Masters of the universe no more The Economist writes that the superheroes of finance seem to have lost some of their powers. Several of the hedge-fund industry’s most exalted names are beset by problems more associated with mere mortals. Take John Paulson of Paulson & Co, a $37 billion hedge fund. He became famous after he bet against the housing bubble but is now in the limelight for less flattering reasons. Mr Paulson was the largest shareholder in Sino-Forest, a Chinese forest-plantation operator accused of fraud by short-sellers earlier this month. Its share price plummeted and Mr Paulson sold his stake, dealing his fund a reputational blow and around $500m in losses. His flagship fund is down 20% so far this year.
Hedgies’ woes are not just financial. Ikos, a big European quantitative hedge fund, has been shaken by domestic melodrama. Its two founders, Elena Ambrosiadou and Martin Coward, are going through an acrimonious divorce. But divorce courts are not the only ones to worry the industry at the moment….
Read more at: http://www.economist.com/node/18866831?story_id=18866831&fsrc=rss
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