Alternative investments

Forward Management on Tuesday launched the Forward Tactical Enhanced Fund, an absolute return fund that seeks to deliver returns regardless of the market’s direction.

Frost Investment Advisors has launched the Frost Diversified Strategies Fund, a mutual fund that combines hedge and private equity approaches. The fund seeks to reduce downside volatility while providing upside investment opportunities.

RiverNorth Capital, in partnership with DoubleLine as sub-advisor, has launched the RiverNorth/DoubleLine Strategic Income Fund.

BNY Mellon Wealth Management is now offering its private banking clients Cash Management Access Accounts that will allow them to manage banking and self-directed investments in one place.

ETF Securities on Friday began trading its new exchange-traded product, the ETFS Physical Asian Gold Shares, on NYSE Arca.

Liberty Street Advisors has launched the Center Coast MLP Focus Fund, a mutual fund that will invest in midstream energy infrastructure master limited partnerships. It will be sub-advised by Center Coast Capital Advisors of Houston, whose founder Dan Tutcher is well known in the MLP sector.

In an effort to provide investors with greater diversification, Prudential Investments has launched the Prudential Real Assets Fund, which will invest in real estate, metals, fuel and other commodities. In addition, the fund aims to protect investors against inflation and rising interest rates.

U.S. REITs continued to significantly outperform the broader equity market in 2010, the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts said Wednesday. U.S. REITs rose 27.95% in 2010, compared to the S&P 500’s 15.06% gain.

ProShares on Tuesday launched two volatility exchange-traded funds, the ProShares VIX Short-Term Futures and the ProShares VIX Mid-Term Futures funds.

Loomis Sayles on Wednesday launched the Loomis Sayles Absolute Strategies Fund, a flexible, risk-managed absolute return fund.

Asset management fees for hedge funds, private equity, infrastructure and real estate have all fallen in both pooled and separately managed accounts, according to the 2010 Asset Manager Fee Survey by Mercer.

ProShares’ new ProShares RAFI Long/Short exchange-traded fund began trading on NYSE Arca Thursday.

ETF Securities’ ETFS Physical White Metals Basket Shares (WITE) began trading on the NYSE Arca Friday.

Stephen Wedel, an LPL adviser and founding partner of Four Seasons Wealth Management in St. Louis, is gathering a lot of assets by investing his clients' money in alternatives, including non-traded real estate investment trusts, oil-and-gas limited partnerships, managed futures and private equity.

Fund managers are moving to get independent values on over-the-counter derivatives, rather than relying on their broker-dealers.

First investment banks developed tools to act like hedge funds. Now their risk strategies are spreading to traditional money management.

NEW YORK—Absolute-return funds may now only total $140 billion, a scant 1.2% of the $11.26 trillion in mutual funds, but that will grow to 10% to 15% over the next decade, predicts Putnam Investments President and Chief Executive Officer Robert Reynolds

The Absolute Return LLC has launched a family of five absolute return portfolios that aim to deliver positive returns regardless of the direction of the market.

Russell Investments has launched a new family of equal weight indexes that also manage for sector risk and are easily replicated for investable products. The indexes apply to each of the nine Russell global sectors: consumer discretionary, consumer staples, energy, financial services, healthcare, materials and processing, producer durables, technology and utilities.

Fidelity Investments is making its single family offices services available to advisers serving this market as well as ultra-high-net-worth clients with investable assets of $50 million or more.