HEDGE FUNDS - A RESOURCE FOR INVESTORS

Hedge funds are one of the fastest growing investment products, yet there is little information available to guide investors through this highly attractive financial instrument. In Hedge Funds: A Resource for Investors, the authors provide an accessible guide to assist investors in their portfolio management decisions, covering the operators, products and various hedge fund strategies available.

Written by two highly experienced players of the hedge fund industry, the authors describe the current trends and key recent events in this shift to alternative investments, which are characterised by an excellent risk return profile and low correlation with traditional investments. Hedge Funds: A Resource for Investors is a must-have guide for fund managers, portfolio managers and private investors.

DENIS MASETTI has been working in the financial services industry for over twenty years with companies such as Dival, ING, Flemings and more recently GIA JD Farrods, a company specialising in the distribution of alternative investments. In 1995 Masetti founded Bluerating.com, a company providing rating to investment products and in 2001 Bluehedge.com, a website offering state-of-the-art information on hedge funds. He is the Editor of Hedge, the first Italian magazine on alternative investments.

SIMONE BORLA is Managing Director of JD Farrods Securities Ltd., a company that has developed a global network for the distribution of innovative financial products and services to institutions. In Italy he created the distribution network of Lombard International Assurance and launched the first Unit Linked product on the market. In the past he worked for companies like Lombard International Assurance, JP Morgan and Philip Morris.

About the Authors.

A Word of Thanks.

Introduction.

1. Hedge Funds and Alternative Investments in Europe.

The Birth of Hedge Funds.

Hedge Funds.

Main Characteristics of the Industry.

Hedge Fund Strategies.

2. Hedge Fund Advantages and Opportunities.

Advantages of Hedge Funds for Institutional Clients: Elements of Portfolio Selection.

Advantages of Hedge Funds for Private Clients: Second Generation Funds of Funds and Structured Products.

New Prospects for Hedge Funds: Insurance Policies and Pension Funds.

Hedge Funds and Mutual Funds.

Market Potential.

3. The European Market.

Marketing Opportunities—The Reasons for the Boom.

Market Opportunities, Laws and Fiscal Considerations in the Major European Countries.

The Major European Countries.

Offshore Domiciles for Hedge Funds.

Future Prospects.

4. Information in the World of Hedge Funds.

Associations and Organisations.

Publications.

Research Web Sites.

Information Sites.

Hedge Fun d Indices.

Glossary.

Index.