Rishi Sunak’s former hedge fund sails past peers with £10bn returns
Rishi Sunak’s former employer The Children’s Investment Fund raked in the biggest returns of any hedge fund globally in 2023 with $12.9bn (£10.14bn) in a rebound year for the industry.
TCI, which has some $50bn in assets under management, sailed past peers including Citadel and Elliott as hedge funds globally made $67bn for investors, roughly triple what they made in 2022, according to a ranking today from LCH Investments
The returns come after a bumper few years for London-based TCI, led by billionaire Sir Christopher Hohn, who paid himself £276m in 2023, according to accounts filed in December.
Founded as a part philanthropic venture in 2003, TCI initially channelled a portion of its profits into the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, a charity set up by Hohn and his ex-wife. While the firm severed its formal agreement with the charity in 2014, the investment outfit has continued to donate to the organisation and gave $26m in the 12 months to the end of February, according to its latest accounts, filed in December.
Post-tax profits last year came in at just over $370m, according to its accounts, down 48 per cent on the previous year. Hohn reportedly reinvested his payout last year into TCI.
Among the firm’s largest holdings are Google-owner Alphabet, Canadian National Railways and Visa, according to reports.
The firm employed Prime Minister Rishi Sunak as a partner between 2006 and 2009.
TCI surged ahead of the market amid a rebound in performance for hedge funds, after markets were roiled in 2022 by rapid interest rate hikes and inflation triggered by the war in Ukraine. At least eight of the top 20 hedge funds lost money in 2022.
Billionaire Ken Griffin’s behemoth Citadel was in second place in the rankings for 2023 with $8.1bn made for investors, followed by Connecticut based fund Viking with $6bn.
Last year, Citadel’s flagship fund rose 15.3 per cent and the firm gave back about $7bn to investors. The firm has made around $74bn in gains since its creation in 1990.