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An Industry Is Falling Out of Love With Hedge Funds

  • Insurers free up capital by switching back to fixed income
  • Goldman, BlackRock highlight benefits of hedge fund holdings
Pedestrians walk past the New York Stock Exchange.
Photographer: John Taggart/Bloomberg

Insurers have had about enough of hedge funds.

Stung by market-trailing returns, the industry in the U.S. is reversing course after more than doubling its hedge fund allocation over five years, to $17.7 billion as of Dec. 31, according to data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. Just this month, American International Group Inc. said it submitted redemption notices for $4.1 billion, and MetLife Inc. announced a plan to exit most of its $1.8 billion hedge fund holdings.