John Paulson Goes To Asia, Paridon’s CIO Exits, BlueGold Rises, Hedge Funds Populate

Hedge-Fund Maven Paulson Gets Hong Kong License (WSJ)
Hedge-fund manager John Paulson, who made his name betting against subprime mortgages in 2007, is the latest high-profile investor to expand into Asia. Mr. Paulson, president of Paulson & Co., received a license from Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission to deal in securities, according to a filing on the regulatory watchdog’s website. Mr. Paulson got a Type 1 license to deal in securities for Paulson Asia Ltd., on Feb. 21, according to the website.

Paridon’s Chief Investment Officer Leaves Less Than a Year After Startup (Bloomberg)
Paridon Asia Pte, which started an Asia macro hedge fund less than a year ago, said its chief investment officer, Paul Berg, has left the firm. Chief Executive Officer Robert van Paridon said in an e- mailed reply to queries from Bloomberg News that he has taken over the role of chief investment officer. He didn’t provide further details.

BlueGold’s $2.2 Billion Hedge Fund Said to Rise 7.5% in Feb. (Bloomberg)
The $2.2 billion BlueGold Fund, managed by Pierre Andurand, returned 7.5 percent last month, said two people with direct knowledge of the matter. They declined to be identified because the information isn’t public. Last month’s gain compared with an average of 0.7 percent across hedge funds, as measured by the HFRX Global Hedge Fund Index of Chicago-based Hedge Fund Research Inc. The BlueGold Fund returned 12.8 percent last year, 55 percent in 2009 and 209 percent in its first year. It was founded in February 2008 by London-based Andurand and Dennis Crema, 50.

HFR: More Hedge Funds Launched Than Closed In ’10 (FinAlternatives)
The hedge fund industry gained a net 192 new funds last year, the first in three when hedge fund launches were more numerous than hedge fund liquidations. In 2010, 935 funds were launched against 743 that liquidated, Hedge Fund Research said. Both figures are significant: The number of new launches is the largest since almost 1,200 debuted in 2007, and the number of liquidations is almost half the 1,471 funds that closed their doors in the teeth of the financial crisis, in 2008.