declined to comment, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. It is the latest twist in an ongoing dispute after Foertsch successfully campaigned against the CEO, Frank Niehage, who resigned last month. On Friday, Foertsch also proposed two new board members, himself and a former UBS executive, Axel Hoerger. Now, Foertsch is making clear in the emailed responses why he is backing Hoerger as the new board chairman. "Axel Hoerger seems to me to be the right person to bring calm back to the company and to lead the supervisory board during what I consider to be the necessary restart," Foertsch said. The back-and-forth has been remarkable in Germany, where a staid corporate culture makes it rare for such disagreements to occur in public rather than behind closed doors. "The public debate was preceded by long discussions, but I found that these discussions did not result in any reactions, let alone changes," Foertsch said. The kerfuffle began in March when Foertsch told a business magazine he would vote against Niehage and Korbmacher at the June shareholder meeting due to strategic mistakes, such as "sleeping through a cryptocurrency boom". Niehage said he had resigned to avoid further damage to the company's reputation and to resolve tension with Foertsch. In a departing swipe, Niehage accused Foertsch of trying to get a seat on the supervisory board "through the back door, claiming to know better what's good for the firm", and called on shareholders to vote in favour of Korbmacher at their meeting. The broker, which was fined by its regulator in 2023 and told to fix serious shortcomings in its internal controls, has steadily increased its profits over the past year. Last month, it posted a 340% increase in first quarter net profit from a year earlier, causing its shares to rally. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/rare-german-boardroom-fight-escalates-company-founder-seeks-board-shake-up-2024-05-06/
2024-05-06 15:33
JOHANNESBURG, May 6 (Reuters) - The South African rand was stronger on Monday against a weaker dollar, as market confidence gained on bets of U.S. interest rate cuts this year, analysts said. At 1518 GMT, the rand traded at 18.4325 against the dollar , about 0.3% stronger than its previous close. The dollar was down about 0.1% against a basket of global currencies. The rand has gained on hopes of an earlier U.S. interest rate cut, Annabel Bishop, chief economist at Investec, wrote in a research note, helped by weaker than expected U.S. jobs data on Friday and dollar weakness. "Market expectations for a U.S. November interest rate cut increased, as have those for a September cut, although for September the probability is still under a 100% certainty, but has risen materially to close to 100%, driving some minor risk on," she added. This week, markets will keep a close eye on a host of speeches by Federal Reserve officials for hints on the future interest rate path of the U.S. The rand often takes cues from global drivers as well as local data points. South African private sector activity rose marginally in April as an improvement in business confidence encouraged companies to expand purchasing activity and staffing levels, the S&P Global South Africa Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) showed on Monday. On the stock market, both the Top-40 (.JTOPI) New Tab, opens new tab and the broader all-share (.JALSH) New Tab, opens new tab indexes closed around 0.5% stronger. South Africa's benchmark 2030 government bond was stronger, with the yield down 1.5 basis points to 10.56%. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/currencies/south-african-rand-gains-bets-us-rate-cuts-2024-05-06/
2024-05-06 13:21
SINGAPORE, May 6 (Reuters) - Energy giant Shell is in talks with Saudi Arabia's state-owned Saudi Aramco to sell its gas station business in Malaysia, the second-largest such network in the country, four industry sources aware of the discussions said, and a deal could be worth up to $1 billion. Shell said Malaysia is important to the company. "We remain committed to the mobility business in the country," it said in an updated statement on Tuesday, without elaborating. Saudi Aramco declined to comment on Monday. London-based Shell (SHEL.L) New Tab, opens new tab wholly owns around 950 fuel stations across the Southeast Asian country, according to its website, with only Malaysia's state-owned Petronas operating a bigger network. Talks began in late 2023 and a deal may be finalised in the coming months, one source said. Two sources briefed on the matter put a potential deal size at roughly 4 billion to 5 billion ringgit ($844 million to $1.06 billion). In addition to its fuel stations, Shell sells industrial lubricants, produces crude oil and natural gas offshore of Sarawak and Sabah states, and is a joint venture partner in two liquefied natural gas (LNG) ventures. The sale is part of CEO Wael Sawan's efforts to focus the company's operations on the most profitable businesses. Shell has said it would look to divest 500 gas stations this year and next. It is in the process of selling its Singapore refinery and petrochemical complex. Shell's effort to sell its Malaysia fuel stations is consistent with its move to sell its refinery on Bukom Island in Singapore, which supplies the network, one of the sources said. Saudi Aramco does not have fuel stations in Malaysia, although it owns 50% of the 300,000-barrel per day (bpd) Pengerang refinery in Johor in a joint venture with Petronas, which sells fuel domestically and for export. Aramco operates petrol stations in Saudi Arabia and also operates fuel stations elsewhere in joint ventures with French major TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA) New Tab, opens new tab and South Korea's S-Oil Corp (010950.KS) New Tab, opens new tab. ($1 = 4.7390 ringgit) Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/shell-talks-sell-malaysia-fuel-stations-saudi-aramco-sources-say-2024-05-06/
2024-05-06 13:21
May 6 (Reuters) - Retail trading platform Robinhood Markets (HOOD.O) New Tab, opens new tab said on Monday it received an enforcement action notice from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on May 4 over crypto tokens traded on its platform. The company said it received a so-called "Wells notice," which the SEC issues when it is planning to bring enforcement action against them. Such notices do not necessarily mean the company has engaged in wrongdoing. "We firmly believe that the assets listed on our platform are not securities and we look forward to engaging with the SEC to make clear just how weak any case against Robinhood Crypto would be," Dan Gallagher, chief legal, compliance and corporate affairs officer at Robinhood, said. The SEC has adopted a tough stance toward the digital currency industry, arguing most cryptocurrency tokens are securities and subject to its registration rules, while crypto firms have accused it of overreach. The regulator declined to comment on the enforcement action notice. "If necessary we will use our resources to contest this matter in the courts," Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev said in a post New Tab, opens new tab on X. Coinbase (COIN.O) New Tab, opens new tab, the world's largest publicly traded cryptocurrency exchange, has also previously argued that crypto assets, unlike stocks and bonds, do not meet the definition of securities, a position held by the vast majority of the crypto industry. The SEC is engaged in a legal fight against Coinbase. Robinhood Crypto enables customers to deposit and withdraw cyptocurrencies to and from its custodial platform and also routes customer orders to liquidity providers based on the lowest price. It has been attempting for nearly two years to register with the SEC. Last year, it removed digital tokens Solana, Cardano and Polygon from its platform. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/robinhood-crypto-gets-wells-notice-us-sec-2024-05-06/
2024-05-06 12:49
Rate decision published 0730 GMT on Wednesday Large majority see first cut since 2016 Policy rate seen at 3.00% by year end Link to the data: STOCKHOLM, May 6 (Reuters) - Sweden's central bank will cut its key interest rate this week by a quarter percentage point to 3.75% and then continue to ease policy gradually through the year, a Reuters poll showed on Monday. A large majority of the 22 analysts saw the Riksbank cutting rates for the first time since 2016 after gaining confidence that inflation has been tamed from a peak of more than 10% at the end of 2022. Only six analysts expected the central bank to hold rates at 4.00%. "We see a high probability that the Riksbank will cut the policy rate by 25 basis points," banking group SEB said. "The weak krona is a headache and we predict the board will push back against expectations for another rate cut already in June." The Riksbank will cut the policy rate to 3.00% by the end of the year, the median forecast showed. After ratcheting up rates at a record pace over the last two years, the pace of inflation in Sweden has dropped close to the central bank's 2% target. But the economy has also slowed sharply, unemployment is rising and mortgage holders are feeling the pinch. The Riksbank signalled at its most recent meeting in March it would likely start to cut rates in May or June and all the analysts in the poll expected a cut either this week or next month. However, rate-setters are cautious about moving too fast. Getting ahead of other central banks could further weaken crown which would add to inflation pressure at a time when geopolitical worries are weighing heavily and rate cut expectations globally are being pushed back. The European Central Bank is expected to cut rates in June, but easier policy in the United States may take some time to materialise. "The krona weakness, interest rate expectations abroad, higher oil prices and elevated services inflation speak in favour of caution and gradualism," Morgan Stanley said in a note. Sweden's neighbour Norway, a rock-solid economy, has also seen its currency hit by global uncertainty and its central bank does not see a cut until September. The Riksbank will not give any fresh forecasts until its June meeting. It will announce its policy decision at 0730 GMT on Wednesday, May 8. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/europe/swedish-central-bank-cut-key-rate-this-week-reuters-poll-shows-2024-05-06/
