Guide to Hedge Funds: What They Are, What They Do, Their Risks, Their Advantages (The Economist)

A comprehensive guide to the often misunderstood, high yielding enterprise

Today, most people have heard the term "hedge fund," the investment fund that manages more than $2 trillion in assets, but few are clear about what exactly a hedge fund is or what it does. This guide aims to put them in the know.

Designed as a one-stop resource to everything about hedge funds, Guide to Hedge Funds provides a succinct survey of the industry for all those who think they should have some knowledge of this investment vehicle.

• Deftly explains all you need to know about hedge funds in order to understand the nature of their business
• Covers who the main players are, the regulations affecting them, the arguments about hedge fund ethics, and what the future holds for them
• Aimed at all those who might have to deal with a hedge fund: private investors, trustees of a pension fund, directors of a listed company, and lawyers and accountants who may be interested in working in the industry

Written in the accessible and easy-to-understand prose for which The Economist is so highly regarded, this lively and clear guide sheds much-needed light on the world of hedge funds.

Philip Coggan writes the Buttonwood column for The Economist, where he is also capital markets editor. Previously, he worked at the Financial Times for twenty years, latterly as investment editor. He is also the author of The Money Machine and How the City Works (Penguin) and Easy Money (Profile Books).