21/08/2008

Macquarie brings HFs under one roof

Sydney-based Macquarie Group has brought its $3bn in hedge fund products under one roof as part of a massive reshuffle.

Almost one third of the assets in the hedge funds business come from the Macquarie Asia Long/Short Fund.

The fund has grown considerably over the last few months and currently sits at $950m, poised to go over a billion dollars.

The Asia Long/Short Fund is also about to hit its three-year mark, which could prompt even greater interest from institutions.

The group’s hedge funds, which were spread across three areas of the company – the Funds Management Group, Equity Markets Group and Macquarie Capital Products, have been combined into a new operating group called Macquarie Funds Group as of 1 August.

Overall, the new umbrella group of 690 staff now manages a combined $70bn, including hedge funds, long-only funds, private equity and infrastructure funds, globally. Overseeing the group is Shemara Wikramanayake, who was most recently based in New York as head of Macquarie’s capital funds division in North America.

The new group will not only combine assets, but also reorganise a number of distribution teams globally, giving the firm’s fund clients a single point of access to its investment offerings.