Appetite for cross-border investments of Colombian Pension Funds got frozen in April. With a stronger Peso plus the equity-investment limit of the multifondo Moderado virtually reached, cross-border fund activity was brought to nearly a standstill.
Tracking the Activities of Global Asset Managers in Latin America

Appetite for cross-border investments of Colombian Pension Funds got frozen in April. With a stronger Peso plus the equity-investment limit of the multifondo Moderado virtually reached, cross-border fund activity was brought to nearly a standstill.

The president of Old Mutual in Colombia, Daniel Cortés McAllister (photo), said the firm is intent on growing the mutual-fund and life-insurance businesses, and is also adding brokerage and real estate to its product portfolio.

A committee of experts is set to opine on how to set minimum-return benchmarks, and also weigh in on the government's proposal to stimulate the outflow of dollars by encouraging additional cross-border exposure on the part of the AFPs.

Howard Atkinson (photo) claimed the new ETF offers low-cost exposure to a more diversified index than other currently available Colombian benchmarks.

Emerging-markets- and European-equity oriented products led the preferences of AFP portfolio managers, receiving USD 360 million and USD 185 million, respectively in the month.

Colombian AFP pension funds added USD 525 million to their positions in cross-border mutual funds and ETFs in January. Purchases were concentrated in equity-oriented products to the USA. Vanguard, Aberdeen, iShares and MFS were among those who benefited from the new inflows.

David Salamanca, director of financial regulation at the Ministry of Finance, said a technical commission had been meeting since November last year and would continue its work until March, when it would deliver its final considerations.

Colombian pension funds added another USD 415 million to their holdings of cross-border ETFs and mutual funds in November, surpassing the USD 9 billion level. Aberdeen, BlackRock, Investec and Schroders all succeeded in landing a first-time investment for an equity product during the month.

The most important changes in the new rules include allowing specialization of the various activities required to operate mutual funds, fast-tracking the authorization and distribution process for funds investing in traditional assets, and a more prominent role for custodians. In addition, non-Colombian securities registered in MILA countries would now be considered "traditional" assets.

Colombian AFP pension funds added USD 580 million to their positions in cross-border securities in October, of which 80% was applied to ETFs. Purchases were concentrated in equity-oriented products to the USA and Europe. Products of State Street and iShares benefitted the most for the new inflows.
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