BlackRock's Biggest Hedge Fund Bleeds Talent as Deputy CIOs Exit

(Bloomberg) -- BlackRock Inc. has lost senior talent at its largest hedge fund.

Two deputy chief investment officers at the firm's Fixed Income GlobalAlpha fund left: David Horowitz departed in the first quarter and Benjamin Brodsky exited in April, spokesman Ed Sweeney confirmed. The six teams they managed now report to Tom Parker, BlackRock's chief investment officer of systematic fixed income.

The fund, which has $6.1 billion in assets, returned 8 percent in 2017, according to a client letter seen by Bloomberg News. The diversified fixed income hedge fund has sought to capture alpha using relative value, directional, and opportunistic strategies. It has used more than 50 strategies.

“We are adding talent as appropriate across our systematic fixed income platform to deliver continued strong performance for our clients,” said Sweeney, who confirmed the changes, in an emailed statement.

The fund has seen several others exit. Gordon Ibrahim, head of the macro team, departed and was replaced by Matt Potts, head of macro and systematic fixed income. Ibrahim is expected to join Citadel in July for the hedge fund's London-based macro trading unit. He will focus on foreign exchange.

Benjamin Martin, portfolio manager for systematic long/short credit, also left. He was replaced by Leo Landes. Emmanuel Vallod, head of research for mortgage, securitized credit and systematic fixed income departed in February, according to his LinkedIn profile. Head of alpha technology, Eric Knell, departed and was replaced by David Willmer.

The fund also shut a volatility strategy in the first quarter, following turbulence that roiled markets in February.

--With assistance from Heather Perlberg and Sabrina Willmer.

To contact the reporter on this story: Annie Massa in New York at amassa12@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Margaret Collins at mcollins45@bloomberg.net, Alan Mirabella

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