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The article discusses results of a pair of studies that show hedge funds, high-frequency traders, and others who subscribe to a data feed from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) receive company filings from the SEC moments before they are posted at the agency's Website, thus creating an opportunity for profitable trading. One paper co-written by Jonathan Rogers of the University of Colorado shows the discrepancy leads to movement in prices and trading volume.

The article discusses the use by traders at hedge funds of firms that employ capabilities including sensors, surveillance technology, and data-processing skills to gain insights into petroleum production, crop yields, electricity generation, and other markets where early information can provide a trading edge. Particular attention is paid to how Genscape Inc. uses heat-sensitive cameras to help it estimate the size of oil reserves at Cushing, Oklahoma.

The article discusses the financial regulatory environment in the U.S. and the outlook for markets in 2012. Topics noted include the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, speculation on which financial firms could be deemed systemically important and thus made subject to greater regulation, and how hedge funds will fare after a disappointing 2011.

The article discusses the use by some hedge funds of computer algorithms that incorporate artificial intelligence and machine learning to trade securities. Such technology allows computers to process and interpret large volumes of data quickly and adjust strategy accordingly. Particular attention is paid to hedge fund Rebellion Research Technologies, founded in 2007 by Spencer Greenberg and several associates.

The article discusses Peter Brown and Bob Mercer, co-chief executive officers of hedge-fund firm Renaissance Technologies LLC. In January, 2010 the two men assumed the duties of retiring Renaissance founder James Simons, a pioneer in using quantitative trading strategies. Brown and Mercer may close the Renaissance funds that remain open to new investors if fund performance does not improve.

The article discusses challenges faced by hedge-fund manager Kenneth Griffin of Citadel Investment Group. During 2008 Griffin's two primary funds fell an average of 55%. He now finds himself trying to retain current investors and attract new ones for four new funds he has planned. Griffin blames his 2008 results on a failure of government to respond effectively to a global financial crisis.

The article reports that chief executive James Simons of hedge-fund firm Renaissance Technologies will retire at the beginning of 2010. Renaissance has over $17 billion under management and one of its funds, the Medallion Fund, has averaged annual returns exceeding 30% for 20 years. Simons appointed Renaissance executives Peter Brown and Robert Mercer to succeed him.

The article focuses on financier Clifford Asness, head of the hedge fund AQR Capital Management LLC. The company has shrunk significantly after suffering huge losses in the global financial crisis. Asness's efforts to lead the company's recovery are described as an example of the problems facing all hedge funds in 2009.

The article discuses the investment performance of hedge funds managed by Universa Investments L.P. Two of Universa's funds reportedly experienced gains of between 65% and 115% during October, 2008. Universa consultant Nassim Nicholas Taleb is a proponent of the view that investors need to be more attentive to the possibility of dramatic market moves.

The article focuses on a renewed popularity and success which hedge funds, including those offered by Sciens Capital Management, are seeing in the fall of 2007 following a financially devastating summer. The renewal has been linked to investment advisers who anticipated the subprime mortgage crisis and won bets they made against financial companies and lower rated segments of debt.

The article focuses on the increasing popularity which has been seen in quantitative trading driven by computers in the U. S. due to its reliable returns, and on heavy losses that quantitative trading portfolios, including one that manages some of Morgan Stanley's money, saw in July and August in 2007. According to quantitative traders the losses exposed problems that they are attempting to deal with and will be forgotten when their strategies lead to steady profits.

The article focuses on Nassim Nicholas Taleb, former CEO of the failed hedge fund Empirica Capital LLC, who has written a book entitled "The Black Swan: The Impact of the Highly Improbable" and is helping to launch a new hedge fund located in Santa Monica, California called Universa Investments LP. A discussion of Taleb's involvement in the hedge fund industry is presented.

The article reports that big investment funds are increasingly investing in emerging market hedge funds. Pension funds, educational endowments, and institutional investors are looking to emerging market funds that have benefitted from a commodities boom, especially China and Brazil. Demand is only stymied by a lack of funds in emerging markets, but investment advisors are eager to cash in on the new opportunity.

The article reports on an increasing tendency among hedge funds to pit some investments in separate accounts known as "side pockets" that restrict the access of clients to their money. In an attempt to increase returns, Hedge funds are investing in private equity areas such as shares of non-public companies and real estate. However, it is difficult to know the true value of these investments because they do not trade continuously on public exchanges. Since managers get a commission on gains, it is tempting for them to inflate their value and the Securities and Exchange Commission has accused some companies of doing that. "Side pockets" are a way of excluding these investment from periodic value calculations. The article describes how side pockets work and considers their advantages and disadvantages.

Reports that several firms are looking to fill the market for hedge-fund rating agencies. How the ratings will be based; Comments from Joel Schwab, managing director of Channel Capital Group, a hedge-fund services firm, regarding the lack of a leader in the industry; View that hedge funds are a lightly regulated segment of the investment market; Impact of Bayou Management LLC's collapse on the need to better evaluate hedge funds; Efforts of Morningstar Inc. in rating hedge funds; Number of hedge funds being tracked by Rueters Group PLC and Sky Fund.

The article reports on the focus of a federal government insider-trading probe on several private investment firms in the U.S. The firms on focus include Schottenfeld Group, Incremental Capital LLC and Galleon Group. Schottenfeld and Incremental are both hedge funds based in New York. These firms do not pay salaries to traders but instead commit capital to a group of traders.

The article discuses the investing strategy of hedge-fund firm Universa Investments LP. Owned and managed by Mark Spitznagel, Universa is positioning itself to profit in the event global efforts to fight an ongoing recession provoke severe inflation. Author Nassim Nicholas Taleb is a friend of Spitznagel and helps shape Universa's strategy.

The article reports on the launch of a mutual fund by hedge-fund firm AQR Capital Management LLC in January 2009. It says that the AQR Diversified Arbitrage fund will engage in different types of arbitrage strategies, including betting on mergers and convertible arbitrage, and can borrow up to a third of its assets to achieve its goals. The fund is expected to produce a return of 2 to 5 percentage points more than a three-month Treasury index.

The article reports on the plan of Swiss bank Union Bancaire Privée (UBP) to pull out investments from large hedge funds in the U.S. because these hedge funds does not use full time independent administrators. UBP, which is cited as one of the largest investors in hedge funds in the world with about $124.5 billion of assets, faces losses after it invested $700 million in the alleged Ponzi scheme run by money manager Bernard Madoff. Jan Frogg of UBP said that the step taken is to secure the bank from possible instances of fraud.

The article features the D.E. Shaw Group, a New York hedge fund known as one of the most secretive trading outfits worldwide and where Lawrence Summers took a part-time managing director role in 2006. To make money on fleeting movements in the stock and bond markets, D.E. is noted for using sophisticated computer-based quantitative analysis. The company was founded in 1988 in New York by David Shaw. It was added that Summers, during his stint at D.E. Shaw, did not make specific investment decision but rather presented his views on macroeconomic trends.

The article discusses the impact of deleveraging on housing and securities markets. When mortgage lenders require higher down-payments from borrowers, demand for houses is effectively reduced, thus driving prices lower. When banks become less willing to extend credit to hedge funds, the funds are forced to sell securities, thus driving stock prices lower.

The article examines how the collapse of two hedge funds operated by the financial services firm Bear Stearns provides an example of how the complexity and opaque nature of hedge funds trouble U.S. financial regulators. The two funds had highly leveraged investments in the subprime mortgage market, and were hit with huge losses when that market fell. There are no steps regulators can take to mitigate damage to the hedge fund market, or even to determine the extent of that damage.

This article reports on separate accounts being created by a number of hedge-fund companies to hold certain harder-to-value investments.

Reports the demise of hedge fund Lyceum Capital in February 2005.

The article focuses on the initial public offering (IPO) for Fortress Investment Group LLC. The hedge fund's closing share price was 68% higher than its IPO price after the fund's first day of trading. The author discusses the interest of investors in hedge funds and the restrictions that have been placed on their trading. Due to their risks, hedge funds may only be purchased by either institutional investors or wealthy traders, according to the article.