Global hedge funds gather for insight sharing
Mirae Asset hosts one-day international seminar ahead of domestic market liberalization
By Kim Da-ye
Mirae Asset Global Investments is hosting a Global Hedge Fund Forum today, the firm’s first conference on the investment method that will be allowed here later this year.
“Around the time of the launch of Korean-style hedge funds, we would like to host the forum under the theme ‘The direction for the development of the domestic hedge funds and the advice from the global hedge funds’ to boost interest at home and abroad and wish for their success,” Koo Jae-sang, the vice chairman of Mirae Asset Global Investments, said in the invitation.
The conference will be at the Shilla Hotel in central Seoul between 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. with some 500 institutional investors and VVIP clients.
A Mirae Asset official said that the forum intends to offer correct information on hedge funds that will soon be widely available to clients.
The Financial Services Commission (FSC) is planning to hand the revision of the current capital market laws to the National Assembly to have hedge funds created under the Korean system in play by the end of the year.
The FSC announced that hedge funds will have to have equity capital worth at least 6 billion won while retail investors, better known as individuals, will be required to invest a minimum of 500 million won.
The FSC also removed the restriction that private equity funds have to invest 50 percent of their assets into restructuring troubled companies while allowing the funds to borrow up to 400 percent of their total assets.
The hedge fund forum will begin with a congratulatory message from Hwang Kun-ho, chairman of the Korea Financial Investment Association, followed by the opening speech by Mirae Asset’s Koo.
The first presentation will be “Inflation outlook and investment opportunities in gold” presented by John Read, the head of gold strategy at Paulson & Company which manages about 35 trillion won in assets.
Soozhana Choi, the head of commodities research at Deutsche Bank’s Asian unit, will discuss her forecast for the commodities market amid slowed consumption while York Capital Management Chief Information Officer (CIO) Christophe Aurand will talk about the event-driven market such as investment opportunities formed by huge acts like mergers and acquisitions.
Yung Lim, the co-founder of the New York-based Treesdale, will present successful cases of hedge funds set up by Koreans.
Eric Personne of Bank of America Merril Lynch will present the undertakings for collective investment in transferable securities (UCITs), investment funds that can be marketed within the European Union.
Transtrend CEO Joep van den Broek will discuss the market for commodity trading advisors while FX Concepts Vice Chairman Jonathan Clark will share his forecasts on various currencies.
Monica Hsiao, the head of Asian credit strategist of CQS will make a speech on the credit market.
At the end of the day will be a panel discussion on hedge fund investment using managed accounts and platforms. Representatives from Deutsche Bank, BoA Merrill Lynch, Amundi Alternative Investments and Lyxor Asset Management will participate.