Asian hedge funds attract inflows of $500m in August to near 2007 peak
ASIA-focused hedge funds attracted a net inflow of about $500m (£319.2m) in August, increasing their total inflows for 2011 to $7bn, as investors shrugged off volatile markets and raised bets on the region’s fast growth, new data shows.
Flows this year have exceeded last year’s when these funds got net inflows of $4bn, data released yesterday by Singapore-based hedge fund tracker Eurekahedge showed.
European hedge funds saw net outflows worth $2.8bn in August, while North American funds attracted net inflows of $4.8bn, the data showed.
Total assets under management of the Asian hedge funds tracked by Eurekahedge rose to $136.1bn at the end of August, the highest since December 2008.
While cumulative hedge fund assets in Asia remain about $40bn below their peak hit in December 2007, the industry is seeing a revival from the global financial crisis, with some funds attracting hundreds of millions of dollars.
High-profile funds such as Azentus, launched by former Goldman Sachs trader Morgan Sze, and the ones planned by Carl Huttenlocher, the former Asia head of JPMorgan Chase & Co’s Highbridge Capital and Oasis Management’s Seth Fischer are expected to boost industry assets further this year.
Asian hedge funds, including those betting on Japan, received a net inflow for the 16th consecutive month in August.