Seeking Alpha – The one group of investors that’s been vilified more than any other by the business press and government officials alike in 2008? Hedge fund managers.
After years of rapid growth in terms of both assets and numbers of funds in operation, the hedge fund industry has taken a PR black eye this year. Media reports would have you believe that the industry is about to collapse in size, see its revenue drop dramatically through fee reductions and become heavily regulated to protect unsuspecting investors from another Bernie Madoff scam.
Hedge funds certainly make an easy target. They’ve had a bad year, along with every other retail and institutional investor. But the industry is about to grow dramatically over the next five years. This coming year will mark the beginning of the next wave of this industry’s growth.