Search This Blog

19 Apr 2010

Sports Hedge Fund Launch



HedgeCo News - Hedge fund Centaur Group has launched the Centaur Galileo fund in London, investing in soccer, tennis and horse racing, The Los Angeles Times reported on Sunday.

The hedge fund claims to have a number-crunching betting system. The paper says that Galileo is probably the first hedge fund to make bets on sports events.

"We put numbers against those things that you and me and everyone in pubs have casual discussions about," Tony Woodhams, the managing director at Centaur Group said in an interview with The Los Angeles Times. "That gives us an edge on these markets."

Like other more "traditional" hedge funds, Galileo requires 100,000 euros ($135,000) minimum investment. The hedge fund also plans to make money off fluctuations in odds and point spreads that are affected by amateur bets, the paper said.

"You have a lot of sports fans who are betting for their favorite team," Woodhams said. "They get excited and discipline goes out the window. All of that provides opportunity for a trader like us to go in a very clinical manner. That's where the edge is."

Domiciled in Gibraltar, Centaur will have 25 traders working on its London trading floor. The hedge fund is only open to UK investors at the moment but the company is applying for SEC approval in the US next year.

No comments: