Hedge Fund Firm Wants to Block Cayman Transparency Reforms (HispanicBusiness)
One of the largest hedge fund services firms in the Cayman Islands is attempting to block reforms that would make the world’s principal offshore location for hedge funds more transparent. DMS Management, a provider of hedge fund management and fiduciary services, including the provision of so called independent directors for Cayman registered funds, has filed a law suit against the local financial services regulator, the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA), seeking to prevent the agency from moving forward with a number of proposed transparency and corporate governance reforms.
Asian Pay Television IPO Draws Soros, Prudential (WSJ)
Financier George Soros and Prudential Financial Inc (NYSE:PRU) +2.16% PLC’s funds arm are among the nine investors in the latest Southeast Asian initial public offering to attract foreign interest: the up to 1.4 billion Singapore dollar (US$1.1 billion) listing of Taiwanese pay-television operator Asian Pay Television Trust. Asian Pay Television Trust is the investment vehicle of Taiwan Broadband Communications, which is owned by two funds managed by Australia’s Macquarie Group Ltd. MQG.AU +10.88% —the Macquarie International Infrastructure Fund, or MIIF, and Macquarie Korea Opportunities Fund. Asian Pay Television said in a prospectus filed with the Monetary Authority of Singapore that the nine cornerstone investors will take up nearly S$451 million of the IPO, or about a third of the deal, at the top end of the price range. It is selling 1.44 billion units at S$1 each. The bottom end of the price range has been kept at 92 Singapore cents per share, a person with knowledge of the deal said.
Why Dr. Doom Is Bullish on Stocks (Business2Community)
Economist Nouriel Roubini, also known as Dr. Doom, is finally on board with the stock market upswing; in fact, he believes the stock market can go even higher over the next two years. Now, if you are familiar with the often bearish opinions of Roubini, you’ll know that his hawkish view of the stock market is somewhat bizarre, but you’ll also understand why he thinks this way. The thinking behind Roubini’s view is similar to my own view on the stock market. Roubini believes that the concerted move by the world’s central banks to provide easy access to money via aggressive monetary policy is helping to drive the current buying in the stock market.
Buffett Lieutenants Score Big Payday (WSJ)
Warren Buffett told investors in March he “hit the jackpot” hiring two former hedge-fund managers to help run Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (NYSE:BRK.B) +1.11% investing business. Todd Combs and Ted Weschler likely feel the same way. Each stands to make at least $27 million—and probably much more—in bonuses for 2012, according to an analysis by The Wall Street Journal of company data and Mr. Buffett’s public comments. The payouts reflect the double-digit percentage gains in both managers’ investment portfolios above the Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index. The sums are a fraction of what some hedge-fund titans make, but they catapult Messrs. Combs and Weschler into the ranks of highly paid U.S. public-company employees.
Backstop Acquires PerTrac CMS from eVestment (HedgeCo)
Backstop Solutions Group (BSG), a leading Software-as-a-Service provider to the alternative asset management industry, announces the acquisition of the PerTrac CMS product line, a specialized customer relationship management tool built exclusively for the institutional investment community, from eVestment, a premier global provider of comprehensive institutional investment data and intelligence solutions. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. With this acquisition, Backstop now serves over 575 clients in the private investment community, including hedge funds, funds of hedge funds, endowments and foundations, institutional investors, family offices, pensions, private equity firms and consultants. Backstop also opened new offices in New York and London this week to accommodate existing Backstop employees as well as new Backstop team members coming over from eVestment.
