Information on How to Buy ERISA Bond Purchasing an ERISA Fidelity Bond is essentially the same as purchasing a fidelity bond for an investment advisory firm and this article is meant to serve as guide as to cost and timing to secure one of these bonds. Overview Generally a manager will [...]

ERISA Fidelity Bond Information Hedge fund managers who manages hedge funds which exceed the 25% ERISA threshold will need to purchase a fidelity bond.  The questions and answers below on the ERISA fidelity bonding requirements were prepared by the Department of Labor which is the governmental agency which is in [...]

SEC Proposal Would Ban Third Party Solicitors from Seeking Public Monies Back in July there was much discussion about new “pay to play” rules proposed by the SEC.  The proposed “pay to play” rules would limit the ability of investment managers (including hedge fund managers) to make political contributions and [...]

At the very beginning of this year a bill was introduced to change the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to require defined benefit plans to disclose their interest in hedge funds.  The definition of hedge fund for the purposes of the act is very broad and would [...]

This article is part of a series examining the statements in a report issued by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) in February 2008.  The items in this report are important because they provide insight into how the government views the hedge fund industry and how that might influence the future [...]

The SEC’s Lori Richards, Director, Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations, spoke last week at an event and emphasized the importance of compliance during these volatile markets.  For chief compliance officers (CCOs) at registered investment advisory firms, the following speech transcript should be required reading.  Hedge fund managers registered as [...]

This article outlines the issues which are central to ERISA plans when such plans invest in hedge funds. The information comes from a report prepared by the Government Accountability Office and provides hedge fund managers with a good informational foundation of the issues which matter to ERISA plans. As ERISA [...]

The case below provides a great example of why registered investment advisors and hedge funds need to have competent legal counsel advising them on all aspects and arrangements of their business.  Basically a registered investment advisor (RIA) had a selling arrangement with a hedge fund where the RIA would receive [...]

The side letter is one of the most important items for a hedge fund manager.  While the hedge fund will run pursuant to the terms of the hedge fund offering documents drafted, the side letter will give the manager some flexibility to go outside the terms of the documents for [...]

Hedge fund managers have to be especially aware of the ERISA rules with regard to their hedge fund and the investors in the fund. ERISA stands for the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 and it governs, among other things, pension investments into hedge funds.  The Department of Labor [...]