Statutory manager freezes another Hubbard investment vehicle

Three weeks after their appointment, Richard Simpson and Trevor Thornton of Grant Thornton have frozen Hubbard Management Funds, another Hubbard-controlled investment vehicle, which shares some investors with Aorangi Securities, according to the first statutory managers' report.  

Investments in Hubbard Management are estimated to be worth about $70 million, though the report said the nature of the firm's accounting system meant that is was impossible to accurately calculate the value. Simpson and Thornton said investors in the vehicle could expect that the portfolio's value has fallen since March 31.

"Until we have a clear understanding of the status of Aorangi and Hubbard Management Funds, their assets and investments have been frozen in the interim and could remain so for some months," Simpson and Thornton said in their first report. "Becoming aware of Hubbard Management Funds (an investment management business controlled by Mr Hubbard), of which we were not aware at the time of our appointment, has added another complexity to our role."