Zurich Capital Markets is finalising its first distribution deals with First Union and Daiwa Securities for Zurich Institutional Benchmark Series, a group of investible portfolios related to the Zurich Hedge Fund Indices.

The portfolios are a collection of separate accounts that give investors exposure to a range of hedge fund styles without the need to select individual managers. Many of the existing hedge fund indices cannot be used as real benchmarks, as investors cannot invest in the underlying funds.