Each business day HedgeCo.Net keeps you informed with the top hedge fund industry news, opinion and insight from around the globe. From the latest hedge fund launches, to the impact of regulation, competition, and investor activism - we track the topics and people that make a difference to you.
Blueridgenow.com – Hedge funds have been in the news recently, usually with a watered down description of the characteristics of these investment vehicles. Most folks know that Chelsea Clinton works for a hedge fund (Avenue Capitol), and that John Edwards pulled down a hefty $500,000 consulting fee from another hedge fund, Fortress Investment Group. The odious George Soros, a contributor to hard left political groups, manages a hedge fund called Quantum Fund.
Edwards said he wanted to learn more about poverty. And where better to learn about poverty than working for an investment company that requires its clients to have at least a million dollars net worth (Since then, Fortress has navigated enough legal hurdles to offer its services to the general public through a listing on the New York Exchange, but that’s unusual.)
Reuters – Turmoil in financial markets could halve the number of hedge funds by next year, and the survivors will likely charge less for their service, an industry executive said on Monday.
Ultra-wealthy investors, who fueled a doubling in hedge-fund industry assets to about $1.9 trillion in the last three years, are now increasingly fearful about hedge-fund failures and pulling their money out, fast.
"I think people are nervous," said Robert Elliott, senior managing director at Bessemer Trust, a New York asset manager that advises clients with at least $10 million in assets.
"They have seen noteworthy blowups and don’t understand them," he told the Reuters Wealth Summit. "Hedge funds could be the next hiccup and people could say this is another example of poor regulation."
istockAnalyst.com – September may in fact be the cruelest month of all, at least for hedge funds – now even worse than the previous "comeuppance month" just this last July. Popular funds, such as Greenlight Capital and Maverick Capital had especially difficult months, driving year-to-date losses beyond 15 percent and more.
Just recently many were asking the question: "Where are the big hedge fund failures?". At that time, many hedge funds, while down, were still doing better than the broader market. Some of the funds that were struggling were hoping to see recovery before waiting periods on redemption notices were finally met. Unfortunately, the September sell-off has only made it more likely that investors will go forward with their plans and begin pulling money out of funds.
