US Hedge Fund Balyasny Names Dubai Chief (FundsGlobalMena.com)
Balyasny Asset Management, a US-based hedge fund, has named Tarek Rizk as its head for the Mena market. Based in Dubai, Rizk will head up the firm’s newly established Mena office in the Dubai International Finance Centre (DIFC) as well as taking responsibility for leading the firm’s expansion across the Middle East. He was most recently the global head of alternative investments for the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. The appointment continues the expansion of international hedge funds in the region.
Lincoln National’s CRE Exposure Targeted by Two Hedge Funds (Reuters)
Two hedge funds have placed bets that bonds issued by life insurance company Lincoln National Corp (LNC.N) will fall or that its default risk will increase, due to their concerns about the company’s commercial real estate (CRE) exposure. Investors have been on high alert for losses in CRE. That sector has faced challenges since the pandemic after hybrid working arrangements led to a sharp increase office vacancies. At the same time, higher interest rates made repaying debt more challenging. In the past few months, Mill Hill Capital has taken short positions in Lincoln National’s credit, it said, while Saba Capital has held the firm’s credit default swaps, a derivative that offers investors protection against a default, a source familiar with the matter said. The source requested anonymity because the trades are not public.
Cortes Campers Parent Agrees to Sell $1 Million in Stock to Hedge Fund (BizJournals.com)
US Lighting Group Inc., the maker of Cortes Campers, has agreed to sell up to $1 million of its common stock to Alumni Capital Management, a Miami-based hedge fund. Alumni Capital Management describes itself on its LinkedIn page as “a millennial hedge fund consisting of both alumni and students from various schools throughout the U.S.” “Our top-line expansion continues unabated, but we need capital to accelerate production and meet increasing demand,” said Anthony Corpora, CEO of Euclid, Ohio-based US Lighting, which operates a handful of businesses that make molded fiberglass vehicles and structures.
Checkout.com’s Billionaire Founder Opens Philanthropic Fund (Forbes)
One of Europe’s wealthiest tech billionaires Guillaume Pousaz, founder of payments startup Checkout.com, has quietly set up a charitable foundation with his wife Laure Pousaz. Pousaz Philanthropies intends to support “quality and safe education” for children and had already partnered with education non-profits like Khan Academy and Global School Leaders, as well as think tank Center for Global Development, and the former hedge fund billionaire Christopher Chandler’s Luminos Fund, according to its website launched in September.
K2 Hedge Fund Strategy Outlook: Q3 2023 (Seeking Alpha)
The current environment looks favorable for equity market neutral, global macro and insurance-linked securities, according to K2 Advisors. The team offers its mid-year outlook for these and other hedge fund strategies. As we reach the mid-year mark, which is a time when we thought we would have more clarity on economic trends, inflation, geopolitical pressures and central bank biases, we arguably have more uncertainty and a wider range of reasonable outcomes.
Citco: Hedge Fund Performance Remains Positive in Q2 (Opalesque)
According to new data from asset servicer Citco, hedge funds saw an overall weighted average return of 2.77% in Q2, taking YTD average weighted returns to 8.04%. Hedge funds have now had three consecutive quarters of gains, going back to Q4 2022, Citco data shows. Almost 70% of all funds delivered positive performance in the latest three-month period. Equities and multi-strategy funds were the best performers in the second quarter, with weighted average returns of 4.52% and 2.54% respectively, taking their YTD returns to 10.34% and 10.14%.
Billionaire Hedge Fund Managers Don’t Fear Bank Of Japan (Forbes)
At what point did the Bank of Japan become an afterthought for global markets? This question isn’t as flippant as it might seem. Central bank power rests on a combination of mystery, fear and unpredictability. Over the last 30 years, the Federal Reserve demonstrated these qualities along with the Bundesbank of old. The European Central Bank has shown some teeth now and again. The BOJ, by sharp contrast, has been all smiles, predictably and lacking in sticks to compliment the carrots it’s always doling out. This tedium decade after decade comes at a price.
US Hedge Funds Unload $700 Million of China ADRs, Morgan Stanley Says (Bloomberg)
US-based hedge funds are selling into the rally in Chinese stocks, according to Morgan Stanley. The fast-money managers have unloaded roughly $700 million in New York-listed shares of Chinese companies this month, strategists led by Gilbert Wong wrote in a Thursday report, citing the bank’s analysis. PDD Holdings Inc., Yum China Holdings Inc. and Vipshop Holdings Ltd. have been among the names sold down the most by long-only managers, the strategists said.
$40M Bet On Acumen Pharmaceuticals? Check Out These 3 Stocks Insiders Are Buying (Benzinga)
Acumen Pharmaceuticals: The Trade: Acumen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (ABOS) Director Rajeev Shah acquired a total of 5,161,290 shares an average price of $7.75. To acquire these shares, it cost around $40 million. Berkshire Hills Bancorp: The Trade: Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc. (BHLB) President and CEO Nitin Mhatre bought a total of 1,500 shares at an average price of $22.29. To acquire these shares, it cost around $33,435.
Billionaire Accused of Insider Trading Puts Up His $250 Million Super Yacht for Bail (The Street)
British Billionaire Joe Lewis is trying all he can to avoid jail time, including ponying up one of the world’s most expensive yachts. The Tottenham Hotspur owner pleaded not guilty to insider trading on July 26 and was released on a $300 million bond that will be secured by his yacht, named Aviva, worth an estimated $250 million, and a private plane.
