Credit Suisse Raises US$1.3B For Brazilian Hedge Fund (Finalternatives)
Credit Suisse Group AG (NYSE:CS)’s Brazilian hedge fund joint-venture has raised more than US$1 billion for its maiden vehicle. Peninsula Investimentos, a partnership between the Swiss bank and 16 executives, netted 3.25 billion reais (US$1.3 billion) for the Peninsula Hedge Master Fundo de Investimento Multimercado, it said in a filing with Brazilian regulators. The fund launched in December and is now closed to new investments. Through this week, the fund is up 7.14% on the year. The fund will invest exclusively in liquid assets, including stocks, bonds and futures.
Hedge fund trackers shooting the lights out (InvestmentNews)
A pair of funds that track hedge fund filings are turning out to be much better at producing alpha than the real McCoys, but questions remain about how they will do if stocks head south. The $117 million Global X Top Holdings ETF (GURU) and the $74.8 million 13D Activist Fund (DDDAX) were both up more than 23% year-to-date through Aug. 21, crushing the S&P 500’s 16% return over the same time period. They funds are also pounding the fabled investors that the funds are mimicking. Through the first six months of this year, the most recently available data, the funds were up 19% and 17%, respectively, while the Morningstar MSCI Composite Hedge Fund Index, an asset-weighted composite of almost 1,000 hedge funds, was up just 7.2%.
Ex-fund manager got help from multiple doctors, US alleges (BostonGlobe)
A former hedge fund portfolio manager charged with carrying out a record-setting insider trading scheme was accused in a rewritten indictment Thursday of trying to corrupt more than 20 doctors into providing an inside edge on a secret clinical trial. The superseding indictment in US District Court in Manhattan said Mathew Martoma succeeded in getting at least two doctors to provide illegal information in a scheme that stretched from 2006 to 2008 while he worked at SAC Capital Advisors. The Boca Raton, Fla., man has pleaded not guilty to conspiracy and securities fraud and is scheduled to appear in court Friday. He is free on bail.
Korea Post Savings seeks new fund of hedge fund managers (Opalesque)
The savings arm of the Korea Post has issued a new RFP seeking fund of hedge fund managers. The announcement follows a similar RFP issued in July for Korea Post Insurance, which closed on August 9. The Korea Post Savings request will close on September 14, 2013. In addition to the RFP, Korea Post has also released an initial questionnaire to guide funds through their proposal process. Within the scope of services, Korea Post is looking for bespoke portfolios for Korea Post Savings, as well as custom deal sourcing.
UBS Global Asset Management to split hedge fund business (HedgeWeek)
UBS Global Asset Management’s Alternative and Quantitative Investments (A&Q) hedge fund platform is being reorganised into two separate business areas with immediate effect. The two businesses are Alternative Investment Solutions (the multi-manager and hedge fund advisory business) and O’Connor (the single manager hedge fund business.) The Alternative Investment Solutions (AIS) business will be led by Bill Ferri. Under his leadership, AIS will be expanded to include additional entrepreneurial businesses in the alternatives arena. Ferri continues to be a member of the UBS Global Asset Management executive committee.
Family Offices Are Increasingly Cautious Of Hedge Funds (Forbes)
Hedge funds as well as pretty much all investment managers are recognizing the wealth – the liquid assets – controlled by family offices. Additionally, there’s a boom in the number of family offices making this cohort all the more attractive and potentially profitable. …“Hedge funds have experienced a remarkable inflow of investment in the past few months, but family offices remain skeptical. The returns aren’t stellar and the fees are a stumbling block,” explains Steffianna Claiden, founder and editor-in-chief of Family Office Review. “The family offices want to know exactly who they are dealing with so the diligence is a bit stiffer.”
When Poison Pills Aren’t Poisonous (InstitutionalInvestorsAlpha)
J.C. Penney Company, Inc. (NYSE:JCP) is the latest company to adopt what is called a short-term shareholder rights plan to protect itself from a hostile takeover. The company says it took this measure so shareholders can “realize the full and fair value of their investment,” the kind of statement that activist investors usually greet with snickers and disgust. The rights plan, also known as a poison pill, expires in one year and is triggered once an investor accumulates at least 10 percent of the stock. But it exempts William Ackman’s New York–based hedge fund firm Pershing Square Capital Management and real estate giant Vornado Realty Trust, its sixth-largest shareholder.
