International Herald Tribune – David Shaw, founder of the world’s largest hedge fund firm, said investment returns probably would worsen because of all the money pouring into the industry.
“There’s an enormous amount of capital now chasing a smaller amount of investment opportunities, so it’s made it easier for people to go into business but harder to make a profit once you’rethere,” Shaw, 54, the chairman of D.E. Shaw, said Tuesday. “It’s a much more difficult environment” than when the company, which is based in New York and manages more than $20 billion for clients,was started in 1988, he said.
The industry’s assets have more than doubled since 2000 to $1.1 trillion and the number of funds has doubled to about 8,660 in the past five years, according to data compiled by Chicago- basedHedge Fund Research.
