Thesis 'democratizing hedge funds' with new alternative offering

Thesis Fund Management LLC, a registered investment adviser started up by a former OppenheimerFunds senior analyst, has launched a mutual fund for retail investors and advisers that will mimic a hedge fund. The Thesis Flexible Fund is aiming to provide those investors that want a hedge-fund-like investment but also the liquidity of a mutual fund, said Stephen Roseman, chief executive officer of Thesis and manager of the fund. He was a senior analyst for OppenheimerFunds' Discovery Fund from 1997 to 2003. “We are democratizing hedge funds,” Mr. Roseman said Unlike many long/short mutual funds, the Thesis Flexible Fund Ticker:(TFLEX) will be actively managed and not based on computer models, he said. The Flexible Fund is the first of a number of mutual funds the firm plans to launch that will mimic the flexible trading strategies of hedge funds, Mr. Roseman said. “We want to be to alternatives, what Templeton is to international,” he said. He declined to comment on what other kinds of funds the firm is planning to launch, but said the Flexible Fund will be the firm's core offering. One of the main advantages of the fund is that it can hold as much in cash as the managers consider appropriate, unlike many mutual funds which require managers to only have 5% to 10% in cash at any given time, Mr. Roseman said. This limitation hurt many mutual funds during the market crash, he said. “We can say we would rather sit in cash if we want to,” he said. “Sometimes in investing the right thing to do is nothing.” The fund was launched March 1, but this week became available through The Charles Schwab Corp. and Fidelity Investments and is expected to be available through TD Ameritrade Holding Inc.'s platform in the next few days. The minimum investment for the fund is $2,500, with a $1,000 buy-in for qualified plans. The management fee is 2.25%.