ORINDA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AXA Rosenberg today announced that the review process initiated by its Board of Directors regarding the coding error that AXA Rosenberg had discovered in its quantitative investment process is fully complete. The firm reached a settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) related to this matter.
A comprehensive, objective and detailed analysis of the coding error’s impact has been performed by Cornerstone Research, and its results have been incorporated into the SEC settlement. Compensation payments to adversely affected clients as calculated by Cornerstone will be made. The aggregate compensation amount is approximately $217 million. AXA Rosenberg agreed to pay a civil penalty of $25 million, and to certain other terms related to ongoing internal oversight, recordkeeping, periodic policy reviews and the retention of an independent compliance consultant. The administrative order reflecting the details of the SEC settlement is available at www.sec.gov.
“We deeply regret that the coding error adversely impacted many of our clients,” said Dominique Carrel-Billiard, Chairman of the Board of AXA Rosenberg. “The exhaustive review that we undertook of this matter reflects our commitment to regaining our client’s confidence and restoring trust.”
AXA Rosenberg also previously announced to its clients several actions that the firm has taken to reinforce and further enhance its investment platform. Over the past several months, the firm has reshaped its organizational structure, appointed new leaders for several key positions and instituted additional risk controls and procedures. Among the changes are new senior hires, including the appointment of Jeremy Baskin as Global CEO.
“Today marks the beginning of a new era for AXA Rosenberg,” said Mr. Baskin. “Having made many changes to our organizational and ownership structure, our management team and how we do business, we look forward to the opportunity to again demonstrate our unique value in helping our clients meet their investment goals in the future.”
About AXA Rosenberg
AXA Rosenberg Group LLC is the specialist active global equity investment management firm within the AXA Investment Managers group. As of December 2010, AXA Rosenberg Group LLC managed more than $30 billion in assets globally.
The firm was founded in 1985, in Orinda, California by a small team of colleagues who were confident that investment insights could be gained by combining statistical methods with detailed knowledge of company fundamentals. Then comprising Rosenberg Institutional Equity Management and its affiliated companies, the firm opened offices in Tokyo, London and Singapore in the years that followed. The original Rosenberg group joined with AXA Investment Managers in 1999, becoming AXA Rosenberg. In 2010, AXA Investment Managers purchased the founders’ remaining interests in the firm. Today the company has a global presence in major financial markets and manages individual country, regional, and global strategies for public and private pension funds, foundations, and other institutional investors in the Americas, Europe, Asia and Japan.