A new report released Monday by HedgeFund.net estimates the assets under management by hedge funds have reached nearly $3 trillion.
According to the report, hedge fund assets increased 4.41 percent last quarter, in spite of rough equity markets, to reach $2.973 trillion. The report combined data from a bi-annual survey of hedge fund administrators and information from HedgeFund.net’s database of more than 8,400 funds.
Peter Laurelli, vice president of Channel Capital Group which owns HedgeFund.net, said hedge fund assets will probably top $3 trillion sometime in the next couple of quarters, depending on performance.
Fund performance accounted for $91.28 billion being added to hedge funds last quarter, while investors placed an additional $34.21 billion in new assets with hedge funds. One dark spot for the industry was that liquidations of funds last quarter exceeded assets in newly established funds by $8.52 billion. Second quarter saw the third-highest level of hedge fund closures on record.
"It’s a natural evolution of the industry if you have funds that are not performing well," Laurelli said. "When you go through a period like we’ve had where there have been some large losses in the industry, you’re going to have fund closures. That doesn’t mean that the industry is contracting, it just means that there is some turnover."
