Following the successful listing of the renowned Maverick fund, the Exchange has now listed Libre Investments and Spirit Hedge both of which are also hedge funds. These latest additions bring the total number of approved listed issuers to twenty-six.

Chairman of the Exchange and Senior Partner of Maples and Calder, Europe, Cayman Islands attorneys-at-law, Anthony Travers said:

"The initial success of the CSX is entirely attributable to the sophistication and application of the Exchange Listing Rules. In this respect I anticipate that the Cayman Exchange will continue to distance itself from others."

Hedge funds in the main are higher risk investment vehicles which take leveraged positions in various segments of the capital markets. Hedge funds can perform well in the type of turbulent stock markets witnessed recently. It is estimated that over US$300 billion world-wide is now managed in hedge funds, most coming from wealthy individuals.

Libre Investments is the latest addition to the Libre family of hedge funds managed out of New York by Towneley Capital Management Inc., an independent US SEC registered investment adviser. Founded in 1971, Towneley manages over US$1 billion in assets. The minimum initial investment in Libre is US$500,000.

Wes McCain and Jeff Sanders, managers of the Libre family of funds since 1992 said:

"We see listing on The Cayman Islands Stock Exchange as a significant part of our strategic development. Its listing framework is attractive to hedge funds and we are confident that Libre Investments will contribute to the Cayman Islands success story."

Spirit Hedge, set up in 1991, is managed by Spirit Management which has approximately US$120 million of assets under management. Administered by Swiss Bank in the Cayman Islands, minimum investment in the fund is set at US$100,000.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.

For further information please contact Jacqui Crane