Bermuda-based hedge fund management company Everest Capital Ltd. continues to remain in the news in the overseas press.

Last week The Wall Street Journal reported that Rhode Island-based Brown University, Connecticut-based Yale University, and Atlanta-based Emory University all had money in the company's hedge funds.

Bermuda-based hedge fund operator Everest Capital Ltd. has lost about $1.3 billion of the $2.7 billion it managed at the beginning of the year. The Wall Street Journal reported previously that emerging markets-based Everest Capital Frontier Fund value had fallen by 52.4 percent in August and 68 percent on the year. The Everest Capital Fund had lost 42 percent of its value through August.

The newspaper quoted Donald Reaves, Brown's chief financial officer, who acknowledged the school was invested in Everest.

"We've had good experience with some hedge funds, and we've had some managers who are down,'' Mr. Reaves stated in the newspaper. "If you're in this business long enough, you're going to see both sides of the market.'' He did not reveal the amount of Brown's paper losses in the fund.

In a previous Royal Gazette story, Everest spokesman Tim Mistele said the company was in no danger of collapsing despite the losses. He said the funds held over $500 million in cash, about 40 percent of their holdings, and were not leveraged as others in the market were.

Meanwhile, The Financial Times reported last week that Warren Buffett, chairman of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., oversaw the investment of $270 million in Bermuda-based West End Capital.

West End Capital reportedly specialised in the same type of investments as Long-Term Capital Management, which was rescued by a consortium of firms in a $3.6 billion bail-out.

Berkshire contributed 90 percent of the capital raised in July by West End, which is leveraging its capital base by ten to 15 times, according to Mark Byrne, head of the fund. He noted the leverage was less than that employed by other funds.

NEWSPAPER NJ