New York (HedgeCo.Net) – Philip Richards, head of hedge fund RAB Capital, is stepping down and will be replaced with Finance Director Stephen Couttie, according to a statement made by the company yesterday.

Richards ran the $1.4 billion Special Situations Fund, which received poor press and even worse returns when it lost millions thanks to the nationalization of Northern Rock in February.

Richards will still be employed by RAB, serving as an executive director while still managing the Global Mining and Resources funds, which holds assets of around $210 million.  He made headlines recently with his controversial personal stake in Bahamas-based oil exploration company BPC, in which his Special Situations Fund along with Falkland Gold & Minerals facilitated a takeover bid that earned him a hefty paycheck.

RAB currently manages around $5.9 billion in assets, a sharp drop from the over $7 billion it managed in 2007.

Julie Scuderi
Senior Editor for HedgeCo.Net
Email: julie@hedgeco.net

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New York (HedgeCo.Net) – Shareholders in Falkland Gold & Minerals have approved plans to buy Bahamas-based oil exploration company BPC after a unanimous vote yesterday. 

Philip Richards, head of the RAB Special Situations Fund that owns a 76 percent stake in Falkland, will pocket around £1m thanks to the reverse takeover and his vast personal stake in BPC of 300,000 shares.    

While there has been some question regarding a possible conflict of interest with a hedge fund manager having that kind of stake in a company, Richards has been completely transparent in his holdings long before the meeting in which shareholders overwhelmingly approved the takeover. 

"This was a deal recommended by two strong independent and separate boards, both of which concluded that it was in the best interest of all their respective shareholders," said a spokesperson for RAB. 

Shareholders will get six shares of Falkland for every one share of BPC. 

RAB made headlines when the fund experienced sharp declines amidst the nationalization of Northern Rock, in which they amassed a significant stake.  Meanwhile, Falkland has posted losses of over 90 percent over the past four years, prompting investors in the Special Situations Fund to lose an estimated £11m.    

Julie Scuderi
Senior Editor for HedgeCo.Net
Email: julie@hedgeco.net

HedgeCo.Net is a premier hedge fund database and community for qualified and accredited investors only. Membership on www.hedgeco.net is FREE and EASY. We also offer FREE LISTINGS for Hedge Funds!
Be sure to check out our sister sites. For more information, visit www.hedgeconetworks.com

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