CA-Hedge funds seem to be everywhere latelyâ€â€shifting assets into venture capital, capturing headlines, growing assets.
Now a study points to a reason: There are lots more of them. The number of single-manager hedge funds increased to 13,675 at year-end 2006, a 69 percent increase from the 8,100 funds in 2005, PerTrac Financial Solutions reported.
The study, which analyzed 56,000 investment records from 12 hedge fund databases, placed assets under management for single-manager funds at a whopping $1.41 trillion as of Dec. 31, 2006. That was even higher than the $1.2 trillion reported in a survey by the Hennessee Group consultancy as of Oct. 31.
About 250 funds have more than $1 billion under management, PerTrac reported, while more than one-third of single-manager funds have less than $25 million.
Collecting figures on hedge funds can be a tricky business. No single regulatory body governs the industry, and hedge funds are domiciled around the world. Among single-manager funds, 36 percent were single-manager funds based in the United States, while 64 percent were offshore.
