VC Circle – UK fund of funds CDC Group Plc has committed $10 million to Rabo Equity Advisors’ India Agri Business Fund. This investment is part of CDC’s new investment policy which came into effect on January1, 2009, according to which, the lender will invest in the world’s poorest nations. About 75% of its investments will go into countries with an annual gross national income per head of less than $905.

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Tags: 10-million, agri business, cdc, gross national income, group plc, india, investment-policy, investments, rabo, vc, which came into effect

West Palm Beach (HedgeCo.net) – OppenheimerFunds, Inc. and OppenheimerFunds Distributor, Inc. is being investigated by US law firm Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro for alleged violations of federal securities laws among other things on behalf of investors in the Core Bond Fund.

The "low-risk, conservative bond fund" that invested mainly in high-quality corporate bonds, is alleged to have started acting "like a hedge fund" taking extreme risks including selling risky credit default swaps and other high-risk derivative investments to Wall Street firms.

The Core Bond Fund suffered losses of more than 35% of its value in 2008 and continued to fall another 10% in the first three months of 2009. The Oppenheimer Champion income fund lost more than 80% of the its value, dropping almost $2 billion over the course of 15 months as a result of similar risky investments and deviations from the stated fund investment policy.

Hagens Berman is investigating whether officers and directors of the Core Bond Fund misled investors about the safety of the fund and whether they failed to adequately warn investors when the fund took extreme risks in violation of the Fund’s stated investment policy.

Alex Akesson

Tags: accredited-investors, bond fund, core bond, corporate bonds, credit default swaps, derivative investments, extreme risks, federal securities laws, first-three-months, hagens berman, hedgeco, investment-policy, oppenheimer, oppenheimerfunds inc, palm-beach, risky-investments, sobol

Bizjournals.com- The Florida State Board of Administration is negotiating with hedge fund manager Ashbel C. Williams Jr. for the position of executive director and chief investment officer.

Williams is a former executive director of the Florida SBA, a former assistant controller for the state, and currently is managing director of New York area hedge fund manager Fir Tree Partners.

At their July 2 meeting, trustees instructed Robert Milligan, interim executive director of the SBA, to negotiate contract terms with Williams, said Dennis MacKee, the board’s communication director. Milligan is expected to bring a proposed contract for approval back to the board.

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Tags: bridget, current-value, investment-policy