Covalis Criticises Italy’s Institutional Investor Club Ahead of Enel AGM (Reuters)
Rebel Enel investor Covalis criticised Italy’s institutional investor club Assogestioni for not seeking an independent chair at the utility and called for a new organisation to promote corporate governance reform. Hedge fund Covalis, which owns around 1% of state-controlled Enel, has presented a slate of six nominees for the board of the energy group, challenging the list presented by Italy’s Treasury.
Neil Chriss Joins Paloma as CEO and Co-CIO (Opalesque)
An experienced hedge fund manager and finance industry leader, Chriss will also serve alongside Paloma‘s founder, Chairman, and co-Chief Investment Officer, S. Donald Sussman, as co-Chief Investment Officer. “Paloma was founded on a new approach to investing, and for 42 years, it has worked to break new ground in extracting value from ever-changing markets. The current market environment is advantageous for multi-strategy hedge funds like Paloma, and I believe Neil will help us maximize a range of robust investment opportunities for our investors. Neil has broad and deep experience investing in all the strategies in which Paloma is active. He brings both fresh ideas and seasoned leadership, and his experience across the financial sector will complement our strong team,” said Sussman. “I look forward to working closely with Neil and the rest of the Paloma management team as we together build Paloma for its next half century.”
US Hedge Fund Manager Wagner to Acquire Birmingham City Stake (Bloomberg)
The Chinese owners of Birmingham City Football Club have agreed to sell their shares to US hedge fund manager Tom Wagner. Chinese investor Paul Suen’s Hong Kong-listed Birmingham Sports Holdings Ltd. will transfer its 24% stake in the Championship tier club’s owner to Shelby Companies Ltd., an entity managed by Wagner, according to a club press release confirming a Bloomberg News report. Co-owners Oriental Rainbow Investments and Achiever Global Group also agreed to transfer an additional 21.64% to Wagner, as well as St. Andrew’s stadium.
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Peter Nygard Ordered to Pay Billionaire Neighbor $203 Million in Damages After Driveway Feud Escalated to Accusations of Arson and Ku Klux Klan Links (Business Insider)
A hedge fund billionaire has been awarded $203 million after a New York court ruled he was defamed by his former Bahamas neighbor Peter Nygard following a decade-long feud ignited by a shared driveway. Nygard, a disgraced fashion mogul facing several sex trafficking charges, was ordered by a New York court-appointed judge to pay the biggest defamation settlement in the state’s history to Moore Capital Management founder Louis Bacon after peddling several wild allegations.
Hedge Funds Face Into Bank Turmoil With Epic Short Treasury Bets (Advisor Perspectives)
Hedge funds supercharged bearish Treasury bets to historic levels just days before the US banking turmoil took a turn for the worse and spurred a stampede for the world’s safest assets. Leveraged funds boosted overall shorts on US bond futures to a fresh record in the week of May 2, according to a gauge of aggregate net positions based on the latest data from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. That’s a seventh straight week of ramped-up bearish bets — the longest streak since 2017.
Exelixis, Facing Challenge from Farallon, Says Willsey to Exit Board (Reuters)
Biotechnology company Exelixis (EXEL.O) said on Sunday that Lance Willsey was leaving its board and that it would not contest the election of a dissident director candidate amid a proxy battle with investor Farallon Capital Management. “The board supports Dr. Willsey’s decision, which will end the need for Farallon to continue its proxy campaign,” Exelixis, which develops cancer therapies, said in a statement late on Sunday.
Big Hedge Funds Face New 72-Hour Deadline to Report Losses (The Straits Times)
WASHINGTON – The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) wants to be let in on some of Wall Street’s most confidential information – and quickly. In a first, the SEC is going to require big hedge funds to share with regulators major investment losses in near real time. The rule, approved on Wednesday, marks a significant shift for an industry that tends to prize its secrecy. It also promises to add to businesses’ administrative headaches. Until now, funds have generally had to report positions in quarterly public filings.
Hong Kong VC Firm CCMC Launches $100M Blockchain Fund Focusing on Asia (Coin Geek)
Hong Kong-based venture capital (VC) firm CCMC Global has revealed the launch of a new fund for the blockchain space in Asia amid concerns about dwindling funding for the industry. According to a Bloomberg report, the Richard Li-backed VC firm’s new fund is worth an impressive $100 million for blockchain firms in Hong Kong. Martin Bauman, CCMC’s co-founder, pointed out that Hong Kong firms in the Series A and B stages of their growth will be given significant attention while promising startups across Asia will be considered.
Monday 5/8 Insider Buying Report: ATVI, VIRT (Nasdaq.com)
On Wednesday, Activision Blizzard’s Director, Peter J. Nolan, made a $1.00M purchase of ATVI, buying 13,160 shares at a cost of $75.99 a piece. Activision Blizzard, is trading off about 0.1% on the day Monday. And on Thursday, Chief Executive Officer Douglas A. Cifu purchased $842,425 worth of Virtu Financial, purchasing 50,000 shares at a cost of $16.85 each. Virtu Financial is trading off about 1.4% on the day Monday. Cifu was up about 5.1% on the buy at the high point of today’s trading session, with VIRT trading as high as $17.70 in trading on Monday.
Around $3M Bet On This Financial Services Stock? Check Out These 3 Stocks Insiders Are Buying (Benzinga)
American Assets Trust: The Trade: American Assets Trust, Inc. (AAT) Chairman and CEO Ernest Rady acquired a total 320,000 shares an average price of $17.78. To acquire these shares, it cost around $5.69 million. CNA Financial: The Trade: CNA Financial Corporation (CNA) 10% owner Loews Corp acquired a total of 75,025 shares at an average price of $38.97. To acquire these shares, it cost around $2.92 million.
