Japan launch boosts shares in Man Group
SHARES in Man Group, Europe’s largest listed hedge fund, leapt yesterday after it revealed it had raised a bumper $1.5bn (£910m) from Japanese investors for a new fund.
The Nomura Global Trend open-ended fund, which tracks Man Group’s AHL?managed futures strategy, is the firm’s biggest product launch since the financial crisis.
Japanese bank Nomura marketed the fund to its private-banking clients on behalf of Man Group.
Man Group will invest the fund in a mixture of assets via three currency baskets, one of which includes the Chinese Yuan.
The investment powerhouse pressed ahead with the launch of the computer-driven fund after initially stalling as a result of Japan’s massive quake and tsunami in March.
About 15 per cent of Man Group’s assets are based in Japan, and shares in the firm were hit hard following the disaster.
The hedge fund manager struggled in the wake of the financial crisis, but last quarter Man Group showed it was winning back clients after two years of heavy outflows.
Meanwhile, the sponsor of the literary world’s Booker Prize also announced it had completed its deal to buy New York-based fund manager Ore Hill. The purchase bolsters its US operations, giving it a stronger presence in the American credit markets.
Man Group shares closed up three per cent at 258p per unit.