New York Times – Investors who expected hedge funds to prune fees after a particularly disastrous showing in 2008 may be disappointed by a recent study.

The Wall Street Journal reported that a study compiled by the French fund-of-hedge-funds firm Olympia Capital Management found that for the most part, fees remained steady at the 2,659 funds it analyzed. It also found that only a handful of the firms had shortened the time between one redemption date to the next, or reduced the initial lockup period they place on investors’ capital.

Last year, the average fund lost nearly 19 percent, and investors flooded firms with withdrawal requests. More than $600 billion has been pulled from hedge funds since the peak of the credit boom, leaving the industry to oversee just $1.3 trillion, according to Hedge Fund Research.

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Tags: fund-of-hedge-funds, investors capital, lockup period

Money Management Letter – The Utah Retirement Systems has proposed that hedge funds’ management fees cover operating expenses only, that performance fees be paid either at the end of a lockup period or placed on a deferred schedule, and that managers should meet the transparency needs of every investor.

The scheme has issued what it calls a summary of preferred hedge fund terms, a copy of which was obtained by MML’s sister publication Alternative Investment News. Spokesman Dave Anderson declined to answer any questions, saying that the document was confidential and only meant for Utah’s hedge funds.

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Tags: alternative-investment-news, dave anderson, investor, lockup period, management fees, management letter, money management, operating expenses, performance-fees, sister publication, spokesman, transparency, utah retirement systems