Solutions
Choosing the best prime broker to support the strategy is vital, but will depend on the manager. A portfolio manager spinning out of a hedge fund with an established track record and experience in running a pot of capital, will likely want to appoint a tier one prime broker: the likes of Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley; especially if they are launching with significant AUM. They may, however, look to others as an alternate, or second, prime to mitigate risk and to provide certain outsourced services.
A true start-up, however, will likely be launching with limited capital and is going to
By Bob Guilbert – You're a new fund manager, and somewhere on your task list the letters "IT" are probably followed by a question mark. Odds are, you don't have a technology background, so as your firm's Chief Operating/Financial/Compliance Officer (or in some cases, Portfolio Manager), the sudden responsibility you've undertaken as your firm's de facto IT Manager is intimidating at best.
The good news is, as a startup, your IT options are pretty clear. In 2016, there's no better technology decision a new firm can make than selecting a cloud platform – an infrastructure that has proven benefits including
Cloud technology – The scale of a manager's IT infrastructure will largely depend on the type of trading strategy. A quantitative market neutral statistical arbitrage fund is likely going to spend more capital on front-office portfolio management, risk management systems and server storage capabilities than a specialist credit strategy that trades infrequently.
Either way, investors will expect the manager to have a well-oiled machine in place: well-established workflow processes, operational controls, and, as far as possible, front- to back-office system integration.
One of the most popular routes to establishing a sound technology infrastructure is to appoint an outsourced cloud provider.
If one were to sum up the key role of a hedge fund administrator, it is to independently value a fund's assets, allocate those assets correctly to individual investors, and accurately report the allocations to those investors.
Investors want an administrator, not the manager, to independently calculate the fund's assets and monitor the books and records, and to report the fund's NAV. For any new start-up manager, it is worth remembering that when selecting the most appropriate administrator they understand that whilst the administrator will ordinarily perform a range of middle- and back-office functions, at a high level they:
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Choosing appropriate service providers is one of the cornerstones to creating a successful hedge fund business.
All too often, start-up managers try to appoint the big, bulge-bracket names but this is folly. Unless the manager in question has existing relationships with the likes of Goldman Sachs, and is launching with USD250 million or more in AUM, they will have precious little chance of becoming clients of the industry's leading asset servicers.
So the first thing to consider at the pre-launch phase is: who would be the best service providers to support you relative to the size of your fund?
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Operational due diligence or “ODD” are arguably three of the most important words for any start-up manager hopeful of attracting new investors. Such is the level of expectation among institutional investors today that even if the manager only has USD20-30m in AUM and outsources the CFO function, operationally they still must look and act like a serious outfit.
As Frank Napolitani (pictured), Director, Financial Services at EisnerAmper LLP, comments: “You have to be buttoned up from a front-middle-back-office, legal, compliance and infrastructure standpoint and have answers to things; for example, on the outsourced CFO point, they might want to say, `I
Navigating the increased regulatory requirements of AIFMD has been a costly and resource-intensive exercise for many investment managers over the past few years. Now that the dust has settled on AIFMD, fund managers need to decide on, and implement, the most efficient operating models that allow them to manage assets and raise new capital.
Last month, SEI hosted a panel session in London in conjunction with Duff & Phelps, EFA and leading alternative investment managers entitled “Practical AIFM Management Company Operating Models for Investment Managers”, to specifically address the ways in which managers might wish to establish new European fund
Private equity investment firm Thoma Bravo has completed its sale of InfoVista, a specialist in service performance assurance solutions for IP-based network and application services, to Apax Partners. Financial terms of the transaction have not been disclosed.
“The sale is a tremendous outcome for both our investors and InfoVista, and empowers the company to continue its successful growth trajectory,” says Robert Sayle, a partner at Thoma Bravo. “It serves as the culmination of a complex take-private transaction on a European exchange, the execution of two major acquisitions, and a deep partnership with management to accelerate the company’s organic growth. I
Private equity firm Thoma Bravo has completed its sale of InfoVista, a specialist in service performance assurance solutions for IP-based network and application services, to Apax Partners. Financial terms of the transaction have not been disclosed.
“The sale is a tremendous outcome for both our investors and InfoVista, and empowers the company to continue its successful growth trajectory,” says Robert Sayle, a partner at Thoma Bravo. “It serves as the culmination of a complex take-private transaction on a European exchange, the execution of two major acquisitions, and a deep partnership with management to accelerate the company’s organic growth. I know
Arsenal Capital Partners’ specialty polymers and additives platform, Polymer Solutions Group (PSG), has acquired Sasco Chemical Group (Sasco Chemical), a manufacturer of specialty chemicals for the rubber, wood, consumer and medical industries.
Headquartered in Albany, Georgia and founded in 1948, Sasco Chemical is a leading manufacturer of rubber anti-tack agents in North America with its PolyCoat, TechKote and Sasco Cote product lines. Sasco Chemical has a research and development center in Macon, Georgia, produces more than 1,200 products and distributes them globally.
PSG was formed by Arsenal in June 2015 with the acquisition of Peach State Labs, Inc. (Peach State
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12 November, 2026 – 8:00 am
12 November, 2026 – 5:00 pm
