Schonfeld
As hedge funds evolve, the focus has shifted from traders to executives. At the $12 billion hedge fund Schonfeld, a prominent investor has transitioned away from trading to concentrate on talent development, according to two sources close to the New York-based multi-manager, as reported by Business Insider. Mitesh Parikh ceased trading his portfolio at the end of 2024, these sources indicate.
Parikh, who co-heads the firm’s discretionary macro and fixed income unit alongside Colin Lancaster, previously managed one of the largest books in his division, although the specific amount remains unspecified. It is noted that he achieved profitability in each of the three full years he traded at Schonfeld.
Parikh and Lancaster joined Schonfeld in 2021 after closing their hedge fund, Matador Investment Management, to create a new division within the firm. In less than four years since their arrival, their team has expanded to include over 60 investment staff members, according to a source close to the firm.
Due to the team’s growth, Parikh—now based in Dubai and previously the chief investment officer of Matador as well as a former portfolio manager at Balyasny—has been redirected to focus on business development rather than direct investment. This decision was not performance-related, according to a source.
Similarly, last year, Balyasny opted to reduce the responsibilities of its leading Asia stockpicker to facilitate team expansion in that region. The trend among major industry leaders indicates a shift toward managing investor relations rather than direct market activities; for example, Point72 founder Steve Cohen stepped back from trading last year, and Alan Howard no longer engages in investments with Brevan Howard’s strategies. Bobby Jain, who successfully raised over $5 billion for his fund last year, marketed himself to LPs as an executive rather than merely a market expert.
In addition to his managerial responsibilities, Parikh is instrumental in developing the firm’s Dubai office, sources indicate, which has welcomed new portfolio managers in his unit and diversified into strategies such as Delta One and equity long-short. Additionally, the macro division began to refocus on relative-value strategies last year, moving away from riskier directional bets. Overall, the fund has experienced strong performance following a challenging 2023 that was mired in rumors of a potential acquisition by competing firm Millennium.
Schonfeld achieved a remarkable return of 19.7% last year, outperforming companies like Point72, Millennium, and Citadel. As of February of this year, the firm had delivered a return of 2.2%, although it faced challenges from the volatility experienced in the early days of March.
