Top 5 Richest Hedge-Fund Managers
The five members of this all-boys club are Americans with a self-made score of eight by Forbes. Figures are as of June 10, 2021.
The five members of this all-boys club are Americans with a self-made score of eight by Forbes. Figures are as of June 10, 2021.
The unusually strong performance of hedge funds in 2020 marked a significant reversal. A report by Citco Funds Services found that all hedge fund strategies and assets under administration categories delivered positive returns last year, and the momentum has spilled over to 2021. In the first quarter, 73.4% of funds delivered a positive annual return.
Jim Simons
Founder, Renaissance Technologies Corp.
NET WORTH: $24.6 billion
Simons, one of the most famous quantitative traders ever, founded Renaissance Technologies in 1982 and still plays an important role even though he retired from day-today operations in 2010. Today, the esteemed quantitative trading hedge fund manages about $55 billion. The firm is well-known for its flagship Medallion Fund, a $10 billion black-box strategy exclusively open to Renaissance owners and employees. Last year, the Medallion Fund returned 76%, earning Simons $2.6 billion in compensation. The 83-year-old has donated $2.7 billion to causes, including autism research. His foundation is the primary funder of Math For America.
Ray Dalio
Founder and Co-CIO, Bridgewater Associates
NET WORTH: $20.3 billion
Dalio is the founder of the world’s biggest hedge fund firm, Bridgewater Associates, which manages roughly $150 billion. He launched the company in 1975 after earning an MBA from Harvard Business School. In 2018, he turned the company into a partnership and offered employees more of a stake in the firm. Bridgewater is known for its transparent culture, including encouraging dissent, openly airing disagreements, and recording all meetings. The 71-year-old has donated more than $850 million to charitable causes. His Dalio foundation has supported microfinance and inner-city education.
Ken Griffin
Founder and CEO, Citadel
NET WORTH: $16.1 billion
Griffin sits at the helm of Citadel, a Chicago-based hedge fund firm he founded in 1990. However, he first began trading from his Harvard dorm room in 1987. Today, Citadel manages approximately $34 billion in assets. Griffin also established Citadel Securities, one of Wall Street’s biggest market-making firms, responsible for one of the five stock trades in the U.S. The 52-year-old—and the youngest person on this list—is an avid property buyer, snapping up high-priced homes in London, New York, and Palm Beach for millions. He has donated over $1 billion in his lifetime, including more than $300 million to nonprofits in Chicago.
Steve Cohen
Founder, Point72 Asset Management
NET WORTH: $16 billion
Cohen leads Point72 Asset Management, a $16 billion hedge fund firm that begun managing outside capital in 2018. He previously ran SAC Capital, which was forced to close after the firm pleaded guilty to insider trading charges. The penalty cost Cohen $1.8 billion. In 2014, SAC converted its investment operations to Point72. Earlier this year, Cohen helped bail out Melvin Capital after its sizable and disastrous short of GameStop. The 64-year-old has given $715 million to philanthropic causes over his lifetime, including causes related to veterans and children’s health.
David Tepper
Founder and President, Appaloosa Management
NET WORTH: $14.5 billion
Tepper founded Appaloosa Management in 1993 after getting passed over for a partner when he led the junk-bond desk at Goldman Sachs. Today, the hedge fund firm manages nearly $13 billion, down from a peak of $20 billion. The hedge fund manager grew up in Pittsburgh, went to Carnegie Mellon University, and is a minority investor in the Pittsburgh Steelers. The 63-year-old gifted $67 million to Carnegie Mellon University, sponsoring the David Tepper Quadrangle, a building to create a collaborative learning environment.