The ninth annual Hedge Funds World Middle East Conference will play host to some of the leading figures in the global alternative asset industry, a sign of the region’s increasing sophistication in financial investments.

The 2008 event will be held at the Madinat Jumeirah Hotel from March 3 to 6, 2008, and will feature many of the best informed, most highly regarded figures in today’s worldwide industry, said an official spokesman.

They include hedge fund strategist, writer and guru Barton Biggs and Peter Clarke, CEO of Man Group plc, the world’s biggest provider of hedge fund investment products.

A highlight will be the Second Annual Hedge Funds World Middle East Awards Ceremony on March 4, presented by Man Investments and Terrapinn. The awards recognise excellence and innovation in the Middle East hedge fund industry and promote the asset class in the region.

Man Investments, one of the world’s leading providers of alternative investments, is once again a principal sponsor of the event. The company, which has prospered in the Middle East for more than 20 years, has strongly supported the Hedge Funds World Middle East Conference since the first such event in 1999.

A special highlight at the conference will be the welcome address by CEO of the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) Authority Nasser Al Shaali. The DIFC has established itself as the first international financial centre of the region and the fastest growing in the world. Today it is home to more than 500 companies including many of the world’s leading financial firms.

Keynote speakers include industry leaders such as: Sindo Oliveros, director of Pension Plan and Endowments, the World Bank Pension Fund; Ronald A Rolighed, Managing Director, Harris Alternatives LLC; Ikho Suh, Head of Investment Strategy, Korea Investment Corporation; Christopher Durand, Head of Alternative Investments, Abu Dhabi Investment Company; Dr Mehraj Mattoo, Global Head of Commerzbank Alternative Investment Strategies; Ann Thivierge, MD and Head of Active International Allocation Strategy, Morgan Stanley; and Dr Susgil Wadhwani, CBE, CEO, Wadhwani Asset Management.

“The hedge fund industry has made big advances in the region in recent years, offering investors wider choices and a range of new opportunities.. At this event, we will again recognise this progress and promote it through the Hedge Funds World Middle East Awards,” said CEO of Man Investments Middle East Limited, Antoine Massad, who is once again chairing the event. – TradeArabia News Service