General News

	U.S. stock plunge raises alarm on algo trading	May 07/10
	A spine-chilling slide of nearly 1,000 points in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, its biggest intraday points drop ever, led to heightened calls for a crackdown on computer-driven high-frequency trading.The slide, which in ...Read more
	Asian Development Bank launches $9 Billion Plan for Solar Energy in Asia	May 07/10
	The Asian Development Bank launched a $9 billion solar power initiative to develop projects generating 3,000 megawatts by 2012. The announcement, which came at the regional lending agency’s annual meeting in Tashkent, Uzbek...Read more
	Public Pension Plans to Top Corporate Plans In US Hedge Fund Allocation	May 06/10
	Agecroft Partners predicts that United States public pension funds will increase their allocation to hedge funds at faster rate than corporate pension plans due to sweeping new corporate pension legislation that is just begi...Read more
	Equinox brings managed futures to retail market	May 06/10
	Equinox Fund Management announced the launch of a regulated US mutual fund which provides exposure to the returns of a diversified basket of managed futures programs. The MutualHedge Frontier Legends Fund ...Read more
	Merrion unveils Ucits long short equity fund	May 06/10
	Dublin-based Merrion Investment Managers has launched a Ucits European long/short equity fund. The Irish hedge fund also recruited a specialist long/short equity team to manage the Ucits III European Absolu...Read more
	Asia Hedge Funds Struggle for Assets as Investors Remain Wary After Crisis	May 06/10
	Asian hedge fund managers, especially startups and those overseeing smaller amounts, are finding it tough to raise money as investors remain wary of the industry after the financial crisis, consultants and asset managers said. ...Read more
	75% of Canadian equity active managers outperform S&P/TSX in first quarter	May 06/10
	Canadian active managers continue to benefit from a stock picker’s market in 2010, although the Greece-debt situation and looming interest rate hikes are weighing in on the markets in the second quarter.According to the late...Read more
	European diplomats prepare for hedge fund talks	May 05/10
	European parliamentarians and diplomats are preparing for another round of talks this week to end the wrangling over rules to control the hedge fund industry. Failure to break the deadlock on a law for hedge funds, whi...Read more
	U.S. Seen More Attractive for Hedge Funds as Global Regulation Tightened	May 05/10
	The U.S. will remain more attractive for hedge funds and private-equity firms than Europe as regulators globally seek to tighten oversight of alternative- asset managers, said hedge-fund manager Frank Brosens. While details o...Read more
	Ottawa to send securities regulator bill to Supreme Court soon: Flaherty	May 05/10
	Finance Minister Jim Flaherty says he will have a draft bill on a new national securities regulator ready to send to Parliament and for a Supreme Court reference in a matter of weeks.Flaherty has committed to seeking the Sup...Read more
	European asset managers to remain under pressure: Fitch	May 05/10
	The European asset management industry is likely to remain under pressure, due to financial market conditions, the need to restructure, and pending regulatory reforms, says Fitch Ratings in a special report released Tuesday....Read more
	SEC Needs Short-Seller Tip Line for Fraud Detection, Investor Ackman Says	May 05/10
	U.S. securities regulators should create a public system where investors can submit their reasons for buying or short selling a given stock, giving the government access to information that might tip investigators off to poten...Read more
	Sextant Fraud Hearing Delayed	May 04/10
	Canadian hedge fund chief Otto Spork will have to wait even longer for his day in court. Or, at least, his day before the Ontario Securities Commission. The Sextant Capital Management founder’s hearing has been delayed yet ...Read more
	US hedge fund Fortress eyes Asia comeback - sources	May 04/10
	Fortress Investment (FIG.N), one of the world's largest publicly traded alternative asset managers, plans to rebuild its Asian operations and is in the process of setting up an office in Singapore, sources said. Hedge funds h...Read more
	Fund of Hedge Fund Dis-intermediation	May 04/10
	Following up on the prospects for funds of hedge funds, which I have covered earlier in the month, I neglected to mention dis-intermediation by investing institutions. This is a natural phase of development for institutiona...Read more
	frontierAlt Oasis Canada Fund ceases distribution	May 04/10
	frontierAlt Oasis Funds Management Inc. has announced that effective Friday, it is ceasing distribution of units of the frontierAlt Oasis Canada Fund.The decision to terminate the fund is due to a low number of unitholders a...Read more
	Additional regulation of short sales is not required in Canada: TMX Group	May 04/10
	More regulation of short sales in Canada is unwarranted, and Canadian regulators should not impose new short sale rules recently introduced by the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission, according to TMX Group Inc.TMX Group sta...Read more
	Northwest Doubles Asian Assets Since Gaining Independence From RAB in 2009	May 03/10
	Northwest Investment Management Ltd. has doubled its assets since the Hong Kong-based hedge-fund manager was sold last year by RAB Capital Plc, which lost money in 2008 on a Northern Rock Plc bet. Northwest’s assets under man...Read more
	HK hedge fund DragonBack sees assets cut by 85 pct	May 03/10
	Hong Kong-based hedge fund manager DragonBack Capital has seen a dramatic reversal in its fortunes over the last 12 months, with its assets plunging 85 percent to around $45 million amid continued redemptions from fund of he...Read more
	China May `Crash' in Next 9 to 12 Months, Faber Says	May 03/10
	Investor Marc Faber said China’s economy will slow and possibly “crash” within a year as declines in stock and commodity prices signal the nation’s property bubble is set to burst. The Shanghai Composite Index has failed to ...Read more
	Feisty Buffett supports Goldman, high on economy	May 03/10
	Warren Buffett on Sunday intensified his feisty defense of a controversial mortgage transaction marketed by Goldman Sachs Group Inc, saying the investment bank's behavior does not warrant public fury. Buffett also said h...Read more
	Goldman's "Social License": How the firm has endangered its most valuable intangible asset.	May 03/10
	It's been a bad week or two for Goldman Sachs. On April 16, the Securities and Exchange Commission charged the firm with fraud for the way it structured and sold some junky mortgage-related products. Earlier this week, its t...Read more
	Hedge fund guru sees bargains in Europe debt woes	Apr 30/10
	Southern Europe's debt crisis is creating excellent buying opportunities in certain beaten- down stocks such as Spanish and Italian banks, hedge fund veteran Philippe Jabre told Reuters on Thursday. The controversial form...Read more
	Apollo’s Mark Thompson Leaving Metals Fund in June	Apr 30/10
	Apollo Management LP’s Mark Thompson, the manager of its metals hedge fund in London, is leaving in June. Thompson’s departure was confirmed by Carolyn Sargent, an external spokeswoman for Apollo in New York. She declined...Read more
	Martin Currie launches new China fund with Lyxor	Apr 30/10
	Martin Currie has unveiled a new China-focused fund on Lyxor’s managed accounts platform. The Lyxor/Martin Currie China Dragon Fund is a long/short equity fund investing in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. It has been run by Jam...Read more
	Ethical behaviour of hedge funds debated	Apr 30/10
	Socially responsible investment (SRI) topped the list of topics discussed on the latest edition of the N@ked Short Club. The spirited debate about the ethics of the hedge fund business and socially and SRI opened the pr...Read more
	European Hedge Funds Plan Singapore, Hong Kong Move on Rules	Apr 29/10
	Hedge-fund managers in London and other European cities are considering offices in Hong Kong, Singapore or Switzerland as European regulators work on tougher rules, said a member of the industry’s largest trade group. The man...Read more
	Herschel Asset Management posts impressive returns since Inception	Apr 29/10
	Herschel Asset Management's Absolute Return Fund has returned 17.86 per cent per annum since inception. The fund is an Australian domiciled, long short hedge fund investing in ASX listed securities and derivatives. The fun...Read more
	Direct Edge delays U.S. exchanges launch to July	Apr 29/10
	Direct Edge, a private U.S. trading venue operator, said on Wednesday it delayed the launch of its two formal exchanges until July to give members a longer connecting and testing period. Last month, the company said it aimed ...Read more
	BlackRock Joins Blackstone in Loan Fund Frenzy: Credit Markets	Apr 29/10
	BlackRock Inc., the world’s largest asset manager, and Blackstone Group LP’s GSO Capital Partners LP are forming mutual funds to invest in loans as the London interbank offered rate rises to the highest level since August. Th...Read more
	Virtual Brokers Fills Hedge Fund Service Gap with High-end Tech and Competitive Commissions	Apr 29/10
	It’s no secret to anyone who follows investment strategies that it’s been an interesting couple of years for hedge fund managers, to say the least. While the recent credit crisis south of the border saw some hedge fund manage...Read more
	Why Contrarianism Works	Apr 28/10
	In just over a year, the Dow has recovered to 11,204, from 6,547. The biggest rally of our lifetimes has lifted markets over 70%. Paradoxically, now's time to be more cautious, while a year ago was the time for optimism. Why...Read more
	Germany's ex-finance minister does not know what a hedge fund is	Apr 28/10
	Peer Steinbrueck, former finance minister of Germany and a vocal proponent for tougher regulation of hedge funds, cannot explain what a hedge fund actually is or does. When asked by the host during a German television show ...Read more
	Amadeus Raises $1.74 Billion in Western Europe's Biggest IPO Since 2008	Apr 28/10
	Amadeus IT Holding SA raised 1.32 billion euros ($1.74 billion) selling shares above the midpoint of its original price range in western Europe’s biggest initial public offering since 2008. The flight-reservations provider co...Read more
	Australian private equity firms may shun IPOs	Apr 28/10
	Private equity firms looking to sell some of their mid-size Australian businesses are finding strong enough interest from trade buyers so that they may be able to avoid IPOs, after a poor run for recent stockmarket listings. ...Read more
	Manager convergence still an emerging trend	Apr 28/10
	Hedge fund and traditional asset managers in the US are taking more steps towards convergence although investors are still resistant to the idea. Over half of hedge fund managers interviewed b...Read more
	Better hedge fund governance could attract more investors	Apr 27/10
	Hedge fund managers believe better governance of the sector could boost investment more than increased regulation. Better structuring, independent valuation, transparency and third-party control could resul...Read more
	Managed futures Ucits added to list of LGT Capital Partners products	Apr 27/10
	LGT Capital Partners is launching its first Ucits-compliant fund, based on its flagship managed futures strategy. The Crown Managed Futures Ucits Fund will be offered a broader range of invest...Read more
	UCITS HFS Index continues steady growth in April	Apr 27/10
	The HFS UCITS Index continued its positive trend last week gaining 0.13%, this matches its performance from the second week of April. Overall for April, its intra-month performance is now at 1.05% (as of April 23rd 2010). ...Read more
	The leading tax writer in the U.S. House of Representatives said on Monday his effort to tax hedge f	Apr 27/10
	The leading tax writer in the U.S. House of Representatives said on Monday his effort to tax hedge fund and private equity managers at ordinary income rates has the best chance in years to become law. Talks between Democr...Read more
	Chanos Wrong on China Property Slump, Fan Gang Says	Apr 27/10
	Hedge fund manager James Chanos is overly pessimistic about China’s property market because he underestimates government efforts to avoid a bubble, according to Fan Gang, a former People’s Bank of China adviser. Chanos said t...Read more
	Hedge fund AUM on track to hit $2 trillion by year end	Apr 26/10
	The hedge fund industry is within 2% of its previous high watermark, achieved in October 2007. The HFRI Fund Weighted Composite Index gained 2.56% in the first quarter, according to the latest data f...Read more
	Choosing a Hedge Fund Manager: Q&A with Richard Bookbinder	Apr 26/10
	New York (HedgeCo.net) – In the new book, ‘Fund of Funds Investing – A Roadmap to Portfolio Diversification,’ Richard Bookbinder and Daniel Strachman write about the evolution of capital markets and the changes that have taken...Read more
	TCI-Backed Algebris Plans Singapore Office as Asia Lures Hedge-Fund Firms	Apr 26/10
	Algebris Investments LLP, an activist hedge-fund manager seeded by Christopher Cooper-Hohn’s The Children’s Investment Fund Management UK LLP, plans to open an office in Singapore as Asia’s growth draws investors. The London-...Read more
	Soros Fund Veteran Betsy Battle’s Lone Peak Partners raises $70mm	Apr 26/10
	New York-based Lone Peak Partners Management LP’s flagship hedge fund has raised $69.38 million. Lone Peak Partners, a manager of funds of hedge funds, was founded last year by Betsy Battle who previously worked at George S...Read more
	Skybridge continues seeding growth	Apr 26/10
	Investment company SkyBridge Capital launched its third hedge fund seeding fund in the wake of its recent acquisition of Citi Alternative Investments’ (CAI) fund of hedge funds, hedge fund seeding and hedge fund a...Read more
	Ontario’s Mayman Sees Risk of Overzealous Regulation	Apr 23/10
	Gadi Mayman, head of the Ontario Financing Authority, said there’s a risk of “regulatory overzealousness” in the wake of charges against Goldman Sachs Group Inc. “I’m not going to stand up here and defend Goldm...Read more
	BlackRock's Kapito Sees Inflows Topping $200 Billion a Year as ETFs Gain	Apr 23/10
	BlackRock Inc. may average more than $200 billion in annual investor deposits over the next five years after the acquisition of Barclays Global Investors added passive funds, said Robert Kapito, the firm’s president. Net new ...Read more
	Manager compensation the focus of debate on hedge fund fees	Apr 23/10
	The hedge fund industry should adopt a fee structure that more effectively ties managers’ compensation to the performance of their funds, Som Seif, president and CEO of Claymore Investments, Inc., said on Thursday.Seif parti...Read more
	Salida Capital to launch Private Equity Fund; Receives $100MM in seed capital from Avenir Capital	Apr 22/10
	Canadian alternative investment firm Salida Capital has recently announced the planned launch of its first private equity fund. The new fund will focus on natural resources and already has a $100 million seed investment comm...Read more