Large Endowment Loses Auditor Over Valuation Issues
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According to the Daily Texan, the University of Texas Investment Management Company will soon have to rely on its internal audit staff. Chairman of the University System's Audit, Compliance and Management Review Committee, Regent Robert Estrada "reported to the board that Ernst & Young was uncomfortable with pricing the investment company's private equity and hedge fund investments. Regent Robert Rowling added that the firm also had issues with the time gap between UTIMCO's quarterly reports." Click here to read the article.
In a related piece, this blogger was interviewed about the topic of hedge fund valuation in Securities Industry News. Part of a June 4, 2007 special report entitled "Critical Issues for Hedge Funds," the topic of how, why and when hedge funds get valuation help (or don't as the case may be) arose. As an accredited appraiser, I know from firsthand experience that many people in hedge fund land do not acknowledge the presence of the traditional business valuation community. That's not necessarily good since the latter group has long ago acknowledged the regulatory prohibition against a formulaic approach and the need for specialized valuation training. Judges are none too happy and are tossing expert opinions out of their courtroom if they fail to reflect established valuation concepts and practices.
When asked why valuation is so important in this industry, I said the following:
<< Valuation numbers drive nearly every financial decision. Hedge fund managers need to know how to rebalance their portfolios, adjust risk management positions and report numbers to investors upon which they earn their fees. Valuation becomes especially important in the case of illiquid investments like private equity, distressed securities, emerging-market securities and complex derivatives. It is also an issue as more hedge funds go public. How else will you come up with a net asset value for the initial public offering, without a formal assessment? Additionally, institutional investors are on the hook to understand how hedge funds value their holdings. The last thing pension fund, foundation or endowment fiduciaries want is a blowup that could have been prevented with a thorough vetting of the managers' valuation process. That includes assurance from the hedge fund managers that numbers are being provided by an independent third party. >> (To read "The State of Valuation", go to www.securitiesindustrynews.com. A subscription is required but you can register for a trial.)
If you would like a copy of some of the articles I've written about hedge fund, derivative instrument and asset valuation, click here to send an email.
