Greece courts Paulson in attempt to revive state asset sale plan (Ekathimerini)
Greece’s Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund is courting U.S. hedge funds as it seeks to lure investment in everything from ports to islands to finance the country’s bailout. Officials at the privatization fund, charged with raising 11 billion euros ($15 billion) through state asset sales by 2016, met with billionaire hedge-fund manager John Paulson in New York earlier this week, according to the directors. Funds from Paulson & Co. to Third Point LLC, which profited from wagers that European officials would rescue the indebted nation as government bond yields peaked last year, have expressed interest in the assets, he said.
Open Protocol sign-ups expected to double by end of 2014 (MyInvestorCircle)
Albourne Partners is expecting the number of hedge fund managers reporting under the Open Protocol Enabling Risk Aggregation (‘Open Protocol’), its risk reporting initiative, to double by Assets under Management (AuM) to around $1.5 trillion by the end of 2014. At present, more than 350 funds with approximately $700 billion in AuM are submitting Open Protocol reports. Open Protocol, which went live in November 2011, struggled to gain traction until relatively recently with a number of hedge funds complaining it added to their already extensive workload.
Hedge fund launches fall to three-year low (AssetServicingTimes)
New hedge fund launches declined to the lowest level in nearly three years in Q3 2013, while the number of hedge fund liquidations rose to the highest level since Q4 2012, according to the HFR Market Microstructure Industry Report. The trends in launches and liquidations occurred in Q3 as US regulators proceeded toward approval of the Volcker Rule. The Volker Rule prohibits companies affiliated with banking entities from taking short positions with certain securities and derivatives. New fund launches totalled 231 for Q3, declining from 288 in the prior quarter and 275 in Q3 2012, representing the lowest quarterly launch total since the Q4 2010 when 220 funds were launched.
US hedge funds threaten EU boycott (Risk)
Scores of US hedge funds may stop actively marketing their funds to European investors once the transition period for EU’s alternative investment fund managers directive (AIFMD) expires on July 22, 2014. The move is a response to AIFMD’s transparency rules, which require non-EU hedge funds actively offering investment products in the region to disclose sensitive information. The reporting requirements are extensive and cover everything from the fund’s leverage and liquidity profile to its asset class and counterparty exposures. Hedge funds also have to disclose information on their compensation practices and side-letter agreements to investors.
JOBS Act: Surfing Hedge Fund Video Goes Viral In Financial Circles (HedgeCo)
In November of this year $100 million hedge fund investor Topturn Capital aligned itself with professional Australian surfer Joe Curren. Today, the hedge fund reports that over 6,000 people watched the marketing pitch in four days, easily surpassing any other traditional hedge fund “marketing deck’s” reach. “We feel that how we represent our company will change the industry norm,” Greg Stewart, Co-Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Top Turn Capital, said. “People look at numbers all day everyday. We just brought in The Trojan Horse (JoeCurren) for our investment strategy by introducing a surfer into the equation.”
Fraudulent Fund Faces SEC In “Make A Lot Of Money” Scheme, 6 Charged (HedgeCo)
Another “get rich scheme” is under fire by the SEC today after a Swiss-based “hedge fund,” Malom Group AG, and six individuals in Las Vegas and Zurich raised $11 million from U.S. investors by using a series of lies and forged documents to steer them into seemingly successful foreign trading programs that were nothing more than vehicles to steal money. The company is named with an acronym for “Make A Lot Of Money.” The SEC announced fraud charges when it was exposed that the company had advance fee schemes guaranteeing astronomical returns to investors in purported prime bank transactions and overseas debt instruments.
