Main News

 

Tue, 18 Mar 2008, 21:52
Globe and Mail
A number of hedge funds, awash in cash, bought into underperforming resource plays last year, on the understandable logic that either the company could be fixed, or it would get snapped up in an M&A market gone mad. Before August, this was a winning strategy. The ever-deepening credit crunch turns this market dynamic on its head. Takeovers are rare, corporate fixes are tougher to pull off, and many hedge funds need to raise cash as banks cut their leverage. It's always difficult to sell large positions in relatively illiquid companies, it's even more costly in a volatile market like this.

 

Merrill’s shares fall over CDO concerns
Financial Times - London,England,UK
By Saskia Scholtes in New York Merrill Lynch shares fell by 11 per cent on Wednesday after it sued bond insurer XL Capital to secure up to $3.1bn that it ...
See all stories on this topic

 

Hedge funds Harbinger, Greenlight, Tremblant and Paulson made millions as Bear Stearns tumbled and their bearish positions rose in value.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120596995775350255.html?mod=djemheard

 

Fannie and Freddie To The Rescue!
Forbes - NY,USA
In November 2006 prior to the onset of the subprime mortgage crisis, Freddie traded at $67.97 and Fannie was valued at $58.30. The housing enterprise agency ...

 

Bear Stearns: Break Down
Portfolio.com's coverage of the downfall of Bear Stearns. Read More

 

 

 

John Meriwether's Bond Fund Loses 24% on Credit-Market Plunge
Bloomberg.com Wed, 19 Mar 2008 11:10 AM PDT
March 19 (Bloomberg) -- JWM Partners LLC, the investment firm run by ex-Long-Term Capital Management LP chief John Meriwether , lost 24 percent in its $1 billion fixed-income hedge fund this year through March 14, according to two people with knowledge of the matter.

 

Endeavour Capital Fund Falls About 28% on Japanese Bond Trades
Bloomberg.com Wed, 19 Mar 2008 7:45 AM PDT
March 19 (Bloomberg) -- Endeavour Capital LLP, the London- based hedge-fund firm founded by former Salomon Smith Barney Inc. traders, fell about 28 percent this month on losses in Japanese bonds, according to two investors.

 

 Goldman asset management up despite hedge fund woes
Source: Reuters
Goldman Sachs' asset management division posted record first-quarter results on Tuesday despite high-profile hedge fund woes and executive departures last year, but customer money poured out of some hard-hit funds. More... <http://www.hedgefund-index.com/newstoday.asp>

 

Silent Fortress
Forbes - Wednesday March 19, 09:24 GMT

 

Bear Stearns sees more write-downs for French banks
March 19, 2008 07:39 AM ET
(Reuters) - Bear Stearns said French banks may need to record
total collateralized debt obligation and sub-prime write-downs
of 1.5 billion euros, adding that Credit Agricole  was likely
to post the largest write-downs in absolute terms, while BNP
Paribas  was least impacted.
http://links.reuters.com/r/EN8ZS/MHSG5/RK9U5/942V6/G8F24/YT/t

 

BNP Paribas says will not bid for SocGen
March 19, 2008 07:23 AM ET
PARIS (Reuters) - BNP Paribas has walked away from a possible
bid for smaller rival Societe Generale, which has been seen
as a takeover target after suffering a rogue-trading scandal.
http://links.reuters.com/r/EN8ZS/MHSG5/RK9U5/942V6/OZHX9/YT/t

 

Ex-Dentist Ordered To Stop Peddling Hedge Fund
FINalternatives - Wednesday March 19, 09:46 GMT

 

Subprime Eyed by Blackstone, Goldman for Contrarian Hedge Funds
Bloomberg.com Tue, 18 Mar 2008 9:41 PM PDT
March 19 (Bloomberg) -- Hedge fund manager Steve Moyer joined 4,000 realtors and bargain hunters at a five-hour Southern California housing auction in February.

 

Buying in the Crisis <http://seekingalpha.com/article/69178-buying-in-the-crisis?source=i_email> 
by Jason Kelly <http://seekingalpha.com/author/jason-kelly?source=i_email>

 

Housing Bust Blame Game <http://seekingalpha.com/article/69250-housing-bust-blame-game?source=i_email> 
by Barry Ritholtz <http://seekingalpha.com/author/barry-ritholtz?source=i_email> 

 

Fed Rate Cut: What Happens When We Get to Zero? <http://seekingalpha.com/article/69176-fed-rate-cut-what-happens-when-we-get-to-zero?source=i_email> 
by Tim Iacono <http://seekingalpha.com/author/tim-iacono?source=i_email> 

 

Corporate liquidity down for first time in nine years
Corporate liquidity dropped by $250 billion in the second half of 2007, according to Treasury Strategies. It was the first time cash and short-term investments of non-financial companies dropped in the nine years Treasury Strategies has been tracking the data. "As companies have tightened up, they're shrinking balance sheets just a little bit by borrowing less," said Anthony J. Carfang, co-founder of the firm. FinancialWeek (19 Mar.)

 

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Yield Curve Corner

 

WALL STREET DAILY  By RANDALL W. FORSYTH
Ben Offsets the Effect of George's Tax Cuts By opting not to cut the fed-funds rate a full point, the Fed's monetary policy is offsetting expansionary fiscal policy.
http://online.barrons.com/article/SB120578768776142999.html?mod=djemBF

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Natural Disaster Corner

 

Climate Prediction  http://www.nws.noaa.gov/predictions.php

World Meterological Organization http://severe.worldweather.org/

Tornadoes: http://www.disastercenter.com/tornado.htm

Great Sat Pictures of events: http://www.osei.noaa.gov/Events/Current/UNImult079_MO.jpg

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Iranian Situation and Other Man Made Disasters

 

Iran reformists call for Tehran vote recount
AFP via Yahoo! News Wed, 19 Mar 2008 10:37 AM PDT
Two pro-reform leaders on Wednesday called for a recount of the Tehran votes in Iran's parliamentary polls whose results sparked protests from beaten reformists, the student news agency ISNA reported.

 

Iran, Iraq: Iran Reportedly Shells Kurdistan Region
March 19, 2008 1457 GMT
Iran mounted an artillery attack March 19 in northern Iraq's Kuridstan region, Sbay Media...
http://www.stratfor.com/sitrep/iran_iraq_iran_reportedly_shells_kurdistan_region

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Opalesque’s Corner

 

Opalesque Exclusive: Scrubbing prime brokerage contracts - what can hedge fund managers learn from the fall of Bear?
- Fund launches: New hedge fund to make cleantech offering, Tactica raises GBP20m for multi-asset fund of funds range which launches this week, Update: Eddington looking for fund managers for equity opportunities fund launch next month
- Performance: Man bounces back
- Trends: Contrarian hedge funds gamble on subprime, Polar picks up stocks from hedge funds forced into distressed sales, Generali sees opportunities in alternative investments, plans to invest Eur8bln ($12.5bln) in PE and HFs, EurekaHedge comments on key trends in funds of hedge funds
- Indices: EurekaHedge: Hedge fund bounced back in February, composite index up 2.9%, Palomar index: Structured credit hedge funds fall further, decline decelerating, State Street Investor Confidence index rises from 72.6 to 77.4 in March
- Bear Stearns Update: Shareholders may attempt to stop Bear Stearns deal, Drama and short covering fuel Bear Stearns price surge, Fitch affirms JPMorgan rating, upgrades Bear Stearns, Credit raters give thumbs-up to Bear deal,  Current and former Bear Stearns shareholders can get free legal consultation at www.BearStearnsInvestors.com, Citic Securities will not proceed with investment in Bear Stearns, Commentary: The unwitting victims of the Bear Stearns collapse
- Credit Crunch Update: Merrill riskiest after Bear Stearns, says Wachovia, Goldman asset management division posts Q1 profit despite hedge fund woes, Goldman, Lehman earnings down but better than expected, Hedge fund services become banks` lifeline, CDS market adds to banks` risks, FBI subprime mortgage probe now against 17 companies
- Comments: Why today`s hedge fund industry may not survive, Analysis of the Fed cut (video), Deleveraging will take its toll - but on whom is unclear
- SocGen Update: BNP rules out bid for SocGen, SocGen reorganizes senior management team
- People: Occam AM expands pan Asian investment with addition of Fabiana Fedeli and John Lothian, Veteran joins Clearbrook Financial to build alternative investments platform, Pioneer hires Lucio Vignati for senior long/short funds role
- Commodities: Sugar may decline as banks reduce hedge fund credit, BNP days
- Legal: Colorado regulators sanctioned Florida hedge fund for violations
- Best Practice: Real problem lies in valuations being delegated without accountability says Laven Partners, CFA Institute Centre for Financial Market Integrity says fair value being used as scapegoat for bad decisions, lack of compliance, EurekaHedge: Next generation brand management for hedge funds
- Europe: Intesa may take over Julius Baer`s hedge fund unit GAM, Swedish CB Hedge Europe joins the NHX, Swedish fund Thyra Hedge had joined the NHX, Norway proposes to allow hedge funds in country, Credit Suisse finds European markets driven by sentiment and uncertainty rather than fundamentals
- Russian infrastructure needs a trillion dollars, alternative investment firms explore opportunities
- Asia: Hedge funds in Japan: Deals freeze, assets plunge, HK `unaffected` by US credit crisis, claims Monetary Authority chief
- Australia: Leading fund managers yesterday defended practice of short selling locally listed banks and other blue chip stocks
- Tech Update: PerTrac`s new Reporting Studio creates graphically rich presentations of data
- Events: Yale School of management and CTHFA present `Challenging Conventionality` on April 4, 2008, IAFE event: Credit derivative strategies: New thinking on managing risk and return, NE Chapter of Hedge Fund Association to present emerging marketplaces, March 26th
- Activists News: Conference Board Governance Center issues report on HF activism requesting public comment on recommendations for corporations and investors, International oil and gas company announces voting agreement with Sprott, TXCO settles Third Point lawsuit, Comment: The New York Times chairman may have neutralized his hedge fund critics by giving them board seats
- News Briefs: Banking jobs `to be cut by 15%`, State Street`s SSARIS Advisors ranked first in class at the sixth annual InvestHedge Funds of Hedge Funds Awards, Swiss Federal Banking Commission (SFBC) renounces definitively to regulate the performance fee, Guernsey firm launches pioneering fund comparison website, BVIs see increased corporate finance, merger, investment funds and private equity work, says Walkers
- And Finally. How a marriage proposal floated away
- Logon: http://www.opalesque.com/main.php?act=archive

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Misc. Items of Interest

 

 

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Funnies, Facts, Quotes, etc….

 

Trader Sues Lap Dance gone Wrong
Dealbreaker.com - Wednesday March 19, 09:43 GMT

 

transmute rans-MYOOT; tranz-, transitive verb:

1. To change from one nature, form, substance, or state into another; to transform.
2. To undergo transmutation.

 

Ode to Bear, Stearns
Mother Jones - San Francisco,CA,USA
I ran the European analytics group until leaving to return to the United States and a job at Goldman Sachs in 2000, as the CDO market was climbing from ...
See all stories on this topic

 

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Conference, Courses, Books, Papers

 

Great Research Sites:

 

Merrill Lynch research Link to full report including important disclosures see example

 

John Mauldin’s Weekly Analysis

 

James Altucher’s Website:

 

Other useful sites:

 

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Index Corner

 

The CSFB/Tremont Hedge Fund Index www.hedgeindex.com.

The Cogent Dynamic Averages http://www.cogenthedge.com/home/inv_strategy.asphttp://www.cogenthedge.com/home/inv_strategy.asp

The Dow Jones Indices: http://www.djhedgefundindexes.com/index.cfm?event=viewPremiumContent (free registration)

HFRX Indices https://www.hedgefundresearch.com/hfrx_reg/index.php?fuse=login&1170880431

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Regulatory Info

 

 

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Disclaimer

 

The information contained in this document does not constitute an offer or solicitation to sell any security or other type of vehicles to or by anyone in any jurisdictions, nor should it be regarded as a contractual document. Under no circumstances should the information provided on this document be considered as financial advice, or as a sufficient basis on which to make investment decisions. The information contained herein has been gathered by Investor DNA, LLC from sources deemed reliable as of the date of publication, but no warranty of accuracy or completeness is given. Investor DNA, LLC is not responsible for and provides no guarantee with respect to any of the information provided herein or through the use of any hypertext link. Past results are no indication of future performance. All information in this newsletter is for educational and informational purposes and does not constitute investment, legal, tax or accounting advice. All materials are the property of the respective publishers, as referenced by header and appropriate hypertext links.