W. Fifield Whitman, one-time head of research at Credit Suisse Asset Management in Hong Kong, has started New York-based hedge fund firm John Locke Capital Management. The firm rolled out its flagship long/short global John Locke Capital Emerging Markets fund last month, said Whitman, who was most recently Marathon Asset Management's Asian equity risk manager since 2004. The vehicle has a $500 million target and will have 45 positions total, approximately 35 of which will be long.

The fund will invest in emerging markets such as Eastern Europe, Latin America and China. Its primary investments will be in companies affected by interest rate hikes including banks and utilities, Whitman said. It will also invest in energy and oil-refining companies along with Asian industrial manufacturers.

The fund carries a $1 million investment minimum. Investors have two different fee options. For the one-year lockup, fees are 2/20. For the two-year lockup, fees are 1.5/20. Goldman Sachs is the prime broker