http://www.hedgefundsreview.com Hedge Funds Review News Update en-us © Copyright Incisive Media Investments Ltd. 1996-2007. webmaster@incisivemedia.com Hedge Funds Review http://www.incisivemedia.com/hfr/images/logo.gif http://www.hedgefundsreview.com However, other strategic risks warrant the attention of alternative asset managers as they manage risk, enhance operational effectiveness and identify opportunities. Companies need to prioritise these myriad anxieties and take steps to head them off. Global government reactions, including programmes to recapitalise the US and European banking sectors, appear to have slowed the systemic financial crisis. Nevertheless, financial markets continue to be volatile as the world economy manages through the recession. The responses of asset managers to this market crisis fall into two broad categories. First, companies are concentrating on maintaining their business by preserving capital. As margins are squeezed, asset managers ... Fri, 3 Jul 2009 03:26:00 +0100 DeHavilland Financial Services reports in real-time and interprets political and legislative developments that could impact the financial services sector. DeHavilland's analytical reportage extends from formal parliamentary proceedings and select committees to monitoring lobby activity and political meetings and gatherings outside Westminster. Relevant parliamentary questions session can reveal government intentions around financial investments or highlight potential pressure on the government to introduce new financial regulations according to DeHavilland managing director Patrick Angell. "Quick access to the details can enable financial services managers to act swiftly in order to benefit from potential new revenue opportunity or make moves to avoid revenue losses." He said ... Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:26:00 +0100 No expiry date has been set although the FSA does not intend to keep the regime permanently. The regulator is currently analysing responses to a discussion paper (DP 09/1) on the options for a future short selling disclosure regime for all UK stocks. At present disclosures will need to be made if a net short position exceeds 0.25% of a company's issued shared capital or increases by 0.1% bands above that (e.g. net short position reaches 0.35%. 0.45% and so on). Tue, 30 Jun 2009 15:20:00 +0100 Speaking at the annual British Bankers' Association conference, he said it is essential to learn lessons and accept the need for radical change which was needed in the style of supervision, regulations applied to banks the banks themselves. He argued that strong capital and liquidity are central to the reform of banking regulation. "One clear need is to get better at identifying emerging systemic risks and to create tools which can act against these risks at the macro level. But it is essential to recognise that however much we improve our ability to see bumps in the road ahead, that ability will ... Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:28:00 +0100 The Singapore-based Asian-equities hedge fund started trading in May 2009 and is led by Rajesh Sachdeva. Previously he was co-founder of New York-based Sansar Capital Management, an Asian equities hedge fund manager that managed over $3 billion at its peak. Flowering Tree Investment Management is reported to be planning to expand its newest Asian equities hedge fund which was seeded with $12.5 million from founders, family and friends. The fund is set to grow to $15-$16 million by July and is looking to hit $200-$300 million by 2011 and has the capacity to grow to over $1 billion. Flowering Tree's new fund's ... Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:24:00 +0100 Viteos said its platform was designed to help hedge funds deal with the additional processing and reporting requirements of running managed accounts. The services range from daily reporting of holdings at the transaction level to risk and investor reporting. Large investors have been channelling assets to hedge funds through managed accounts in an effort to gain greater control and transparency over investments. Earlier this year Calpers said it would transfer many of its hedge fund investments into managed accounts. Deutsche Bank is reported to have made its $500 million investment in Roc Capital Management through a managed account. Assets invested through managed accounts are ... Tue, 30 Jun 2009 12:28:00 +0100 Emerging markets managers, up almost 7% in May, benefited from increased optimism about global growth and rising commodity prices with Eastern European-focused managers outperforming other regions for the third month in a row. Convertible arbitrage funds continued their comeback, finishing up 5.8% for the month. In the US $6 billion in new convertible bond issuances were met with healthy demand from a spectrum of investors. Many long/short equity managers increased their net long exposures resulting in a 5.2% return for May, the highest monthly return for the strategy since June 2000. The global macro sector generated positive returns for a seventh consecutive positive ... Tue, 30 Jun 2009 12:23:00 +0100 Through the relationship with GML, Federated expects to develop investment opportunities for its high net worth and institutional investors. Trade finance involves financing cross-border imports and exports of goods and services. Historically, investors seeking alternative investment products have had limited opportunities to gain exposure to the trade finance asset class. In 2008 this class generated over $130 billion of new investment opportunities.  The asset class offers investors the potential for attractive returns, historically low default and high recovery rates with low correlation to market indices. The sourcing and structuring of these investments requires specialised resources and expertise. GML is a fund management and ... Mon, 29 Jun 2009 10:38:00 +0100 The intraweek trend also increased, with the TSI up 22.0% from its low of 48.00 on June 22.  By region sentiment in the US increased the most, up 15.7% to 57.01. The UK sentiment was the highest at 59.47, up 5.8%. New long ideas as a percentage of all new ideas sent to investment managers in real time through the TIM increased to 72.55% from 70.92% a week earlier.  The intraweek trend was also positive, with new longs up from their low of 48.96% at the beginning of the week. To date, longs represent 66.50% of ideas in June and 58.35% the ... Mon, 29 Jun 2009 10:25:00 +0100 However banking remains under pressure. Securities traders and investment managers expect the recent improvement in business to be short-lived, with volume declines expected to resume next quarter. According to the latest CBI/PwC Financial Services Survey, the three months to June saw levels of business, income and profitability continue to fall, although at a much slower pace than earlier in 2009. Conditions remain challenging, particularly for the banks, said Ian McCafferty, chief economic adviser at the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), said: "Although demand looks like it is beginning to recover, it is doing so from a very low base. We can ... Mon, 29 Jun 2009 10:23:00 +0100 Karl Cole-Frieman, former general counsel and chief compliance officer at Standard Pacific Capital, a San Francisco based hedge fund manager, has teamed up with Mauricio Beugelmans, a former executive director at Morgan Stanley, to form Cole-Frieman & Beugelmans, a boutique law firm serving investment managers and broker-dealers with offices in New York and San Francisco. The new legal firm works on a broad range of corporate and litigation matters including securities litigation, FINRA arbitration, internal investigations, operational compliance, regulatory risk management, regulatory inquiries, ISDAs and counterparty documentation, loan trading and distressed debt transactions, hedge fund due diligence, marketing and investor ... Mon, 29 Jun 2009 10:08:00 +0100 JP Morgan's investment bank division has agreed to seed several Arden funds as well as put fresh funding into one of Arden's current flagship funds. According to a source at JP Morgan, the principle unit for FoHF investing has been disbanded. This is currently the investment bank's only FoHF mandate. As part of the agreement a team led by Shakil Riaz, chief investment officer of JP Morgan's proprietary FoHFs programme since inception in 1995, will join Arden. Riaz will become a member of the Arden Investment Committee and continue his investment leadership role for funds seeded by the JP Morgan. The existing ... Fri, 26 Jun 2009 18:59:00 +0100 State Street said it will provide fund accounting, fund administration, tax and risk services to five master-feeder fund structures managed by Caxton Associates, the New York-based hedge fund founded by Bruce Kovner in 1983. "This new mandate is representative of a fundamental shift underway in the hedge fund industry, as more managers seek to outsource administrative services in a highly competitive environment in which hedge funds are increasingly subject to intense investor scrutiny," said Jack Klinck, executive vice president at State Street. Investors have put pressure on hedge funds to appoint independent administrators following the discovery of Bernard Madoff's massive Ponzi scheme. Union ... Fri, 26 Jun 2009 08:58:00 +0100 The report recommended investors continue increasing allocations to risky assets like equities and corporate credit. While rapid growth is already underway in Asia, investors have not yet priced in a rebound in the US and Europe. Barclays Capital said this is likely due to lingering fears over household and business balance sheets. While these factors could constrain medium-term growth, Barclays Capital expected positive cyclical developments to continue to dominate market moves over the next few months. "The recovery trade has more room to run," commented Larry Kantor, head of research. "Despite market expectations that the developed countries outside Asia will do no more ... Thu, 25 Jun 2009 18:05:00 +0100 The Marwyn Alternative Capital (MAC) Fund will work with the Royal Bank of Scotland to invest in European countries in the most neglected parts of the market with an enterprise value of up to £1 billion.   Marwyn hopes to raise at least £500 million in various tranches over the lifetime of the fund. According to Mark Watts, managing partner at Marwyn, the fund will invest in companies in the hardest hit and most neglected parts of the market. "There are many good businesses, often with hard pressed management teams that have seen their advisory and financing infrastructure disappear as the equity ... 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