I think pabrai's vishnu... I remember him mentioning about the writing for RealMoney.com... and the Indian connection there (Vishnu is Indian Deity) is Pabrai and him. Vishnu posted about Buffett before...
Lets say I set up a company and issue a 10% shareholding to 10 people (including myself) who each put up 10% of the capital. If I act as director of that company and use the capital of the company to trade, am I required to be licensed to do so? And are the shareholders still considered investors in the eyes of the law? Runningbear
Funny thing in Chicago is that 70% of your job is more about meeting people. When I first came, I thought that I only had to be good with trading but I noticed that it's equally important to know people. With all the internet and online trading, it seemed like people2people business has deminished but it all comes down to person 2 person. One of the biggest lesson I learned in Chi-town. It's funny that if you know the right people you can have a good living even if your performance is not spectacular. Reminds me of Brian Gelber from Market Wizard... if you know good traders and how to apply them with trading, you don't have to be a good trader...
Very interesting site. This guy started from nothing in 1999, he has almost 30m now. If you build it they will come.....
Oh... I'm not a CTA or Hedge Fund Manager... everyone I know stops and discourages me from doing it... They straight out tell me, I'm not a hedge fund manager material... but more a trader/market fanatic material... It's nice to hear that but it's kinda sad... LOL... Still, they tell me that the first 10 investors are the hardest to find. Sales skills are important but it's more of personality like Vishnu says. You have to look and be what you say and claim... The question they ask is, "Why do you trade?" Just like a job interview but they get into who you are as a trader. If the impression and what you claim clicks, they say it's pretty fast after that...
Raising money for a hedge fund? I can't speak from experience with hedge funds. However I did have experience in trying to raise capitor for managed futures accounts in 1988 to 1989 after the stock market crash, and it was difficult. So the current environment I suspect is a difficult time. Bottom line though, raising money is marketing, then sales, then closing the deal, then keeping the money, keeping the client happy, and getting referrals from the clients to redouble the marketing and sales efforts. The regulations put hedge funds at a disadvantage from a marketing perspective, but if you get in front of the right people and get the word out, and if you get a good closer, it is as hard or as easy as any sale. I'll bet Waxie could raise a bunch of money if he started a hedge fund. Not that he deserves it, but he is the type to extract money from people.
But having a bunch of small investors without market knowledge is 100% pain in the ass. I think it's better if the investor knows a trader's mind. I would stick to reliable investors than investors out of no where. I don't want be like all those mutual funds like Fidelity Funds where there's small investors calling everyday to trail your trades you make. Also, hiring 5-6 customer service rep. to deal with all that. I don't even want affiliated brokers calling me. I feel like being churned just by talking to them oh... I guess that's why I'm not hedge fund material....