A Decade of Alternative Beta

As a result of the financial crisis of 2007–2008 and subsequent central banking decisions, the asset management industry changed its asset allocation choices. Asset managers are focusing their attention on the search for new asset classes by taking advantage of the new opportunities to capture risk premia with the aim of exceeding the returns given by traditional investments, including traded equities, fixed income securities, and cash. By doing so, they are trying to improve the selection of alternative assets, such as commodities that sometimes have relatively low correlations with traditional assets. The chapter begins by describing the principles of asset allocation, distinguishing between passive and active asset allocation, also focusing on beta and alternative beta. It then concentrates on how investors can gain exposure to commodities through different investment vehicles and strategies.

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Quantifying Backtest Overfitting in Alternative Beta Strategies

The Journal of Portfolio Management ◽

10.3905/jpm.2017.43.2.090 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 43 (2) ◽

pp. 90-104 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Antti Suhonen ◽

Matthias Lennkh ◽

Fabrice Perez

Keyword(s):

Alternative Beta

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Current Hedge Fund Debates and Controversies

10.1093/oso/9780190607371.003.0029 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Dianna C. Preece

Keyword(s):

Insider Trading ◽

Hedge Funds ◽

Conflicts Of Interest ◽

Hedge Fund ◽

Securities And Exchange Commission ◽

Active Management ◽

Wall Street ◽

Net Worth ◽

Market Participants ◽

Alternative Beta

The hedge fund industry has grown to nearly $3 trillion over the last 20 years. High-net-worth individuals and institutional investors expect high returns and low correlation with traditional asset classes in exchange for the fees paid. The standard fee structure is “2 and 20,” 2 percent of assets under management and 20 percent of profits, representing high fees for active management. Hedge funds are largely unregulated and somewhat mysterious. As a result, they are the subject of debates and controversies among market participants and policymakers alike. Debates focus on fee structures, alpha versus alternative beta, weakening returns, activist investors, and leverage. The Securities and Exchange Commission has targeted hedge fund misconduct and malfeasance, pursuing perpetrators of fraud, insider trading, and conflicts of interest in the industry. Several high-ranking Wall Street hedge fund executives have been charged with, and in some cases convicted of, breaking securities laws.

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A new alternative transcript encodes a 60 kDa truncated form of integrin β3

Biochemical Journal ◽

10.1042/bj3000069 ◽

1994 ◽

Vol 300 (1) ◽

pp. 69-74 ◽

Cited By ~ 16

Author(s):

I Djaffar ◽

Y P Chen ◽

C Creminon ◽

J Maclouf ◽

A M Cieutat ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Stop Codon ◽

Human Platelets ◽

Alternative Transcript ◽

Truncated Form ◽

Reading Frame ◽

Cell Library ◽

Beta Integrin ◽

Hel Cells ◽

Integrin Beta 3 ◽

Alternative Beta

A cDNA for integrin beta 3 isolated from a human erythroleukaemia (HEL) cell library contained a 340 bp insert at position 1281. This mRNA, termed beta 3c, results from the use of a cryptic AG donor splice site in intron 8 of the beta 3 gene, and is different from a previously described alternative beta 3 mRNA. The predicted open reading frame of beta 3C stops at a TAG stop codon 69 bp downstream from position 1281. It starts with the signal peptide and the 404 N-terminal extracellular residues of beta 3, encompassing the ligand binding sites, followed by 23 C-terminal intron-derived residues, corresponding to a truncated form of beta 3 lacking the cysteine-rich, transmembrane and cytoplasmic domains. Expression of beta 3C mRNA was demonstrated in human platelets, megakaryocytes, endothelial cells and HEL cells by reverse transcriptase/PCR. The beta 3C transcript was also demonstrated in the mouse, suggesting its conservation through evolution. Finally, a 60 kDa polypeptide corresponding to the beta 3C alternative transcript was demonstrated in platelets by Western blotting using a polyclonal antibody raised against a synthetic peptide designed from the beta 3C intronic sequence. Taken together, these results suggest a biological role for beta 3C, the first alternative transcript showing an altered extracellular domain of a beta integrin.

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