There is little doubt that the face of the investment fund industry has
changed significantly over the past two years. The statistics show,
however, that whilst the industry has been impacted by the global
economic crisis, like virtually every other industry, it has perhaps
fared better than most and might well have been kinder to investors
(Bernie Madoff-type funds aside)
To answer this question, it is necessary to have a brief look first at
the features of QIFs and SIFs to try to identify what, if any,
advantages they offer over Cayman funds; and secondly to consider the
expected treatment of QIFs, SIFs and Cayman funds under the AIFM
Directive. This inevitably involves some crystal ball-gazing as, at the
time of writing, the EU legislative sausage-making process in the
trialogues has not concluded.
We have been investing in Asian equities (excluding Japan) for many
years and believe that there are multiple reasons to invest in the
region. In this article, I will refer to Asia when discussing the Asia
ex Japan region.
Due in large part to the financial crisis that has plagued the global
banking system, letters of credit (LOCs) continue to be more expensive
and harder to find. For those that are wondering “When are LOC fees
going to go down?”
If you are a hedge fund manager with ties to the United States, you
have a full plate. Never mind the basic challenges of generating
positive performance on your portfolios and profitably running your
business.
Few corners of the credit markets were able to sustain themselves
during the financial crisis and emerge strengthened. As a rule, the
health of lending institutions and the issuance of debt instruments rose
and fell together...
Reflecting on the recent global financial crisis one can’t help but
wonder what lessons have been learned from the experiences of many of
the world’s hedge fund participants.
This article considers recent trends in the hedge fund industry, as
seen from the Cayman Islands legal perspective, following the upheaval
of the recent global economic downturn.
From our vantage point in early 2010, we look back on the roller
coaster ride of the past two years and see the tremendous change that
our industry has endured. There were the heady days in late 2007 when
assets under management (AUM) peaked ...
During the credit crisis, investment funds utilised a variety of
techniques to prevent significant redemptions from causing
crystallisation of losses on trades;
There is no escape from the impact of the global financial crisis and,
like the rest of the world, Cayman has started to feel its full force
during the past year.
By way of background, the IOSCO Objectives and Principles of Securities
Regulation were endorsed by its member regulators of various securities
and futures markets in 1998, and generally are viewed by securities
regulators as the key international benchmark on sound principles and
practices for securities regulation.
There has been a great deal of attention focused on the Cayman Islands these past few months, more so than usual. Much of the debate as to what to do about the so called ‘tax havens’ has ranged from the White House, the G8 and the G20 to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
First the US housing market unexpectedly threw the asset-backed investment world into a tailspin. Now, seemingly adding insult to injury, a pair of decisions from a prominent New York federal court have raised quite a fuss by ruling that the Cayman liquidators of two Cayman-registered hedge funds would not be recognised in US bankruptcy courts.
Over recent years, the Cayman Islands has proven itself an increasingly popular jurisdiction of choice for the incorporation of companies owned or operated by parties in Asia, with the following being some of the key reasons for such popularity.
It has long been accepted that risk management is a core competency for generating absolute returns within a hedge fund strategy. Prior to the market downturn, hedge fund managers were able to diffuse investor requests for greater transparency in risk-management practices. However, investors, directors and regulators have been startled by the scope and magnitude of losses resulting from the market downturn and credit crisis, as well as recent breaches of fiduciary trust.
The US$50b fraud by Bernard Madoff’s investment advisory and broker-dealer firms had an equally outsized list of red flags. Several ways in which Madoff carried out his operations were not only highly unusual but also gave him more discretion over his operations and subjected his activities to less scrutiny than a typical investment adviser or broker-dealer. Notably
Typically an investor has to give prior notice of their intention to redeem their investment. The period of notice may vary depending on the nature of the funTypically an investor has to give prior notice of their intention to redeem their investment. The period of notice may vary depending on the nature of the fund and the assets that it has invested in.d and the assets that it has invested in. The redemption process is one of the major challenges currently facing...