Fitch Gives Olympia Capital A 'B'

April 4, 2006

From FINalternatives:
Fitch Ratings, the agency that is beginning to grade funds of hedge funds, has given its first rating to Olympia Capital Management. And Mr. and Mrs. Olympia Capital can be pretty proud of their child.

Olympia received the second highest rating possible: FoHF M2 (Strong), based on “considerable experience the firm has acquired in FoHF management since its debut in 1989, the high profile of its senior management and the strong processes in place for hedge fund selection, portfolio construction and risk management.” Fitch will continue to monitor Olympia Capital Management on an on-going basis.

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Russell To Close Two Funds Of Hedge Funds

April 3, 2006

From FINalternatives:
Russell Investments is shuttering a pair of funds of hedge funds battered by poor returns and an avalanche of investor redemptions.

Russell, which also runs its famed eponymous indices, had already restricted investor withdrawals in its Alternative Strategies Fund and Alternatives Strategies Fund 2.

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GAM Beefs Up Multi-Manager Team

March 19, 2006

From FINalternatives:
Asset management firm GAM has tapped Richard Silver to serve as head of GAM Multi-Manager (New York) and Jeffrey Rose as investment manager.

The pair will be based in New York and will join GAM from US-based fund of hedge funds boutique Condor Capital.

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Hedge fund 4Q launches up, liquidations down

March 19, 2006

From InvestmentNews:
The pace of hedge fund launches and liquidations slowed during the fourth quarter of 2007, with 288 new funds launched and 154 funds liquidated, according Hedge Fund Research Inc. of Chicago.

For all of 2007, 1,152 new funds were started, while 563 fund were liquidated and returned the remaining capital to investors.

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S&P: Funds-of-hedge-funds sift the market for opportunities

March 5, 2006

From MENAFN.com:
Last year's upheaval in the financial markets has created some significant opportunities in relative value strategies - perhaps the best for over three years, according to fund-of-hedge fund managers interviewed for a sector update by Standard & Poor's Fund Services.

"The S&P rated fund-of-hedge-fund managers are selectively optimistic on the outlook for 2008," said S&P Fund Services lead analyst Randal Goldsmith. He explained that the volatility in financial markets, increased credit spreads and the prospect of rising default rates had led fund managers such as RMF, Deka and Sail to increase allocations to convertible and volatility arbitrage funds. These give a long volatility bias, providing useful portfolio protection in difficult market conditions.

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Triple A Seeds Japan Long/Short Hedge Fund

March 4, 2006

From FINalternatives:
Hong Kong-based hedge fund seeder Asia Alternative Asset Partners has made its first investment, seeding the 360 Japan Long Short Fund with an initial US$10 million.

360 is a Japanese equity hedge fund run by John Aylott of 360 Asset Management. The fund, which Aylott will manage from London, launched today.

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La Fayette launches fund to back activists

January 9, 2006

From eFinancialNews.com:
UK fund of hedge funds manager La Fayette Investment Management has launched a fund to invest exclusively in activist managers, whose fortunes it expects to rise as the credit squeeze dampens private equity activity.

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Singapore Firm Launches Korea-Focused Fund of Hedge Funds

January 9, 2006

From FINalternatives:
HFG Investments, a Singapore-based joint venture established last year by Hana Daetoo Securities and Opvs Investment Holdings, launched its inaugural fund of hedge funds last month.

The HFG Korea Fund will invest in a range of actively managed Korea-focused hedge funds, targeting a 12% annual return. 3A Asia, the Hong Kong-based arm of alternative asset management firm 3A SA, has been appointed as the fund’s investment advisor.

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Man capitalizes on climate change with carbon trading

November 29, 2006

From FinancialNews-US.com:
Hedge fund specialist Man Group, one of the first FTSE 100-listed companies to claim carbon-neutral status, wants to launch a series of products that deal with the climate change threat.

Chief executive Peter Clarke also believes that carbon trading will be a big opportunity for managed futures funds, such as Man’s AHL. He reckons the price of carbon futures could quintuple to €100 ($143), assuming a second-round European emissions trading initiative starts to bite and the US follows suit. Voluntary trading schemes under the Kyoto agreement have gained acceptance.

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New Mexico Ramps Up Fund of Hedge Funds Allocation

November 29, 2006

From FINalternatives:
The New Mexico State Investment Council has increased its allocation to funds of hedge funds in two funds it manages to 15% of assets from 10%.

To accommodate the bump up, the $10.85 billion Land Grant Permanent Fund will decrease its allocation to domestic equities from 53% to 51% and domestic fixed income from 18% to 15%, according to a spokesman. The $4.73 billion Severance Tax Fund will also decrease its domestic equities allocation, from 53% to 48%.

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South Carolina Invests $750 Million With GAM

November 15, 2006

From FINalternatives:
GAM, the $26.8 billion fund of hedge fund manager, has been hired by South Carolina Retirement System to manage a $750 million allocation in its GAM Diversity strategy.

Diversity is a $10 billion globally diversified, multi-strategy fund of hedge funds that includes between 60 to 80 underlying managers. The portfolio is split between equity and arbitrage strategies.a

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Stillwater, Matrix Debuts Domestic ABL Fund Of Hedge Funds

November 15, 2006

From FINalternatives:
U.K.-based Matrix Group and Stillwater Capital in New York recently launched an onshore version of their new Stillwater Matrix Fund, a fund of hedge funds that will invest in about 50 underlying asset-backed lending strategies.

The offshore fund launched in August and has already raised $60 million in partner capital. The domestic fund debuted Nov. 1 and the firms aim to raise a total of $300 million between both funds by early 2008.

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Fund of funds manager expands in Japan and Brazil

November 5, 2006

From FinancialNews-US.com:
Fund of hedge funds manager Parker Global Strategies has opened offices in Brazil and Japan to establish a footprint in countries where hedge fund performance has been robust.

Akira Adachi will be the fund’s chief representative in the new Tokyo office. He will report to Michael Parker, who became president of Parker Global in September. Adachi previously worked as a representative director at Belgian-Dutch bank Fortis’ prime brokerage division, Fortis Prime Fund Solutions.

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IAM Hires New Client Relations Head

November 5, 2006

From FINalternatives:
Fund of hedge funds shop International Asset Management Limited has appointed Alexander von Mühlen as head of client relations and products. Mühlen joins IAM from ABN AMRO Asset Management, where he has been responsible for structuring and introducing alternative products.

“We are all very pleased that Alexander has chosen to join IAM in this new senior position,” said Morten Spenner, IAM’s chief executive. “Alexander’s experience will be valuable as IAM responds to a growing, international demand in new markets for our expertise.”

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Permal Thinks Ancient For Newest Fund Of Funds

October 30, 2006

From FINalternatives:
For its newest fund of hedge funds, Permal Group is looking at one of the oldest trade routes in the world. The New York-based firm is gearing up to launch the Permal Silk Road Fund at the end of November.

As its name suggests, the fund will concentrate on managers focused all along the ancient commercial highway, including the Middle East and North Africa, Asia ex-Japan, the former Soviet Union and Turkey.

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Investors ready to pay more for safer hedge funds

October 29, 2006

From Reuters:
Funds of hedge funds, which promise to spread the risk of investing in these loosely regulated portfolios, may soon find new customers as investors are again ready to pay more for peace of mind.

"Blow-up risks are the biggest worries for investors and you need people on the ground to do the research," said Bryan Schneider, who helps select hedge funds at New England Pension Consultants.

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Matrix Launches Asset-Backed Hedge Fund, Adds To Team

October 10, 2006

From FINalternatives:
The U.K.-based Matrix Group has launched a closed-ended version of its open-ended Asset Based 2 Fund, a fund of hedge funds that invests in 28 underlying managers.

The new closed end fund will invest all of its assets in the retail sterling shares of the Matrix Open Ended Asset Based 2 Fund.

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EIM, Daiwa To Create Hedge Funds For Japanese Market

October 9, 2006

From FINalternatives:
Hedge fund shop EIM Management USA has formed a strategic partnership with fund research group Daiwa Fund Consulting.

Under the partnership agreement, EIM USA and Daiwa will develop a series of diversified fund of hedge funds products to be introduced later this year to the Japanese marketplace. Terms of the partnership agreement were not disclosed.

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Our survey says: Don't bother following fund of funds managers

August 8, 2006

From Citywire:
Citywire Funds Insider has been out and about surveying advisers on their views on fund of funds managers.

In the coming months two fund of funds teams will try to establish themselves at new bases. Fidelity's multimanager team, led by Chris Ralph, has jumped ship to start a new boutique with Resolution Asset Management, while Credit Suisse's former team of Gary Potter and Robert Burdett are setting up shop at Thames River.

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Texas Issues $2.6B Multi-Strat Fund Of Funds RFP

August 8, 2006

From FINalternatives:
The $25.9 billion Texas Permanent School Fund is looking for a few good multi-strategy fund of funds managers to create and manage an absolute return FoF portfolio in a separate account vehicle.

The system’s two-year, $2.6 billion mandate will start on Jan. 1 and run through Aug. 31, 2010, with renewal options through August 2012. Firms interested should be registered with the Securities & Exchange Commission, as well as have at least $5 billion of assets under management and a five-year track record.

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Lehman Brothers raises $500m in fund of funds IPO

July 18, 2006

From AltAssets:
Lehman Brothers Private Equity Partners has announced the successful IPO of its shares on Euronext Amsterdam. The company has achieved its target of raising $500m through a placing of 50 million shares at $10 per share.

In addition, LBPE has granted the Sole Global Coordinator an over-allotment option of up to $50 million, or 5 million shares.

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Fund of funds managers turn against UK All Companies

July 17, 2006

From Reuters UK:
The industry's top fund of funds managers went on the defensive in June, increasing their cash weightings and pulling out of the UK equities sector. The threat of further interest rate rises was their main concern.

UK blue-chips were on the decline, with 60 percent of managers surveyed believing this trend will continue as the summer presses on.

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SEC eyes VA fund of funds

June 25, 2006

From InvestmentNews:
The Securities and Exchange Commission is looking at possible problems involving revenue sharing payments made by funds of funds.

“Recently the commission has received inquiries about some arrangements that raise questions about the nature of the services being provided in return for revenue sharing payments,” said Andrew J. "Buddy" Donohue, director of the Division of Investment Management at the SEC.

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It’s full steam ahead for funds of hedge funds

June 23, 2006

From Times Online:
The Financial Services Authority (FSA) is toying with the idea of authorising funds of hedge funds. This would effectively give the watchdog’s seal of approval for hedge funds to be sold to UK retail investors for the first time. But the fee-hungry City is beating the FSA to the punch.

A total of 21 funds of hedge funds have already raised £1.8 billion on the London Stock Exchange over the past 18 months, according to ABN AMRO, the Dutch investment bank. Though often registered in Guernsey, these funds, akin to investment trusts, are freely available to retail buyers, allowing them to gain access to a portfolio of hedge funds.

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Fund of Funds survey: Risk aversion is the name of the game

June 11, 2006