One year ago
»» Diamondback Capital Management denied that the firm was a target of a U.S. government insider trading investigation after it was raided by the FBI. The Stamford, Conn. firm said the government’s search applied to one portfolio manager who had since been put on leave. In a letter to clients, founding partners Richard Schimel and Lawrence Sapanski said Diamondback would cooperate with the investigation.
No charges have been filed against Diamondback or any associates of the firm, but after the investigation was disclosed the firm suffered investor redemptions that drove its assets from $5.8 billion as of January 1, 2011 to $4.1 billion as of midyear. The firm’s flagship multistrategy fund is down 3.39% for the year through Nov. 18 and now manages $3.5 billion, according to an investor. A Diamondback spokeswoman declined to comment.
But Diamondback has survived. It could have been worse. The two other funds raided that day, Level Global and Loch Capital Management, both shut down.
See also:
Government probe puts pressure on SAC alums
»» Hutchin Hill Capital, the firm founded by former SAC Capital Advisors quantitative chief Neil Chriss, said it would soft-close its flagship fund to new investments.
But that did not come to pass. At the time, Chriss expected to grow the then-$700 million Hutchin Hill Capital Master Fund to a little more than $1 billion through existing investors. The firm now manages $1.5 billion, up from $1.1 billion on July 1, and is still accepting new money. Meanwhile Chriss has helped fuel the fast growth by expanding the team. Among the new hires was Ben Heller, a former emerging markets portfolio manager at HBK Capital Management.
The inflows have handily outstripped performance. The flagship fund was down 3% for 2011 through Nov. 25, according to a person familiar with the firm. Hutchin Hill declined to comment.
Five years ago
»» Bay Harbour Partners, founded by Steve Van Dyke, was named Fund of the Year at the second annual Absolute Return awards in New York. Other established players that also picked up prizes included Pershing Square Capital Management in U.S. equity, Galleon Management in technology, and Carlson Capital in the multistrategy category.
At this year’s festivities, Ray Dalio’s Bridgewater Associates was named Management Firm of the Year for the second consecutive year and the Renaissance Institutional Equities fund took the coveted Fund of the Year trophy.
