The past 12 months have been a veritable annus horribilis for the hedge fund industry, with double-digit losses and a rush for the exits driving a severe pruning of the once $2,500bn (£1,616bn, €1,737bn) sector.

But if Simon Hopkins, chief executive of Fortune Group, is to be believed, the pain is far from over, with a myriad of fund of hedge fund operators likely to bite the dust in the year ahead.