For the average hedge fund, it was the best first half in more than two decades, and Shawn Matthews's Hondius Capital Management was better than average.
The Stamford-based macro manager is up more than 17% through the end of June, sources tell Insider, and runs more than $200 million. The average fund is up roughly 10% for the year, according to Hedge Fund Research, which said that in a recent release that it was the best first half for hedge funds since 1999. The S&P 500 returned just under 10% through the first six months of 2021.
The manager's returns were powered by trades made around commodities and rates, a source says. Hondius is named after 17th century cartographer Jodocus Hondius, a nod to the firm's goal to "accurately map out the world," according to the manager's website.
The firm declined to comment.
Matthews founded the firm in 2o19 after he ran Cantor Fitzgerald as CEO from 2009 to 2018. The firm also launched a $250 million SPAC this year with the goal of purchasing a private fintech company.
Macro managers like Hondius received serious attention from allocators last year after the globally-focused funds performed well during the market chaos in the spring of 2020. Big names like Brevan Howard began fundraising again amid the interest, and new funds to come in the space include former Bank of America executive Julien Bahurel's Como Capital.
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