Fund Profiles

Adrian de Fay is settling into his new offices at Investec Asset Management in Cape Town, having made the move from his own company back to corporate life in late 2009.

Johannesburg-based Laurium Capital has teamed up with Ambata Capital Partners to advise on a new Zimbabwean fund, which went live in December 2009.

Craig Sorour and Sven Thordsen have made a promising start with their Bell Rock market-neutral fund, which launched in January 2009. The fund has had 10 positive months to the end of October, returning a net 20% return since inception.

With a successful seven-year collective track record in hedge funds, the Gen-X duo feel at ease in the current market environment and aim to soft-close before year end.

Tokai-based Storm Capital has made a healthy start with its Storm Capital Long/Short Fund, gaining 10.9% in the six months since launch. With its initial track record and product positioning in place, the fund is now being opened to additional investors.

Dr Nafees Hossain at Sanlam Investment Management is well into his second year with his Gen-X Statistical Arbitrage Fund, which has gained almost 20% since inception last June.

Ex-Stanlib veteran Ian Woodley has teamed up with BEX Asset Management in Johannesburg, quietly launching the Aquila Hedge Fund, which has been seeded with R5 million.

Ex-Stanlib executive director and head of external portfolios Imtiaz Ahmed has set up his own boutique hedge fund firm Forte Alternative Strategies, taking full ownership of the renamed Forte 20/20 Fund, which was previously run as a joint venture with First South Financial Services.

New York-headquartered Greylock Capital is raising money for its new Greylock Africa Opportunity Fund, having gone to first close with commitments of $77 million, including from the Overseas Private Investment Corp, the developmental agency of the US government.

Cape Town-based PSG Absolute Investments has launched its PSG Multi-Strategy Fund, a blend of the four South African single-strategy hedge funds it manages from its dealing room in the Constantia winelands. The new fund targets reliable absolute returns with low volatility uncorrelated with traditional asset classes.