AIMA’s ‘Spotlight on Raising Assets’ 2019 event came hot on the heels of related events in Australia as well as in Canada – a market that is possibly overlooked by many hedge funds. Beyond this, AIMA has been organising business development and investor relations member groups to deal with questions on the same issue? 

The past 18 months have not been the easiest time for hedge funds to raise assets. The liquid alternatives industry has seen small net outflows for six quarters in a row, as well as a small net outflow on a three-year rolling basis. Apart from the period around the 2008 crisis, this is the first three-year period in which the industry has seen net outflows. This seems surprising when trillions of dollars of debt offering negative yields cannot meet pension fund and insurance liabilities.