Money is no object to John Bader. Well, actually spending it to make more of it is more like it. The co-chairman and chief investment officer at Halcyon Asset Management says he will spare no expense to attract the super talent needed to create a “dynasty” at the 25-yearold hedge fund. “We want to build the New York Yankees of hedge funds,” Bader said in a Financial Times interview. Bader says his “unique” business model helps: While most hedge fund firms are stingy in handing out equity stakes in the firm to managers, Halcyon readily will clinch long-term contracts with no-compete clauses in exchange for a nice share of the firm. It seems to work; the firm has 11 partners that have been with Halcyon for an average of a decade. The lure is also paying off as in the past two years, he’s brought in top-notch pros from Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, Prudential and ZAIS Group, among others. His HF philosophy is also something to consider: Always try new approaches. “Sooner or later, almost any good hedge fund strategy becomes commoditized, making today’s successful investor tomorrow’s has-been. Investors need hedge funds that can change with the times,” Bader told FT. He may want to rethink his Yankees analogy, though: Spending the most has not won any championships, at least in the last six years.
