It may be tough to run a hedge fund, but that isn't stopping senior-level folks from trying to branch out on their own.
Here's a short and nonexhaustive list of some of the top new funds to have come across our radar.
The competition to raise assets is steep, particularly for startups that don't have long performance track records to woo investors. Instead, new managers often rely on the pedigrees of their previous employers and the backing of high-and-mighty investment titans to sway potential investors to open their checkbooks.
Recent data is not the most promising, however, with more hedge funds closing than opening. In 2015, 979 hedge funds closed their doors while 968 opened. This year through the first quarter, 291 have shut while 206 opened, Hedge Fund Research data shows.
But the glory of raising assets, running one's own proper business and investment strategy, and the (potentially very lucrative) benefit of charging high fees are alluring. At the moment, the global hedge fund industry is managing close to its peak in assets, at about $2.9 trillion, HFR says.
To the new startups, bon courage.
SEE ALSO: The hedge fund at the heart of an insider-trading scandal is winding down a key fund
Samantha Greenberg — Margate Capital
Samantha Greenberg, one of the hedge fund industry's most senior women, left Paulson & Co. and is starting Margate Capital, a long/short equity fund. She recently hired Jared Weisfeld from Balyasny Asset Management as a partner and is targeting $500 million when the firm launches later this year.
Ben Melkman
Ben Melkman, a former partner at Brevan Howard Asset Management, is launching a macro hedge fund in New York. The fund is targeting $400 million and a launch date in the first quarter of next year. The firm is bringing on Joe Mauro, a former Goldman Sachs partner.
Melkman was the lead manager on Brevan's $500 million Argentina fund, which has delivered 18% since its inception.
Josh Donfeld and Dave Rogers — Castle Hook Partners
Legendary investor Stan Druckenmiller is backing duo Josh Donfeld and Dave Rogers in their new launch. It will be Druckenmiller's second-largest investment in a new hedge fund since he backed PointState Capital with $1 billion in 2011.
Donfeld and Rogers previously worked at George Soros' family office as portfolio managers. They are planning to launch New York-based Castle Hook Partners later this year or in the first part of next year.
Castle Hook will invest in equity, credit, commodities, interest rates, and foreign exchanges.
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