Institutional Investor’s Asia Hedge Fund 25 – a ranking of the largest Asia-based hedge funds – has found that, as of 1^st April 2010, Value Partners now holds the number one position. AUM in the Hong Kong-based firm have catapulted to USD 5.7 billion, which deputy CIO Louis So attributes more to fund performance than net subscriptions: “One of the reasons we did so well was that average returns from our funds were good pretty much across the board, if you compare them to market indices like the Hang Seng Index,” explains So. Indeed, whilst the Index gained 52 per cent in 2009, Value Partner’s flagship fund gained 82.9 per cent. “This performance has its foundation on our value-investing philosophy,” adds So. “A core investment approach that we’ve championed for the past 17 years and counting – and that’s not going to change.”