Bloomberg – Hedge funds, loosely regulated investment pools designed for people worth more than $1 million, are becoming available to Europe’s not-so-rich.
In Germany, investors can buy into a hedge fund from Deutsche Bank AG for as little as 124 euros ($150). In the U.K., individuals are able to avoid restrictions on such investing by buying shares of funds that track hedge funds. Regulators in the U.K. and Spain are considering opening the industry to more individual investment.
Hedge funds worldwide have more than doubled their assets since 2000 to about $1.1 trillion, according to Chicago-based Hedge Fund Research Inc. They tend to take larger bets than conventional funds, aiming to make money in falling as well as rising markets.
“There is going to be a gradual acceptance of hedge funds by the retail investor,” said Marc Denogent, a vice president at Hedge Fund Research’s investment management arm in Zurich, which oversees about $4 billion in funds of hedge funds. “The regulatory difference between hedge funds and traditional funds is diminishing too.”
