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.
Commodity Online – Gold prices had an excellent run last week, led by the extensive fall in the US dollar and strong rally in the equity markets. The rise in crude oil prices also resulted in lifting bullion.
The US currency showcased the biggest decline in a month against euro last week as US data showed that the world’s largest economy contracted lesser than forecasts, which hinted that the recession is fading and gave rise to investor demand in riskier counters such as commodities and equities.
The outlook is bright – the most active benchmark contract at the Comex has pulled off a strong recovery, ending at $953.70 near the resistance at $960, a break and close of which will take prices towards new highs of $966.70/oz and $970.40/oz, state traders.
Boston Globe – French bank BNP Paribas’s revenues from corporate and investment banking nearly doubled in the second quarter as robust investor demand boosted revenues from the bank’s fixed income business unit.
BNP Paribas’s CIB revenues totaled 3.351 billion euros ($4.82 billion) for the quarter, up 81 percent from the second quarter of 2008, and following record revenues of 3.696 billion euros in the first quarter of 2009.
”Once again, fixed income revenues were exceptional,” said David Thebault, head of quantitative sales trading, at Global Equities, in Paris.
Reuters – Three former executives at JPMorgan Asset Management plan to launch a Greater China hedge fund via a start-up in Hong Kong, tapping rising investor demand for Asian equities amid the global financial crisis.
"Greater China may be the first region to recover from the global economic crisis, and will certainly attract global fund flows," Lu Jun, one of the co-founders said in a telephone interview. "I think it’s good timing to launch the new fund."
Lu, previously a star fund manager at JPMorgan’s China fund venture, has teamed up with Man Wing Chung, former head of JPMorgan’s Greater China team, and Joseph Tang, who focused on Taiwan investment, to co-found JTM Capital Partners. The partners will start running a hedge fund in mid-June.
West Palm Beach (HedgeCo.net) – Hedge fund assets under administration (AuA) have grown to $91 billion as of 31 March 2009 from $88 billion at 31 December 2008, according to hedge fund tech. and analytics procider GlobeOp Financial Services S.A.
"I am encouraged by the level of fund inflows during the first quarter of 2009." Hans Hufschmid, chief executive officer, said, "New clients with AuA of nearly $12 billion, along with new funds from existing clients of $5 billion and subscription inflows of $3 billion, offset first quarter redemptions and terminations, which we knew would be substantial, as referenced in our 2008 preliminary results announcement."
"In addition," Hufschmid continued, "client fund performance generated over $1 billion, a positive sign that hedge fund managers may have begun adapting to the changing market environment."
GlobeOp noted a sustained investor demand for greater transparency, independent portfolio verification and control of capital. Fund managers are looking for operational solutions to meet these requirements and to improve their own operational cost structures that are challenged by redemptions and lower fees.
"Funds will remain under pressure from redemptions by investors and raising new capital will continue to be challenging. Thus, while GlobeOp’s current pipeline for new business is promising, we remain focused on prudent cost management and productivity improvements."
With headquarters are in London, New York, Dublin, Ireland; George Town, Cayman Islands; Harrison and Yorktown Heights, NY and Hartford, CT, U.S.A.; and Mumbai (Bombay), India, GlobeOp serves more than 180 clients worldwide, representing $91 billion in assets under administration (AuA).
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EatrhTimes – In response to investor demand for greater transparency as well as pending new legislation, Grant Thornton LLP’s Financial Services practice is launching Hedge Fund Internal Control, Governance and Regulatory Compliance Services. These services will help funds attract new investors who might be wary of alternative investments in light of recent news. It will also assist funds in attracting and retaining investors and assets and help them prepare for pending legislation.
By the fourth quarter, Congress is expected to pass The Hedge Fund Transparency Bill of 2009, which would require investment companies or advisers that are exempt from normal registration, but have at least $50 million in assets under management (AUM), to register with the SEC. “Those funds that have already registered must be prepared for additional oversight and a more aggressive examination and enforcement agenda; those funds that have not yet registered may be required to create a complete internal control and compliance infrastructure in order to be prepared for the regulatory examination process,” said Jack Katz, national managing partner of Grant Thornton’s Financial Services practice. In addition to developing the internal control, compliance and governance facilities to comply with the new rules, firms may also be required to establish an anti-money laundering program and report suspicious activities.
New York – Trident Trust is expanding its fund administration service to the U.S. to cater to domestic hedge and private equity funds.
The new U.S. office offers clients access to Trident Trust’s three decades of experience providing independent corporate, trust and fund services to the financial services sector worldwide. Trident Trust currently provides services to more than 320 offshore funds with combined assets under management of more than $25 billion.
The new office is headed by Brian Visel, whose auditing and fund administration experience includes working for a leading international accounting firm and heading a global funds administration team servicing clients from start-up to large, diversified hedge funds.
Employing Geneva® and Advent Partner® as its core fund accounting platform Trident Fund Services, Inc offers U.S. funds a comprehensive, independent, administration service which includes complete fund accounting, net asset valuation, investor reporting and anti-money laundering compliance.
With the increased regulatory and investor demand for independently administered funds, Trident Trust’s new office is well-placed to provide both existing and new domestic funds an effective administration solution to their needs based on Trident Trust’s unique pricing model.
For more information contact:
Eileen Casey Trident Trust Fund Services NYC Representative Office 545 Fifth Avenue, Suite 402 New York, NY 10017 Tel +1-212-840-8280 Fax +1-212-944-5923 ecasey@tridenttrust.com
West Palm Beach (HedgeCo.net) -A new Asia Macro hedge fund has been launched by Dexion Capital and Morgan Stanley veterans Andrew Gale and Lee Ka Sha.
With a minimum investment is $100,000, the fund will invest in Asian interest rates and currencies, opening trading on May 1, according to HedgeWeek.
Lee will play the role of CEO, with Gale as chief executive. Gale most recently was responsible for product development and fundraising for Dexion Capital’s London-listed closed-ended funds of hedge funds and third-party funds. Lee was a founding member of Abax Global Capital in Hong Kong, where he managed both the South Asia special situations portfolio and macro positioning.
“In the course of these discussions it has become apparent that most investors look to their macro investments to be a diversifier providing a different source of returns than the inherent beta in credit and equity strategies,” Gale said, "the fund launch was based on investor demand."
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Markets Media News – The New Year is likely to see several important shifts in alternative investing, according to Don Steinbrugge, managing partner of Agecroft Partners, a global consulting and third-party marketing firm for hedge funds.
Steinbrugge said during the fourth quarter of 2008, investor demand started to shift toward market neutral strategies, as well as toward strategies that used little leverage and provided investors with transparency and liquidity. That shift will likely continue throughout 2009, he said.
Short-biased funds, which have always been a small percentage of the marketplace, surged ahead in 2008, delivering double-digit returns and capturing a larger market share of alternative investments. Steinbrugge said investors are likely to continue to invest in short-biased funds, but their growth will be at a slower pace than last year.
Commodity Trading Advisors (CTAs) are likely to see a lot of demand as well, as they also delivered double-digit returns last year and proved they are not correlated with other hedge fund strategies. Steinbrugge said, however, that does not mean traditional long-short equity funds are on their way out.
"Long-short equity funds have actually done pretty well in comparison to the S&P 500," Steinbrugge said. "I don’t think you’ll see a huge shift out of long-short equity."
West Palm Beach (HedgeCo.Net)- Leading UK investment manager, Hermes Fund Managers Limited (Hermes), announced the appointment of US hedge fund manager Northern Trust, to provide middle office outsourcing fund administration and custody.
With an anticipated £23 billion ($45 billion) in assets under management, the middle office plans to include the UK’s largest Pension Scheme ("BTPS"), which will be in excess of £45 billion ($88 bilion).
As part of the arrangement Northern Trust will also support the launch of Hermes’ new range of Dublin-based funds providing trustee, custody, fund accounting and transfer agency services.
"Northern Trust was appointed following a rigorous selection and due diligence process from a short-list of two providers." Rupert Clarke, Chief Executive of Hermes said, "Outsourcing these functions is consistent with our strategy of focusing on growing a specialist investment management business."
Northern Trust, a multibank holding company based in Chicago, has international offices in 15 locations in North America, Europe, the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific region. Northern Trust had assets under custody of $4.0 trillion, and assets under investment management of $778.6 billion.
Hermes currently has £36.2 billion ($70.4 billion) under management, investing assets on behalf of 206 clients, including pension funds, insurance companies, government entities and financial institutions, as well as charities and endowments.
