News
Each day, DailyAlts tracks major developments across the alternative investment world. Our content is procured from primary contacts in the industry and secondary sources across the web. Our goal is to give readers the most up-to-date news and engaging experience to open new doors and areas of knowledge. Our stories cover nine separate verticals of the alternative investment industry.
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Chipmaker AMD (NASDAQ: AMD) has unveiled a range of innovative AI solutions spanning from data centers to personal computers. The AMD Instinct MI300 Series features data center AI accelerators, while the ROCm 6 open software stack introduces new features supporting Large Language Models (LLMs). Additionally, the Ryzen 8040 Series processors come equipped with Ryzen AI capabilities.
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Hedge Funds: The Top Ranking Hedge Funds since Inception-How They Fared in 2019
TCI and Lone Pine led the list of top-performing hedge funds for last year.
Chris Hohn’s TCI and Stephen Mandel’s Lone Pine Capital logged gains of $8.4 billion and $7.3 billion respectively in 2019. However, Ray Dalio’s Bridgewater ($58.5 billion) and Soros Fund Management ($43.9 billion) topped the list based on gains from the start date of the hedge funds.
Hedge Funds: Shades of LTCM Lurk, Only This Time It Could Be Much Bigger
Regulations hobbled banks’ risk-taking abilities after the last global financial crisis. But risk never really went away, it just switched masks. And hedge funds are the new face of unbridled financial adventurism, according to the IMF and the European Central Bank (ECB).
Private Equity: Lexington Partners Raises $14 Billion for Ninth Fund
Lexington Partners announced the closing of Lexington Capital Partners IX which raised $14 billion of commitments. Lexington Capital is one of the largest funds that invest in private equity and alternative assets. It focuses on sectors globally through a full range of negotiated secondary market transactions.
ESG: Citigroup Social Impact Fund Hits $150 Million
The details around the Citigroup social impact fund emerged this week. The bank announced it funded a $150 million social impact fund. The fund will invest in private companies that make a positive impact on society. Internally funded, the new fund will invest in companies looking to develop innovative solutions for four significant challenges the world faces today.
Next Generation Technology Growth Fund II Closes at $2.2 Billion
The KKR Next Generation Technology Growth Fund II has closed. KKR announced a $2.2 billion fund dedicated to growth equity investment opportunities in the technology space in North America, Europe, and Israel. The fund seeks investments outside the major technology centers such as Silicon Valley and Boston.
Blackstone CEO Steve Schwarzman: Fewer Things to Buy Today for Private Equity
Blackstone CEO Steve Schwarzman confirmed our concerns about dry powder and higher valuations during an interview at the World Economic Forum. Schwarzman discussed the lack of opportunities with CNBC. The alternative assets executive cited higher asset prices, expectations for global growth, and lower interest rates for there being “much fewer things” to buy.
Real Estate: KKR Buys the Summit from Hines Global REIT
Hines Global REIT is a non-traded real estate investment trust that has been selling properties and winding down operations. Last week, the firm announced that it had sold The Summit portfolio in Bellevue, Washington, for a contract price of $756 million to private equity firm KKR. The Summit is comprised of two Class A Office Towers and a third tower that is currently under construction. Amazon will be leasing 3000 square feet of the third tower once it is completed.
Digital Assets: UAE a Flag-bearer for Blockchain Technology Deployment
The UAE is a Flag-bearer for Blockchain Technology Deployment. A joint white paper has been issued by the World Economic Forum and the United Arab Emirates’ Centre For The Fourth Industrial Revolution. Titled “Inclusive Deployment of Blockchain: Case Studies and Learnings from the United Arab Emirates,” the paper provides global decision-makers insights into the UAE’s experience with blockchain implementation.
Real Estate: GSAM Takes Minority Stake in Kayne Anderson Real Estate
Kayne Anderson Real Estate has secured a prestigious investor. Goldman Sachs Asset Management has taken a passive minority investment in the firm through its AIM Petershill program. Kayne Real Estate is an alternative real estate management firm with roughly $8 billion under management.
The DailyAlts Playbook: The World Economic Forum, Citadel’s Return to China, Musk’s Mars Distraction, and Guggenheim Partners’ Warning.
Today, the DailyAlts Playbook talks the World Economic Forum, Citadel’s return to China, Elon Musk’s latest distraction, and Guggenheim Partners’ warning.
Hedge Fund Performance Update: December 2019
Hedge fund performance was strong at the end of 2019. The Preqin All-Strategies Hedge Fund benchmark returned +2.00% in December, bringing the 2019 return to +11.58%. Funds of hedge funds gained 1.32% in December, generating a 2019 return of +8.34%, the highest annual return since 2013 (+8.82%).
Hedge Funds are Selling Oil Again
NYMEX and ICE WTI data show that hedge funders were net sellers of crude oil for the week ending January 14. Funds sold roughly 99 million barrels in the six primary crude futures and options contracts. With funds less focused on geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, concerns are rising about the status of the global economy.
Digital Assets: Bitwise/ETF Trends 2020 Survey – 65% Advisors Want to Buy Bitcoin in an ETF
The Bitwise / ETF Trends 2020 Benchmark Survey of Financial Advisor Attitudes Toward Cryptoassets gives useful insight into what advisors are thinking about Bitcoin and cryptos going into 2020. ETFs and passive investing being the flavor of the season it’s easy to conclude that a Bitcoin ETF could prove immensely popular. Note that financial advisors manage roughly half of all wealth in America.
ESG: Best Buy’s CEO in the Dock for Alleged ‘At-Work’ Liaison
Current Best Buy CEO Corie Barry allegedly had a romantic relationship with a male colleague before taking charge as CEO in June 2019. Best Buy’s board is investigating the charge, made through an anonymous letter dated January 7.
Emission-Free Friday: Here are the Latest Funds to Push for Carbon Neutral
Carbon emissions dominated the headlines this week.
The European Commission has announced an ambitious plan to shift toward a green economy and make the EU carbon-neutral in the year ahead. The plan will cost at least one trillion euros over the next decade, require 25% of the EU budget, and involve a mix of private and public funds. EU chief Ursula von der Leyen called the project unprecedented.
Kirkoswald Asset Management Will Turn New Investors Away in 2020
Kirkoswald Asset Management will stop accepting new investors when the fund hits nearly $2 billion. Reuters reports that the two-year-old fund will close itself to new investors at the end of March. Concerns about new capital impacting returns are the reason for the decision, according to the report.
Hedge Funds: The Empire Strikes Back At HKD Short-Sellers and Doomsayers
Such is the power of Kyle Bass, the hedge fund manager who correctly predicted the crisis from US subprime mortgages in 2007. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority deemed it appropriate to hold a press conference to debunk the latest doom-and-gloom prediction from Bass – that Hong Kong is on the brink of a “full-fledged banking crisis” in 2020. Bass is short the Hong Kong dollar.
Digital Assets: The Digital Dollar Foundation and Accenture Launch the Digital Dollar Project
J. Christopher Giancarlo, former Chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), along with Charles Giancarlo and Daniel Gorfine, have joined hands with Accenture on the digital dollar, or US CBDC project.
The nonprofit Digital Dollar Foundation engaged Accenture as the lead architect and technology innovation partner for the project. Accenture is working with Sweden’s Riksbank to develop an e-krona CBDC as a pilot project.
Digital Assets: In Reforms Push, China Mulling Rules for New Digital Banks, Including by Foreigners
China is working on guidelines for the establishment of online-only banks.
Chinese regulators are pushing for the establishment of new, 100% digital banks to reduce risk in the country’s financial sector. They also want to broaden Chinese banking by allowing participation from new players including foreigners.
The DailyAlts Playbook: Short Strategies for Tesla and Apple, where Ken Griffin was on Wednesday, Kyle Bass’ Hong Kong Worries, and the GAO’s Statement on Donald Trump
Today, the DailyAlts Playbook talks about short strategies for Tesla and Apple, where Ken Griffin was on Wednesday, Kyle Bass’ Hong Kong worries, and the GAO’s statement on Donald Trump.
Private Equity: KKR Outlook 2020 Suggests Volatility Ahead
Private equity leader KKR released its latest macro outlook this week. Head of Global Macro & Asset Allocation Henry McVey outlines where KKR thinks the best opportunities will be this year. McVey is not as optimistic this year as he had been in years past writing.
Key Takeaways from the J.P. Morgan Asset Management “Global Alternatives Outlook”
The Global Alternatives Outlook was released by JPMorgan Asset Management this week. The report provides a 12-18-month outlook across key alternative asset classes. The report also the views of the CEOs, CIOs, and strategists from the firm’s 15 distinct alternatives investment engines. We take a look at the key takeaways from the report.
VC-Real Estate: WeWork Leasing Numbers Tanked After Failed IPO
WeWork leasing numbers plunged in the wake of its failed IPO. A new report from CBRE reveals that the company saw a 93% decline in leasing activity in the fourth quarter. That period coincided with a massive bailout by SoftBank and the departure of WeWork’s founder.
FTSE Russell Launches European Climate Risk Index
FTSE Russell has launched a new fixed income offering in Europe that weighs factors in each country’s efforts to mitigate climate change. The FTSE Climate Risk-Adjusted European Monetary Union Government Bond index is the first of its kind to measure these factors, according to the company’s press release today.