While banks have shuttered trading desks and trimmed headcounts there, big hedge funds eyeing expansion in Asia are looking to hire.
Big hedge funds are expanding in Asia given that the region's assets under management (AUM) is growing at a faster pace than in the U.S. and Britain. However, industry executives say the number of qualified candidates has fallen short of the demand.
«The challenge isn't finding a portfolio manager, it's finding a portfolio manager with the experience first hand of investing in Asia while being based in Asia,» said Nilay Khandelwal, managing director of recruitment firm Michael Page Singapore, who was quoted in «Bloomberg». «Anyone who's been here for the last five, six, seven years is in a good role, and to move them is tough.»
Sweetening Offers
Hedge funds have responded by hiring from rivals, sweetening compensation packages for star performers and committing more resources to younger employees. Firms like Steve Cohen's Point72 and Balyasny Asset Management are investing in extensive training programs, betting that some of their new hires will be groomed into alpha-producing portfolio managers.
Point72 has rolled out a 10-month training program for the region, modeled after one that the firm introduced to the U.S. in 2015. The firm kicked off its first Hong Kong class in March. Separately at Balyasny, it has in place a two-year program called Anthem for senior analysts and newly hired portfolio managers. Asia lacks portfolio managers with the experience and belief in a market-neutral investment style that balances bullish and bearish bets, said Scott Schroeder, the firm's co-founder.
Growth In Asia
Combined assets under management at hedge funds based in Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, and Singapore have risen more than 20 percent since 2016 to $192 billion, according to research firm Eurekahedge. In comparison, the U.S saw a 5 percent increase while the U.K saw a 6 percent drop.
Hedge fund «platforms», which typically allocate money to multiple internal portfolio managers each responsible for his or her own slice of the firm's overall assets, have been growing in Asia. New entrants in recent years include ExodusPoint Capital Management, Schonfeld Strategic Advisors and Polymer Capital Management, which was founded by former Point72 Asia chief Angus Wai.
Major Platforms
The region now has at least eight major hedge fund platforms - twice as many as in 2013 - that oversee a combined $100 billion globally. Polymer is among those that have poached from rivals in Asia, hiring portfolio managers from both Point72 and Izzy Englander's Millennium Management.
Growing demand for talent at platforms has coincided with a drop in supply from proprietary trading desks at banks, a longtime training ground for hedge funds. Post the 2008 regulations, these trading desks have been whittled down, resulting in a shortage of available managers. This surprises many international firms as they look to expand in Asia, explains Khandewal.
