Why Greece needs more Hugh Hendrys

Debating with Hugh Hendry earlier this week on Newsnight, European Socialist Party president Poul Nyrup Rasmussen implied Greece needed hedge funds like a hole in the head.

Prime minister George Papandreou would probably have said as much had he been arguing with the veteran hedge fund manager instead. But Greece needs hedge funds for at least three key reasons. First, leaders of countries, like those of companies, need people to tell them when something is wrong with their management. Hendry, founder of Eclectica Asset Management, dubbed himself a canary in a coal mine for Greece. David Harding, founder of rival Winton Capital Management, has said hedge funds are important because they inject badly-needed skepticism into over-hyped market...