News & Events > CHFA News
CHFA News
March 24, 2013
What are Investors Thinking...When it Comes to Hedge Fund IT?
Hedge IT Blog Posted by Mary Beth Hamilton, EzeCastle
Yesterday our VP of client technology, Steve Schoener, presented on a California Hedge Fund Association webinar about building an institutional infrastructure at today’s hedge funds. A lofty topic (so consider this a basic primer), Steve focused on four key discussion areas, which we’ll recap here. They were:
- Investor Expectations of IT
- On-premise & Cloud solutions: Which is right?
- Security Risks & Best Practices
- Disaster Recovery How-Tos
Or view the complete webinar online here >>
CHFA Publishes Educational Series Article on "Transparency"
by Associate Professor Mick Swartz, Ph.D. (Finance), CAIA in the Finance and Business Economics Department at the University of Southern California.
One of the more controversial topics concerning hedge funds deals with the concept of transparency and how much of their investment process they are willing to share with investors and others in the outside world. Conventional wisdom, fortified by some of the more high-profile hedge fund scandals of the past several years, is that hedge funds are generally secretive and unwilling to share much with anyone and that they choose this secretive course for some nefarious purpose. In this case, conventional wisdom could not be more off the mark.
What critics of hedge fund transparency do not realize is that most hedge funds will make due diligence available to investors at a level that more-than-sufficiently allows them to detect any potential fraud, learn a great deal about a hedge fund’s processes, yet still protect the truly proprietary aspects of a hedge fund managers trading methodology. read more >
CHFA Publishes Educational Series Article on "Leverage"
by Associate Professor Mick Swartz, Ph.D. (Finance), CAIA in the Finance and Business Economics Department at the University of Southern California.
The concept of leverage and how it is used by asset managers is one of the more misunderstood topics in the hedge fund industry. Broad generalizations about leverage are rarely on point as the amount and type of leverage used by managers will vary greatly from strategy to strategy and will often depend on the specific instruments being traded by a particular manager.
The term leverage is also not necessarily a synonym for risk as many commentators on the hedge fund industry would lead the investment world to believe. The amount of risk and reward added by a manager’s use of leverage will vary greatly, again depending upon the trading strategy being employed and the types of instruments being traded. With this first volume in the CHFA Educational Series, I attempt to shed some light on the matter of leverage and the evolution of its use in the hedge fund industry over the past several years. read more >
A Letter from Jason Gerlach, President, California Hedge Fund Association
Happy New Year! All of us at the California Hedge Fund Association hope that you and yours had wonderful holiday season.
For those of you who do not know me, I am Jason Gerlach and I am the Managing Director of Sunrise Capital Partners, a San Diego firm that is celebrating its 33rd year in the hedge fund business in 2013. I have served as a founding board member and as treasurer of the CHFA since its humble beginnings in the summer of 2010. It is with great honor, appreciation and humility that I assume the Presidency of CHFA in 2013.
A Letter from Chris Ainsworth, Immediate Past-President, California Hedge Fund Association
As many of you know the Board of Directors' of the California Hedge Fund Association ("CHFA") has elected Jason Gerlach of Sunrise Capital to lead the CHFA in 2013 and I look forward to the new leadership and guidance for our organization.
As I reflect back to the formation of the CHFA in 2010, I am proud to see that we have built an organization that now consists of over 450 hedge fund industry participants. The CHFA has accomplished a great deal in the past two years, in large part, thanks to efforts of the Founder's Club Members and strong leadership of the Board of Directors.
CHFA President, Chris Ainsworth and President-Elect, Jason Gerlach featured in Institutional Investor!
December 3, 2012
As Former Prop Desks Spin Out, Logistical Difficulties Emerge
By Janice Fioravante
Proprietary desk traders who start their own hedge funds, forced to leave banks by January 1, 2013, when the Volcker Rule goes into effect, are suddenly being thrust into managing a business and its operations as they come face-to-face with Dodd-Frank Act regulations. read more >>
August 27, 2012
CHFA-Proposed Amendments to CA Corporate Securities Law Adopted by DOC; Exemption Granted
On August 27, California's regulator of investment advisors, the Department of Corporations (DOC), adopted amendments to the CA Code of Regulations that will provide a permanent exemption to certain advisers to private funds from the requirement of securing a certificate from the Commissioner in order to conduct business, provided they:
(1) have not violated securities laws;
(2) file periodic reports with the Department;
(3) pay the existing investment adviser registration and renewal fees, and;
(4) comply with additional safeguards when advising funds organized under Section 3(c)(1) and/or 3(c)(5) of the Investment Company Act of 1940.
This change affects Section 260.204.9 of Title 10 of the California Code of Regulations. The amendments were supported by CHFA Public Policy Committee in a comment letter to the DOC on March 25.
Click the link below to view the Approved Regulations:
PRO 02/11 PRIVATE FUND ADVISOR EXEMPTION
CHFA's comments are recorded beginning on page 12 of the "Final Statement of Reasons".
March 25, 2012
CHFA Public Policy Committee Submits Comment Letter to California Department of Corporations
CHFA's Public Policy Committee submitted a comment letter to the California Department of Corporations regarding the proposed amendments to Section 260.204.9 of Title 10 of the California Code of Regulations, as released for public comment on December 15, 2011 (the "Proposed Rule").
Given CHFA's general strong support for the Department's efforts on the Proposed Rule, the comments to the text were limited and, with one exception, largely technical. They all relate to section (c) ("Additional requirements for private fund advisers to certain 3(c)(1) funds") and related definitions.
Download the CHFA comment letter
March 19, 2012
CHFA Partners with Cynthia Harrington & Associates, LLC to Conduct a Managers' Behavioral Survey
Universe Studied:
We are conducting research on alternative asset managers to study behavioral biases and potential links to personality characteristics. We seek responses from 350 principals and key portfolio managers from
hedge funds, private equity or venture capital firms, including those performing the CIO, CCO, CEO, and COO functions, as well as principals and inside directors from funds of funds, of any size.
Purpose of Research and Value to Industry:
Our firm consults with alternative asset managers and is undertaking this study to better understand trends in the industry. You benefit from participating because the results of our specific research helps to understand how to manage your firm’s human capital. Results of the study will be posted on the California Hedge Fund Association website. The findings will be CONFIDENTIAL but the data may be included as part of future studies for publication in academic journals or presented at conferences.
How to Participate:
The survey is administered online; answering the short questions takes about 15-20 minutes. The survey includes short questions about your general feelings and your life view; it is designed to require an answer to all questions. Please complete the study when you are alone at your computer and you can complete it in one sitting. Your answers are completely ANONYMOUS.
Click HERE to take the survey.
Results:
Results of the survey will be available to CHFA members only. Members should log-in to view the results, once available.
For more information contact:
Cynthia Harrington & Associates LLC
www.chcoach.com
Call: Cynthia Harrington, 310-443-4266, or cynthia@chcoach.com.
© 2012 Cynthia Harrington & Associates LLC
July 27, 2011
State of California Issues New Custody Rules: CHFA Files Response and Asks for Your Support
The California Department of Corporations released Pro 04/11, a proposal to amend Section 260.237 of Title 10 of the California Code of Regulations. This new rule would require all state-registered hedge funds to provide the details of their holdings to limited partners each quarter. The amendment wouldn't require disclosure of all trades, but only positions held at the end of each quarter. Read more...
Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP submitted this comment letter on behalf of CHFA. All members/managers who support CHFA's position on this issue are requested to personalize and send this letter on their firm's letterhead (with Pillsbury's letter) to the state by Friday, August 5th.
May 23, 2011
NASAA Re-Proposed Model Custody Rule
Comment Letter Submitted on Behalf of California Hedge Fund Association and Florida Alternative Investment Association
Read >
