Hedge Funds and CTAs

Two London-based commodities hedge funds have turned the biggest-ever decline in commodities into a gold mine for investors.

The following is the text of a letter from Switzerland’s Union Bancaire Privée to its investors, many of whom where invested in a fund that lost money in the alleged Bernard Madoff Ponzi scheme.

The Babylon Fund dropped 1.6% in November, bringing its year-to-date losses to 20.1%.

Lawrence CohenBy Lawrence Cohen and Thomas M. Griffin -- The global economic crisis has had a significant impact on the hedge fund world. One of the most striking developments has been the rush by many investors to redeem their holdings. 

Partners Group, a Switzerland-based global alternative asset shop, is beefing ups its risk management with a new unit.

A group of alternative investment firms are set to buy IndyMac Bancorp, the insolvent bank founded by leaders of collapsed mortgage lender Countrywide Financial.

The holiday season has not been very festive for J. Ezra Merkin, the GMAC Financial chairman whose hedge fund lost billions in Bernard Madoff’s alleged $50 billion Ponzi scheme. 

A credit-default swap clearinghouse proposed by hedge fund giant Citadel Investment Group is a step closer to reality.

Cerberus Capital Management, which was forced to hand over its stake in Chrysler to win a government loan to bail out the automaker last week, has become the latest hedge fund to limit redemptions.

GAM is changing its redemption policy in the wake of a brutal year for the hedge fund.