29/06/2011 Author: Elana Margulies

GSA Capital launches new managed futures fund

GSA Capital Partners, the London-based, billion-dollar-plus hedge fund business, has launched a new managed futures fund, HFMWeek has learned.

According to data provided to BarclayHedge, the offering, called the GSA Quantitative Futures Fund, employs a multi-strategy, systematic trading approach to deploy capital across more than 70 of the most liquid futures contracts, traded on over 20 exchanges globally. It also trades currency forwards and trades a small universe of the most liquid equities in Europe and North America.

May has been a difficult month for managed futures businesses, after a downturn in the world’s major commodity and currency markets triggered a month of losses. BarclayHedge’s main CTA Index dropped to -2.48% during the month, with its Systematic Traders Index returning -3.47%.  

GSA Capital Partners has also experienced a challenging period. Chief executive Joseph Novarro quit in March and the firm continues to rebuild its business after falling victim to investor redemptions in 2008. According to reports, Novarro decided to depart due to disagreements with founder Jonathan Hiscock over the firm’s business strategy.

The GSA Quantitative Futures fund has a $1m investment minimum and 2/20 fees. BarclayHedge data revealed in its first month of trading for May, the strategy returned 0.07% and had $110m under management.