Fund management back-office services provider Fundhost has established an Australian hedge fund administration business.

The company said it will act as responsible entity for independent hedge fund firms and provide administration services.
 
Fundhost has signed a contract with SS&C Technologies for the use of their hedge fund technology, AdvisorWare, to help establish the business.

"The hedge fund space is much more complicated than the long-only space," Fundhost head of sales Drew Wilson said.

"AdvisorWare will help us with providing back-office services," he said.

Fundhost expected to see more independent hedge funds being set up over the coming years as these strategies will become more commonly used.

"I think 15 years out, nobody is going to call them hedge funds; they will be just investment funds. That is dragging us to that space," Wilson said.

"We think that hedge funds, despite the black eye that they've got in the global financial crisis, should be part of a diversified portfolio."

"As we go forward, there will be more and more demand for them and they will become mainstream," he said.

Wilson said the services could also be adopted by established businesses that are looking to add a hedge fund strategy to their line-up.

"We also expect to see long-only managers add a hedge fund option to their strategy over time," he said.

Fundhost currently provides administration services to the Australian boutique investment manager sector, including to firms such as Eley Griffiths Group and Eight Investment Partners (8IP).