Bad publicity and attacks by regulators are not slowing the growth of hedge funds, as large investors such as pension funds continue to pour cash into top managers.
The hedge fund industry is expected to grow assets under management by $140-billion (U.S.) this year, taking its total size to almost $2.3-trillion, according to Deutsche Bank's annual survey of about 400 investors, which was released on Friday.
More money than ever is flowing into alternative investment strategies from big institutions such as pensions. They now account for about to thirds of hedge fund assets, up from less than a fifth nine years ago.
The survey found that 80 per cent of institutional investors increased hedge fund investments, or at the very least maintained them.
Much of the money is flowing into the biggest funds, with almost half investors now putting money into managers with over $1-billion in assets. That's up from a quarter in 2009.
