Hedge Funds Pull In More Than US$12 Billion a Month in First Quarter

RYE, N.Y. (HedgeWorld.com)–The hedge fund industry received a record US$38.2 billion in net asset flows in the first quarter of 2004, according to TASS Research.*

The flows were the fourth record-setting quarter in a row, and TASS’ estimate for total hedge fund assets reached US$830 billion, according to a TASS statement. TASS also estimated there is another US$200 billion to US$300 billion in privately managed accounts that use hedge fund strategies, according to the statement. Officials for Tremont Capital Management Inc., the owner of TASS, couldn’t be reached for comment.

The strategies receiving the most net inflows during the first quarter were: long/short equity with US$8.2 billion; event driven, US$6.9 billion; and global macro, US$5.5 billion. Those three also were the most popular in terms of inflows during the entire year of 2003, according to TASS.

The first quarter total topped the estimated net inflows for the fourth quarter of 2003, which were US$26.8 billion, bringing last year’s net inflows to total US$72.2 billion. (See ).

Officials for Tremont attributed the continued growth to strong interest from institutional investors, such as pension plan managers and endowment fund managers. Some of the money also came from allocations that were returning to the equity markets after leaving during the market downturn that ended in 2002.