Indeed it has. Quam Asset Management and Silk Road Management earlier this year jointly founded the Quam Silk Road Mongolia Fund. It invests in globally listed companies primarily exposed to the Mongolian economy. So fill yer boots.

Food, and drink, for thought

You might think in this somewhat rocky financial environment that it pays to go back to basics. So, with that view in mind, we took a look at the iShares CSI A-Share Consumer Staples Index ETF - a play on the consumer staples in China. The way it works, according to iShares, is rather than investing in shares on the A-share market it gains access by investing in 'China A-share Access Products which are derivative instruments linked to an A-share or the index, issued by third parties'. So what would you expect to find in such an ETF - agricultural products, water, rice and so on? Wrong. The ETF's top 10 holdings comprise one pharmaceutical company, two agricultural produce companies and six brewing firms.

A Libyan take on London

The rioting in London has not gone unnoticed in Libya where Colonel Muammar Gaddafi's regime is undergoing difficulties.

Although British Prime Minister David Cameron hasn't yet adopted the tools of governance favoured by Gaddafi - turning the tanks on the civilian population for example - the dictator says Cameron should stand down as he has 'lost all legitimacy' because of the riots shaking Britain.

Libya's Deputy Foreign Minister Khaled Kaaim said: 'Cameron and his government must leave after the popular uprising against them and the violent repression of peaceful demonstrations by police. Cameron and his government have lost all legitimacy. These demonstrations show that the British people reject this government which is trying to impose itself through force.'

Strangely, this argument doesn't cut much ice with Gaddafi who is clinging to power despite obvious disenchantment from many Libyans.

The Madoff legacy

What do you get the man or woman who has everything? It has to be a unique iPad case. The Daily Telegraph reports that an entrepreneur who bought the clothes of disgraced Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff is turning them into exclusive iPad covers.

Entrepreneur John Vaccaro bought most of Madoff's wardrobe at an auction of his assets last year, then had them redesigned as iPad covers that sell for between US$350 and US$500 on his website.

The first five iPad cases sold almost instantly, said Vaccaro, who also took home 16 pairs of Madoff's trousers from the auction - all with ID labels bearing the villain's name.

'First, I searched all the pockets to see if there were any US$100 bills inside, then I found a designer who could make the cases from the cut-up clothing, which was tricky.'

HTC makes head start

This accessorising is getting out of hand: Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC has built up quite a profile since it decided that life was too short to waste as an OEM, or original equipment manufacturer.

Now it plans to pay US$300 million for a 51 per cent stake in a firm run by US star producer Dr Dre that produces high-end headphones. HTC and Beats Electronics will create a line of HTC headsets offering high-performance sound. The Beats brand was created by Dr Dre - he's a close mate of rapper Eminem - and can be seen on many a head in Hong Kong.

Beats headphones already sell for as much as US$600, so they make Madoff iPad covers look parsimonious by comparison.

Flying fury for S&P

Standard & Poor's may not be feeling that great at the moment following negative reaction that greeted its downgrading of the credit rating for the US, which has earned it opprobrium from President Barack Obama, Warren Buffett and other big investors.

If the message hasn't sunk in, it received a further reminder when a plane flew by its office in New York. Trailing behind was a huge banner which read: 'Thanks for the downgrade. You should all be fired.'