Bridgewater nears launch of its $10bn hedge fund
BRIDGEWATER Associates, the world’s biggest hedge fund firm, is close to launching a $10bn (£6.2bn) fund, in the latest indication that the sector is recovering from the financial crisis.
The fund, which is only available to current investors in Bridgewater, started trading in November last year with $2.4bn in assets.
Investors have committed a further $7.5bn to the fund, which has now stopped taking new investments.
Half of the money in the fund is said to come from existing clients, whilst the other half is from profits returned to investors from Bridgewater’s flagship fund Pure Alpha.
The fund has returned about 11 per cent so far this year, the same as Pure Alpha, while the average hedge fund has returned two per cent, according to data provider Hedge Fund Research.
The new fund is named Pure Alpha Major Markets, and is an extension of the flagship vehicle’s strategy. It invests in UK and German bond markets, amongst others.
Bridgewater has about $67bn in the two funds, with the remainder of its more than $100bn funds under management in long-only vehicles.