SWISS DAYBOOK: Hedge Funds Add $21 Billion; Voegele, Vaudoise

The world’s biggest hedge fund investors, including Blackstone Group LP, UBS AG (UBSN)’s money- management unit and HSBC Alternative Investments Ltd., added $21 billion to the pools in the first half, according to a survey by Hedge Fund Intelligence’s InvestHedge magazine.

EQUITIES: *Charles Voegele says Chief Executive Officer Andre Maeder is leaving the company with immediate effect, and will be replaced by Frank Beeck *Vaudoise Assurances Holding said net income in the first half rose 2.1 million Swiss francs from the year earlier to 58.5 million francs *Eastern Property Holdings said its net loss widened to $59.1 million in the first half from a loss of $3.4 million in the second half of 2010 *Gottex Fund Management Holdings reported net income of $1.0 million in the first half compared with a net loss of $2.4 million a year earlier

ECONOMY/POLITICS: *Swiss parliament holds three-week session in Bern

MARKETS: *The SMI fell 2.4 percent to 5,303.14 *The SPI declined 2.3 percent to 4,832.64 *The Stoxx Europe 600 Index fell 2.5 percent to 218.93. *The MSCI Asia-Pacific Index gained 0.5 percent to 118.63 at 7:30 a.m. Zurich time *Euro-franc traded at 1.2041 at 7:31 a.m. Zurich time.

To contact the reporter on this story: Paul Verschuur in Zurich at pverschuur@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Angela Cullen at acullen8@bloomberg.net