Pension funds and money managers are opposed to shorting restrictions imposed on certain stocks by the SEC and other foreign regulators, according to an Internet survey conducted Sept. 24-29 by Greenwich Associates.
Sixty-one percent of the 886 respondents said they think short-selling of financial stocks should be allowed, 24% agreed with the ban and 15% were uncertain. Fewer pension fund executives — 47% — were opposed to the short-selling ban than asset managers, 65% of whom said they were against the temporary restrictions. Just more than one-quarter (26%) of respondents said they think hedge funds are to blame for the current market crisis, according to a news release about the poll.
