International Herald Tribune- First came the private equity and hedge fund public offering frenzy, then the bust. Now comes IPOs, Act II.
Och-Ziff, a $30.1 billion hedge fund, was expected to start trading on Wednesday after being priced Tuesday at $32, midway in the range its bankers set.
It is the first pure hedge fund to offer shares on a U.S. public market, and it comes at a time of remarkable turbulence and economic uncertainty (GLG, a London hedge fund, recently went public on NYSE Euronext through a special-purpose acquisition vehicle).
That Och-Ziff pushed forward with its offering at a time most others have pulled back underscores the lasting power of these businesses and underlines some of the differences between hedge funds and private equity firms.
Blackstone Group and the Fortress Investment Group – two alternative asset management firms that went public this year and have private equity, real estate and hedge fund operations – have suffered large losses along with financial stocks. Blackstone has fallen 35 percent since its debut, closing Tuesday at $22.80. Fortress has declined 44 percent, closing at $17.50.
