Minimum investment amounts required by newly launched funds have skyrocketed as new managers are seeking out more start-up capital to counteract their rising bills, said the 'Seward & Kissel 2018 New Hedge Fund Study'. To launch their enterprises on a stable foundation, managers decided to raise minimum investment levels significantly over prior years. Higher asset levels are obviously helpful to manage increasing costs and better attract institutional capital. In further evidence of the industry's emphasis on day-one capital, study data and market intelligence gathered by Seward & Kissel indicates that the number of seed deals rose by 20% in 2018.