HedgeWeek – A hedge fund focusing on Russia and the former Soviet Union, Da Vinci CIS Private Sector Growth Fund, has become the first listing on the Specialist Fund Market, the London Stock Exchange’s new market for alternative investment vehicles.
The fund has raised approximately USD110m to invest in unlisted equity and equity-related securities of companies located in Russia and other member countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States.
‘Da Vinci’s admission to the Specialist Fund Market, together with the formal listing of BH Global, the second main market fund from Brevan Howard, cement London’s position as the public market of choice for hedge funds and other alternative investment vehicles,’ says Martin Graham, director of equity markets at London Stock Exchange Group.
BH Global, a newly-established feeder fund investing in the Brevan Howard Global Opportunities Master Fund, began unconditional dealing on May 29 having raised USD1bn through a listing on the London Stock Exchange’s main market.
‘Integral to London’s attractiveness is the choice of markets that we are able to offer funds, aligned to their profile and structure, the types of investors they wish to target and the risk premium sought by investors,’ Graham adds.
‘The creation of the Specialist Fund Market adds to that choice, and we expect to see more funds follow Da Vinci’s lead over the coming months by using the Specialist Fund Market to access London’s unique community of expert investors.’
Da Vinci Capital Management founder and managing partner Oleg Jelezko says: ‘It is a great pleasure to see the Da Vinci CIS Private Sector Growth Fund commence trading, a major milestone for our flagship product.