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CHICAGO, (June 19, 2015) – New hedge fund launches rose to the highest level in three quarters in 1Q15, as strong performance industry-wide drove both total global hedge fund capital and the total number of hedge funds to record levels. Hedge fund launches totaled 264 in 1Q15, the highest level since 2Q14, bringing the total number of hedge funds globally to 10,149 according to the latest HFR Market Microstructure Industry Report, released today by HFR? the established global leader in the indexation, analysis and research of the global hedge fund industry. Total hedge fund capital increased to a record of $2.94 trillion in 1Q15, while the HFRI Fund Weighted Composite Index and HFRI Equity Hedge Index posted gains of +3.9 and +5.0 percent YTD through May, respectively, topping the performance of both the S&P 500 and DJIA over that time period.