Editor’s Note: Related tickers: The Blackstone Group L.P. (NYSE:BX), Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL)
George Soros would like the world to know he’s still alive. Thomson Reuters accidentally published a templated version of an obituary of the legendary investor earlier this evening. The story, which contained “XXXs” used as placeholders, is being taken down, according to a spokeswoman. A representative of Mr. Soros’s firm, Soros Fund Management told The Wall Street Journal that “George Soros is alive and well.” At 82, Mr. Soros remains involved in his firm, travels regularly to give speeches and is active in philanthropy. His firm, which now is run by Scott Bessent, manages about $24 billion. The firm has made more than $1.2 billion on bets against the Japanese yen and on the Japanese stock market in recent months. “We did publish an obituary of George Soros in error,” said Barb Burg, head of communications at Reuters.
Breaking into the hedge-fund world is harder than before (Economist)
IF SETTING up a hedge fund were easy, more people would do it: bar inheritance or winning the lottery, there are few swifter paths to immense riches. Sadly for aspiring plutocrats, it is getting ever harder to launch a fund. Swaggering financiers once joked that launching with less than $1 billion of outside money to invest was hardly worth their time. Debuts that splashy are now notable only for their scarcity. A new fund typically opens with $50m-100m in assets under management. Even so, and despite buoyant stockmarkets, the number of launches is declining (see chart). Punier funds make for a less attractive business model. A $50m pile might once have been enough to sustain a small firm. Creaming off 2% of assets and 20% of profits—the standard hedge-fund fee formula—could generate around $2m a year given decent performance. No longer. Declining fees and low industry-wide returns have halved that amount.
Artemis Alpha Trust PLC : Artemis strengthens UK Growth team (4-Traders)
Artemis Investment Management LLP is delighted to announce that Paul Casson has joined them to help Tim Steer manage the GBP504 million Artemis UK Growth Fund, segregated institutional UK Growth accounts and the Artemis UK Hedge Fund. After a BSc in Accounting and two years as an auditor, Paul started his investment career in 1997 with Martin Currie. In 2001 he moved to SVM and then in 2005 to Henderson as a Director of pan-European equities. The Henderson Horizon Pan-European Alpha Fund he ran from 2008 was AA-rated by S&P. Paul has an MSc in Investment Analysis. He is a member of the CFA Institute and a member of UKSIP.
Hedge fund exit requests seen stable in coming months (Reuters)
Client demands to pull money out of hedge funds fell in April and are expected to remain at a steady level in the coming months as investors wait to see how funds cope with the continuing European debt crisis. Hedge fund administrator SS&C GlobeOp’s forward redemption indicator, a monthly snapshot of clients giving notice to withdraw their cash as a percentage of assets under administration, stood at 2.95 percent in April. This was its lowest since January and a marked decline from March, when it reached 4.33 percent on concern that Cyprus would default following a banking crisis.
RBC Hedge 250 Index returns 1.35 percent (AssetServicingTimes)
RBC Capital Markets reported that for the month of March 2013 the RBC Hedge 250 Index had a net return of 1.35 percent. This brings the year-to-date return of the Index to 3.40 percent. These returns are estimated and will be finalised by the middle of next month. The return for February 2013 has been finalized at 0.38 percent. The RBC Hedge 250 Index is a non-investable benchmark of the performance of the hedge fund industry, and currently consists of 4,604 hedge funds (excludes funds of hedge funds) with aggregate assets under management of $1.152 trillion.
HFR’s UCITS hedge fund index down 1.08% so far in April (+1.28% YTD) (Opalesque)
UCITS-compliant Hedge Funds posted a decline through mid-April, with the HFRU Hedge Fund Composite Index declining -1.08%. HFRU Equity Hedge Index declined -1.62% through mid-April from exposure concentrated in European equity and quantitative strategies, partially offset by idiosyncratic exposure to Emerging Europe, Asia and market neutral strategies. HFRU Event Driven Index posted a decline of -0.20% through mid-April from exposure to Credit, Global Equity Special Situations and Merger Arbitrage strategies. HFRU Macro Index declined of -1.09% through mid-April, from declines in Fixed Income, Commodity and quantitative CTA strategies and mixed performance of Multi-Strategy funds.
Investors, broker take stand in fraud trial (DailyPress)
It was late 2008 that Edgar “Mel” Woolard met with Jeffrey A. Martinovich about trying to keep Woolard’s nest egg from losing any more value during the financial crisis. The retired shipyard worker testified Thursday that Martinovich, then the CEO of MICG Investment Management, advised Woolard to invest in a hedge fund. “I always trusted Jeff,” Woolard testified. “I didn’t know what a hedge fund was. I thought Jeff would take care of me.” Woolard agreed to move $75,000 into the Venture Strategies hedge fund from his retirement account. That was on top of another $100,000 Woolard already had in a separate MICG hedge fund.
Hedge funds siphon off America’s wealth (SLTrib)
From the “nice work if you can get it” desk, The New York Times business section offered this headline the other day: “Pay Stretching to 10 Figures.” No, this isn’t about innovators being paid for their smart and indispensable products, a la Steve Jobs. It is a story of hedge fund managers, the tin-pot potentates of the financial world. They are America’s top-dog moneymakers, pulling in more than movie stars, top athletes, even banking CEOs. They tend to shun the spotlight, and for good reason. An average family would have to work for 18 years and 146 days to make what an average hedge fund manager makes in one hour. We must all look like barbarians at the gate to them.
Hedge fund boss makes $1bn debut on Rich List (TheTimes)
The Moscow-born head of Pamplona Capital Management has shot into The Sunday Times Rich List of the wealthiest hedge fund managers with a fortune estimated at just over £1 billion. Alexander Knaster, who used to work on oil rigs in the Gulf of Mexico, is chairman and chief executive of Pamplona, a hedge fund and private equity group that operates from offices in Park Lane. He has close links to the Russian oligarch Mikhail Fridman, who has backed Pamplona, and previously ran Russia’s Alfa Bank, where Mr Fridman is chairman.
Insight into March Hedge Fund Performance (LiveTradingNews)
The Dow Jones Credit Suisse Hedge Fund Index finished up 1.21% in March. A new monthly commentary offers insight into hedge fund performance through the month of March. Some key findings from the report include: Hedge funds, as measured by the Dow Jones Credit Suisse Hedge Fund Index, finished March up 1.21%, with 9 out of 10 strategies in positive territory; In total, the industry saw estimated outflows of approximately $1.78 billion in March, bringing overall assets under management for the industry to approximately $1.82 trillion;
Marc Faber: gold’s plunge is an ‘excellent buying opportunity’ (MoneyWeek)
The huge drop in the gold price is great news, says Marc Faber, one of gold’s best-known fans. “I love the markets. I love the fact that gold is finally breaking down. That will offer an excellent buying opportunity”, said Faber in an interview with US financial news channel Bloomberg. At the time of the interview gold was at $1,480 an ounce and falling. Faber admitted it could go as low as $1,300. But even so “the bull market in gold is not completed”, says Faber.
Blackstone Ends Pursuit of Dell (WSJ)
The Blackstone Group L.P. (NYSE:BX) -2.25% has ended its pursuit of Dell Inc. (NASDAQ:DELL) -0.14% less than a month after the private-equity firm said it would try to top a leveraged buyout by the computer maker’s founder and a rival investment firm. Blackstone had been putting together a bid for Dell to trump the $24.4 billion offer from founder and Chief Executive Michael Dell and private-equity firm Silver Lake Partners. The Blackstone Group L.P. (NYSE:BX)’s offer would have kept part of the company in the hands of public shareholders.
Gold slide flashes warning signs for global economy (Reuters)
The plunge in the gold price in the past week may have raised a big red flag over the global economy. Some top investors say the gold sell-off, and the broader declines in oil and metals prices, reflect the failure of the Federal Reserve and other central banks to create robust demand even as they inject massive amounts of money into the world financial system. …Some see the move in gold as a possible flashpoint for a broader economic and markets shock comparable to the collapse of hedge fund Long-Term Capital Management in 1998 and even the financial crisis a decade later. Both events were preceded by sharp drops in gold.
SEC Charges Chicago-Based Investment Adviser with Defrauding CalPERS and Other Clients (SEC)
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged the CEO of Chicago-based investment advisory firm Simran Capital Management with lying to the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) and other current and potential clients about the amount of money managed by the firm. Institutional investors such as CalPERS often use assets under management (AUM) as a metric to screen prospective investment advisers soliciting their business. An SEC investigation revealed that while pitching Simran’s services, Umesh Tandon falsely certified to CalPERS that his firm satisfied its minimum AUM requirements.
Oklahoma Police Pension doles out $7.5 million to Southpoint Capital (PIOnline)
Oklahoma Police Pension & Retirement System, Oklahoma City, invested $7.5 million in a global long/short equity hedge fund managed by Southpoint Capital Advisors, confirmed Steven Snyder, executive director and chief investment officer. It is the $2 billion pension fund’s seventh direct investment in a hedge fund; the investments are being funded through the redemption of an Attalus Capital hedge fund-of-funds portfolio.
Stoolie turns up heat on Steve (NYPost)
More bad news has landed at the doorstep of billionaire hedge-fund honcho Steven Cohen. Cohen, who just had his ex-wife’s racketeering lawsuit against him revived, learned yesterday that a former employee of his $14 billion SAC Capital Advisors has become quite the government stoolie. Jon Horvath, an analyst with SAC’s Sigma Capital unit until his arrest last year on insider-trading charges, pleaded guilty last September. The government was given until March 31 to say whether he should be sentenced.
