Warren Buffett's Shareholder Letter, Annotated

The 2015 Berkshire Hathaway annual shareholder letter written by the venerable Warren Buffet is out. The link above is to the annotated version from Bloomberg.

As usual, it is chock-full of super-excellent information on everything related to Berkshire's amazing portfolio of businesses, commentary, analysis and views of industries and the economy.

The Highest-Earning Hedge Fund Managers & Traders

The Highest-Earning Hedge Fund Managers & Traders

Forbes annual list of top earning hedge fund managers & traders for 2015 is out. The top 10 are:

1) Ken Griffin / Citadel LLC : $1.7 Bil 2) James Simons / Renaissance Technology : $1.65 Bil 3) Steve Cohen / Point72 Asset Management : $1.55 Bil 4) David Tepper / Appaloosa Management : $1.2 Bil 5) David Shaw / D. E. Shaw & Co., LP : $700 Mil 6) John Overdeck / Two Sigma Investments : $600 Mil 7) David Siegel / Two Sigma Investments : $600 Mil 8) Israel Englander / Millennium Management, LLC : $550 Mil 9) Ray Dalio / Bridgewater Associates : $500 Mil 10) George Soros / Soros Fund Management LLC : $300 Mil

Modern day Stratton Oakmont ala Wolf of Wall Street at ANZ Banking Group

ANZ Banking Group is making a mark in finance and trading for Australia. Happening inside the trading room is the modern day equivalent of the fat bonuses, sex, drugs and partying culture similar to the infamous brokerage Stratton Oakmont portrayed in the movie 'The Wolf of Wall Street'.

Explosive details of the inner workings have come to light as two traders sued the bank on termination grounds for inappropriate behavior. The news and commentaries flowing out from this scandal is good enough to have a new movie titled "The Wolf of Wall Street - Alive and Down Under".

Snippets of the explosive reports below:
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"What a waste, it should have been sprinkled on a birthday cake," a senior ANZ markets trader said after a "white substance" was found in the male toilet of the bank's dealing room floor, according to court documents filed by Etienne Alexiou.
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The bank mentioned seven instances of lewd and sexually explicit comments about "gang bangs" and having girls eat sushi off him while naked made by Mr O'Connor via his Bloomberg chat terminal.
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Hedge Fund Manager Puts Profile on Social Media, Lures $20 Million

Hedge Fund Manager Puts Profile on Social Media, Lures $20 Million

Joshua Young started his hedge fund less than a year ago. Last month, he caught a break when a university endowment handed him $20 million, quintupling his assets under management.

How did an obscure Houston fund called Bison Interests land such a big fish?

Hedge Funds in Asia Had Nowhere to Hide in January ‘Bloodbath’

Hedge Funds in Asia Had Nowhere to Hide in January ‘Bloodbath’

Hedge funds in Asia, which navigated turbulent markets to post gains in 2015, had nowhere to hide in January.

As global stocks, currencies, commodities and risky bonds were roiled in a renewed frenzy of selling in January, hedge funds including those from Quam Asset Management Ltd. and Greenwoods Asset Management Ltd. fell more than 10 percent last month, while one from Springs Capital fell more than 20 percent. As a group, Asia-focused hedge funds declined 3.1 percent, their worst start to a year since 2008, according to Singapore-based Eurekahedge Pte. About 81 percent of hedge funds actively reporting to the Asia Long-Short Equities category had negative returns last month, the data show.

Hedge Fund Starts in Asia Drop to 14-Year Low in Turbulent Year

Hedge Fund Starts in Asia Drop to 14-Year Low in Turbulent Year

Hedge fund launches in Asia dropped to the lowest in 14 years last year as investors’ preference for big funds and rising regulatory costs converged with a turbulent market.

The number of hedge funds that opened in Asia dropped to 76 in 2015, according to Singapore-based data provider Eurekahedge Pte, down from 117 in the prior year and the fewest since 2001. The number was less than half of the peak in 2010, when 188 new hedge funds set up operations.

A report card on business environment in Singapore

Earlier in January, Singapore Business Federation (SBF) released a Position Paper detailing the collective views of the business community in Singapore on issues facing Singapore businesses as well as suggestions to overcome these issues in the short and long term.

An interesting parallel is observed in their Position Paper and my personal views. As a layman, I can see many of these challenges faced by companies and SMEs for a long time. I wonder how the authorities can miss so many obvious points on the issues facing companies and SMEs in Singapore. That begs the question whether we have the right leadership team, direction and will in place in the authorities.

The SBF Position Paper (in Page 16 of the full report) also presents a report card for SGX and the authorities for their (mis?)management of the securities market over the past decade as a channel of fund raising for companies. The basis of comparison used is 'Market Capitalisation of Equities/GDP (%)' which I have reproduced below. Notice SGX records a shrinking share as compared to other countries which are growing.

The Position Paper even mooted the idea of setting up another board or separate exchange which may indicate they are encountering serious problems or inefficiency of capital raising via listing on SGX.

The business community collectively have raised a lot of important and thoughtful points in the Position Paper which I hope the authorities can make a serious effort in addressing.

SBF Position Paper Presentation

SBF Position Paper Summary Sheet

SBF Position Paper (Full)

The Pros Watch

With volatility swamping the markets, it may be wise to take a step back and listen to what the tried and tested real pros are saying and doing.

George Soros is without doubt, one of the most successful speculator in modern investing. Famous for "Breaking the Bank of England" and making a profit of US$ 1 Billion as well as making waves in the Asian Financial Crisis. His Quantum Fund was one of the most successful hedge fund in history. More background of George Soros at Wikipedia.

George Soros
Summary of current views: Hard landing in China, Short S&P 500, No more Fed rates increase.
Reference: (21 Jan 2016) George Soros says too early to buy stocks after shorting S&P 500

Singapore's biggest securities fraud investigation

The Business Times have a good infographic on the state of investigation to date and a write up on the behind the scene investigations to date.

(Infographic) Singapore's biggest securities fraud investigation

(BT writeup) Soh Chee Wen 'mastermind' of penny stock crash: prosecutor

INVESTIGATORS probing the 2013 penny stock collapse believe that they have enough evidence to show that Malaysian businessman Soh Chee Wen was the mastermind behind the companies at the heart of the market crash, the prosecution said on Wednesday at a hearing on Mr Soh's bail conditions.

Investigations are also at an advanced stage, and charges could be filed by the end of the year, possibly before September, deputy public prosecutor Gordon Oh said in court.

The Man Prosecutors Say Is Likely Behind Singapore's Stock Rout

The Man Prosecutors Say Is Likely Behind Singapore's Stock Rout

John Soh Chee Wen is used to being accused of wrongful activity.

Soh, a bankrupt Malaysian businessman last week fingered by Singapore prosecutors as the likely mastermind behind the city’s biggest ever stock market manipulation scheme, has spent much of the past 20 years fending off allegations that he’s alternatively a front, an asset trader or a pump-and-dump operator.

“I’m battle hardened,” the 57-year-old, who’s out on bail during investigations, said in an interview on Jan. 27. In Singapore, a person can be arrested and out on bail even before charges are brought.