最初由 挺傻 发布
金融衍生工具，比如future, forward, option等等。可以based on equities，外汇exchange rate,interest rate 也可以是commodities。“A financial instrument whose performance is linked to a specific security, index or financial instrument. Typically, derivatives are used to transfer risk or negotiate the future sale or delivery of an investment. Derivative instruments come in four basic forms: forward contracts, futures contracts, swaps and options.”
关于投资金额和风险收益的问题，如下的文章说的不错：
Look before you hedge
Until recently, hedge funds inspired nothing but fear among many investors. No wonder. They were complex, since many of them used intricate financial derivatives. They were also highly exclusive, requiring $1 million or more as an initial investment. Even worse, they looked awfully dangerous after a few high-profile funds failed in the late 1990s.
Now, however, hedge funds have a whole new image. They're seen as the ultimate safe haven during volatile times, since they're capable of making money whether the market is up or down. Many funds are now being targeted at middle-income investors, and some require minimum initial investments as low as $500.
Much of the hype is true: hedge funds can be excellent investments that deserve a place in your portfolio. But be aware that these financial products demand careful attention. And if you have less than $150,000 to invest in one, you should probably steer clear.
Hedge funds operate under many different names, but they all try to do pretty much the same thing. They attempt to offset risk by using alternative investment strategies. For example, most mutual funds buy stocks in the hope that these stocks will increase in value. Many hedge funds, however, sell short, betting that certain stocks will fall in value. If these stocks do fall, the fund performs well. This is why hedge funds can be attractive investments during volatile times like these, when many stocks are plummeting.
Before you jump into any hedge fund, consider these points.
・ Group annual returns mean little. You will often see annual returns that refer to hedge funds as a group. But this information is often inaccurate. Hedge-fund performance surveys have a "survivorship bias," meaning funds that have gone under because of horrible losses may not be included in the performance numbers. As a result, the performance of the group may be overstated by about 2.4%, according to one survey published in the January/February 2001 issue of Financial Analysts Journal.
・ Big fees are hidden. Performance figures for hedge funds usually do not include fees. And those fees can be steep. For starters, management expense ratios (MERs) range between 1% and 2%. On top of that, funds usually skim off 20% of the profits. If you total up all the charges, you'll see that you're saying goodbye to a big chunk of your returns.
・ Everything depends on the manager. In a regular mutual fund, about 85% of the fund's performance is attributable to the market and about 15% to the skill of the individual manager. In the case of hedge funds, these numbers are reversed: in other words, nearly all of the fund's performance depends upon the manager. This makes it crucial to look at a manager's long-term track record. Ideally, the fund manager should have at least 10 years' experience and exposure to a full bull-and-bear-market cycle.
・ Redemptions can hurt. As they have become more accessible to the retail investor, many hedge funds have adopted an open-ended structure. This means you can redeem your investments whenever you like. That freedom is nice, but it can cause a problem.
When investors withdraw their money from a fund, the fund manager may have to sell holdings to meet these redemptions. Hedge funds usually use a lot of leverage, or debt, to pursue their investment strategies. As redemptions increase, the amount of debt stays the same, but the level of equity shrinks. This can cause a downward spiral in the hedge fund's performance.
・ Risk matters.Minimizing risk is important when you invest in hedge funds. When a hedge fund goes sour, your loss can be catastrophic. Long-Term Capital Management is the most famous example of a failed hedge fund. It lost over $4 billion (U.S.) in 1998. There are lots of other cases. In 1998 alone, 179 hedge funds died.
You can sidestep much of this risk by investing in a "fund of funds." This is a mutual fund that invests in several hedge funds, each of which employs a different strategy. Your risk is reduced since your results aren't tied to a single manager or a single strategy. For first-time investors, this is an excellent option.
But beware: the funds of funds that are available for a low minimum investment are expensive and generally don't perform well. If you have a little more money to play with, I recommend TD Private Investment Counsel's Alternative Investment fund. It's yours for a minimum investment of $150,000 in Ontario and $100,000 in other provinces.
