Hedge funds attracted almost $27bn (€21.1bn) of new investment in the fourth quarter of last year as investors piled into equity-based strategies, according to latest figures from Tass Research, the US consultant owned by Tremont Capital Management.

The fourth quarter capped the best year ever for the global hedge fund industry, according to Tass, with net inflows of $72.2bn over the year. Tass puts the size of the hedge fund industry at $750bn.