MANAMA: More than 200 delegates from 30 countries took part on the first day of the Hedge Funds Middle East Summit yesterday.

"This is the second year running we have brought this forum to the Ritz-Carlton Bahrain Hotel and Spa and we will be coming back next year," said conference manager Richard Doherty.

"We have people coming from as far afield as the US and Europe as well as a strong regional turnout as more and more people see hedge funds as a positive alternative to traditional investments.

"Even with the global downturn there are a lot of institutions including government bodies, sovereign wealth funds and high worth individuals who are looking to this market.

"In the current economic climate we have seen a remarkable turnout this year and we are returning to Bahrain because it is now not only established as the financial centre of the Middle East but as the fund management and hedge fund management centre of the region.

"Sharia-complaint investment is a fast growing area and we have a major section of the development of Sharia-compliant hedge funds this year including a question and answer session of Sharia supervision of the Al Safi Trust.

"Throughout the two-day programme, expert managers will discuss individual investment strategies, including non-correlation, global asset allocation, emerging markets and we will also have fascinating insights into the global credit crisis."

"The fact that the Middle East's premier hedge fund investor led conference will be returning to Bahrain for the third time in a row next year is another endorsement of the kingdom as the leader of the region in both traditional and Sharia compliant investment with a regulatory infrastructure in place to deal with mutual funds and the growing hedge fund market," said Bahrain Financial Services managing director Jane Dellor.