What you think you know about hedge funds: · George Soros become very rich running one, called Quantum · In 1992 Quantum made $1 billion in a matter of days on the collapse of sterling · Long Term Capital Management, one of the biggest and best, run by a dream team of mathematical wizards, failed horribly and sent shock waves through the markets. So, not something for widows and orphans? The popular view of hedge funds is that they are highly risky investments for the super rich and super greedy. They don’t affect the lives of ordinary people and if they fail, it serves people right for being too greedy. The FT describes them as: ‘generally thought of as risky investments: a corner shop business run by mavericks, betting billions on the collapse of the pound or the gold price … hedge funds are risky even by definition. They are funds that can bokrrow so as to invest more than their assets’ funds that stand or fall by the skill of their managers.’ Like the courtesans in the 18th and 19th centuries, hovering on the edge of the court, immensely wealthy and powerful, feared but not accepted by the legitimate wives and children of the nobility, hedge funds wait on the edges of the investment world, unaccepted by the mainstream investment community yet more powerful and wealthy than many people realise: Things you may not know about hedge funds: · There are over 3,500 hedge funds currently in existence, containing $400 billion · By 2002 E&Y estimate that trillions of dollars will be placed in hedge funds · They are unregulated · Their workings are totally opaque · They can move billions of dollars around the world on a daily basis, betting against particular events or against currencies or economies They don’t just predict collapses, they make them happen Still think they don’t affect you? Things you probably wish you didn’t know about hedge funds · The money in your bank account is probably invested in what is effectively a hedge fund · The money in your pension may well be invested in hedge funds · Developing economies and those that are particularly vulnerable are actively targeted by hedge funds · Many hedge funds are so large that they cannot be allowed to fail without damaging whole economies and destroying markets It’s a pretty frightening scenario. So why in August 1998 did leading investment bank Goldman Sachs bring out a report recommending hedge funds as a safe investment for pension funds? Like them or loathe them, hedge funds can no longer be ignored. They are here to stay and their influence is going to grow rapidly over the next few years. In this controversial book, written by a well-known financial journalist, Peter Temple examines the workings of hedge funds, their successes and failures. Leading US/UK and European hedge funds will be examined, through primary research and interviews with fund managers, consultants, regulators and central banks. Peter will also examine the influence that they have on the markets as a whole and wider economies
Book Details:
- Author: Peter Temple
- ISBN: 9780470364383
- Year Published: 2001
- Pages: 280
- BISAC: BUS027000, BUSINESS & ECONOMICS/Finance
About the Book and Topic:
What you think you know about hedge funds: · George Soros become very rich running one, called Quantum · In 1992 Quantum made $1 billion in a matter of days on the collapse of sterling · Long Term Capital Management, one of the biggest and best, run by a dream team of mathematical wizards, failed horribly and sent shock waves through the markets. So, not something for widows and orphans? The popular view of hedge funds is that they are highly risky investments for the super rich and super greedy. They don’t affect the lives of ordinary people and if they fail, it serves people right for being too greedy. The FT describes them as: ‘generally thought of as risky investments: a corner shop business run by mavericks, betting billions on the collapse of the pound or the gold price … hedge funds are risky even by definition. They are funds that can bokrrow so as to invest more than their assets’ funds that stand or fall by the skill of their managers.’ Like the courtesans in the 18th and 19th centuries, hovering on the edge of the court, immensely wealthy and powerful, feared but not accepted by the legitimate wives and children of the nobility, hedge funds wait on the edges of the investment world, unaccepted by the mainstream investment community yet more powerful and wealthy than many people realise: Things you may not know about hedge funds: · There are over 3,500 hedge funds currently in existence, containing $400 billion · By 2002 E&Y estimate that trillions of dollars will be placed in hedge funds · They are unregulated · Their workings are totally opaque · They can move billions of dollars around the world on a daily basis, betting against particular events or against currencies or economies They don’t just predict collapses, they make them happen Still think they don’t affect you? Things you probably wish you didn’t know about hedge funds · The money in your bank account is probably invested in what is effectively a hedge fund · The money in your pension may well be invested in hedge funds · Developing economies and those that are particularly vulnerable are actively targeted by hedge funds · Many hedge funds are so large that they cannot be allowed to fail without damaging whole economies and destroying markets It’s a pretty frightening scenario. So why in August 1998 did leading investment bank Goldman Sachs bring out a report recommending hedge funds as a safe investment for pension funds? Like them or loathe them, hedge funds can no longer be ignored. They are here to stay and their influence is going to grow rapidly over the next few years. In this controversial book, written by a well-known financial journalist, Peter Temple examines the workings of hedge funds, their successes and failures. Leading US/UK and European hedge funds will be examined, through primary research and interviews with fund managers, consultants, regulators and central banks. Peter will also examine the influence that they have on the markets as a whole and wider economies
This controversial book, by an experienced financial journalist and author, examines the issues raised by hedge funds, how they should be used, the influence they have on the financial markets and on the wider economy. It is a highly topical subject on which very little is currently written
Hedge Funds is a definitive look at leading U.S. and European hedge funds, drawn from primary research and interviews with fund managers, consultants, regulators, and central banks. * The author examines the influence hedge funds have on the market as a whole. * Information on hedge funds run by George Soros, Michael Steinhardt, Paul Tudor Jones, Long-Term Capital Management, and more.
About the Author
PETER TEMPLE worked as an investment analyst in fund management and broking for 18 years, before turning full time to writing in 1988. He writes widely on financial topics, mainly for a private investor readership. His articles are published in the Financial Times, the Investors Chronicle, Shares magazine, International Fund Investment, and a variety of other publications and websites. His previous books cover topics like online investing, investing for beginners, venture capital, and trading options. Peter and Lynn Temple live in the London suburbs in Woodford Green, but travel widely. They have two grown-up children, both professional musicians.