Investment Fund Operations & Administration

The course is designed to equip delegates with a clear understanding of how and why funds are established, the nature and impact of investment decisions, pricing and valuation, related activities such as portfolio balancing and performance measurement and how these processes affect operational, compliance, reporting, and other administration procedures. The course covers a wide range of fund types, their characteristics, operation and administration features, including: mutual funds and unit trusts, pension fund, hedge funds and FOFs, real estate funds, venture capital funds, money market funds. The course also provides delegates with enhanced market knowledge not only of traditional investment products such as bonds, equities and money market products, but also of more complex products such as derivatives, CDOs, structured products, exchange traded funds, real estate, private equity, commodities and any related structures such as SPVs, SIVs etc. By the end of the course, delegates will have greater confidence in controlling fund administration procedure, accurate pricing, valuation and best execution skills, greater assurance of the correct legal and compliance procedures, and confidence in liaising with fund managers, investors, sponsors, fund services providers, custodians, and regulators. Featuring practical in-depth coverage of: All types of assets – including alternative, illiquid and volatile assets Comparative fund types, structures, and legal aspects Understanding benchmarks, mandates, investment objectives and constraints Pricing and valuation Reporting and compliance – valuation, reconciliation and settlement Registrar and transfer agency services International client services Client reporting: customised reporting, multi-currency/instrument reporting, and tax reporting Compliance, tax and anti-money laundering issues Who should attend? Delegates are likely to be working in a fund management, fund administration or related roles such as: Operations supervisor or manager Compliance manager Risk manager Fund administrator Fund services relationship manager Hedge fund administrator Software provider or consultant Custodian Finance and administration Audit and supervision Regulators To find out more about accommodation, and places of interest within Paris please visit; http://en.parisinfo.com/
Day 1 The investment environment Overview of the investment environment today Drivers in investment strategies Evolving products Growth of hedge funds and their impact Globalisation of investment Use of products in investment Debt Instruments Money market instruments Equities On exchange derivatives Off exchange derivatives Structured products Exercise (1): using these products in strategy decisions – assessing suitability and verifying return objectives Exercise (2): analysing the skills and product knowledge that fund administrators need Types of investment products Off shore On shore Retail Institutional Exercise: Analysing the key issues in the investment environment today and the impact that this is having in fund administration Structure of funds Setting up funds Legal structures Limited liability partnerships Limited liability companies Private equity Day 2 Overview of fund jurisdictions and comparisons Luxembourg Channel Islands Mauritius Bermuda Dublin Cayman Different types of funds and their characteristics Off-shore vs domestic funds Background, structures and types of funds Overview of the legal structures of funds Examining types of funds and investment products Conventional funds Pension funds Mutual funds and unit trusts Collective investment schemes (OEICS) Tracker / index funds Hedge funds Money market funds Investment products and their applications Equities Bonds Commodities Derivatives: futures, options, swaps Fund management exercise: delegates will prepare two portfolios one for a mutual fund, one for a hedge fund from a selection of investment products. These portfolios will then be used throughout the program i.e. when looking at NAV, performance fees etc. Understanding the fund management process Understanding the theory behind fund management Role and responsibilities of fund managers Setting investment objectives The constraints of the fund manager Asset allocation to enhance portfolio performance Other strategies to maximise performance Managing to the mandate/trust deed Benchmarks and what they mean Controlling the process Performance measurement Attribution analysis Fixed income fund management Mastering the concepts of duration and convexity Bond portfolio management Equity fund management Understanding the fundamentals of equity analysis Active vs passive equity fund management Examining index funding or tracker funds Other types of fund management Cash fund management Money market funds Alternative investments Real estate Venture capital Unlisted equities Pricing/valuation exercise: Delegates will prepare a checklist of pricing and valuation issues and resolutions to problems about illiquid securities, volatile prices, fund of fund values etc Day 3 Roles, responsibilities, reporting & compliance Defining the responsibilities of each player involved in the overall administration of the fund Valuation Reconciliation Settlement Investment managers Brokers Custodians Fund sponsors Trustees Investors Registrar and transfer agency services Buying and selling shares in the fund Maintenance of the shareholders' register for the fund Issuing certificates Amendments to investor details Arrangements on the death of a shareholder Powers of attorney Global transfer agency function Managing the fund process AGM decisions Distributions Client services in an international context Documentation and regulation Master agreements for OTC derivatives and repo transactions Trusteeship Scheme particulars Key feature docs Efficient portfolio management Customer protection Reporting to clients Preparation of financial statements Customised reporting and information Multi-currency and multi-instruments reporting Tax reporting Client presentation exercise: delegates work in groups to prepare a client meeting presentation to cover fund admin services, reporting, transfer agency services etc Compliance in fund administration Legal compliance How the compliance function differs from the risk management function Monitoring of investment policy compliance Comparison to internal and external benchmarks or model portfolios Over and underperformance Tracking errors Sensitive calculations Adhering to regulatory and client investment restrictions Compliance with tax and regulatory rules Money laundering: to what extent are asset management companies obliged to perform money laundering checks? Course summary and review