對沖基金與信評

對沖基金與信評

Hedge Funds' Next Wrinkle: Ratings

對沖基金最近已經夠倒楣了, 現在又出現了下一個難關 --- 信評.

我有一個很聰明又很會賺錢的朋友Aaron在對沖基金作的很好, 他曾不只一次在閒談中擔心對沖基金的好景不再. (那可是會破壞他在全世界各地置產的美夢的, just kidding, Aaron, if you are watching) 看來他的擔心是真的, 只是在那天來到前他可能已經賺飽退休了.

讀完此文我有幾點想法:
1. HF關起門來神秘兮兮搞的時代已經過去, 他們令人匪夷所思的管理費(1-2%+20% of profit over watermark)能繼續下去的時日應該不多了
2. 投資大眾被允許進入Hedge Fund/富人俱樂部(多少人有五百萬美元的"閒錢" liquid asset 呢)的時代即將來臨. 目前最大的障礙就是未知的風險.
3. 我的公司(作FI的風險管理)將會賺到許多HF的錢, 哈哈!
4. 惠將更有機會進入HF賺大錢, 哈哈哈!
5. Aaron快來請我家惠吃飯, 說不定她有一天會評等你的公司呢, 哈哈哈哈!

(original)

By SERENA NG and SHEFALI ANAND
August 25, 2006; Page C3

The country's largest credit-ratings services are taking steps to break into the potentially lucrative business of rating hedge funds.

The ratings firms believe that demand from big investors like pension funds for such assessments will spur more hedge-fund managers to obtain independent evaluations of their ability to steer clear of problems.

Moody's Investors Service, a unit of Moody's Corp., has spent much of the past year developing a model that rates "operational risk" of hedge funds -- essentially, the likelihood a fund will lose money or even shut down because of lax or fraudulent management -- and is expecting to publish its first such rating in the coming weeks. Meanwhile, Standard & Poor's, a McGraw-Hill Cos. unit that has provided credit ratings on a few individual hedge funds since at least 2000, is preparing to publish a set of criteria detailing how it will assess the risk of funds going forward.

The ratings firms are hoping to fill an information gap in an industry that is fast gaining popularity with a broader range of investors but remains largely shrouded in secrecy. Lightly regulated hedge funds now manage more than $1 trillion for wealthy individuals and large institutions.

Before putting money with a hedge fund, investors often perform checks on the fund, which may include visiting the fund manager and discussing its internal controls to prevent financial fraud and other risk-management strategies. Larger investors also contract outside consultants to conduct this "due diligence" work on their behalf. There are also a handful of private firms in the U.S. and Europe that provide independent certifications and reports on hedge funds' internal systems and controls, and now the ratings services want a slice of the pie.

The new Moody's ratings would address, among other things, whether funds are properly valuing their assets and whether they have adequate risk-management systems. It also plans to conduct background checks on individual fund managers, including their educational and professional qualifications, work experience, and any previous run-ins with the law. Such issues are of concern to investors in the wake of alleged frauds at firms like Bayou Management and Wood River Capital Management.

S&P's credit ratings on hedge funds -- most of which currently aren't public -- are meant to reflect the likelihood of a fund defaulting on loans made to it. They also take into account hedge funds' operational risk and consider whether a fund will be able to repay all its creditors if it has to liquidate its portfolio.

Fitch Ratings has put out credit ratings on a handful of hedge funds for several years, but like S&P, most of those ratings are private and can be viewed only by investors and institutions that hedge funds choose to share the ratings with.

Fitch, a unit of Fimalac SA of Paris, also does ratings on the operational risk of several hedge funds in Europe, and is looking to do this in the U.S., says Eileen Fahey, a managing director.

It is unclear if many hedge funds will step up to be scrutinized by the big ratings firms, as many continue to seek to avoid scrutiny by outsiders.

Write to Serena Ng at serena.ng@wsj.com1 and Shefali Anand at shefali.anand@wsj.com2