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.
Courthouse News Service – The founder and general partner of a $5 billion hedge fund used the company’s CFO as a scapegoat when investors found out he used their money to buy a private Gulfstream jet, the former CFO claims in Federal Court. Perry Gruss claims that Daniel Zwirn, of D.B. Zwirn and Co., told him he had to leave the company so Zwirn could remain ”pearly white” and ”bullet proof.”
Zwirn and Co. once managed more than $5 billion in assets. Gruss claims its founder began to live the life of an ”investment magnate,” including the private jet, ”scores of professional and personal assistants,” and a vacation home on the East End of Long Island.
HedgeCo.net (West Palm Beach) – ‘Hedge fund operator’ Rod Stringer has pleaded guilty to money laundering in a $14 million Ponzi scheme, federal prosecutors say.
He allegedly took money from 44 victims over 8 years, claiming to be "a day trader and hedge fund operator, although he was not a licensed securities broker," the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
According to the Securities and Exchange Commission, Stringer doled out about half the money from the phoney Texas hedge fund to some victims, but kept $6.9 million for himself.
"He solicited and enticed individuals to invest money with him by making false representations and promises, such as: the return on investors’ money would be approximately 50% profit; he was a day trader and had a foolproof system; the return on investors’ money would be better than a savings account; the accounts were liquid and investors could withdraw their money anytime; and he had several computers that watched the trend line of stocks automatically and advised him when he should move money in and out of the market," a written statement from prosecutors said.
Stringer faces up to 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and restitution. The plea agreement calls for Stringer to forfeit more than $1.5 million, according to Courthouse News Service.
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Courthouse News Service – President Obama’s plan to overhaul financial regulations, to prevent a repeat of the country’s credit and banking catastrophe, is laid out in a "nearly final" 85-page document the president is expected to reveal today.
Among other things, the president proposes creating a National Bank Supervisor to oversee all federally chartered banks; strengthening capital requirements for banks; requiring hedge funds and other private pools of capital to register with the SEC; and regulating derivatives, including credit default swaps.
The plan would give the Federal Reserve more authority over large financial institutions that could threaten the financial system, and give the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. greater power to seize and break up such institutions.
The document proposes five "key objectives;" 1. Promote robust supervision and regulation of financial firms; 2. Establish comprehensive supervision and regulation of financial markets 3. Protect consumers and investors from financial abuse; 4. Improve tools for managing financial crises; and 5. Raise international regulatory standards and improve international cooperation.
The first objective of the plan calls for "new authority for the Federal Reserve to supervise all firms that could pose a threat to financial stability, even those that do not own banks."
Courthouse News Service – Hedge fund operates took more than $2.5 million in kickbacks while putting clients into grossly overstated Wealth Management LLC accounts, the SEC claims in Federal Court. It sued the hedge fund, its managers James Putman and Simone Fevola, and several relief defendants.
Wealth Management claims to have 447 clients for whom it manages $131 million, $102 million of it in Wealth Management funds, the SEC says.
Courthouse News Service – A Beverly Hills man defrauded his family and friends of $44 million by persuading them to invest in his two nearly worthless hedge funds and spent the money on a Malibu Beach home, Porsches, and poker, federal prosecutors say.
Bradley L. Ruderman, 46, quoted as a financial expert by national media, surrendered on Friday after being named in a criminal complaint charging him with fraud.
