Hutchin Hill Capital, founded in 2007 by former SAC Capital quant chief Neil Chriss, is now marketing to outside investors after producing strong returns in 2008 and 2009. Chriss launched Hutchin Hill with $300 million from RenTec founder Jim Simons' family office and gained 13% in 2008 and 17% in 2009. Chriss is now hoping to raise the fund to $1 billion and invests across liquid markets like equities, credit, and currencies.

1. 8 ~ntelligence Hutchin Hill opens I Bellman Wa,lter shuts I Fees stay h1gh
Throughout2008the Chriss learned computer pro- erated strong returns and at
fund benefited from gramming when he was 11 its peak ran two- thirds of the
its focus on remaining years old. SAC Multi-Strategy fund's as-
hedged and having ex- He earned a Ph.D. in math- sets. Chriss left in early 2007 to
tremely low exposure ematics from the University form Hutchin Hill, before the
and low correlation to of Chicago and in 1998 joined quant crisis hit in August 2007.
the markets. Goldman Sachs's quantitative "I saw it all coming, of course,
Chriss first met strategies group, where he so I decided to take the year
Simons on the board became a portfolio manager off;' Chriss joked at the 2007
of Math for America, a and ran a volatility arbitrage Absolute Return Symposium.
New York foundation book for the firm's Global While tens of billions of
that promotes math Alpha fund. dollars flowed into quants,
education in New Chriss left Goldman in volatility appeared low, which
York City schools. 2000 to found iCor Brokerage, led quant managers to increase
"I don't think a derivatives trading fum that leverage. This in turn led to
Neil Chriss there's anyone out was later sold to Reuters. an overlap of names held by
there dose with both In 2003 Cohen hired Chriss quant managers.
finally opens Stevie Cohen and Jim to build a quantitative trading "People talk about the dom-
Simons;' said an indi- desk at SAC. The division gen- ino effect, and it's ironic that
Hutchin Hill vidual close to Chriss. Domino's Pizza has an actual
"They're both geniuses stock, and it was something
to outside but with different that was in the 13Fs of a lot of
styles. Neil is the quant funds;' Chriss joked.
ca:pital bridge between those
two styles:'
II The former SAC The quant meltdown of
2007 was reminiscent of Long
•.::··:
Capital Advisors
Chriss is one of the Term Capital Management's
After db~ting strong returns in world's most seasoned quants.
quant chief has implosion in 1998, which
2008 and 2009, Hutchin Hill He is one of 25 quantitative opened to outside revealed a surprising correla-
Capital, founded by former professionals profiled in the capital after produc- tion between merger arb and
SAC Capital Advisors quant 2007 book "How I Became a ing two years of emerging market debt.
chief Neil Chriss in late 2007, is Quant;' which revealed that impressive returns II - Suzy Kenly
marketing to outside investors
for the first time.
The fund, Hutchin Multi-
Strategy, launched in July 2008
with $300 million from the
Meritage Fund and Renais-
SAC vets dissolve Bellman Walter
sance Technologies founder Jim -7A fonner star trader for Steve Cohen's SAC Capital has
Simons' $7 billion family office,
which manages money for sev-
found less success with his post-SAC venture. Bellman Val-
eral Renaissance partners. ter Capital, the long/short equity shop co-founded in 2008
Once he launched the firm, by former SAC Capital Advisors short-term trading star Rich
Chriss immediately closed
Hutchin Hill to outside inves-
Walter and another SAC veteran, energy trader Jeff Bellman,
tors. The firm manages $400 has closed shop. Calls to the firm's San Francisco headquar-
million and is hoping to reach ters are now met with a recording saying that the firm has
$1 billion, according to a source
close to the firm.
been closed since December 31. The firm also had an office in
Hutchin Multi-Strategy London, which ceased to be authorized by the Financial Ser-
invests in all liquid markets, vices Authority on February 10. Bellman Walter launched with
including equities, credit and about $650 million, but according to its latest filings with the
currencies. The fund gained
13% in 2008 after launching Securities and Exchange Commission, the firm's equity portfo·
that July and rose 17% in 2009. lio was already empty as of December 31. Robert Murray
APRIL 2010 • W VfW.A BSOLUTERETURN-ALP iiA.COM