Rich Fund manager thanks "stupid" traders ..

An American hedge fund manager whose bets against the US sub-prime mortgage market turned him into a multi-millionaire has thanked "stupid" bank traders for making him rich.

In an extraordinary farewell letter to clients of his Lahde Capital Management fund, Andrew Lahde admitted that he has grown to hate the industry he works in and was simply "in this game for money".

He also criticised what he referred to as the "low-hanging fruit" working in the financial industry - people who "rose to the top" of financial companies which are now defunct or in the majority ownership of the US Treasury.

Mr Lahde took the decision to close down his $80million (£46m) fund recently after making an 870 per cent return last year betting against the US mortgage market, but said that further betting on sub-prime mortgages was too risky given the weak nature of the banks he had been trading with.

His letter ends by making a strong call for the legalisation of cannabis, saying: "It gets you high, it makes you laugh, it does not produce a hangover. Unlike alcohol, it does not result in bar fights or wife beating. So, why is this innocuous plant illegal?"

The exact extent of 37-year-old Mr Lahde's riches are not known, but it is thought that he is sitting on a personal fortune that runs into tens of millions of dollars as a result of his recent exploits.

However, in the astonishing letter, the financier says he will now spend time managing his own money rather than that of others, and will also focus on his health, after the stress of the last few years.

The Telegraph