More than 200 investors, fund managers, banking and investment experts from across the Middle East, Europe, the US and Asia will be meeting in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to discuss the global market of alternative investments in the context of the current global and Middle Eastern political, economic and business status, at the Hedge Funds World Middle East 2002.
The three-day conference, which will take place at the Emirates Towers Hotel in Dubai on February 4-6, will be addressed by Arab and international economists, including Antoine Massad, associate director and head of Middle East and Asia at Man Investment Products, an international alternative investment firm with $9.5 billion under management.
Also addressing the forum will be Sohail Jaffer, chairman of the Middle East Chapter of the Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA), Wolfgang Landl, senior investment manager at Man Glenwood GmbH, Suresh Kumar, managing director of Emirates Financial Services and Mohammad Tariq, head of Securities for Capital Markets at Arab Banking Corporation.
Announcing the details of the forthcoming event, Stefan Nilsson of Terrapinn, organisers of the Hedge Funds World Middle East 2002, said that the conference is geared to address the global and regional alternative investment issues for the growing investment community in the region, at different levels.
The conference will review the changing face of investing from traditional asset classes to alternatives and hedge funds, highlight new trends and developments in the hedge funds industry and explain the rationale behind investment strategy decisions; what do investors look for in terms of risks and returns. It will also evaluate capital allocation and risk/return criteria for different investments. Case studies from the US and Europe will be presented, highlighting the implications of increased transparency and due diligence. The performance of the hedge funds industry in 2000/2001 will also be reviewed.
Antoine Massad said: “In its third year, Hedge Funds World will take the private and institutional investors through the current market trends and evaluate the advantages of hedge funds in diversifying one’s investment portfolio. While first time investors stand to gain an understanding of the framework under which the industry operates, seasoned investors can access and examine both current and future trends.”
Explaining his company’s initiative in forerunning this event, Massad said: “Our role as a specialized company dedicated to providing alternative investments does not merely stop with engineering innovative and customized products for our clients. MAN… has a commitment to create further awareness, whilst growing the industry.”
The annual Hedge Funds World conferences was attended by more than 200 delegates from all over the world in 2001. The event is endorsed by AIMA, a UK based body that promotes, regulates and controls the use of alternative investments.
The event is sponsored by Man Investment Products, a specialized company dedicated to providing alternative investments to institutional and private clients throughout the world. Man Investment Products was created as the asset management division of Man Group plc in the early 1980s. It is a global business with offices in Chicago, Dubai, Bahrain, Hong Kong, London, Montevideo, Tokyo and Zurich.
The event is co-sponsored by the Citco Group, an independent organization of financial services companies, Barep Asset Management Alexandra Investment Management and Bank of Bermuda. — (menareport.com)
© 2002 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
