Economic Times – Hedge fund managers have been called plenty of names. Now, they can add another: local banker. When Rentech, a clean energy business in Los Angeles, was rejected by its long-time banker last year, it asked a hedge fund for money instead. “You have to take what’s available at the time,” said D Hunt Ramsbottom, chief executive of Rentech, which has since borrowed $100 million in this unconventional way.
With traditional lenders still avoiding risky borrowers in the wake of the financial crisis, hedge funds and other opportunistic investors are stepping into the void. They are targeting midsize businesses that cannot easily raise money in the bond markets like their bigger brethren.
