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2007 Press Archive
Recent Press, 2006 Archive, 2005 Archive,
Groups Seek to Increase Giving by Hedge-Fund Industry Workers
By Nicole Lewis
January 25, 2007
With hedge funds proliferating and their wealth rapidly expanding, a handful of groups have formed to raise money not only from fund managers but also from people who work throughout the industry.
About $1.3-trillion is currently invested in hedge funds, which use a wide range of investments to protect or hedge against a range of changing market conditions.
In 1998, Rob Davis started Hedge Funds Care, a New York group that holds fund-raising events around the country and internationally that have netted more than $20-million to fight child abuse.
"We are striving to reach more and more people each year," says Mr. Davis, national sales manager at Merlin Securities, in New York and San Francisco, which provides financing and other services to hedge-fund businesses. "The first year we gave out four grants; this year we gave out 70."
One of the reasons Mr. Davis started the charity was to put a positive face on the industry, he says. Since hedge funds are prohibited by law from advertising, most people end up hearing about them when they get into trouble, he says.
"You only hear about the frauds, the problems, or idiots, and those people hit the newspaper and everybody cringes," he says.
By raising money through Hedge Funds Care, Mr. Davis hopes the public gets a different view. And as a former elementary-school teacher who saw evidence that some children had suffered abuse, he hopes to help more victims as well.
Hearts and Minds
High Water Women, a New York charity, also hopes to increase the amount of money being donated by people who work in the hedge-fund industry, in part by educating its members about philanthropy.
Last January the group, which has attracted 2,000 female hedge-fund managers and other finance professionals in the United States and abroad, raised $750,000 at its inaugural fund-raising event, which benefited four organizations in New York.
Gala proceeds this year will mostly support three organizations that make small loans to entrepreneurs in developing countries.
The group does extensive research on the groups it supports, says Leslie Rahl, one of the charity's founders, following the example set by the Robin Hood Foundation, a New York charity started by a hedge-fund manager, Paul Tudor Jones II. Ms. Rahl once heard Mr. Jones speak about philanthropy.
"He said, 'Plenty of people of heart get involved in philanthropy. What really adds value is when you bring your heart and your brain to the table,'" she says. "That is the model we are trying to aspire to."
Hands-On Philanthropy
In addition to raising money, High Water Women aims to create meaningful volunteer opportunities for its members < several have already joined charity boards < and also holds meetings to educate members about the work of nonprofit groups.
"United Way or other well-known charities, I must admit, leave a lot of people not knowing what they are giving to," says Ms. Rahl, president of Capital Market Risk Advisors.
She adds, "Women get more out of philanthropy when they see a more direct benefit to their giving and when we can dedicate ourselves to a specific mission."
A more hands-on approach to giving also motivated four hedge-fund managers to create Natan, in New York, an organization that provides the opportunity to direct donations to Jewish cultural-identity causes.
"We fund small, creative, innovative organizations that are in many ways like private companies that haven't gone public," says Michael Steinberg, a co-founder of Natan and a portfolio manager at Sigma Capital Management, in New York.
Among the other founders is David Steinhardt, the son of a former hedge-fund manager, Michael H. Steinhardt, who has talked to the group about his own philanthropy. Ehud Barak, Israel's former prime minister, has also spoken to donors about a veterans' charity he works with there, among other topics.
Natan currently has about 100 donors in the financial world as well as other professional fields, and last year distributed $1-million to groups with budgets under $1-million, including JDub Records, an independent Jewish music label in New York.
The group, whose operating budget is partly paid for by a grant from the Avi Chai Foundation, in New York, is on track to add more members. Says Mr. Steinberg: "The idea is to give away more money."
High Water Women's Casino Night Raises $800,000
By Maggie Shea, HedgeWorld Staff Writer
January 24, 2007
NEW YORK (HedgeWorld.com)
Casino Night totals for 2007 exceeded the $750,000 raised at last year's event Previous HedgeWorld Story. Proceeds from Casino Night will primarily go to three leaders in microfinance, the means of lending to people living in poverty who aren't part of the traditional financial system: Accion International, the Grameen Foundation and Women for Women International. Also to receive donations are several organizations benefiting disadvantaged women in metropolitan New York: Count Me in, Inwood House, Iris House, Women in Need and STRIVE (Support and Training Result in Valuable Employees).
"The evening was a great success and surpassed all of our expectations, with 800 members of the financial community present to support their peers," said Nicole Alexander, co-chairwoman of Casino Night and director of sales at Ovation Corp. Travel, in a statement. "It was both exciting and rewarding to partake in the fun activities of the evening while raising awareness of vital programs supporting the economic empowerment of women worldwide, which ultimately enables women to help themselves and their families."
The event featured a high roller Texas Hold'em tournament and a VIP lounge where attendees competed to raise funds and awareness for the less fortunate. Richard Potapchuk of Highbridge Capital Management was this year's Texas Hold'em winner. In addition, a live auction was added this year as a new feature.
High Water Women (www.highwaterwomen.org) is an organization dedicated to philanthropy and volunteerism for executive women in the finance industry. It supports charitable organizations empowering women and families worldwide.
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