JP Morgan Prime Brokerage 2013 Hedge Fund Terms Analysis
1. I N V E S T O R S E R V I C E S
Capital Introduction Group
2013 Hedge Fund Terms Analysis
2. Executive Summary 1
Fund Age 2
Fund Size 3
Redemptions 4
Lock-Up Terms 8
Management and Performance Fees 11
New Launches and Founders Share Class 13
Contents
3. 1
Figure 1:
Strategies of
Active Funds
Credit, 29.49%
CTA/Managed Futures, 6.04%
Emerging Markets, 3.66%
Equity, 28.39%
Relative Value, 21.06%
Macro, 11.36%
The following is an overview for 2013 of basic fund terms across 546 of the funds that the Capital Introduction
Group (“CIG”) actively works with. This analysis evaluates redemption terms, lock-up periods and fees across
strategies. Given the consistency of our sample over recent years there are few significant changes to report.
However, there has been some turnover of funds in addition to slight changes in the underlying terms of some
funds. With regard to strategies, the percentage of funds within our sample focused on equity strategies has
increased from 24.37% in 2012 to 28.39% in 2013.
Based on our analysis, hedge fund managers remain focused on matching the liquidity terms of their funds with
those of the underlying strategies. Soft lock-up periods remain common as managers try to dissuade investors
from investing for short periods of time.
With respect to fees, our analysis shows that, on average, management fees remain below the traditional 2.00%
with a mean of 1.64% while the average performance fee has decreased to approximately 19.00% (from 19.40%
in 2012). In addition to the broader fund terms analysis, we also looked at the fees associated with 68 funds that
have launched since mid-2012. Of the 68 funds, 23 offered fee discounts to early stage investors via a founders
share class. The mean management and performance fees associated with the founders share class were 1.37%
and 15.07% respectively.
Executive Summary
4. 2
CTA/Managed Futures funds have the longest running average track record of over 10 years. Figure 2 indicates
that approximately 7% of funds in the study launched within the past year, while more than 22% of the funds
in the study launched within the past 3 years (see Figure 3). The mean age of the funds included in this study is
7.92 years (see Figure 4).
Figure 2:
Age of Funds
Figure 3:
Fund Age
Figure 4:
Mean Age of
Funds (Years)
Age of Funds (Years) Percentage of Funds
STRATEGY Mean Max Min <1 year <2 years <3 years
Credit 6.62 27.29 0.00 2.75% 5.86% 9.34%
CTA/Managed Futures 10.13 30.70 0.62 0.37% 0.37% 0.73%
Emerging Markets 6.34 14.29 1.80 0.00% 0.18% 0.55%
Equity 8.41 28.20 0.00 2.75% 4.58% 5.49%
Relative Value 9.43 29.37 0.12 0.92% 1.83% 2.75%
Macro 6.60 20.70 0.54 0.37% 2.38% 3.30%
Total 7.92 30.70 0.00 7.14% 15.20% 22.16%
<1 Year, 7.14%
1-3 Years, 15.02%
3-5 Years, 15.02%
5-10 Years, 32.78%
>10 Years, 28.39%
0.00
2.00
4.00
6.00
8.00
10.00
12.00
Total
6.62
10.13
6.34
8.41
9.43
6.60
7.92
Credit CTA/Managed
Futures
Emerging
Markets
Equity Relative
Value
Macro
Fund Age
5. 3
Fund Size
Despite continued growth of the hedge fund industry, many funds still face significant headwinds with regard to
reaching the $1 billion mark. Within our analysis, 61% of the funds have AUM of $500 million or less, whilst over
75% have AUM of $1 billion or less. Only 3.7% of funds have in excess of $5 billion in assets.
Figure 5:
Fund Size (AUM)
<$50 million, 13.23%
$50-$100 million, 9.34%
$100-$500 million, 38.52%
$500 million-$1 billion, 14.40%
$1-$5 billion, 20.82%
>$5 billion, 3.70%
6. 4
Redemptions
Figure 6 represents a breakdown of the redemption terms for the 546 funds in the analysis. Across the sample,
the most common redemption term is Quarterly with a 90 day notice period (16% of all funds). Monthly
redemptions with 30 days notice and Quarterly redemptions with 60 days notice are also amongst the most
popular redemption terms (15% of all funds).
Investors and hedge fund managers alike continue to focus on ensuring that funds offer appropriate liquidity
terms for their underlying strategies. Strategies such as CTAs, Macro and Equities continue to offer the most
liquid terms, while Credit and some Emerging Markets funds employ less liquid terms. Interestingly, an
increasing number of hedge fund managers are offering new products with liquidity profiles to fit products
outside of their traditional hedge fund offering such as 40 Act and UCITS funds. Additionally, hedge fund
managers are increasingly looking at investing in longer term opportunity sets by exploring the merits of hybrid
funds that share characteristics of private equity and hedge fund structures.
Figure 6:
Redemption Terms
Redemption Terms Percentage of Funds Number of Funds
Daily below 15 days 1% 8
Monthly 30 days 15% 84
Monthly 45 days 5% 28
Monthly 60 days 4% 24
Monthly 90 days 2% 12
Monthly above 90 days 4% 21
Quarterly 30 days 5% 29
Quarterly 45 days 10% 55
Quarterly 60 days 15% 81
Quarterly 65 days 4% 20
Quarterly 90 days 16% 87
Semi-Annually 60 days 1% 3
Semi-Annually 90 days 1% 3
Annually 60 days 1% 7
Annually 90 days 3% 17
Annually above 90 days 1% 5
Monthly other 1% 8
Quarterly other 1% 5
Other 9% 49
Total 100% 546
7. 5
Most common redemption terms by strategy
33% of Credit funds and 15% of Relative Value funds offer quarterly redemptions with 90 days notice. These
terms are consistent with the less liquid underlying positions that managers often hold across these strategies.
33% of CTA/Managed Futures, 24% of Equity and 21% of Macro funds offer monthly redemptions with 30 days
notice. These redemption terms reflect the more liquid instruments these strategies generally utilize.
Figure 7:
Redemption Terms
by Strategy
Monthly Quarterly
Strategy 15
days
30
days
45
days
60
days
90
days
30
days
45
days
60
days
65
days
90
days Other
Credit 0% 6% 3% 4% 4% 1% 6% 20% 4% 33% 19%
CTA/Managed Futures 9% 33% 6% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 51%
Emerging Markets 0% 15% 5% 5% 0% 0% 5% 15% 15% 10% 30%
Equity 3% 24% 7% 3% 1% 9% 14% 8% 1% 10% 19%
Relative Value 0% 9% 3% 3% 3% 6% 17% 26% 6% 15% 14%
Macro 8% 21% 10% 15% 3% 10% 6% 5% 2% 0% 21%
Total 2% 15% 5% 4% 2% 5% 10% 15% 4% 16% 21%
Credit CTA/Managed
Futures
Emerging
Markets
Equity Relative
Value
Macro Total
Monthly 15 days Monthly 30 days Monthly 45 days Monthly 60 days Monthly 90 days
Quarterly 30 days Quarterly 45 days Quarterly 60 days Quarterly 65 days Quarterly 90 days
Other
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
Figure 8:
Redemption Terms
by Strategy
8. 6
Redemption Frequency
51% of all funds in our analysis have quarterly liquidity (see Figure 9). However, this redemption frequency
predominantly consists of Credit and Relative Value funds. Within our universe of Credit funds (including
distressed, high yield, long/short, multi-strategy and structured), 64% employ quarterly redemption terms,
whilst in Relative Value strategies, almost 70% of all funds have quarterly redemptions.
Key Redemption Dates
Figure 10 outlines key redemption deadlines by which Investors must submit their redemption notices over the
coming months/quarters depending on the redemption terms of the fund. 20% of funds included in the study
have redemption frequencies of quarterly, semi-annually or annually with 90 days notice.
Figure 9:
Redemption
Frequency
Daily, 5%
Weekly, 1%
Monthly, 33%
Quarterly, 51%
Semi-Annually, 2%
Annually, 7%
Other, 1%
Redemptions CONTINUED
9. 7
Redemption Frequency Notice Days Redemption Date Redemption Cut-Off Date
M 90 4/30/2014 1/30/2014
M 65 4/30/2014 2/24/2014
M 60 4/30/2014 3/1/2014
M 45 4/30/2014 3/16/2014
M 30 4/30/2014 3/31/2014
M 90 5/31/2014 3/2/2014
M 65 5/31/2014 3/27/2014
M 60 5/31/2014 4/1/2014
M 45 5/31/2014 4/16/2014
M 30 5/31/2014 5/1/2014
M 90 3/31/2014 21/31/2014
M 65 3/31/2014 1/25/2014
M 60 3/31/2014 1/30/2014
M 45 3/31/2014 2/14/2014
M 30 3/31/2014 3/1/2014
Q 90 3/31/2014 12/31/2014
Q 65 3/31/2014 1/25/2014
Q 60 3/31/2014 1/30/2014
Q 45 3/31/2014 2/14/2014
Q 30 3/31/2014 3/1/2014
Q 90 6/30/2014 4/1/2014
Q 65 6/30/2014 4/26/2014
Q 60 6/30/2014 5/1/2014
Q 45 6/30/2014 5/16/2014
Q 30 6/30/2014 5/31/2014
Figure 10:
Key Redemption
Dates
The redemption calendar is an approximation based upon “Calendar days” notice periods, and does not account
for those redemption cut-off days that fall on a non-business day.
10. 8
Lock-Up Terms
Hedge funds often institute lock-ups to reduce the amount of turnover that occurs within their respective
investor base. Figure 11 indicates that over 71% of Credit funds incorporate a lock-up provision into their basic
terms, while almost 50% of funds across all strategies include a lock-up period of some description. This
concentration of Credit funds with a lock-up is consistent with the more onerous redemption terms of this
strategy versus that of other more liquid strategies such as CTAs. Interestingly, more than 40% of Equity and
Macro funds institute either hard or soft lock-ups as part of their basic terms, despite the fact that they are
often able to liquidate their holdings in relatively short order.
Hard versus Soft Lock-Ups
Almost 40% of all Credit funds include a hard lock-up provision whilst almost 20% of Equity and Relative Value
focused funds include a hard lock-up period (see Figure 12). The mean hard lock-up period across all strategies
is 1.05 years (see Figure 13).
Figure 11:
Percentage of Funds
with Lock-Ups
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
Total
71.43%
3.03%
30.00%
41.94% 40.87% 40.32%
47.44%
Credit CTA/Managed
Futures
Emerging
Markets
Equity Relative
Value
Macro
Figure 12:
Percentage of Funds
with Hard Lock-Ups
Credit CTA/Managed
Futures
Emerging
Markets
Equity Relative
Value
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
Macro Total
39.13%
0.00%
10.00%
19.35% 18.26%
6.45%
21.98%
11. 9
Approximately 32% of Macro and Credit funds offer soft lock-ups (see Figure 14). Almost 25% of funds in our
analysis include a soft lock-up provision. The mean soft lock-up period across strategies is approximately 1 year
(see Figure 15).
Figure 13:
Mean of Hard
Lock-Ups (Years)
Credit CTA/Managed
Futures
Emerging
Markets
Equity Relative
Value
0.00
0.20
0.40
0.60
0.80
1.00
1.20
Macro Total
1.03
0.00
0.50
1.13
1.05 1.06 1.05
Figure 14:
Percentage of Funds
with Soft Lock-Ups
Credit CTA/Managed
Futures
Emerging
Markets
Equity Relative
Value
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
Macro Total
31.68%
3.03%
20.00%
22.58% 21.74%
32.26%
24.91%
12. 10
Soft lock-ups are included in redemption terms to both potentially deter investors from redeeming early and
to enable a manager to cover costs of liquidating positions unexpectedly. The mean early redemption fees
associated with these soft lock-ups is shown in Figure 16.
The average soft lock-up fee is 3.58%, with a range of 1% to 6%. In practice, despite the large percentage of
funds that include lock-up provisions in their basic terms, it should be noted that many investors will attempt
to negotiate waivers or reduced terms. This is particularly relevant with regard to soft lock-ups, which fund
managers will on occasion agree to waive, especially when the fund is invested in liquid instruments or an
investor is making a sizeable allocation.
Figure 15:
Mean of Soft
Lock-Ups (Years)
Credit CTA/Managed
Futures
Emerging
Markets
Equity Relative
Value
0.85
0.90
0.95
1.00
1.05
1.10
Macro Total
0.98
1.00 1.00
0.93
1.06
1.00
0.99
Figure 16:
Mean Soft
Lock-Up Fees
Credit CTA/Managed
Futures
Emerging
Markets
Equity Relative
Value
0.00%
1.00%
2.00%
3.00%
4.00%
5.00%
6.00%
Macro Total
3.98%
5.00%
4.10%
3.30% 3.30% 3.24%
3.58%
Lock-Up Terms CONTINUED
13. 11
Management and
Performance Fees
Management fees vary slightly across strategies. In this sample, Equity funds tend to charge the lowest
management fees on average while CTAs and Emerging Markets funds have the highest average management
fees. The traditional fee of 2% remains the most common management fee across strategies with the exception
of both Equity and Emerging Markets focused funds which most commonly charge 1.5% (see Figure 19).
Figure 17:
Mean Management
Fees
Credit CTA/Managed
Futures
Emerging
Markets
Equity Relative
Value
1.40%
1.50%
1.60%
1.70%
1.80%
1.90%
Macro Total
1.65%
1.80%
1.83%
1.57%
1.62%
1.67%
1.64%
Figure 18:
Mean Performance
Fees
Credit CTA/Managed
Futures
Emerging
Markets
Equity Relative
Value
17.50%
18.00%
18.50%
19.00%
19.50%
20.00%
Macro Total
19.08%
19.70%
19.05%
19.16%
18.93%
18.39%
18.99%
14. 12
With respect to performance fees, the mean across all strategies is approximately 19%. The range of
management fees is 0%-3%, while performance fees range from 0%-35%. Almost 90% of all funds within
Credit, Equity and Relative Value strategies charge performance fees of 20%.
It should be noted that these fees are based on the official fund terms. Both management and performance
fee reductions may be negotiated by investors in certain circumstances, such as in return for offers of
large allocations or for agreeing to commit their investment for an extended period beyond the standard
liquidity terms.
Additional instances of fee breaks often occur at the beginning of a manager’s life cycle. Increasingly hedge
fund managers are offering discounted share classes to early stage investors. These “founders share classes”
often offer capacity rights or require an investment within a specified time frame from fund inception.
Strategy Mean Max Min Mode Mode%
Credit 19.08% 20.00% 0.00% 20.00% 86.96%
CTA/Managed Futures 19.70% 30.00% 0.00% 20.00% 84.85%
Emerging Markets 19.05% 30.00% 0.00% 20.00% 75.00%
Equity 19.16% 25.00% 0.00% 20.00% 88.39%
Relative Value 18.93% 25.00% 0.00% 20.00% 87.83%
Macro 18.39% 35.00% 0.00% 20.00% 77.42%
Total 18.99% 35.00% 0.00% 20.00% 85.90%
Figure 19:
Management Fees
Strategy Mean Max Min Mode Mode%
Credit 1.65% 2.00% 0.50% 2.00% 42.24%
CTA/Managed Futures 1.80% 3.00% 0.00% 2.00% 63.64%
Emerging Markets 1.83% 3.00% 1.00% 1.50% 40.00%
Equity 1.57% 2.25% 0.35% 1.50% 38.71%
Relative Value 1.62% 2.00% 0.50% 2.00% 42.61%
Macro 1.67% 2.50% 0.25% 2.00% 56.45%
Total 1.64% 3.00% 0.00% 2.00% 42.12%
Figure 20:
Performance Fees
Management and
Performance Fees CONTINUED
15. 13
New Launches and
Founders Share Classes
Using a sample of 68 new launches that CIG has worked with over the past 18 months, the average management
fee is 1.65% and the average performance fee is 19.24%. Of the 68 funds that launched within the past 18
months, Credit and Equity funds have been the most common, accounting for 76% of the funds.
Of the 68 funds in the sample, 23 launched with a founders share class to incentivize investors to invest early
in the fund. Of the 23 founders share classes, 4 were offered with a defined timeframe for investment, while
13 offered a founders share class based on a specified assets under management (“AUM”) capacity. 6 funds
included both timeframe and capacity limits. 7 of the 10 funds with defined timeframes chose to limit access to
the share class to 6 months or less. The capacity limits of funds in the sample ranged from $100 million to $500
million. The most common capacity limit was $100 million.
The Figures 23-28 illustrate the differences between founders share class fees and those applicable to the
standard share classes in this sample of 23 new launches that offered a founders share class. The mean
management fee of the founders share classes is 1.37% compared to the standard share class mean of 1.79%.
Figure 21:
Strategies of
New Launches
Credit, 44%
Equity, 32%
Relative Value, 9%
Macro, 10%
CTA/Managed Futures, 5%
Figure 22:
Founders Share
Class AUM Capacity
$100
million
$150
million
$200
million
$250
million
$300
million
$500
million
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
NumberofFunds
16. 14
The mean performance fees for the founders share class and the standard share class are 15.07% and 19.65%,
respectively. The range of founders share class performance fees in this sample is 10% to 20%.
Strategy Mean Max Min Mode Mode%
Credit 1.32% 1.75% 1.00% 1.50% 45.45%
Equity 1.33% 2.00% 1.00% 1.00% 33.33%
Relative Value 1.50% 1.50% 1.50% 1.50% 100.00%
Macro 1.50% 1.50% 1.50% 1.50% 100.00%
Total 1.37% 2.00% 1.00% 1.50% 52.17%
Strategy Mean Max Min Mode Mode%
Credit 1.73% 2.00% 1.00% 2.00% 54.55%
Equity 1.63% 2.00% 1.50% 1.50% 66.67%
Relative Value 2.00% 2.00% 2.00% 2.00% 100.00%
Macro 2.00% 2.00% 2.00% 2.00% 100.00%
Total 1.79% 2.00% 1.00% 2.00% 56.52%
Figure 23:
Mean Management
Fee (Founder vs
Standard)
Credit Equity Relative Value Macro Total Average
1.00%
1.20%
1.40%
1.60%
1.80%
2.00%
1.32% 1.33%
1.63%
1.50%
2.00%
1.50%
1.37%
1.79%
2.00%
1.73%
Founders Management Fee Standard Management Fee
Figure 24:
Founders
Management Fees
Figure 25:
Standard
Management Fees
New Launches and
Founders Share Classes CONTINUED
17. 15
There are a variety of term combinations associated with founders share classes. Terms may include basic
management and/or performance fee discounts, declining fee structures associated with increases in AUM,
and/or the offering of zero fee investments in perpetuity once a fund has reached a pre-defined critical mass.
CIG anticipates that there will be continued utilization of founders share classes as the asset raising
environment for recently launched managers continues to be highly competitive.
Figure 26:
Mean Performance
Fees (Founder vs
Standard)
Credit Equity Relative Value Macro Total Average
10.00%
12.00%
14.00%
16.00%
18.00%
20.00%
14.77%
15.50%
19.67%
15.33%
20.00%
15.00% 15.07%
19.65%20.00%20.00%
Founders Management Fee Standard Management Fee
Strategy Mean Max Min Mode Mode%
Credit 14.77% 20.00% 10.00% 15.00% 63.64%
Equity 15.50% 17.00% 15.00% 15.00% 66.67%
Relative Value 15.33% 16.00% 15.00% 15.00% 66.67%
Macro 15.00% 15.00% 15.00% 15.00% 100.00%
Total 15.07% 20.00% 10.00% 15.00% 69.57%
Figure 27:
Founders
Performance Fees
Strategy Mean Max Min Mode Mode%
Credit 20.00% 20.00% 20.00% 20.00% 100.00%
Equity 19.67% 20.00% 18.00% 20.00% 83.33%
Relative Value 20.00% 20.00% 20.00% 20.00% 100.00%
Macro 20.00% 20.00% 20.00% 20.00% 100.00%
Total 19.65% 20.00% 15.00% 20.00% 95.65%
Figure 28:
Standard
Performance Fees