The Hedge Fund Book

An accessible guide to effectively operating in the hedge fund arena

Hedge funds are now in the news more than a thousand times a day and yet it is hard to find clear, factual information about how they operate, raise capital, and invest. The Hedge Fund Book provides real-world case studies of various hedge fund managers providing a solid foundation in specialized hedge fund knowledge for both financial professionals and those aspiring to enter this field.

It provides an analysis of funds within different phases of their life cycles and investment processes, and examines each cycle in ways that would be informational for marketers as well as investors, bankers, and financial professionals who would like to learn more about day-to-day hedge fund operations

• Addresses everything you need to know about this popular segment of the financial industry within a case study format
• Each chapter contains several types of investment and situational analyses, insights and best practices along with a review and "test your knowledge section"
• Written by a successful hedge fund consultant and head of one of the largest hedge fund networking groups in the industry with more than 30,000 members
• This book is required reading for participants within the hedge fund industry's leading designation program, the CHP Designation

If you're looking to gain a better understanding of hedge funds, look no further than The Hedge Fund Book.

Preface xi

My Story xii

Disclosure of Financial Interests xiii

Acknowledgments xv

Introduction 1

Chapter 1 Hedge Fund Fundamentals 5

Hedge Fund Mechanics and Statistics 6

History of Hedge Funds 8

Media Portrayal of Hedge Funds 9

Hedge Fund Ecosystem 10

Future of the Hedge Fund Industry 13

Chapter Summary 13

Review Questions 14

Chapter 2 Institutionalization and Operations 17

Stephen Abrahams, Vice President of Marketing for a London-Based Hedge Fund 18

Bob Pardo, CEO and President, Pardo Capital Limited 19

Vinod Paul, Managing Director of Service and Business Development, Eze Castle Integration 21

Nakul Nayyar, Quantitative Trading/Support, Quad Capital 24

Hendrik Klein, CEO, Da Vinci Invest Ltd. 26

Sheri Kanesaka, Associate, Michelman & Robinson, LLP 29

Eric Warshal, CEO, Fund Associates 30

Lance Baraker and William Katts, Senior Managing Directors, TradeStation Prime 32

Chapter Summary 36

Review Questions 36

Chapter 3 Hedge Fund Marketing Pro 39

Bad News 40

Public Relations Management 41

Educational Marketing 42

Forget about Contacting More Investors 43

E-Mail Marketing Best Practices 45

Copy Writing 49

Case Profile 50

Stephen Abrahams, Vice President of Marketing for a London-Based Hedge Fund 54

Pratik Sharma, Managing Director, Atyant Capital 55

Hendrik Klein, CEO, Da Vinci Invest Ltd. 59

Chapter Summary 60

Review Questions 61

Chapter 4 The Shooting Star 63

18 Lessons from Shooting Star Hedge Funds 63

Rick Nummi, Partner and General Counsel, Accounting and Compliance International (ACI) 65

Thomas Powell, Chief Executive Officer, ELP Capital 72

Chapter Summary 74

Review Questions 74

Chapter 5 Hedge Fund Start-Up Guru 77

Top Five Tips for Starting a Hedge Fund 78

Hedge Fund Pitch Book Creation 80

Syed Ali, CEO, Saturn Partners, LLC 81

Nakul Nayyar, Quantitative Trading/Support, Quad Capital 86

Chapter Summary 89

Review Questions 90

Chapter 6 Dedicated to Due Diligence 93

Scott Freund, President, GCC Family Wealth Management 94

Brian Reich, President and Founder, Atrato Advisors LLC 95

Richard Wilson, Hedge Fund Group, CHP

Designation, HedgeFundBlogger.com 98

Due Diligence Effects on Hedge Funds 102

Chapter Summary 105

Review Questions 106

Chapter 7 Giant Hedge Funds 109

Best Practices from $1 Billion-Plus Hedge Funds 109

Richard Zahm, Portfolio Manager, Second Angel Fund 111

Scott Cohen, President and CEO, Hedge Solutions 117

Chapter Summary 119

Review Questions 120

Chapter 8 Governance Best Practices 123

Andrew Main, Managing Partner, Stratton Street Capital LLP 124

David R. Koenig, CEO of the Governance Fund, LLC 130

Chapter Summary 134

Review Questions 134

Chapter 9 Frequently Asked Hedge Fund Questions 137

Hedge Funds 101 137

Hedge Fund Operations 139

Hedge Fund Marketing and Sales 142

Hedge Fund Careers 156

Appendix A Bonuses of $1,779 169

Appendix B Example Due Diligence Questions 171

Questionnaire 171

Appendix C Top Hedge Fund Web Sites 177

Glossary 179

About the Author 185

Index 187

RICHARD C. WILSON is a hedge fund consultant and head of the Hedge Fund Group, the largest hedge fund networking group in the industry. He is also the creator of the successful Web site HedgeFundBlogger.com. Wilson writes a daily article on the hedge fund industry for the site, as well as straightforward educational pieces on hedge fund strategies, terms and definitions, trends, interviews, videos, and book reviews. He also founded and holds two 100% online training sessions for the Certified Hedge Fund Professional (CHP) Designation Program, a professional certification program catering to professionals in the hedge fund industry.

Hedge funds are now in the news more than a thousand times a day, and yet it's hard to find clear, factual information about how they actually operate, raise capital, and invest.

That's why author Richard C. Wilson—head of the largest hedge fund networking group in the industry—has created The Hedge Fund Book. Filled with extensive interviews of various hedge fund managers, real-world case studies, review questions, and much more, this one-of-a-kind resource provides a solid foundation in specialized hedge fund knowledge for both financial professionals and those aspiring to enter this field.

Page by page, The Hedge Fund Book offers expert analysis of funds within different phases of their life cycles and investment processes, and examines each cycle in ways that would be informative for marketers as well as investors, bankers, and financial professionals who would like to learn more about day-to-day hedge fund operations. Along the way, this accessible guide will show you:

• How hedge fund managers can immediately increase their operational effectiveness
• Over 100 ways you can improve your hedge fund business or marketing processes with direct advice and interviews with industry veterans and hedge fund managers
• Why most hedge fund managers struggle to raise capital and how being proactive within the right areas can allow a small team to raise a large amount of capital
• How to implement governance best practices that will improve investor confidence, enhance decision-making processes, and decrease the risk of some types of fraud
• How hedge funds are improving their business structure and processes without spending millions on infrastructure
• How to start a hedge fund without over-spending or killing your chances of raising capital in the future
• How to emulate the best practices of larger hedge funds, which have learned many lessons the hard way

Along with the information found here, there is also a series of over fifty video resources that act as a supplement to this training manual. Throughout the book, there are references to these resources, and the complete list of videos available may be seen at HedgeFundTraining.com/Videos.

Whether you're looking to gain a better understanding of hedge funds from a professional perspective or studying for the Certified Hedge Fund Professional (CHP) Designation Program, this book has the information you need to succeed in such a fast-moving field.