Ex-Citi Emerging Markets Head Plans Hedge Fund (Finalternatives)
Former Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) emerging-markets stock-research chief Rhys Summerton is set to launch a hedge fund with upwards of US$50 million in initial assets. Ascot, U.K.-based Milkwood Capital will launch its maiden fund in September, Bloomberg News reports. Summerton plans to put US$20 million of his own fortune into the project and has won “indications of interest” from potential clients exceeding US$50 million, he said in a pitch letter. Milkwood will employ a global long/short equity strategy, he said.
Stakes are high for firms caught in ego-driven wars (Telegraph)
George Clooney called them carpet baggers; Wall Street prefers the term activist investor. Whatever name you give them, one thing is clear: billionaire hedge fund managers have spent decades using their stakes in major corporations to agitate for change. But lately they have upped the ante. A handful of wealthy investors are becoming more aggressive, both in their demands of the companies they take stakes in, and towards each other. The most intense and riveting rivalry this year has been between Bill Ackman, chief executive of the hedge fund Pershing Square Capital, and billionaire investor Carl Icahn.
Apple stock took top hedge fund holding slot in Q2 (AppleInsider)
Citi analyst Tobias Levkovich noted in his most recent report that Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) remains the most held stock among mutual funds, a position the search giant took from Apple in March of this year. Apple, though, beat out Google, Priceline.com Inc (NASDAQ:PCLN), and QUALCOMM, Inc. (NASDAQ:QCOM) to take first place among hedge fund holdings. Apple previously lost the top spot to insurance giant American International Group, Inc. (NYSE:AIG) in February, according to some estimates. At the time, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) fell to third place behind Google. Google subsequently went on to become the top holding in both hedge and mutual funds in March.
Argentina Just Lost Huge To A Bunch Of Hedge Fund Creditors, And The Judge Was Brutal About It (BusinessInsider)
Argentina just lost its appeal to continue refusing to pay a group of hedge fund managers, led by Paul Singer, $1.6 billion worth of sovereign debt dating back to its $95 billion default in 2001. You can read the full decision here (via Credit Slips). For years the country has been trying to avoid paying a bunch of “vulture” hedge fund managers that refused to take a 70% haircut on Argentine bonds like every other investor. This has resulted in some wacky news items — Paul Singer getting the government of Ghana to impound an Argentine naval ship last October, President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner flying commercial to see the Pope so her jet isn’t taken — you get the idea.
How to Spot a Hedge Fund Fraudster (InstitutionalInvestorsAlpha)
Hoyder Asia is a hedge fund firm based in Shanghai, with offices in Hong Kong and London and some $4.6 billion in assets. The firm’s global macro and long-short equity hedge funds have performed impressively, with the equity funds even reporting gains in 2008, and the firm has won numerous awards from organizations including Alpha and Institutional Investor, according to its website. There is just one catch: There is no evidence that these funds exist. Hoyder has never won any awards from Institutional Investor, Institutional Investor’s Alpha or AsiaHedge, nor has it appeared in any of these publications’ rankings of hedge fund firms or extensive editorial archives…
