Strategic Asset Management Ltd.

Strategic Asset Management Ltd. is laying off four staff in Bermuda and one in London following the firm's decision to liquidate its hedge fund.SAM hopes to avoid further job cuts among its total staff of 21 but cannot make firm decisions until the firm's principals decide what to do next.The company's traders may start trading managed accounts which are tailor-made to suit each client's specific needs, rather than another mutual fund, said Andrew Davisson, one of SAM's three partners.

Strategic Asset Management Ltd. is liquidating its high-risk derivatives fund after suffering heavy losses over March and April.Following a 7.1 per cent loss in March, nervous investors in the SAM Global Fund redeemed $40 million worth of shares in April.The forced liquidation of market positions to pay these shareholders hindered the fund's performance and contributed to a further loss of 8.5 per cent in April, said Andrew Davisson, one of the fund's three partners.