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China gets shorty
In his latest move to support the development of China’s capital markets, Guo Shuqing, the newly installed head of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, will oversee the creation of a new body to control facilitate short-selling.
Falcone rejects SEC settlement
Hedge fund manager Philip Falcone has turned down an offer by the SEC to settle charges by accepting a ban from the securities industry, reports the WSJ. His fund, Harbinger Capital Partners, is being investigated for alleged market manipulation.
Regulators may extend comment period for Volcker rule
The comment period for the proposed Volcker rule, that bans banks from proprietary trading, is set to close on January 13th. However, Reuters reports that a 30-day extension is expected, citing a person with knowledge of the decision.
Further reading
Elsewhere on Friday,
- Hey United Nations, you owe me a $1 trillion.
- What really caused the Eurozone debt crisis.
- John Paulson’s Disadvantage Plus.
- I’ve always kind of enjoyed talking to eurocrats.
Fortress CEO takes leave after being named in suit
Fortress Investment Group’s CEO Daniel Mudd has announced that he is taking a leave of absence from the hedge fund, the WSJ reports. This comes after being named as a defendant in a civil securities-fraud lawsuit brought by the SEC last Friday,
Vega threatens to sue over Greek bond losses
One of the most prominent hedge funds holding Greek bonds has threatened legal action against officials negotiating the country’s debt restructuring if losses are too deep, the FT says. Madrid-based Vega Asset Management,
Hendry’s ‘China short’ fund makes big returns
Shorting the credit of companies positioned to do badly from a Chinese slowdown has proved to be one of the hedge fund industry’s most successful trades of 2011, the FT reports. Hugh Hendry, the outspoken UK hedge fund manager known for his bearish,
Hedge funds braced for worst year since 2008
Hedge fund managers have lost 4.37 per cent on average in the year to the end of November, en route to their worst performance since 2008, according to Hedge Fund Research data, reports the FT. Big-name funds including Paulson &
Shadow banking and the seven collateral miners
In the words of Goldman Doc, Morgan Grumpy, JP Happy, Bank of Sleepy, Barclays Bashful, Sneezy Citi, and Dopey Deutsche:
We dig dig dig dig dig dig dig from early morn till night
We dig dig dig dig dig dig dig up everything in sight
We dig up diamonds by the score
A thousand rubies,
Further reading
Elsewhere on Friday,
- “I thought [EU summit] disasters were all meant to happen over the weekend?”
- Making it two lost decades.
- George Soros bought MF Global’s peripheral bonds.
- FM Global’s PR has something to say.
Paulson down further in November
John Paulson’s flagship fund lost 3.6 per cent in November, taking losses for the leveraged Advantage Plus fund to 46 per cent in 2011, Bloomberg says. Gold-denominated shares in the fund have fallen 29 per cent in 2011,
Paulson fund losses continue to grow
John Paulson’s hedge fund has lost 46 percent in 2011 through November in one of his largest hedge funds, says Bloomberg. Paulson’s Advantage Plus Fund, which seeks to profit from corporate events such as takeovers and bankruptcies and uses leverage to amplify returns,
Insider trading probe expands to hedge funds
US authorities are expected to arrest three former Wall Street traders as early as next week in an expansion of their insider trading investigation, the FT says, citing to a person familiar with the matter. Insider trading charges are expected to be brought following a raid of the two hedge funds,
Hedge fund survey says
That hedge fund clients get itchy feet far easier these days, and that some of them look at the credit default swap spreads of their counterparties when deciding whether to stick with them or get out of dodge.
Goldman gets into hedge fund VC
Goldman Sachs has raised $600m from clients to make start-up investments in eight to 10 hedge funds, the WSJ says, citing people familiar with the matter. The new Goldman fund is targeting about $1bn and plans to invest between $75m and $150m in each hedge fund,
Harding voices support for Tobin tax
The founder of one of London’s biggest hedge funds has given qualified support for a European tax on financial transactions, breaking ranks with many of his peers fiercely opposed to such a measure,
The state of investment banking
Market intelligence provider Tricumen released their report on the state of the investment banking industry on Wednesday.
Their researchers sorted through an inordinate amount of company filings in order to determine the revenues by product segment,
New scrutiny of brokers over MF Global missing funds
All US futures trading firms will be audited in the wake of the search for $600m of missing customer funds from MF Global. The CFTC, which is searching for the missing money, will audit many of the nation’s largest futures commission merchants,
Nat Rothschild, an innocent abroad
Compare and contrast.
Nat Rothschild’s letter to the FT on October 19th.
We insist on strong, independent boards. In the case of both Bumi and Vallares, the controlling shareholders’ voting rights are limited to less than 30 per cent.
Rajaratnam ordered to pay $92.8m SEC fine
A US federal judge on Tuesday ordered the convicted hedge fund titan Raj Rajaratnam to pay a $92.8m penalty, the largest ever assessed against a person in an SEC insider trading case, says NYT DealBook. Combined with the fines and forfeitures ordered last month when he was sentenced to 11 years in prison for insider trading,
Man Group hires top China businesswoman
Man Group, the world’s second largest hedge fund manager, is positioning itself for an expansion into mainland China as part of a drive beyond its base in Europe and the Middle East, reports the FT. The FTSE 100 listed group,
Further reading
Elsewhere on Wednesday,
- Catch up on MF Global, by video.
- Or with the guy who wrote “When Genius Failed”.
- Or the woman who wrote “The Smartest Guys in the Room”.
- Then contemplate why MF Global failing matters.
KKR in talks over buying Samson Investment
Kohlberg Kravis Roberts is in exclusive talks to buy some or all of the Samson Investment Company, a family-owned oil and gas exploration company, NYT DealBook says. Citing a person briefed on the matter,
Most investors sticking by Paulson
John Paulson’s investors have signalled confidence in his ability to recover from severe losses in his flagship hedge funds, with the great majority choosing to keep their money with a manager who personally oversees $30bn in investments,
Further reading
Elsewhere on Tuesday,
- A complete guide to the MF Global bankruptcy.
- Did the European deal just collapse?
- I’m not a swap, get me out of here!
- Sometimes, as a CDS gets older, disturbing signs appear…
Ikos co-founder to launch rival hedge fund
Martin Coward, the multimillionaire co-founder of the hedge fund Ikos, is preparing to launch his own new fund, in a move likely to aggravate further tensions between him and his estranged wife, Elena Ambrosiadou. The fund will launch next year,
MF Global flies too close the sun
Pity there isn’t a bond that pays out if MF Global leaves Jon Corzine.
The brokerage is looking for buyers after a hellish week, reports the FT:
MF Global’s executives were racing to secure a sale of the company as two rating agencies downgraded its credit to “junk”,
MF Global under pressure after junk ratings
MF Global’s executives were racing to secure a sale of the company on Thursday as Moody’s and Fitch downgraded its credit to “junk”, the FT reports, citing people close to the situation who said a small number of interested buyers were in talks with the company over an acquisition of its main futures brokerage arm or the entire group.
SAC in crackdown to shore up reputation
SAC Capital, the $14bn hedge fund run by Steve Cohen, has quietly ended the practice of investing in hedge funds started by former employees, the FT says, citing people close to the firm. The decision,
SEC takes another crack at Gupta (and Rajaratnam)
The newly released SEC and FBI complaints against Rajat Gupta detail the alleged evidence of insider trading by the ex-McKinsey boss.
As the FT suggested Wednesday morning, Buffett’s investment in Goldman Sachs forms a key part of both cases,