Soros charitable foundation sometimes leans right (TucsonSentinel)
George Soros may be one of the nation’s top liberal political benefactors, but his company’s charitable program encourages employees to donate to any cause they would like — even if it potentially conflicts with his political ideology. Soros Fund Management, a hedge fund firm founded by Soros in 1969, will match any donation an employee makes to a nonprofit organization, a common practice among large companies.
MARC FABER: The Way Things Are Going, The Fed Will Have To Give Us 96 More Rounds Of Fed Stimulus (BusinessInsider)
On Wednesday, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told us that the U.S. economy could be strong enough for the Fed to begin tapering, or scaling back, it’s stimulative quantitative easing (QE) program later this year. However, the bears aren’t convinced. After Bernanke’s comments, Peter Schiff said the economy was so weak that the Fed’s next big announcement would actually be to increase QE. Uber bear Marc Faber, embracing hyperbole, suggested that QE would basically be a part of everyday life for the rest of our lives.
Gold Wagers Slump as $55 Billion Erased From Funds: Commodities (Bloomberg)
Hedge funds cut bets on a gold rally by the most since February after the Federal Reserve laid out plans for reducing stimulus and this year’s drop in the value of exchange-traded products extended to $55 billion. Speculators reduced their net-long position by 29 percent to 38,951 futures and options by June 18, U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission data show. Holdings of short contracts jumped 14 percent, the most in eight weeks. Net-bullish wagers across 18 commodities slid 2.2 percent as investors became more bearish on copper and wheat.
A Virtually Unknown Hedge Funder Who Crushed It During The Crisis Is Preparing To Make His Comeback (BusinessInsider)
Dr. Michael Burry is apparently plotting a comeback to the hedge fund world. Burry, the former hedge fund manager who accurately predicted the housing market crisis and is featured in Michael Lewis’ book “The Big Short,” is looking to raise money to start a new fund, the Wall Street Journal’s Juliet Chung reports. According to the Journal, he’s looking to raise between $100 and $200 million. The medical doctor-turned-hedge fund manager had incredible annualized returns during his eight years of running Bay Area-based Scion Capital Group.
This Is What’s Happening To Everyone Who ‘Bought Brazil’ (BusinessInsider)
ETFs have become Wall Street’s way of buying the world. You want exposure to India? Boom! Here’s a basket of Indonesian companies. How about homebuilders? Here’s a basket of companies in that industry down to the guys that make the mattresses in your bedroom. So naturally investors have bought into emerging market darling Brazil, but in the midst of this week’s chaotic protests, those investors have been taking a serious beating. Over the last 5 days, the iShares MSCI Brazil Capped Index (EWZ) is down 9.4% (22% year to date). You can see on the chart that things truly got ugly when the protests started a few days ago, but it’s also important to keep in mind that ETFs have gotten swept up in the bond selloff that’s taken hold of the market since Bernanke spoke this week.
US fund manager looks to score in Serie A (FT)
From Boston-based hedge fund manager to the sole foreign owner of a top-flight Italian football club, James Pallotta is determined to bring US-style branding and management to transform AS Roma into a profitable venture competing with the best in Europe. The challenge is daunting, not just because Italy’s Serie A is the least profitable of Europe’s top leagues. With the last goal of this season Roma lost 0-1 to local rivals Lazio in the finals of the Coppa Italiana, a bitter defeat that knocked them out of European competition for another season and left them scrambling to find a new coach, a position filled this month by the signing of Lille’s Rudi Garcia.
US court upholds Rajaratnam’s conviction (Business-Standard)
Disgraced hedge fund founder Raj Rajaratnam’s conviction for insider trading in the biggest hedge fund insider-trading scheme in US history was upheld today by a court here, which rejected a challenge to the use of wiretaps in his high-profile trial. The US Court of Appeals in Manhattan today confirmed the 2011 conviction of the co-founder of Galleon Group LLC for conspiracy and securities fraud. The decision by a unanimous three-judge panel of the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals in New York was seen as a victory for federal prosecutors, who have used wiretaps to win convictions or guilty pleas for dozens of defendants in a wide-ranging investigation into insider trading that was unveiled in October 2009.
