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.
West Palm Beach (HedgeCo.net) – Hedge fund manager Ansher Fund Management says that March has been positive all across the markets and AREF (Ansher Regional Equity Fund) was able to gain to gain 3.2%.
The hedge fund manager increased holdings in Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan as together with Uzbekistan, Ansher believes that these will be the strongest performers in the region. Regarding risk exposure, "we like it as is, given the high diversification on both, sector and position level, shields us from extreme market moves," Pascal Buschor, Executive Director at Ansher, said.
Benchmarks have performed positive because of the increase in oil & gas and metals prices in March, giving investors some level of comfort in the markets, the fund says.
The economy of Uzbekistan has also shown resilience against the effects of global liquidity crisis. The implementation of the anti-crisis program measures has started in Uzbekistan, and the results of consequent two months showed the program is producing its first satisfactory results, the fund says.
Kazakhstan’s government has further demonstrated strong political will to support the economy by adopting the national anti crisis program. Government plans to inject some $14 billion.
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!
Reuters – Amiri Capital, the Islamic asset manager backed by investment firm Olivant, said on Monday it has teamed up with broker Newedge to launch the first Islamic fund of long/short hedge funds marketed in the Middle East.
The partnership with Newedge — itself a joint venture between Calyon and Societe Generale — allows Amiri to launch the fund, which was put on hold when original partner Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy protection in September.
Hedge funds are a relatively new concept in Islamic finance and a bone of contention, with some scholars rejecting them as speculative and others sanctioning them as a tool for diversification.
New York (HedgeCo.Net) – Although confidence in the hedge fund industry has taken a hit, a large and notable UK pension fund has begun to place their trust into alternative investments. The West Midlands Local Authority Pension Fund, which manages close to $10 billion, was looking to diversify investments, and chose to allocate 8 percent into hedge funds.
In an interview with Reuters, management pointed out that although hedge funds may have had a dismal 2008, they still outperformed the equity markets. In addition, Chief Investment Officer Judith Saunders believes that hedge funds “have been forced to improve their practices and some of the weaker ones have gone.”
200 hedge funds who couldn’t withstand market conditions closed up shop last year in the United States alone, thinning out an industry that once managed close to $3 trillion. In addition, the unfavorable economic conditions exposed dozens of hedge funds that were running fraudulent schemes. Many companies feel now is the time to invest, with a number of strong funds that withstood the storm.
The Universities Supeannuation Scheme, UK’s second largest pension fund, is also pursuing diversification, confirming they would allocate 20 percent of their $32 billion in assets under management to alternative investments. Management recently told reporters “that current turmoil in the hedge fund industry represents a compelling investment opportunity for investors like USS who are able to take the long-term view.”
The West Midlands Fund chose investments that employ absolute return strategies, which are supposed to be less volatile than other strategies. Saunders has been pondering the idea of investing in hedge since late last year, when she stated the company was considering a 2 percent allocation.
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. www.hedgefundlounge.com, www.hedgefundtools.com, and www.hedgefundemployment.com
Reuters – In a period when volatile markets battered most hedge funds, global macro funds are proving their worth, Graham Capital Chairman Kenneth Tropin told Reuters.
During one of the hedge fund industry’s worst years, Graham delivered gains of up to 41 percent in 2008 by making good bets on currencies, stocks, interest rates and commodities. And because the firm invests in highly liquid futures, clients had monthly access to cash even as many funds blocked withdrawals.
The combination of liquidity and returns that are independent of the broader market could revive interest in global macro funds, Tropin said.
"For a long time there was a perception that the biggest returns, the best risk-adjusted returns, were in other strategies. Then we had a market environment last year where most hedge fund styles ended up being correlated to each other and to the equity markets as well," he said.
Graham manages $4.9 billion in assets in human-directed funds and computer-driven quantitative funds. Funds in both categories invest across fixed income, currency, commodity and equity futures.
"Our style of investing offers some benefits, including liquidity and diversification, that may have not been appreciated as much as they should be," he said.
Graham’s quant funds gained from 20 percent to 41 percent last year, while human-directed funds rose by 6 to 27 percent. By comparison, the average hedge fund lost 28 percent.
Hartford Business – State Treasurer Denise L. Nappier said she plans to approve rule changes by January allowing her to allocate up to 8 percent of the state’s $20 billion pension fund in nontraditional investments such as hedge funds.
The move marks a departure from a more conservative investment strategy and comes shortly after the Connecticut funds lost nearly $5 billion in pension assets in the depressed market.
The shift in approach also comes when the hedge fund industry is under stress. The sector’s total assets declined by more than 20 percent between June and October, and the unraveling of Bernard Madoff’s $50 billion Ponzi scheme this month has spotlighted what many see as a general lack of transparency in the industry.
Still, Nappier said investing in hedge funds and other alternative instruments will allow the pension plan to reduce volatility, produce slightly higher returns and create better diversification.
West Palm Beach (HedgeCo.net) – Noci Pictures Entertainment a Chicago and Los Angeles film production and structured finance company thinks it may have the answer and its own opportunity with its $100 million dollar international tax advantaged structured film deal that has an option to be principally protected as well using CPPI, including a stand alone 100% principal protected Prints and Advertising Fund which will insure the Company’s U.S. theatrical distribution.
"No matter how bad things are in the world, people need to be entertained", states Yuri Rutman, Noci’s CEO. "And while the crowd mentality of panic in the U.S. financial markets exists, overseas, properly structured commercial films generate more revenues which add to bigger distributor buys with the Euro vs. USD."
Apart from Elliott Associates, other investors including billionaires,family offices from Wall Street to Silicon Valley to the Middle East to Russia have been parking their money into Hollywood.
Larry Ellison Of Oracle, Paul Allen Of Microsoft, Steven Rales, Fred Smith of Federal Express, Norman Waitt, the Co-Founder of Gateway Computers, Jeff Skoll Of Ebay, Marc Turtletaub of The Money Store, Roger Marino Of EMC Corp, Sidney Kimmel Of Jones Apparel Group, Minnesota Twins owner Bill Pohlad; Real Estate Developers Tom Rosenberg and Bob Yari, and, financiers Sheikh Waleed Al Ibrahim, Michel Litvak, and Philip Anschutz are all behind the finance of a lot of films that range from box office hits to Academy Award winners.
While the glamour of the movie business may be appealing to most, at the end of the day, it is still an unknown business that many try to gamble on, and only a handful come out as winners. The real key is to minimize risk, maximize profits, and offer a steadier stream of revenues than what other alternative investments may offer such as real estate, oil & gas, commodities, hedge funds, or practically any other investment in today’s market.
The Company is putting together a slate of films using an innovative hybrid public-private finance strategy aimed at investors who either want to take a 100% Federal deduction under Section 181 or "The American Jobs Creations Act" against their ordinary income, get an additional 20-40% in tradable and monetized state tax credits or cash rebates, have a hedge of revenues from 20-30 films, a possible exit IPO on the London AIM., as well as stimulating local economic development, and creating jobs, including for women and minorities. Plus the Company is offering an alternative 100% principal protection of capital using Constant Proportion Portfolio Insurance.
"I don’t know of any other alternative investment that can offer tax incentives, multiple exit strategies, an opportunity to guarantee 100% of capital, as well as giving back to the American economy and labor, while being involved with the moviemaking process", states Yuri Rutman,. "That would also add to the long line of recent film funds that have been structured with numerous hedge funds, private equity investors, corporate tax credit buyers, and institutions. Heck I don’t even know of any business that someone can start where they know they will receive an exact ROI before they see any profits".
"I am also surprised how many investors, hedge funds, VC, tax planners, CPA’s, tax attorneys, public and private companies have no clue about these benefits", Rutman adds. "Federal Preservation, New Markets Tax Credits, etc was the usual route for tax credit planning or alternative investments , but film production incentives offer a more liquid premium, equity, as well as a little Hollywood adventure and schmoozing with movie stars."
Rutman adds "Plus, I am reinventing ‘conscious’ film finance. A lot of competitor deals have proven that they didn’t do their homework and won’t be around in a few years because they didn’t do their homework. I want to be making movies when I am 90".
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!
