A few years ago, hedge funds were cropping up like so many dot-coms. Even in this environment, we're still seeing a healthy number of launches, although growth has moderated. Financial News Online reports on a survey from Absolute Return that found 81 new funds raised a total of $31.5 billion in 2007. That compares with $31 billion raised by 86 funds. The survey included figures from funds with $50 million or more. Multi-strategy funds seem to have fared the best. More than a few credit strategy funds also cropped up. Most of these were formed with the idea of finding solid distressed situations or even shorting various mortgage products. These are all healthy trends. There seems to be plenty of room for new entrants.  

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