The high-profile MAR International Conference on Hedge Fund Investments, now in its 12th year, returns to Bermuda in September.

The event annually turns the Fairmont Southampton into matchmaking central for hedge funds and wealthy investors looking for ways to increase returns on both personal and corporate fortunes.

Conference organiser Jeannie Lee told that up to 550 delegates are expected at this year?s event. That number could grow with the conference still more than four weeks away: it has attracted up to 900 delegates in the past.

The group was forced to postpone the 2003 conference by two months and move its venue to Florida because of powerful Hurricane Fabian?s onslaught on Bermuda, and devastation of the Fairmont Southampton.

MAR ? Managed Account Reports Inc. ? organises a wide range of conferences serving the global alternative investment marketplace and also publishes a wide range of newsletters and directories covering the global alternative investment marketplace.

Its hedge fund conference has long been a favourite in moneyed circles, giving managers of both hedge funds and funds of funds ? funds that invest in a variety of hedge funds ? the opportunity to network with potential clients.

Promotional materials for this year?s event, called ?The Wealth Summit?, say this will be ?the place to be to meet investors?.

MAR said delegates will comprise a ?steady stream? of wealthy investors and fund of fund managers ?passing through the halls of the Fairmont Southampton Princess, looking to put their money to work?.

The hedge fund industry has grown in recent years, fuelled by the prolonged bear market (when investors are generally more risk averse because of pessimism about investment markets) as well as increasing numbers of hedge funds managers capable of generating high returns, according to a July report from KPMG and UK think tank CREATE.

Lacklustre returns from the sector last year do not appear to have put off investors. The reason may be that hedge funds, in recent years, have generally outperformed mutual funds, a common investment for long-term investors.An influx of new hedge fund investors ? with funds typically only being open to those with $1 million and up to invest ? has caused some concern because, as the industry has expanded, the capability to generate returns of ten percent and higher has diminished. There has also been some administrative flaws, like pricing complex products improperly, according to the report.

The secretive hedge fund industry ? which has few regulations because investors are deemed to fall into the so-called ?sophisticated investor? category ? has grown into a $1 trillion-plus industry.

Besides the networking opportunities that MAR?s Wealth Summit present, there will be opportunities to hear about the industry?s latest developments.

This year?s key note speaker is Sudhir Krishnamurthi, the co-founder of the Rock Creek Group, a Washington D.C-based fund of fund that manages about $2 billion.

Rock Creek specialises in investing for institutional investors including some of the world?s largest endowments, foundations and pensions, said MAR.

Mr. Krishnamurthi was previously director of the World Bank?s Investment Management Department. Under that job he handled some $12 billion in assets, and a previous post as the World Bank?s director of corporate finance saw him manage up to $27 billion in equity.

In previous years, keynote speakers with celebrity status but little hedge fund experience have been invited to take part in MAR?s conference including British funnyman John Cleese and Tennis ace John McEnroe ? a visit that fell apart because of Hurricane Fabian.

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