Hedge Funds and CTAs

Toronto-based Epic Capital Management is shuttering its flagship hedge fund as returns sink and investors head for the door.

Investors are set to flee T. Boone Pickens’ energy hedge fund in droves.

The famed Texas oilman’s BP Capital, battered by energy market volatility, has lost about 60% of its value this year.

Overseas hedge funds are increasingly launching UCITS III structures, which are highly regulated products suitable for institutional and retail investors.

According to some estimates, UCITS III funds currently hold US$6.4 trillion, and sales in Europe, South America and Asia are booming.

For the second time in as many months, RAB Capital is seeking to restructure one of its hedge funds.

Alpstar, a US$2 billion European credit hedge fund manager, has opened its long-only European credit fund, Alper Credit Value Fund, to external investors.

Emergent Asset Management has hired Martin Armitage-Smith as a foreign exchange trader from Citibank’s proprietary trading desk, where he had been trading at for almost 15 years.

Baring Asset Management says investors in search of uncorrelated assets and growth potential in volatile markets should look to absolute return fixed-income products to generate alpha.

A rough day last week for John Devaney could have been much worse.

Highbridge Capital Management is cutting 10% of its staff in New York, with further cuts planned for Europe and Asia.

While this may not be the ideal market to launch a hedge fund, UBS is enjoying surprising success. UBS Global Asset Management has launched the U.S. Fundamental Equity Market Neutral fund, an equity long/short hedge fund.

The portfolio is market-, sector- and factor-neutral. It is broadly diversified, typically holding 100 to 150 long positions and 100 to 200 short positions.