Briefly:

Previous Brieflies this week: | MON | TUE | WED | THU |

Invesco has launched nine new PowerShares Funds, which essentially allow MFDA-licensed advisors to sell exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in a mutual fund wrapper. The nine new mandates expand this family to 17 offerings available in Canada.

“As one of the world’s largest independent money managers, Invesco is well positioned to provide the right solutions to meet the needs of investors,” says Peter Intraligi, president of Invesco Trimark, a subsidiary of Invesco. “PowerShares Funds allow financial advisors — particularly those without direct access to the ETF market — to help their clients build stronger, more effectively diversified portfolios.”

Each of the funds consists of one or more PowerShares ETFs, depending on the mandate.

The new funds are as follows:

• PowerShares 1-5 Year Laddered Corporate Bond Index Fund; • PowerShares Real Return Bond Index Fund; • PowerShares High Yield Corporate Bond Index Fund; • PowerShares Diversified Yield Fund, which offers Invesco Trimark’s tax-efficient flexible distribution (T-FLEX) series T6 and T8; • PowerShares Canadian Preferred Share Index Class; • PowerShares Global Dividend Achievers Fund; • PowerShares FTSE RAFI U.S. Fundamental Fund; • PowerShares FTSE RAFI Global+ Fundamental Fund; and • PowerShares India Class.

Invesco says the lower cost structure of PowerShares Funds makes them “a strong complement to actively managed investment solutions.”

• • •

Bogart leaves Fidelity for AGF

AGF Management has appointed Robert J. Bogart to the position of senior vice-president and chief financial officer.

Bogart joins AGF from Fidelity Investments, where he was a senior finance executive for both its U.S. and Canadian operations for the past 17 years. Most recently, he served as senior vice-president of finance, leading the corporate decision support group in Boston.

“We are pleased to have someone of Bob’s calibre join AGF. He has a wealth of knowledge and extensive experience in the industry in both Canada and the United States that spans nearly 30 years,” said Blake C. Goldring chairman and chief executive officer of AGF.

He succeeds Greg Henderson, who will be leaving the firm to pursue other opportunities outside the industry in March 2010.

“We want to thank Greg for his significant contributions to the firm,” Goldring said. “During his tenure, Greg has been on the frontlines of AGF’s growth and played an instrumental role in the AGF business divisions with his involvement in various acquisitions and divestitures. He leaves the firm in a solid financial position with a strong balance sheet. We wish him the very best and appreciate his assistance in ensuring a smooth transition.”

• • •

Sprott names Marc Faber to board

Sprott Inc. has named Marc Faber to its board of directors and to the company’s audit committee.

Faber is the managing director of Marc Faber Ltd., an investment advisory and fund management firm. He is perhaps best known for his monthly newsletter, “The Gloom, Boom & Doom Report.”

“We are honoured and delighted to have someone with Marc’s credentials join our board. Marc is an internationally renowned expert and commentator on financial markets, and we look forward to his contribution as a director of Sprott Inc.,” said Eric Sprott, CEO of the company.

Faber fills a vacancy created by the resignation of Ian Telfer, who was recently named chair of the World Gold Council.

• • •

S&P offers 130/30 strategy index

Standard & Poor’s has expanded its selection of strategy-based indices available in Canada, launching the S&P/TSX 60 130/30 Strategy Index.

The index employs an indexing strategy based on the S&P/TSX 60, but with additional weighting to top-performing constituents of the index and decreased weightings to the weakest-performing stocks.

“As Canadians and investors around the world face a new financial reality in 2010, the appetite for efficient exposure to a strategic index approach grows,” says Srikant Dash, head of global research and design at S&P Indices. “The introduction of the S&P/TSX 60 130/30, S&P Indices’ first index of its kind for the Canadian market, provides risk-controlled long/short exposure in a transparent, cost-efficient format.”

The weightings are determined using a transparent rules-driven framework leveraging quantitative and qualitative factors, including capitalization rate, earnings quality and equity analyst recommendations.

The index is split into two groups, with stocks in the stronger group being overweighted 3% relative to the S&P/TSX 60, while stocks in the underweight basket each have their weights decreased by 3% relative to the S&P/TSX 60. The S&P/TSX 60 130/30 Strategy Index is rebalanced quarterly to minimize turnover and volatility.

S&P also announced that it has licensed AlphaPro Management Inc. to create and launch an exchange-traded fund based on the S&P/TSX 60 130/30.

• • •

MFC Global names head of tactical allocation

MFC Global Investment Management has appointed Don Rich as vice-president and head of tactical asset allocation, effective immediately.

“Don Rich has exceptionally strong experience both as an academic and a practitioner in the finance industry. As we continue to execute our growth strategy and further strengthen our global asset allocation capabilities, we are very pleased to have him join the MFC Global team,” said Mark Schmeer, chief investment officer, equities, asset allocation and research, of MFC Global Investment Management.

Rich will be responsible for determining the appropriate percentage of assets held in various categories for many of MFC Global’s tactical asset allocation portfolios worldwide. He will also provide overall guidance in the construction of multi-asset class strategies. In addition, he will conduct investment research supporting other portfolio management teams.

Rich worked previously for Harvard Management Company, which manages Harvard University’s endowment, where he was a portfolio manager and director of research for foreign exchange.

(01/19/10)