FTSE Hedge Goes Live
By Journal of Indexes Staff

"FTSE Hedge is an investable index which provides the transparency needed by global investors seeking to access the hedge fund asset class," says Mark Makepeace, FTSE Group's chief executive.

The new index restricts itself to funds with a track record of two or more years, and a minimum of $50 million in unleveraged funds under management. Funds included in the index encompass three different management styles_directional, nondirectional and event-driven trading. Funds are weighted based on a variety of factors, including the investable capacity of each fund. No single fund can represent more than 12% of the total index, or more than 40% of any one of eight predefined trading strategy subindexes.

FTSE Hedge can be invested in directly via FTSEhx, a fund of funds platform managed by MSS Fund Management Limited. A range of additional financial products based on FTSE Hedge is expected to be launched by leading global institutions in the coming months.

"The early success of the index is a strong indicator that its been well received by the market," Makepeace adds.

Daily risk management and fund valuation is carried out from prime broker and by hedge fund manager reports, and qualitative due diligence is carried out by hedge fund consultant Harcourt Investment AG.