Backstabbing, Patronage And Squabbles in French Billionaire Class (Bloomberg)
Arnaud Lagardere is learning the hard way that marriages of convenience in the business world can work for you, and against you. The hedge fund Amber Capital U.K. LLP has for two years been targeting the eponymous Lagardere SCA – a media and retail company founded by Arnaud’s late father, which is now run by the son – for sweeping governance changes. To fend off the activist attack, Lagardere turned to the French establishment for support earlier this year.
Warren Buffett’s Favorite Market Indicator Soars to Record High, Signaling Stocks are Overvalued and a Crash May be Coming (Business Insider)
Warren Buffett’s favorite market indicator surged to a record high on Wednesday, signaling stocks are overvalued and a crash could be around the corner. The so-called Buffett indicator is used to gauge whether the stock market is overvalued or undervalued relative to the size of the economy. It’s calculated by dividing the combined market capitalizations of a country’s publicly traded stocks by its quarterly gross domestic product, and expressed in percentage terms. The Wilshire 5000 Total Market Index was valued at about $35.5 trillion as of Wednesday’s close, while the latest official estimate for second-quarter US GDP is $19.4 trillion.
J4 Capital Reinvents AI-Backed Investing (Opalesque.com)
A new fund is using so-called “superintelligence” to make trading decisions. J4 Capital launched in January, running a unique fund backed by a self-programming computer. J4 is led by Jeff Glickman and Steven Jacobs. Glickman holds foundational patents for machine learning developed in the late 1990s and is the developer of the only known artificial superintelligence (ASI). He previously worked with the Department of Defense, where he worked on artificial intelligence. Steven Jacobs is the youngest MBA in US history, getting his degree at age 19 from Chicago Booth and going on to a lengthy career in securities trading and software development. J4 grew out of the team’s desire to test the limits of artificial intelligence and investing.
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Citadel Hires Ex-Glencore Trader to Head Asia Commodities Trading Team (Reuters)
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Citadel, one of the world’s largest hedge fund managers, said on Thursday it had hired a former Glencore energy derivatives trader to head its first commodities trading team in Asia. Daniel Liu will join Citadel’s commodities business in November as a portfolio manager, initially focused on oil and refined products, a company spokesman said.
Neiman Marcus Asks Judge to Stop Marble Ridge From Disbanding (Bloomberg)
Neiman Marcus Group Inc. asked a judge to prevent hedge fund Marble Ridge Capital from disbanding until the firm guarantees it can pay as much as $55 million in potential damages related to the actions of its founder. The retailer requested a temporary restraining order against the firm and is seeking punitive damages after Marble Ridge’s founder Dan Kamensky was accused of trying to manipulate the bidding process in its bankruptcy case.
Time to Share the Upside (Hedge Nordic)
Stockholm (HedgeNordic) – In early 2016, Swedish asset manager Atlant Fonder launched three new hedge funds charging investors zero performance fees. After meeting their risk-return expectations over the subsequent years, Atlant Fonder has now introduced a performance-based fee of ten percent on returns exceeding the 90-day Swedish treasury bills. Atlant Fonder has also decided to merge two hedge funds employing similar investment strategies. In January 2016, Atlant Fonder launched Atlant Opportunity, Atlant Protect and Atlant Multi-Strategy.
Emerging Markets Hedge Funds Surge as Equities Gain Through Global Pandemic (Reuters)
Emerging Markets and Asian hedge funds surged in Q2 2020, recovering from steep losses experienced in late 1Q, with many indices posting gains for YTD 2020 through July. The HFRI China Index gained 6.8 per cent in July, which followed a 14.5 per cent gain in Q2, the best quarterly performance since Q1 2019, to bring YTD performance to +13.1 per cent, as reported in the HFR Asian Hedge Fund Industry Report and the HFR Emerging Markets Hedge Fund Industry Report. Hedge fund capital invested in Emerging Markets also surged concurrent with the record performance gains, ending Q2 at USD244.4 billion (CNY1.55 trillion, BRL1.24 trillion, INR16.6 trillion, RUB16.9 trillion, SAR842 billion), an increase of nearly USD13 billion from the prior quarter. Hedge fund capital invested in Asian markets also increased to USD115.5 billion (CNY798 billion, INR8.57 trillion, JPY12.28 trillion, KRW1.09 trillion).
