Quantitatively managed funds posted a strong showing for the second straight year in Institutional Investor’s Alpha’s 16th-annual Hedge Fund 100 ranking of global hedge fund firms by assets. For many firms, 2016 was a tough year for capital raising, with the total $1.65 trillion managed by the 100 largest firms falling 0.6 percent from the previous year. In the 2015 ranking, the total rose just 1.5 percent over the previous year.
Still, several of the quant firms climbed several notches in the ranking after growing their assets substantially, as they also did in 2015. Some took advantage of the strategy’s popularity to raise new money from investors; strong performance by several of these funds also helped.
For the 2017 Hedge Fund 100, we provide each manager’s total hedge fund assets under management as of January 1, 2017, unless otherwise indicated. Where possible, we also show assets at the individual fund level, with net returns for two years and since inception, and 2016 fund capital as reported last year. The ranking last year was based on capital as of January 1, 2016, unless otherwise noted.
Asset totals reflect internally run, single-manager hedge funds and separate accounts, including long-only funds that charge hedge-fund-style fees; they exclude funds of hedge funds, overlay accounts, funds managed by third parties, mutual funds and traditional long-only money, dynamic money market funds, assets in collateralized debt and bond obligations, private equity and venture capital. We gathered data through questionnaires completed by hedge fund managers, supplemented by extensive staff research. To request a questionnaire for next year’s Hedge Fund 100 ranking, please e-mail your contact details to hedgefundrankings@iimagazine.com.