Bob Dorsey prides himself on having conversations with as many aspiring fundsters as he can. The co-founder and managing director of Ultimus Fund Solutions isn't afraid of talking fundsters he feels aren't ready out of making the move.

Dorsey has been having a lot of conversations with hedgers ready to make the move, and more than a few of them are ready, he recently told MFWire.

He declined to speak on any planned fund launches as of yet, citing regulatory and other concerns. Also, a number of hedgers are simply researching the issue now to consider whether they should allocate resources for such projects in their upcoming budgets.

His firm has helped at least two hedgers make the migration this year: Lyrical Asset Management in February, and Barrow Street Advisors, which made the migration in September.

"The fact that we are having conversations with a lot of other Barrows and Lyricals is a big trend. There is a lot of good asset management going on in these hedge funds," he said.

To-be-sure, Dorsey said that many hedgers aren't ready for the plunge. One of the biggest sticking points is the culture of transparency. Some firms, of course, balk at the idea of revealing that much of the workings of their strategies, but not all, he said. There are a number of firms that can actually benefit from the marketing advantages of transparency, like Barrow, which has found a sweet spot in the '40 Act space.

"Some hedge funds have done a fabulous job embracing the public domain element. Others are still grappling with it," he said. 

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