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FINRA Statement on Introduction of Investment Adviser Oversight Act of 2012
April 25, 2012--The bipartisan bill, Investment Adviser Oversight Act of 2012, introduced today is an important and thoughtful effort to address a serious gap in investor protection. The bill recognizes the need for regular exams of investment advisers, while rightly focusing on retail accounts.
"As FINRA has said, the current level of IA exams is unacceptable, and SROs can help fill this untenable gap in the protection of investment advisory clients."
FINRA, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, is the largest independent regulator for all securities firms doing business in the United States. FINRA is dedicated to investor protection and market integrity through effective and efficient regulation and complementary compliance and technology-based services. FINRA touches virtually every aspect of the securities business – from registering and educating all industry participants to examining securities firms, writing rules, enforcing those rules and the federal securities laws, informing and educating the investing public, providing trade reporting and other industry utilities, and administering the largest dispute resolution forum for investors and firms.
For more information, please visit www.finra.org.
Source: FINRA
Fed stands pat but says will act if needed
April 25, 2012--Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Wednesday said U.S. monetary policy is "more or less in the right place" even though the central bank would not hesitate to launch another round of bond purchases if the economy were to weaken.
In a statement after a two-day meeting, the Fed's policy-setting panel reiterated its expectation that interest rates would not rise until late 2014 at the earliest, and it took no action on monetary policy.
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Source: Reuters
BNY Mellon appointed by NOW: Pensions as custodian and administrator to new DC workplace pension
April 25, 2012--BNY Mellon, the global leader in investment management and investment services, has been appointed to provide custody and investment administration solutions for NOW: Pensions' new cost-efficient UK defined contribution workplace pension.
NOW: Pensions is the UK-based multi-employer trust established in November 2011. The investments are managed by NOW: Pensions Investments, a subsidiary of ATP (Arbejdsmarkedets Tillægspension), Denmark's largest pension fund and the administration is carried out by Paymaster, an established UK third party administrator.
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Source: BNY Mellon
The NASDAQ Commodity Index Family Goes Live
Index Family is the Latest Offering by the NASDAQ OMX Global Index Group
April 24, 2012--The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc. (Nasdaq:NDAQ) today announced the launch of the NASDAQ Commodity Index Family, a broad and diverse representation of the commodities markets that provides investors with exposure across all major commodity sectors.
The commodity index family is available in five distinct roll versions to offer investors different investment strategies.
The NASDAQ Commodity Index Family is the latest offering from The NASDAQ OMX Global Index Group, a premier full-service index provider.
The index family consists of the primary benchmark — the NASDAQ Commodity Benchmark Index (NQCI) — a liquidity-based tradable index, as well as 10 sector and 33 single indexes. The five main sectors covered by the NASDAQ Commodity Index family are energy, industrial metals, precious metals, agriculture and livestock.
The family is designed to measure the performance of single commodities and sectors through the use of futures contracts on physical commodities.
"The NASDAQ Commodity Index Family is a broad and accurate representation of the commodity futures market," said John Jacobs, Executive Vice President, NASDAQ OMX Global Index Group. "This new family of commodity indexes facilitates superior tracking, trading and investing opportunities. It is the latest example of our growing index offerings and reflects our mission to be the best full-service global index provider to our clients."
The commodity index family provides a broad way to track U.S. dollar denominated commodities traded on 10 U.S. and U.K. exchanges. The index family is available in five different roll versions to offer investors multiple choices of exposure and strategies.
The NASDAQ Commodity Index Family is calculated in U.S. dollars in excess and total return. Daily index values, weightings and historical data are available via the NASDAQ OMX Global Index Watch product and the NASDAQ OMX Global Index Data Service.
Source: NASDAQ OMX
PIMCO Launches Global Advantage Inflation-Linked Bond Strategy Fund
ETF With Actively Managed Global Inflation-Linked Bonds Using a GDP-Based Investment Approach
April 24, 2012--PIMCO, a leading global investment management firm, is listing on May 1st the Global Advantage Inflation-Linked Bond Strategy Fund (ILB), which is designed to offer investors the potential for long-term returns above inflation by actively managing global inflation-linked bonds and currencies via the accessible and transparent ETF vehicle.
The fund is managed by Mihir Worah, Managing Director and Head of PIMCO's Real Return portfolio management team.
ILB continues the expansion of PIMCO's range of actively managed ETFs, which combine PIMCO's time-tested global investment process and expertise in managing global fixed income with the tradability of an ETF vehicle, providing investors intraday pricing and daily portfolio disclosures in a single share class.
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Source: PIMCO
Advisers prefer beta products, and not only due to lower fees
April 24, 2012--Passive investments are growing in popularity among registered investment advisers.
Across all adviser channels, RIAs use index-based products the most, with 32.5 per cent indicating they use more passive products than active. That’s according to the findings of a new adviser survey from kasina. The consulting firm, which partnered with Horsesmouth on the study, surveyed 499 advisers across all channels between February 16 and March 7.
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Source: FT.com
PIMCO to Launch Another Actively Managed ETF
April 24, 2012--Bond giant PIMCO said in a statement today that it will introduce the Global Advantage Inflation-Linked Bond Strategy Fund on May 1. The new actively managed ETF will trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker "ILB."
The Global Advantage Inflation-Linked Bond Strategy Fund is designed to offer investors the potential for long-term returns above inflation by actively managing global inflation-linked bonds and currencies under the ETF wrapper, according to a statement issued by PIMCO. The new fund is managed by Mihir Worah, Managing Director and Head of PIMCO's Real Return portfolio management team.
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Source: MarketWatch
PowerShares Canada launches first low-volatility Canadian equity index ETF; Adds high-beta ETFs to lineup
April 24, 2012--Continuing its commitment to empowering investors with exchange-traded funds (ETFs) for diverse market conditions, Invesco Canada today announced the listing of the nation's first low-volatility Canadian equity index ETF, PowerShares S&P/TSX Composite Low Volatility Index ETF [TSX: TLV].
Also added today to the PowerShares lineup of intelligent ETFs are Canada's first high-beta index ETFs: PowerShares S&P/TSX Composite High Beta Index ETF [TSX: THB] and PowerShares S&P 500 High Beta (CAD Hedged) Index ETF [TSX: UHB].
PowerShares' low-volatility offerings, TLV and the recently launched PowerShares S&P 500 Low-Volatility (CAD Hedged) Index ETF [TSX: ULV], are designed to provide investors with core exposure to Canadian and U.S. equities, while offering a measure of protection against market downturns. Meanwhile, the high-beta ETFs, THB and UHB, allow investors to potentially capitalize on bull markets by adding beta to their portfolio.
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Source: PowerShares
FTSE launches US Total Market Index Series
New Series is Broadest US Domestic Index Available
April 24, 2012--FTSE Group. the award-winning global index provider, today announces the launch of the FTSE US Total Market Index Series (FTSE US TMI Series), a comprehensive domestic index series which aims to provide US and international investors with the most broad-based representation of the US equity market.
The FTSE US Total Market Index Series represents over 99.5% of the total US equity market capitalization. The series comprises over 4,500 stocks – more than any other US domestic index series available today. The series is rules-based and transparent, and its constituents are screened for size and investability with an entry requirement of at least USD 25 million in market capitalization. All security types are included in the US TMI Series, including OTC issues, REITs, ADRs, master limited partnerships, and other equities. The eligible universe of the FTSE US TMI Series includes both the securities of companies incorporated and listed in the US, as well as the securities of companies not incorporated in the US but have a primary listing in the US and not in their country of domicile.
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Source: FTSE
PowerShares files with the SEC
April 24, 2012--PowerShares has filed a third and amended application for exemptive relief with the SEC.
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Source: SEC.gov