In its latest quarterly UCITS survey, ML Capital reported that investors very much favour CTAs and Global Macro strategies.
In its latest quarterly UCITS survey, ML Capital reported that investors very much favour CTAs and Global Macro strategies. Figures reveal that demand for these strategies almost doubled last quarter from 30 per cent to just under 60 per cent and allocations are expected to continue to increase going forward. Specifically, 57 per cent of investors plan on increasing their allocation to CTAs, with 59 per cent doing likewise in systematic global macro funds. Perhaps slightly surprisingly, given the volatility in global equities, 39 per cent of respondents indicated a desire to increase assets into global emerging market Ucits. That said, equity hedge fund strategies on the whole suffered as a result of recent turmoil: only 22 per cent plan to raise exposures to global equity l/s Ucits compared to 50 per cent at the start of 2011.
Convertible arbitrage was found to have suffered a huge fall in interest with only 12 per cent looking to add to this strategy. Event-driven, so well favoured in ML Capital’s last quarterly survey when 49 per cent planned to increased allocation, has also been affected by recent market volatility. Now only 28 per cent of investors favour it. The report found UK L/S and distressed funds to be the least popular categories. Commenting on the report’s findings, John Lowry (pictured), co-founder and chairman of ML Capital, said: “The latest barometer results confirm a rapidly growing demand for well managed alternative investments that offer a strong element of protection on the downside and decorrelation. However, investors recognize the need for a wider range of experienced hedge fund managers to enter the UCITS market in order to broaden the choice of varying strategies.”
