Global hedge fund industry assets surge to record levels at $4.4tn... [more]Laxman Pai, Opalesque Asia: Global hedge fund industry assets have surged to USD4.4 trillion, with hedge funds raking in USD18.3 billion of new inflows from allocators during July, as managers scored a USD7.3 billion trading profit for the month. "A $7.3 billion trading profit for the mon

Crow Holdings raises $2.6bn for ninth US value-add real estate fund... [more]Laxman Pai, Opalesque Asia: Dallas-based property investor Crow Holdings has raised $2.6bn for its ninth US value-add real estate fund. The real estate investment titan said the Crow Holdings Realty Partners IX fund, which had an original $2bn hard cap target, received $2.3bn from investors

Swiss asset management industry grew by more than 10% in 2020... [more]B. G., Opalesque Geneva: Asset management is a growing segment of the Swiss financial system and is contributing to its diversification. According to a recent report, assets under management (AuM) in Switzerland grew by 10.6% in 2020 to a record CHF2.79tln ($3tln), thanks to high net inflows and

Eurekahedge: Hedge fund managers up 0.76% in August, Hedge funds beat market after boosting short sales during rout... [more] Eurekahedge: Hedge fund managers up 0.76% in August Opalesque Industry Update - Hedge fund managers were up 0.76% in August, trailing behind the global equity market as represented by the MSCI ACWI (Local) which gained 2.45% during the month. In terms of 2021 performance, global

Hedge funds' continue their move into credit, but there are signs of a slow down, Diameter is credit's hottest hedge fund for one reason: speed... [more] Hedge funds' continue their move into credit, but there are signs of a slow down From Institutional Investor: Credit continues to be a lure for hedge funds. Credit represented 14 percent of all hedge fund strategies in 2020, up from 12 percent in 2019, the highest growth rate ever, a

Ackman's Pershing Square fund surges as Universal soars in stock debut... [more]From Reuters: Hedge fund manager William Ackman's 10% bet on Universal Music Group helped nearly double returns at his own portfolio to 15.3% this week after shares in the world's biggest music label surged in their first hours as a publicly traded company. Ackman, who runs hedge fund firm Per

New Launches: Longford Capital raises $682m for new investment fund, Commonfund's 2021 fundraising streak continues with new $675m secondaries vehicle, New Mountain Capital closes third US CLO at $507m, Illumnina Ventures closes second fund on $325m, Capiton sets sights on autumn close for sixth fund... [more] Longford Capital raises $682m for new investment fund From PE Insights: Longford Capital Management, LP, a leader in commercial litigation finance, announced the final closing of its most recent fund, at $682m. Longford's assets under management now exceed $1.2bn, placing it among th

SS&C GlobeOp Forward Redemption Indicator measured 2.45% September 2021... [more]Opalesque Industry Update - SS&C Technologies Holdings announced that the SS&C GlobeOp Forward Redemption Indicator for September 2021 measured 2.45%, up from 2.24% in August. "SS&C GlobeOp's Forward Redemption Indicator for September 2021 was a very favorable 2.45%, reflecting lower redemptio

Institutional Investors: Virginia Retirement System allocates $2.55bn, Missouri Local Government Employees returns 29.5% for fiscal year, Korea Post opens bids for $100m private equity mandate, University of Illinois returns net 27.7%... [more] Virginia Retirement System allocates $2.55bn From PIonline.com: Virginia Retirement System, Richmond, disclosed new manager hires, fund commitments and hedge fund investments totaling $2.55 billion. The $98 billion pension fund disclosed the transactions, which were effective b

SPACs: Senate Democrats step up scrutiny of blank-check firms, Important considerations for SPAC investments in the automotive and mobility sectors, Germany's answer to AirBnB hopes to spark a SPAC boom in Europe, Media SPAC led by former CBS chief begins trading on NASDAQ... [more] Senate Democrats step up scrutiny of blank-check firms From Reuters: U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren and three other Senate Democrats on Wednesday sent letters to some of the most prolific SPAC dealmakers, voicing concerns over reports that SPAC insiders exploit regulatory loopholes at

People: ExodusPoint has poached two star portfolio managers to supercharge macro trading at the $14bn fund, Allianz asset management boss to exit following hedge fund implosion... [more] ExodusPoint has poached two star portfolio managers to supercharge macro trading at the $14bn fund From Business Insider: ExodusPoint Capital is looking to supercharge its macro trading business, and it has poached two top portfolio managers to aid the effort, sources familiar with t

Crypto: Invesco Partners with Galaxy Digital to file for Bitcoin ETF, US Treasury sanctions crypto exchange for alleged ransomware attacks, Bitcoin mining will contribute just 0.9% to total global emissions by 2030... [more] Invesco Partners with Galaxy Digital to file for Bitcoin ETF Galaxy Digital Holdings, a financial services innovator in the digital asset, cryptocurrency, and blockchain technology sectors, and Invesco, a global asset management firm, announced today a strategic partnership to develo

Europe: Greece seeks EU carbon hedging mechanism to limit price jumps, ESG is used deeply and widely by Nordic investors... [more] Greece seeks EU carbon hedging mechanism to limit price jumps From Bloomberg: The Greek government suggested creating a European Union-funded mechanism that could use revenue from extra sales of carbon permits to limit the impact of soaring energy costs on consumers and companies.

Asia: Evergrande deadline sends chills through $400bn Asian debt market... [more]From FT: Deepening worries over Evergrande have ignited selling in a $428bn corner of the Asian debt market, underscoring how the crisis at the Chinese property developer is spreading to other assets as traders and investors brace for a crucial payment deadline on Thursday. Yields on US dollar

PE/VC: LPs say direct investments offer the best risk-return tradeoff, Private equity could be a force for good, China PE still attractive despite tighter regulatory scrutiny... [more] LPs say direct investments offer the best risk-return tradeoff From Institutional Investor: According to the 2021 Pepperdine Private Capital Markets Report, limited partners saw direct investments as the asset that offers the strongest risk-return tradeoff. In fact, 36 percent of LP

Study: Nearly one in 10 UK share traders are chatroom members... [more]Opalesque Industry Update - New research from ETP provider GraniteShares shows UK investors are catching the investment chatroom bug with nearly one in 10 regular traders using chatrooms to research ideas. Chatrooms such as the subreddit WallStreetBets have become increasingly influential potent

ESG: Researchers float 50% threshold for 'genuine climate strategy'... [more]From IPE: An equity portfolio where climate considerations represent less than 50% of the determinants of the weight of the stocks should not be permitted to claim that it is climate-friendly or aligned with net-zero ambitions, according to the authors of an EDHEC-Scientific Beta study. EDHEC

Legal: Hedge fund charged with running Ponzi scheme... [more]The Securities and Exchange Commission charged an unregistered hedge fund with operating a large-scale scheme that it said defrauded hundreds of investors millions of dollars by overstating investment returns and misrepresenting the value of assets under management. The SEC said it is seeking

Activists: Second hedge fund pushes for change in leadership of GSK, Hong Kong, US hedge funds root for Luckin Coffee to overcome accounting scandal with debt restructuring pact... [more] Second hedge fund pushes for change in leadership of GSK From The Guardian: GSK's chief executive, Emma Walmsley, has come under pressure from a second activist hedge fund, Bluebell Capital Partners, which has taken a stake in the drugmaker to push for change at the top, including de

News Briefs: Ex-hedge fund manager's firm hits $2bn valuation after funding from SoftBank, Financial Net-Zero Alliance boosted by service providers, deVere joins financial powerhouses as founding member of major new Net Zero initiative... [more] Ex-hedge fund manager's firm hits $2bn valuation after funding from SoftBank, Warburg From Mint: Advance Intelligence Group, a technology startup led by former hedge fund manager Jefferson Chen, topped $2 billion in valuation after raising more than $400 million from investors led

And, finally: How to make money on both ends... [more]From BBC: Philip Morris International, maker of Marlboro and Parliament cigarettes, has sealed a deal with Vectura, a U.K.-based company that makes medicines -- including inhalers for respiratory conditions -- with a $1.1 billion bid. The BBC reported on Sept. 16 that PMI's CEO, Jacek Olczak, is "ex