Main News

 

Wachovia could announce as soon as Monday that it is getting a capital infusion of several billion dollars from outside investors, according to people familiar with the matter. Final terms of the deal were being hammered out Sunday night, but it appeared likely that the fifth-largest U.S. bank in stock-market value would receive $6 billion to $7 billion. In return, the investor group would get shares priced at roughly $23 to $24 apiece -- a 15% discount to Wachovia's share price Friday.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, go to: http://online.wsj.com/?mod=djemalertNEWS

 

Lehman fund sees opportunities among strained hedge managers
Financial Times Sun, 13 Apr 2008 2:15 PM PDT
Lehman Brothers is planning to invest up to $1bn in a private equity-style fund that it is launching to buy stakes in hedge fund managers ahead of a predicted wave of fund takeovers.

 

Scaling the Heights The Top 75 Hedge Funds

http://online.barrons.com/article/SB120795389260809035.html?mod=djemWR&page=sp

 

The Sky Is Falling -- AgainWill doomsday warnings prove true this time?
http://online.barrons.com/article/SB120795387667009031.html?mod=djemWR

 

'Mark to myth' assets soar at European banks
Were it not for the credit crunch, reading the phrase "assets valued without observable market inputs" would be enough to glaze the eyes of most investors without advanced accountancy qualifications.
http://mail2.efnmail.co.uk/r/355133/MTk4MTI1OjE2OTcz/

U.S. Risks To The Forecast: A Deeper Dip?
The April baseline forecast is for the recession to be mild and brief because of the fiscal stimulus package, which begins to issue tax rebates in May, and the Federal Reserve's quick moves to lower interest rates. Although the underlying problems that led to the recession seem to be similar to those of the 1991-1992 recession, we think that the rapid stimulus will keep this recession closer to the 2001 downturn.
To learn more, click or copy and paste the URL below:
(subscription required)
http://standardandpoors.rsys1.net/servlet/cc6?kHiQACRUQTVsLgHxhilpuHQJhuV2VS

 

Bear battered by insider trading?

Montana Sen.  Jon Tester is calling for an investigation into whether Bear Stearns' downfall could be related to insider trading. 
» Read the Full Story

 

Analysts predict credit crunch fallout will hit Europe hirings
Wealth managers say they are hiring at record levels but headhunters and analysts believe there are indicators that show the boom may be drawing to a close as the credit crunch begins to affect wealth creation.
http://mail2.efnmail.co.uk/r/355135/MTk4MTI1OjE2OTcz/

 

Apollo targets fivefold increase in assets
Apollo Management is planning to increase its assets under management by five times after it lists in New York.
http://mail2.efnmail.co.uk/r/355143/MTk4MTI1OjE2OTcz/

 

M&A prospects for fund management companies look bleak
Mergers and acquisitions activity in asset management in the first quarter of the year have hit a record high, despite falling stock markets. But analysts fear bleaker prospects ahead.
http://mail2.efnmail.co.uk/r/355146/MTk4MTI1OjE2OTcz/

 

Living in the shadow of a volcano
What will the asset management landscape look like once the credit crisis has been consigned to the dustbin of history?
http://mail2.efnmail.co.uk/r/355148/MTk4MTI1OjE2OTcz/

 

JP Morgan offers three-year package to Bear staff
JP Morgan will offer a three-year stock retention package to those Bear Stearns staff it wants to persuade to stay, based on their bonus for last year.
http://mail2.efnmail.co.uk/r/355150/MTk4MTI1OjE2OTcz/

 

Illiquid bank assets treble to reach ?160bn
The most illiquid assets on the balance sheets of Europe's largest banks almost trebled to ?163bn ($260bn) last year, as the credit crunch caused prices in many markets to evaporate.
http://mail2.efnmail.co.uk/r/355154/MTk4MTI1OjE2OTcz/

 

PGGM to offer full disclosure
While sovereign wealth funds are wrangling over issues of transparency, one of Europe's largest pension schemes said last week it will disclose all its investments.
http://mail2.efnmail.co.uk/r/355166/MTk4MTI1OjE2OTcz/

 

Wealthy clients of Sotheby's appear to be falling behind on their bills -- and that could signal trouble for the auction house and the art market.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB120813267460211605.html?mod=djemheard

 

A Lender Failed. Did Its Auditor?
New York Times - United States
Two months later, New Century, one of the largest subprime mortgage lenders in the country, would be bankrupt. New Century’s collapse ushered in a series of ...

 

RAB Capital chief sees bonus cut
Financial Times Fri, 11 Apr 2008 7:25 PM PDT
Philip Richards, chief executive of RAB Capital , saw his bonus slashed by 40 per cent to £11.3m last year as the performance of the Aim-listed company’s flagship hedge fund stumbled.

 

Bear's $1.2 bln macro hedge fund down 15 pct YTD
Reuters - USA
The $1.2 billion hedge fund was down 11 percent in March, giving it negative returns of 15.2 percent in the first three months of 2008, the fund told ...

 

The plot against Iceland
New York Times Blogs - New York,NY,USA
On a gloomy North Atlantic evening in January, a group of international hedge fund managers gathered in the stylish bar of 101 Hotel in downtown Reykjavik ...

 

Brian Hunter Helps Deliver 49% Return for Hedge Fund (Update2)
Bloomberg - USA
By Saijel Kishan April 11 (Bloomberg) -- A commodity hedge fund advised by Brian Hunter, the energy trader whose bad bets triggered $6.6 billion of losses ...

 

Hedge Funds, Prime Brokers Put Counterparty Risk in Focus

By Bill McIntosh, Senior Financial Correspondent | 4/11/2008

The ongoing credit crunch and the wobbles that surrounded Bear Stearns before its
recent rescue have brought a number of issues associated with leverage...

 

Japan's Mizuho stung by $5.5 billion in subprime pain
April 11, 2008 06:26 AM ET
TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's Mizuho Financial Group Inc  cut a third
off its earnings estimate for the year just ended, stung by
$5.5 billion in subprime-related losses, mostly at its brokerage
arm.
http://links.reuters.com/r/R0W9G/V2O4N/EOZDB/CDEIX/Q5UUT/YT/t

 

Citigroup sued over Falcon hedge fund
eFinancial News Fri, 11 Apr 2008 5:12 AM PDT
US class action lawyers have filed a civil suit alleging fraud against Citigroup and Citigroup Alternative Investments as manager of hedge fund Falcon Strategies Two B, which the lawyers said has lost more than 40% of its value after being run with too much risk.

 

London Diversified Cuts Management Fees After Hedge Funds Fall
Bloomberg.com Fri, 11 Apr 2008 4:07 AM PDT
April 11 (Bloomberg) -- London Diversified Fund Management LLP, which oversees $4 billion of hedge funds, reduced fees after market losses in the first quarter, two investors said.

 

NEW YORK (HedgeWorld.com)—The 10 funds that won the first Lipper awards for hedge funds are highly diverse, but they all found a way to profit from the turbulent conditions of 2007. ......

 

Alternative Beta Shop Offers Hedging Strat For FoFs
FINalternatives - Friday April 11, 09:35 BST

 

March of the quants
FT Alphaville - Thursday April 10, 11:01 BST

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Yield Curve Corner

 

Nothing Special With Treasuries Now That Bernanke Has Mortgages
Bloomberg - USA
It is one of three lending programs Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke created since mid-December. His boldest move came March 16, when the central bank agreed to ...

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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:

 

Underwater microphones can gauge hurricane strength, MIT says
Caribbean Net News - Georgetown,Cayman Islands
The microphones are so much cheaper to deploy that storm warning systems can be expanded in countries that can't afford airplanes, said Nicholas Makris, ...

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Iranian Situation and Other Man Made Disasters

 

 

US confrontation with Iran unlikely in Iraq: US defense secretary
AFP via Yahoo! News Sun, 13 Apr 2008 8:38 AM PDT
The chances of the United States "stumbling" into a confrontation with Iran through skirmishes in Iraq "are very low," Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Sunday.

 

Deadly Iran mosque blast not an attack: media
Reuters via Yahoo! News Sun, 13 Apr 2008 5:41 AM PDT
A blast in a mosque in Iran that killed at least 12 people was an accident and not an attack, a senior official said on Sunday, but others cautioned the investigation into the cause was continuing.

 

Iran denies confrontation at sea with U.S. Navy
CNN.com Sat, 12 Apr 2008 4:44 AM PDT
Iran denied a report that several of its boats taunted a U.S. Navy vessel in the Persian Gulf on Thursday night, according to IRNA, Iran's official news agency.

 

April 12, 2008 2220 GMT

 

Iran: Operating New Centrifuges
April 11, 2008 1520 GMT
Iran has begun operating 492 new nuclear centrifuges at its facility in Natanz, Iran’s official...
http://www.stratfor.com/sitrep/iran_operating_492_new_centrifuges

 

Iran: Khamenei Aide Rejects Bush's Statements
April 11, 2008 1455 GMT
Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, senior adviser to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, on...
http://www.stratfor.com/sitrep/iran_khamenei_aide_rejects_bushs_statements

 

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Opalesque’s Corner

 

- Fund launches: Sowood manager will be back: plans to launch smaller fund less than 1 year after losing $1.6bln, BlackSquare lines up commodities FoHF, LRG Capital teams with Admiral Capital Management to launch multi-strategy hedge fund, NatSource founders cough up new carbon hedge fund, Fidelity launches emerging Asia fund, BNY Mellon AM launches first global 130/30 strategy
- Man Investments launches new environmental investment manager Man ECO, Man Investments raises $600m for China Methane Recovery Fund
- Liquidations: Lehman liquidates three investment funds worth $1bln, Lehman took impaired assets out of hedge funds, closed three of them, returned cash to some investors
- Performance: Opalesque Exclusive: 788 China Fund Ltd. down YTD -57% after +114% in 2007, Healthcare hedge fund Accipiter Life Sciences II loses 40% in March, Platinum Grove suffers worst performance since inception in March
- Marathon keen on distressed opportunity, believes corporate debt will quadruple over next year, Award-winning managers thrive on credit turmoil
- Indices: Opalesque Exclusive: Palomar Structured Credit Hedge Fund index nose-dives to -17% in February whilst Palomar Credit FoHFs returns -5.37%, Barclay CTA Index down -0.36% in March, 7.09% YTD, DMX was the top performing AI-Index in March 2008 with +3.11%
- Listings: Update: Sprott confirms plan for initial public offering, RAB Capital buys back 7% of stock,
- Trends: Hedge funds in consolidation trend, benefits in being part of larger organization, Hedge funds losing money but keeping clients
- Credit Crunch Update: Investment banks` high-risk assets rise, Credit crises cause talent shake up at hedge funds and PE firms, Hedge fund debt buying may spur LBO market, Update: First Marblehead won`t use $1bln Goldman credit line, Bear Stearns issues profits warning
- Credit Crunch views: Soros says credit crisis will worsen, Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein sees end of credit crisis, PIMCO`s El-Erian urges preparing for global inflation
- SocGen Update: Nick Leeson warns of need for risk management
- People: Sun Capital appoints new M.D. who will be responsible for hybrid hedge fund portfolio
- Institutions: NYC retirement fund mandates $500m to environmental investments, Danish pension plan invests in Investec currency fund
- Regulators: Hedge funds do not need direct regulation - UK FSA, Taiwan`s regulator plans overhaul of investment rules, Global forum of financial regulators and ministers calls for new financial controls
- Legal: SEC sues UK hedge fund Headstart Advisers for defrauding U.S. mutual funds, Robeco sues Citigroup`s CSO hedge fund over losses, Prying open hedge funds` exit door: Investor sues HF Carrington for freezing redemptions
- Commodities: Hedge fund manager Hugh Hendry says agricultural commodities set for bull run, Axa: Agriculture commodities boom sets dilemma for asset managers
- Europe: Bank of England cuts rates 0.25% to 5%, UK rate cut confirms rapidly deteriorating economic outlook, says F&C`s Scott, Iceland interest rates rise to record 15.5%, Eurozone warned on impact of credit crisis
- WexTrust Capital forms WexTrade Financial to provide trading services and educational programs for traders
- Activist News: Algebris complains to Italy regulator on Generali nominees, Hedge fund Appaloosa says still interested in Delphi, Jana Partners discloses 5.1% stake in Convergys
- News Briefs: Hedge fund manager on tee at masters, Markit acquires NTC Economics, Kinetic Partners acquires specialist compliance boutique
- And Finally. Florida lawmakers pass take-your-guns-to-work law
- Logon: http://www.opalesque.com/index.php?act=archive

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Misc. Items of Interest

 

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Funnies, Facts, Quotes, etc….

 

caesura sih-ZHUR-uh; -ZUR-, noun;
plural caesuras or caesurae sih-ZHUR-ee; -ZUR-ee:

1. A break or pause in a line of verse, usually occurring in the middle of a line, and indicated in scanning by a double vertical line; for example, "The proper study || of mankind is man" [Alexander Pope, An Essay on Man].
2. Any break, pause, or interruption.

 

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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.