Alpha first, fee demand later
Hedge fund clients propose managers produce gains above market benchmarks before charging incentive fees.
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New York
HEDGE fund investors are catching up with their private equity (PE) peers. Five years after clients of leveraged buyout firms released a set of best practices for the industry, hedge fund clients are following suit. The Teacher Retirement System of Texas and MetLife Inc are among those that on Tuesday called on managers to produce "alpha", or gains above market benchmarks, before charging incentive fees in a range of proposals that address investing terms.
Funds should also impose minimum return levels known as hurdle rates before levying the charges, said the Alignment of Interests Association (AOI), a group that represents some investors in the US$2.8 trillion hedge fund industry. "Some managers are abiding by the principles to some extent but we are hoping to move everyone toward industry best practices," said Trent Webster, senior investment officer for strategic investments and private equity at the State Board of Administration in Florida. The pension plan, a member of the association, oversees US$180 billion, of which US$2.5 billion is invested in hedge funds.
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