Buffett Warning Unheeded as Catastrophe Bond Sales Climb (Bloomberg)
Bond buyers are betting more than ever on the mercy of Mother Nature as they seek to boost yields being suppressed by central banks. Demand for notes linked to insurance against hurricanes and other natural disasters is prompting investors to accept the lowest relative yields in almost a decade for this time of the year, when the Atlantic storm season gets underway. Buyers are speculating that the $22 billion market can continue its streak without an annual loss even as Warren Buffett said last week that Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.B) is avoiding writing hurricane insurance in Florida because premiums have been pushed too low.
Carl Icahn Buys Into Family Dollar (Wall Street Journal)
Investor Carl Icahn has probably purchased only one thing at Family Dollar Stores, Inc. (NYSE:FDO): its stock. Unfortunately, he’s overlooking many other values at the Matthews, N.C.-based discount retailer. For $3.75, he could buy himself a can of Raid. For just $1, there’s Bazooka bubble gum. For $25, there’s the blowup Tropical Sun Pirate Pool. Mr. Icahn may not feel that he belongs in the pirate pool. He’s not a raider. He’s an activist shareholder. How about a box of Cap’n Crunch for $3? Cap’n Crunch isn’t a pirate, either. He sugarcoats it, too.
Hedge fund Pine River soft closes multi-strategy fund (Opalesque)
Minnesota-based Pine River Capital Management, the $15bn hedge fund firm founded by Brian Taylor, is soft closes its $4.5vn multi-strategy Pine River Fund as it shuns new money because of “challenging environment” for the industry. In a report, the Financial Times said Pine River joins an expanding list of hedge funds that are returning money to investors or closing their funds to new money.
Boston’s AMG near deal to buy D.E. Shaw-stake (MarketWatch)
A Boston investment firm is nearing a deal to buy a stake in hedge-fund giant D.E. Shaw Group for more than $500 million from the estate of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., according to a person familiar with the matter. Affiliated Managers Group, Inc. (NYSE:AMG) has bid for the 20% stake in a deal that would value D.E. Shaw at more than $2 billion. An agreement in principle has been reached but a final deal isn’t imminent and could still fall apart, according to people familiar with the matter.
Cohen, Aarons Descend on Art World’s Davos as Fair Opens (Bloomberg)
Steven A. Cohen and Philip Aarons were among Wall Street investors, billionaire collectors and art advisers with VIP access to the world’s largest modern and contemporary-art fair in Switzerland. The stampede began yesterday at Art Basel, when a section of the fair populated with oversized sculptures and sprawling installations opened to “first-choice” VIPs. Hundreds of people mingled on the plaza outside the exhibition hall drinking champagne. The tiered opening continues today and tomorrow, and the show opens to the general public on June 19.
Argentina’s debt battle (CNBC.com)
Veterans of Closed Hedge Fund Start Anew (Wall Street Journal)
A veteran of hedge fund Asian Century Quest Capital LLC plans to launch a fund later this year, the first spinout from what was once one of the largest hedge-fund firms focused on Asia. ACQ, which managed almost $2 billion as recently as 2012, is in the process of winding down. Paul Saferstein is starting the new stock-hedge fund, Saferidge Capital Partners, in the fourth quarter of this year. The fund, which will bet on and against Asian shares, will be based in New York. Mr. Saferstein said he expects to launch with a roughly five-person investment team, with several joining from ACQ.
U.S. top court rules against Argentina in bonds discovery case (Reuters)
The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday ruled that creditors can seek information about Argentina’s non-U.S. assets in a case about bank subpoenas that is part of the decade-long litigation over Argentina’s obligations to bond investors. The ruling, on a 7-1 vote, was a second win at the high court within minutes for hedge fund NML Capital Ltd, which is seeking payment of court judgments it says are worth around $1.7 billion. The court had earlier denied Argentina’s appeal challenging court injunctions ordering the government to pay $1.33 billion to creditors.
Winton expands long-only range with double launch (Citywire.co.uk)
Winton Capital Management is seeking to replicate the success of its flagship global equity fund with two launches. The group has launched North American and European long-only equity funds, which will be managed in a similar way to the $700 million Winton Global Equity fund, which uses a mathematical, analysis-driven process. The Winton European Equity fund aims to outperform the MSCI Europe index over five years. There is a minimum investment of €1 million for the Z-share class, which has no management fee with a 20% performance fee.
Point72 looks to Goldman Sachs’s Onoe (Independent Online)
Point72 Asset Management LP, Steven A. Cohen’s family office, hired Goldman Sachs Group prime broker Seiji Onoe to head its Japan operations, said a person with knowledge of the matter. Onoe will start his new job at the successor company to Cohen’s hedge-fund firm SAC Capital Advisors LP in July, said the person, who asked not to be identified as the information is private. Jonathan Gasthalter, a spokesman for Point72 at Sard Verbinnen & Company in New York, declined to comment.
Entertainment Hedge Fund Files For Bankruptcy As It Sues Fortress (FINalternatives)
A hedge fund that invests in film and television productions has filed for bankruptcy as it seeks to collect money it says it is owed. Aramid Entertainment Fund sought protection in federal bankruptcy court in New York. The fund, which is in the process of liquidating, has accused Fortress Investment Group of cutting it out of a film-financing deal with Sony Corp.
