Trish Regan, Einhorn apologist (Reuters)
Ever since the story first broke, more than five weeks ago, that David Einhorn was suing Seeking Alpha, the Israeli financial website has been very, very quiet on the topic. Sometimes they have simply failed to respond at all to requests for comment (including mine); other times, as with Andrew Ross Sorkin, a spokesman will formally decline to comment. So it was a big deal when Seeking Alpha president David Siegel appeared on Bloomberg TV today, and answered Trish Regan’s questions about the Einhorn lawsuit. Or, at least, it would have been a big deal, if Regan had actually bothered to ask him any of the obvious questions…
Trafigura Founder Dauphin Exits as CEO for Medical Treatment (BusinessWeek)
Trafigura Beheer BV, the world’s second-biggest metals trader, said 63-year-old Claude Dauphin stepped aside as chief executive officer for medical treatment and will be replaced by the head of its mining unit. The exit of the Marc Rich protege and Trafigura co-founder forced the company to accelerate succession plans, naming Jeremy Weir as CEO immediately, Victoria Dix, a spokeswoman, said today by phone. She declined to identify Dauphin’s medical condition. Weir, an Australian who joined the Amsterdam-based company in 2001 and also led its hedge fund Galena Asset Management, was due to take over at the end of September, Dix said…
Ex-Deutsche Bank Trader’s Hedge Fund Has No Trouble Hitting Fundraising Target (Finalternatives)
Investors have flocked to a new hedge fund planned by a former Deutsche Bank AG (USA) (NYSE:DB) trader. Hollis Park Partners has won $225 million in commitments—$25 million more than its initial target, HFMWeek reports. The New York-based firm has decided to close to new investment as a result, albeit temporarily. Hollis Park was founded by former Deutsche Bank mortgage trader Troy Dixon and is set to launch its first fund in July. The fund will focus on structured mortgage finance.
Hedge Fund Buying Claims From 1983 Terrorist Attack (Finalternatives)
Iran is still a pariah in the international community, but one hedge fund thinks it will eventually pay $1.8 billion as ordered by a U.S. court. RD Legal Capital hopes to raise up to $100 million to buy the rights to payments from families of the 241 U.S. Marines killed in a terrorist attack in Lebanon in 1983. A federal court in 2007 found Iran liable for the truck-bomb attack, which led to the withdrawal of U.S. troops from war-torn Lebanon. Iran, of course, is not on the best of terms with the U.S., and the two countries do not have diplomatic relations. Still, Iran’s central bank is appealing the $1.8 billion verdict against it.
10 things we discovered from the UK watchdog’s hedge fund probe (CityAM)
Scrutiny of the notoriously secretive world of hedge funds is growing. Today the Financial Conduct Authority, the UK City regulator, published the findings of a study into 49 firms operating 106 hedge funds in the London. Here’s what we found out: 1. 20 per cent of the global hedge fund industry’s $2.6 trillion of assets are based in the UK and 450 firms are registered with the FCA. 2. The hedge fund industry is not as big as the real estate and private equity sector – it ranks behind both in terms of asset under management as the third biggest type of alternative investment asset class…
Carl Icahn To Get Three More Board Seats at Herbalife Ltd. (HLF) (InsiderMonkey)
Carl Icahn and Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF) have strengthened their ties, with the company having agreed to offer Icahn more board seats. According to an amended filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Herbalife will put up for election three representatives of Icahn: Hunter Gary, Jesse Lynn, and James Nelson. Mr Gary and Mr Lynn are candidates for Class I directors, while Mr. Nelson is to be elected as Class II director. The election will take place at the company’s 2014 Annual Shareholders’ Meeting, scheduled for April 29. This new agreement will give Carl Icahn 5 board seats out of the total number of 13 seats. Following the announcement, the shares of Herbalife have jumped as much as 9% and are currently trading at $53.50 apiece.
