An investor’s lawsuit against John Paulson’s $23 billion hedge fund over its reported loss of about $460 million in Sino-Forest Corp was dismissed by a federal judge. U.S. District Judge Marcia Cooke in Miami threw out the case saying the investor didn’t have the legal right to sue, according to an order filed March 29. “The plaintiff lacks standing to bring the instant litigation and claim a fiduciary relationship with the defendants,” Cooke wrote. Hugh Culverhouse in a February 2012 complaint sought class- action status on behalf of all investors who lost money in the fund.
Hedge Fund Industry Survey Reveals More than One-Third of Professionals Feel Pressured to Break the Rules in Pursuit of Alpha (PR Newswire)
An independent survey of hedge fund professionals commissioned by law firm Labaton Sucharow LLP, HedgeWorld and the Hedge Fund Association, revealed that nearly half (46%) believe that their competitors engage in illegal activity, more than one third (35%) have personally felt pressure to break the rules, and about one third (30%) have witnessed misconduct in the workplace. When asked if they would blow the whistle or report the misconduct, 87% of respondents said they would report wrongdoing given the protections and incentives such as those offered by the SEC Whistleblower Program.
Barclays prime broker moves to hedge fund (Financial Times)
The head of Barclays PLC (ADR) (NYSE:BCS) prime broking business has left the bank to join Millennium, the $18bn hedge fun run by Israel “Izzy” Englander, according to people familiar with the situation. Ajay Nagpal is expected to join the hedge fund in July as chief operating officer, becoming the latest high profile executive to move from a Wall Street institution to a hedge fund in a sign of the shifting power within finance.
Commodity trader CF Partners launches first hedge fund (Risk.net)
CFP Equity Fund is CF Partners’ first hedge fund. It started trading in December 2012 with $29 million of internal money and it is now open to external investors. “We launched this fund for two reasons. First, we wanted to leverage the in-house energy and regulatory expertise and secondly, Alvaro [Ventosa] became available. It’s a function of strategy and getting the right team,” says Thomas Rassmuson, head of business development at CF Partners.
Hedge Funds Have a Brutal Quarter, but Loeb Stands Out (CNBC)
Vocal activist and founder of Third Point Partners Dan Loeb was the standout, as timely bets on Yahoo, Japan and liquid natural gas play Cheniere Energy drove the firm’s Ultra Fund to a 13.3 percent return through the end of March. The global diversified hedge fund index from Bank of America Merrill Lynch trailed the S&P 500 by 6.8 percentage points in the first quarter. Typically, hedge funds outperform the market in the first quarter, gaining 3.1 percent on average versus a 1.8 percent average S&P 500 return since 1995, according to the Bank of America report.
Sprott Starts First Multimanager Fund to Draw Institution (Bloomberg)
Sprott Asset Management LP, the Toronto-based firm founded by Eric Sprott, started its first global macro multimanager fund as it seeks to attract institutional investors seeking low volatility. The Sprott Macro Managers Fund was seeded today with an undisclosed amount of the firm’s own money, according to Co- Chief Investment Officer John Wilson. The fund will have eight portfolio managers focused on various asset classes, all of whom already work at Sprott, including Wilson and co-CIO Scott Colbourne, he said yesterday in a telephone interview.
Advent Earns Coveted IAIR Hedge Fund Award (Marketwire)
Advent Software, Inc. (NASDAQ:ADVS), a leading provider of software and services for the global investment management industry, today announced that Advent was awarded for ‘Excellence in Alternative Investments’ in the category of ‘Technology Provider’ during the 3rd annual International Alternative Investment Review (IAIR) Hedge Fund Awards, which took place in Hong Kong. The annual award recognizes Advent’s track record as one of the most innovative companies transforming the global alternative investments industry.
14% Jump in New Hedge Funds with Equities Strategies (HedgeCo.Net)
Seward & Kissel, the law firm that helped create the first hedge fund in 1949, announced its second annual study of New Hedge Funds in the U.S. The New Hedge Fund Study: 2012 Edition, has revealed that 64% of new funds covered by the study had equity or equity-related strategies, up 14% from the 2011 study.
Hedge fund investors divided on SAC probe (Risk.net)
‘Le Rêve’ fetched the highest price ever for a Picasso even though it was badly damaged in 2006 when its former owner, the casino magnate Steve Wynn, accidentally put his elbow through the canvas. By all accounts the painting was expertly repaired and the mishap did not diminish its value. Cohen hopes investors will feel the same way about SAC Capital Advisors after it agreed to pay a record $616 million to settle allegations of insider trading at two of its affiliated entities.
Hedge Fund Association extends reach with three new regional chapters (Opalesque)
The Hedge Fund Association today announced three appointments that demonstrate its continuing expansion. The HFA has appointed regional directors to head its newly established chapters in Australia (Adriana Kostov), Texas (Mark A Feanny, M.D.) and Utah (Ronnie Hale). These are all territories in which the HFA has not previously been represented.
UK hedge fund threatens AustralianSuper (Business Spectator)
A London-based hedge fund that owns a stake in Australian Infrastructure Fund (AIF) has threatened legal action against AustralianSuper if the large superannuation fund follows through on possible legal action against the Future Fund and the trustee of AIF.
GLG Partners Hires Deutsche Bank’s Mohit Kumar for Fixed Income (Bloomberg)
GLG Partners, a hedge-fund unit of Man Group Plc, has hired Mohit Kumar from Deutsche Bank AG, where he was head of European interest-rate strategy. “I can confirm that Mohit Kumar will be joining,” Laura Humble, a spokeswoman for Man Group said today by phone.
Hedge fund managers fail with retailers (FierceFinance)
But running an activist hedge fund does not give one the chops to run a company. So concludes the Washington Post in an article about of the state of JCPenney, under the influence of Bill Ackman of Pershing Square Capital Management, and Sears and Kmart, under the influence of Eddie Lampert of ESL Investment.
