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The hedge fund industry took in USD3.8 billion (0.2% of assets) in June, the sixth straight inflow as well as the eleventh in 12 months, according to the latest figures from BarclayHedge and TrimTabs Investment Research.
Industry assets decreased to USD1.806 trillion from USD1.822 trillion in May because performance was poor. The Barclay Hedge Fund Index decreased 1.0% in June.
“Investors were very kind to hedge funds in the first half of the year,” says Sol Waksman (pictured), founder and President of BarclayHedge. “The industry raked in USD73.0 billion (4.0% of assets), which goes down as the heaviest first-half inflow since 2007. But
Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has appointed Dan Haxby as Head of Realisations within RBS’s Strategic Investment Group (SIG). SIG is responsible for all aspects of the equity positions that the bank takes through debt for equity swaps and new money investments in restructuring situations. It sits within RBS’s Global Restructuring Group.
Haxby used to work as the Head of Financial Sponsors Coverage at JP Morgan, before moving to the same role at RBS’s Global Banking and Markets business (GBM). In the new role Haxby will work the lifecycle of a SIG investment from the identification of equity opportunities through to their
ARGYLL Investment Services Limited has promoted senior manager Hazel Kelling to the role of Operations Director as the company looks to further expand its services and client base.
Kelling has been a member of Argyll’s senior management team for six years and is involved with a number of major projects, including the development of the company’s Niche Discretionary Fund Management service, which was recently launched across the Channel Islands, UK and Europe, offering independent financial advisors a cost-efficient investment option in-line with the proposed RDR legislation in the UK.
‘Hazel’s promotion is a reflection of the level of experience she
The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation (DTCC) has issued a statement in response to the decision by Standard & Poor’s (S&P) to downgrade S&P’s AAA rating on three of DTCC’s clearing subsidiaries, National Securities Clearing Corporation (NSCC), The Depository Trust Company (DTC) and Fixed Income Clearing Corporation (FICC).
DTCC remains confident in its effectiveness as the leading infrastructure and central counterparty for the cash equities and fixed income markets. The fundamental strengths of our company are the same today as they were prior to this recent revision in the S&P AAA ratings we’ve consistently earned for these three clearing subsidiaries.
Mesirow Financial International UK Limited, has hired Sophia Damianou as a vice president and member of its global client relationship team. In this newly established position, Damianou will work closely with new and existing clients of the firm’s affiliated institutional multi-manager hedge fund unit, Mesirow Advanced Strategies, Inc. Her focus will be on building relationships with clients in northern Europe.
Most recently, Damianou served on the capital services team for Credit Suisse in London. Prior to that, she was an investment analyst for Southeastern Europe Management Co. in Athens, Greece. She earned her MBA from Columbia Business School, her M.S.
Netherlands-based hedge fund Saemor Capital has appointed Erwin de Kleijn (pictured) as Investor Relations Manager.
”After Saemor focused on building the track record in its first three years, we now feel it is time to expand our investor base. Given the attractive performance we are enjoying at the moment, we expect to see more interest from institutional investors seeking to invest in our fund,” says to Sven Bouman, CEO/CIO. The Saemor Europe Alpha Fund enjoys a performance of +5,9% YtD (end of June), making it one of the leading hedge funds in its peer group.
De Kleijn has worked in
Equity markets extended declines in July as investors exhibited concern with regard to both the extension of the US debt limit and continuing concerns about European sovereign debt risk. US fixed income yields fell and gold posted record gains, while the US dollar traded in a wide range over the month. The HFRI Fund Weighted Composite Index posted a gain of 0.76% for July driven by a strong contribution from Macro trend-following strategies which gained 3.57% for the month.
Reversing the declines of the prior 2 months, the HFRI Macro (Total) Index rose +2.52% for July with gains across most
Octavian Advisors has established a new office in London, England. The London office is New York-based Octavian’s second location and will house the firm’s subsidiary, Octavian Advisors (UK) Limited.
"While Octavian has long been active in Europe, we are pleased to increase our international footprint by establishing an office in London," says Richard Hurowitz, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of Octavian. “With over half of our assets invested in Europe, the new London office will enable us to further extend the firm’s capabilities. We look forward to capitalising on the many opportunities ahead on behalf of our investors.”
Rating agencies have given the US the benefit of the doubt for too long and that the decision of S&P to downgrade it’s AAA rating “is a warning shot across the bows of US politicians," according to David Miller, partner at Cheviot Asset management…
S&P’s decision to downgrade its US debt rating is not entirely unexpected and could well be followed by further downgrades.
However, what must be remembered is that post-2008 many investors have developed their own credit rating systems and so are less reliant on rating agencies. Furthermore the Fed has already sent out reassuring messages to the banking
July proved to be another challenging month for UCITS funds, with the UCITS Alternative Index Global recording an incremental gain of 0.08 per cent.
