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20 Jan 2010

Hedge Fund Center Hit By 5.8 Quake

HedgeCo News - The Cayman Islands were hit by a 5.8 magnitude earthquake Tuesday at 9:23 am ET, the earthquake took place 30 miles southeast of Grand Cayman Island.

The major offshore hedge fund center in the Caribbean maintains 12 bilateral tax information arrangements with Denmark, Faroe Islands, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Ireland, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, United Kingdom and the United States.

"No injuries have been reported and there have been no reports of damage to buildings. Business and schools have remained open and residents have resumed their normal daily routines," the department of tourism said in a statement.

The 6.2-mile deep quake shook the are with force, but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties.

Grand Cayman lies just north of a very active fault line called the Oriente Fracture Zone, which roughly follows the northern edge of the Cayman Trough, the deepest part of the Caribbean Sea.

Hedge Funds Gain $4.6 Billion In Jan 2010 – New Launches

HedgeCo News - The January 2010 Eurekahedge Report found that global hedge fund industry gained $4.6 billion since December 2009.

Hedge funds recovered from their record losses in 2008 as stimulus packages by governments around the globe helped stock and bond markets rebound. The Eurekahedge Hedge Fund Index, tracking more than 2,000 funds, rose 19% in 2009, the best performance in six years, when the index rose 21%.

“The financial markets rebounded strongly as investors returned from the sidelines and snatched up securities trading at ‘once in a life time’ valuations,” Hennessee reported in their January 2010 Hedge Fund Review. “Investor confidence was boosted as the year progressed due to improving economic data and positive earnings reports.”

“Entering 2010, the industry appears to have put the worst behind it as it is once again experiencing positive net inflows and an uptick in fund launches,” Hennessee said.

Net inflows were relatively modest through the month, standing at $0.6 billion while performance-based gains accounted for $4 billion. The Eurekahedge Hedge Fund Index up was 1.07% in December, bringing the November YTD figure to 19.37% – the highest yearly returns since 2003.