Hedge fund research and advisory boutique Hatfield Liptak Advisors has tapped Rick Bernie to help expand its distribution network. Bernie will work alongside group co-founders Damien Hatfield and Daniel Liptak to search, select, research and market hedge fund managers to institutional investors, family offices, high net-worth investors globally.

Bernie joins Hatfield Liptak following seven years as a director of Australia’s collapsed Basis Capital where, as head of distribution, he raised A$1.2 billion (US$1.15 billion).

“In the last year, we have seen a record bull market retreat into a cave of uncertainty, fuelled by debt pressures on equity markets and the evaporation of capital funding,” said Hatfield. “Investors across Australia, Europe and the U.S. are requiring assistance with how to access, select and monitor quality alpha generating funds that can help keep their portfolios buoyant.”

According to Liptak, who also serves as head of research, many institutional investors in Australia, the fourth largest pension fund market in the world relative to GDP, are looking to diversify equity market risk with the right mix of traditional and alternative assets.

“We believe that domestic investments into hedge funds will grow from A$90 billion to approximately A$250 billon by 2015,” he said.