Billionaire Dan Och’s Hedge Fund Firm Is Getting Really Big (Forbes)
Billionaire hedge fund manager Dan Och has not been impressing Wall Street with fantastic returns in recent years, but he has been excelling at another key aspect of the hedge fund game: raising money from outside investors. Depending on how one views the assets of the largest hedge fund firms, an argument can be made that Och is now the world’s second-biggest hedge fund manager.
Waterfall Launches Offshore Funds (Finalternatives)
Waterfall Asset Management, the $2.9 billion New York-based credit hedge fund, has launched a pair of Caymans-based funds. The firm has raised $220 million for the Waterfall Sandstone Fund and $71 million for the Waterfall Olympic Offshore Fund, the latter of which carries a $100,000 minimum investment, according to regulatory filings.
Billionaire Tom Steyer Devotes Extra Greenbacks To Green Candidates (JewishBusinessNews)
Tom Steyer is giving more green for green politics, as he sets his eyes on the Washington State elections and crucial environmental legislation. He has already entrustd $750,000 in a spending match to attempt to de-seat Florida governor and climate change denier, Rick Scott. Now Steyer and his environmental organization, NextGen Climate, is aiming for victories in 3 to 4 campaigns in Washington State. Currently, the Democrats are just 2 seats shy of a crucial majority needed to push cap and trade legislation with the aim of reducing carbon emissions.
1,400 Hedge Fund Leaders Expected At The 2014 Rocktoberfest (HedgeCo)
A Leg To Stand On (ALTSO) is hosting their 11th Annual Hedge Fund Rocktoberfest – NYC at Capitale on October 22nd and our 3rd Annual Rocktoberfest – Chicago at City Winery on October 8th. ALTSO is a registered 501(c)3 non-profit that provides free orthopedic care – prosthetic limbs, orthotic devices, mobility aids, corrective surgery and physiotherapy – to children with limb disabilities in the developing world as a means of fulfilling its mission to offer such children the physical capabilities needed to access the opportunities and self esteem earned through education, work and mobility.
Suddenly, Bill Ackman Isn’t Doing So Bad On Herbalife (BusinessInsider)
Shares of Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF) slipped below $50 on Wednesday morning. That means hedge fund manager Bill Ackman, who runs Pershing Square, could be getting closer to breaking even on his infamous short. It’s believed that Ackman shorted Herbalife in the mid-$40s. (In October 2013, he repositioned about 40% of his equity short position.) The stock has dipped as low as $48.92 so far today. That’s also a 52-week low.
Hedge Funds Betting Against Banco Espírito Santo in Line for Big Gains (WSJ)
A handful of hedge funds may have made tens of millions of dollars on the collapse of troubled Portuguese lender Banco Espírito Santo SA BES.LB -40.30%. One of the biggest funds to bet the bank’s shares would fall was Marshall Wace LLP, which initially made the wager on May 15, according to a filing with the Portuguese regulator. The shares were then trading at around 99 euro cents. The London-based hedge fund would have made a profit of around €27 million ($36 million) from the position if it closed the position at 12 cents, the price when the shares were suspended.
All about geopolitics: Trader (CNBC)
Nomura Asset Management announces alliance with Tokyo-based HF incubation firm (PIOnline)
Nomura Asset Management announced an alliance Wednesday with Bridge Capital Asset Management Co., a Tokyo-based hedge fund incubation firm. Under an agreement reached by the two firms, Nomura Asset Management will invest up to 3 billion yen (US$29.3 million) in Bridge Capital’s incubation fund for hedge fund managers focused on Japanese equities, with an option to take an equity stake in the firm in the future. A Nomura spokesman said his firm’s capital commitment will be drawn down as and when Bridge Capital identifies new incubation candidates.
Contrarian’s Schwartz Joins PIMCO (Finalternatives)
Hedge-fund manager Ethan Schwartz has joined Pacific Investment Management Co. as the troubled bond-fund giant seeks to diversify into other asset classes. Schwartz joined the California firm in New York as a money manager, focused on distressed credit. He formerly covered that area as a senior analyst at Contrarian Capital Management, where the former journalist helped manage about $2.7 billion.
Avenue Capital Sues Quiznos Former Ownership for Fraud (BlueMaumau)
Multi-billionaire hedge fund investors Avenue Capital and Fortress Investments filed a federal lawsuit against Quiznos former owners Richard ‘Ric’ Schaden,father Dick Schaden and key executives. The complaint alleges that they engaged in a “conspiracy to defraud” when the investors took over the troubled sandwich chain in 2012. The lawsuit claims Quiznos’ management team put together the conspiracy in an effort to induce the investment firms to purchase equity in the franchise company, inject liquidity into it by Avenue Capital, and restructure debt that Quiznos owed to the investors…
The Alphas and Betas of Hedge Funds (WSJ)
Hedge funds remind investors that there are viable alternatives to timing the traditional stock and bond markets as a way to manage risk and generate positive returns. On the plus side, they demonstrate that investment opportunities exist in every market, in every business cycle. On the negative side, they are not for every investor. While they may succeed in reducing systematic risk, they still can be highly risky investments, due to leverage and illiquidity. Hedge funds can offer outsize expected returns to investors, but the biggest returns by far go to those who manage the funds.
Ledbury launches maiden equity and special sits hedge fund (Opalesque)
Ledbury, an emerging hedge fund shop launched by Michael Alsalem, started trading last month. Ledbury Capital Partners LLP is a London-based investment manager specializing in deep value special situations European equities and co-founded by CIO Michael Alsalem and COO Chude Chidi-Ofong, according to Wells Fargo & Co (NYSE:WFC). Previously Alsalem worked at Centaurus Capital, Highbridge Capital Management, Kingdon Capital and K Capital; and Chude Chidi-Ofong worked at Eton Park International LLP, Caxton Europe Asset Management Ltd and DE Capital Management LLP.
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