Alternative investments

Multi-manager shop Virtus Investment Partners has added Rampart Investment Management, which specializes in customized options strategies for institutional and high-net-worth clients, as a wholly owned affiliate of Virtus.

The two Republican members of the Securities and Exchange Commission said they are not opposed to further reform of the money fund industry, but that changes advocated by Chairman Mary Schapiro "were not supported by the requisite data and analysis.''

First Trust Advisors has launched an ETF based on the CBOE S&P VIX Tail Hedge Index.

Investment advisory shop Arnerich Massena has promoted Scott Dunbar to managing director of advisory services.

Alternative investments should comprise as much as 20%, 30% or even 50% of a client's portfolio, according to an online panel of analysts and portfolio managers hosted by Envestnet.

Global exchange-traded fund assets have increased by 13.9% from $1.35 trillion to $1.54 trillion year-to-date, through the end of July 2012.

With a new head of research on board, Lipper announced a new set of initiatives for the second half of 2012 that involves building out research and analytical tools.

Risk parity has become a popular allocation and risk management strategy in recent years. Do you know enough about it to provide guidance to your clients?

Fixed income ETPs now account for 18% of global ETP assets, up from 7% in 2007 at the onset of the financial crisis, according to BlackRock.

Van Eck Global is prepping to launch the Market Vectors Short High-Yield Municipal Index ETF, which will replicate the Short High Yield Index, according to a Securities and Exchange filing.

The Board of Trustees of Rydex Series Funds has approved a revision of the principal investment strategies for the Trust’s Managed Futures Strategy Fund.

Rydex is nixing its Long Short Equity Strategy Fund because of “unfavorable market conditions,” according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.

Forward has hired a new marketing chief in light of the defection of former president Jeff Cusack to Nuveen Investments.

Forward’s former president Jeff Cusack has taken a new job with rival alternative mutual fund ship Nuveen Investments.

After peaking at over $1,900 an ounce in August 2011, gold prices are now down around 12% from that apex. However, investors' demand for gold bullion ETFs has not dulled.

Calamos Investments this week welcomed an old foe into its fold.

The inclusion of alternative ETFs in a portfolio provides a risk-adjusted benefit to investors, according to research from Lipper.

The inclusion of alternative ETFs in a portfolio provides a risk-adjusted benefit to investors, according to research from Lipper.

The SEC has approved an Amex Options exchange plan to test trading in options contracts without any limits on the amount of contracts held in the SPDR S&P 500 Exchanged-Traded Fund. That gives the NYSE Euronext unit the ability to match the no-limits policy offered by the Chicago Board Options Exchange.

KPMG has brought on board several new partners and managing directors to bolster the firm’s Alternative Investment Funds practice.