中國網站品牌欄目（頻道）
本期中，作者介紹了避險基金的概念。避險基金是20世紀90年代興起的一種國際資本市場投資工具，不追求高報酬率，而以減低風險為主，投資對象則從貨幣期貨至證券、大宗貨品，無所不包。這類基金的種類很多，并非指單一的一種基金。聽上去是不是有點暈？讀完本文，也許你就會明白啦！
By Taiping Chang
Introduction: Alfred Winslow Jones (1900–1989), a diplomat, financial journalist and author, is generally credited with forming the first hedge fund in 1949. After he graduated from Harvard in 1923, he served as a vice consul in Berlin, Germany. In 1941, he received his doctorate in Sociology from Columbia University. While he was working at Fortune Magazine in the 1940s, he did extensive research on how to invest in the stock market. In his famous article entitled “Fashions in Forecasting,” he assessed and analyzed each technical method on investment approach. He finally concluded that “leverage” and “short selling” are the best two investment tools. He used “leverage” to buy more shares, and used “short selling” to avoid market risk. He was so successful that his hedge fund had outperformed the best mutual fund over the previous five years by 44 percent, and on a 10-year basis, his fund had beaten the top performer Dreyfus Fund by 87 percent. He was widely recognized as the father of the modern hedge fund.
Tom: I’ve been studying “hedge fund” related issues since we talked about derivatives last time.
Tina: Good for you. Do you know what “hedge” means?
Tom: I know “hedge” means to manage or reduce risk, but I am not sure what a hedge fund is.
Tina: A hedge fund is an investment fund that utilizes a broad range of investments. It uses advanced investment strategies to reduce risk.
Tom: What are advanced investment strategies?
Tina: There are many advanced strategies to invest one’s assets. For example, an investor can use leverage, long or short selling, and derivative positions in both domestic and international markets.
Tom: Is diversification the basic investment strategy of a hedge fund?
Tina: Yes. Have you heard the proverb “don’t put all your eggs in one basket?” Diversification is the key. A successful investor can use “leverage” and “short selling” to hedge against the downside risk of a stock market.
Tom: How does “leverage” work?
Tina: Leverage, also known as gearing or levering, is a general term for any technique to multiply gains and losses. In finance, leverage refers to the use of debt capital to supplement equity capital.
Tom: How about “short selling?”
Tina: Short selling is the selling of a security that isn’t owned by the seller but that is promised to be delivered.
Tom: What? That’s so confusing!
Tina: Let me put this way: short selling is the practice of selling securities that have been borrowed from a third party, usually a stock broker, with the intention of buying identical securities back at a later date to return to the lender.
Tom: What’s the purpose of doing that?
Tina: Well, the short seller hopes to profit from a decline in the price of the security between the sale and the repurchase. If the price drops, the short seller can buy back the stock at the lower price and make a profit on the difference.
Tom: So the goal of using such a strategy is to generate high returns? From all the stories or cases that I have read or heard, it seems to me that most of the hedge funds are highly speculative.
Tina: Exactly. I know some hedge fund managers like to use some complicated strategies that are highly speculative.
Tom: So does that mean that not all hedge funds can “hedge risk”?
Tina: That is right. Some hedge funds may carry more risk than the overall market because some investment methods are highly aggressive and based on market predictions.
Tom: I suppose that a true hedge fund should be less speculative.
Tina: I totally agree. However, even nowadays, the goal of most hedge funds is to maximize return on investment.
Tom: Isn’t it true that after the financial crisis in 2008, many investment institutions are deleveraging aggressively.
Tina: It is true. According to some recent reports, some traditional long-only funds, which used to dominate shareholder registers in the 1990s, will again become prominent.
Tom: Who typically invests in hedge funds anyway?
Tina: Most of the investors are large institutions such as commercial banks, insurance companies, registered investment companies, charitable organizations, corporations, or partnerships with assets in excess of $5 million. Some call this type of investors “accredited investors.”
Tom: Can an individual investor like me invest in hedge funds?
Tina: Only if your income exceeds $200,000 over the last two years. If you are married, you and your spouse’s joint income has to exceed $300,000 over this period. In addition, the same income level is expected in the current year.
Tom: What is the minimum investment?
Tina: It varies from fund to fund. A common starting range is between $250,000 and $500,000. Some well-established funds have much higher minimums, such as $10,000,000 or more, depending on the fund and manager.
Tom: No kidding. I suppose that if you can not afford to lose the money, then you should not invest in hedge funds at all. How about the fee structure?
Tina: It also varies. The most common fees are management and performance fees. Normally the management fee is collected in advance, and the performance fee is calculated annually.
Tom: No wonder some hedge fund manager can make millions of dollars in a year.
(Edited by Samuel Peterson and Jeanne Knechtges Peterson)
Vocabulary
hedge fund 對沖基金，避險基金，其中hedge一詞有“回避；避免損失”的意思。hedge fund是20世紀90年代興起的一種國際資本市場投資工具，不追求高報酬率，而以減低風險為主，投資對象則從貨幣期貨至證券、大宗貨品，無所不包。這類基金的種類很多，并非指單一的一種基金。避險基金之下又可分成數種不同的基金，內容十分復雜
vice consul 副領事
extensive 廣泛的，徹底全面的
assess 評估，估定
leverage （財務）杠桿作用。是公司籌集資金的一種金融工具。企業投資人以借入的資金經過運轉，來提高其投資的收益率
short selling 賣空行為，空頭賣出。投資人以貸借的方式，以買空賣空的方式獲取利潤
outperform 做得比……好，勝過
mutual fund 〈美〉共同基金（一種投資公司形式）
derivative 衍生產品，或作衍生商業工具、衍生商業商品，詳見今年第9期的“趣話金融”欄目
long selling 長期銷售。一般股票投資人均采用此方式投資，即購買股票，存放一段時間，待股票升值后再賣出，獲取利潤
diversification 多樣化，這里指“（投資的）多元化”
don’t put all your eggs in one basket 不要孤注一擲，不要集中財力干一件事
downside 呈下降趨勢的
multiply 使成倍地增加
debt capital 債務資本。一般指公司向銀行“貸款”，作為公司運營的資本
supplement 增補，補充
equity capital 權益資本，股本金，股權資本。一般指公司擁有人自己出資或是投資該公司的資本，并非借貸所得的資本
security 證券，有價證券
identical 同一的，相同的
repurchase 買回，購回
high return 高利潤，高收益
speculative 投機性的
maximize 使增加（或擴大）到最大限度
deleverage 減債。一個公司企圖減少利用債務的杠桿作用而清還公司所欠的債款
traditional long-only fund 長期傳統基金。一般“長期”指投資時間超過五年以上
shareholder register 份額持有人名冊
prominent 突出的，顯著的
charitable organization 慈善組織，慈善機構，如醫院、教會、慈善基金會等
in excess of 超過
accredited investor 經認可的投資者，即財務機構必須先審理投資人或是投資機構的財力是否達到所設定的投資能力，經過嚴格的審理過程才決定是否接受該投資人或是投資機構
management and performance fee 經營管理費和表現費。前者與投資的回報無關，在設立賬戶的時候，管理該賬戶的經理即可征收；后者則是按照每年投資的回報征收百分比的費用，投資的回報越高，管理該賬戶的投資經理所獲得的報酬也越高
annually 每年的，年度的
（來源：英語學習雜志）
