Barclays Capital Launches Fund of Hedge Funds Note

Nick Parmee

1 November 2007

Barclays Capital is to launch a so-called SIMPLE note – a ten-year bond/debenture issued off a Barclays Bank structured note programme - linked to Santander-owned and Geneva-headquartered Optimal Investment Services' US Opportunities fund, a US-focused equity long/short fund of funds. The $610 million fund is run out of New York by senior portfolio manager Balkir Zihnali. The note is aimed at discretionary private client managers and fund managers in the UK. It is available for PEP, ISA, SSAS and SIPP investment. Alex Robinson at Barclays Capital said: "This is the latest of a growing number of launches of hedge fund-linked SIMPLE notes". Ben Whitfield, senior vice president of business development for Santander in London with responsibility for distribution of Optimal's products in Northern Europe, said: "We are delighted to be the first to offer UK private client managers and wealth managers a US equity long/short fund of funds in SIMPLE note form. In our view, SIMPLE continues to offer the only viable structured alternative to a closed end fund in the UK."