The Standards Board for Alternative Investments (SBAI), formerly known as the Hedge Fund Standards Board, is an international standard-setting body for the

alternative investment An alternative investment, also known as an alternative asset or alternative investment fund (AIF), is an investment in any asset class excluding stocks, bonds, and cash. The term is a relatively loose one and includes tangible assets such a ...

industry and sets the voluntary standard of best practices and practices endorsed by its members. Its primary role is to be the custodian of the Alternative Investment Standards (formerly known as "the Standards"), which are designed to create a "framework of transparency, integrity and good governance" in the way the hedge fund industry operates.

History

The SBAI originated in June 2007, when a group of leading

managers formed the Hedge Fund Working Group to develop industry standards in areas such as disclosure, valuation, risk management, governance, and shareholder conduct. Founding firms included

Marshall Wace Marshall Wace LLP is a hedge fund based in London, founded by Paul Marshall and Ian Wace in 1997. Marshall serves as chairman and chief investment officer, and Wace as a chief executive officer & chief risk officer. The company is recognized as ...

Cheyne Capital Management Cheyne Capital is a London-based alternative asset manager. The firm launched its first fund in 2000 and today specializes in real estate debt, social property impact, corporate credit, convertible bonds, event driven investing and equities. The ...

Man Group Man Group plc is an active investment management business listed on the London Stock Exchange. It provides a range of funds across liquid and private markets for institutional and private investors globally and is the world's largest publicly tr ...

, and CQS. In January 2008, the working group was established as a nonprofit, called the Hedge Fund Standards Board (HFSB). Its primary purpose was to oversee what's called the "Standards" (now known as the "Alternative Investment Standards"). At its inception, the board had 14 leading hedge fund managers and was chaired by Sir Andrew Large to develop the standards. By 2016 it had almost 200 hedge fund managers and

institutional investors An institutional investor is an entity which pools money to purchase securities, real property, and other investment assets or originate loans. Institutional investors include commercial banks, central banks, credit unions, government-linked co ...

as members; the total assets under management of all members was $3 trillion. In 2014, the board became an affiliate member of the

International Organization of Securities Commissions The International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) is an association of organizations that regulate the world's securities and futures markets. Members are typically primary securities and/or futures regulators in a national jurisdi ...

(IOSCO) and in 2016 established mutual observer relationship with the

International Forum of Sovereign Wealth Funds The International Forum of Sovereign Wealth Funds (IFSWF) is a nonprofit international group of sovereign wealth funds managers which was established in 2009. It is based in London, England. History In 2009, a group of 23 leading state-owned i ...

. In July 2011, Dame

Amelia Fawcett Dame Amelia Chilcott Fawcett (born 16 September 1956) is an American-British business executive who is currently Chairman of Kinnevik AB ( Stockholm) and Lead Director of State Street Corporation ( Boston, Massachusetts). Fawcett is the Chairm ...

was appointed Chair of the SBAI, replacing Andrew Large. In 2014, SBAI became an affiliate member of

(IOSCO) and in 2016 SBAI and

(IFSWF) agreed to engage in mutual observership. In September 2017, the board announced that it was changing its name from HFSB to the SBAI or Standards Board for Alternative Investments (SBAI) to "reflect the evolution of the industry". Specifically, it noted that "managers increasingly offer their investment strategies through a variety of vehicles beyond '

hedge funds A hedge fund is a pooled investment fund that trades in relatively liquid assets and is able to make extensive use of more complex trading, portfolio-construction, and risk management techniques in an attempt to improve performance, such as ...

', including

liquid alternatives A liquid is a nearly incompressible fluid that conforms to the shape of its container but retains a (nearly) constant volume independent of pressure. As such, it is one of the four fundamental states of matter (the others being solid, gas, ...

, regulated funds, co-investment vehicles, drawdown funds, and managed accounts" while at the same time moving away from "hedge fund" as a term in order to "classify and integrate a diverse array of alternatives strategies by underlying asset class, return profile, market exposure, or liquidity".

References

External links

* {{authority control Financial regulation Financial services companies established in 2008 Hedge funds International organisations based in London Self-regulatory organizations Standards organisations in the United Kingdom

History

See also

References

External links