NEW YORK, NY–(Marketwired – May 5, 2015) – Kenneth Griffin, founder and CEO of Chicago-based Citadel, makes his debut atop the latest installation of The Rich List, Institutional Investor’s Alpha’s 14th annual ranking of the world’s top-earning hedge fund managers. Griffin, who has made 13 appearances on the Rich List, earned $1.3 billion in fees and gains on his own capital in 2014.
Appaloosa Management’s David Tepper relinquishes the top spot for the first time in three years after posting a disappointing 2.2 percent gain in his hedge fund in 2014. Tepper is tied for No. 11, with $400 million in earnings last year.
Griffin was one of just three managers who earned more than $1 billion in 2014. James Simons, founder of East Setauket, New York-based Renaissance Technologies, is No. 2 with $1.2 billion in earnings. Simons, who no longer runs his firm on a day-to-day basis, is the only individual in Rich List history who has qualified for the ranking in all 14 years.
Simons is followed closely by Raymond Dalio, founder of Bridgewater Associates, who earned $1.1 billion in 2014. Bridgewater’s co-CIOs Robert Prince and Greg Jensen make the Rich List for the second time, giving the Westport, Connecticut-based macro manager three representatives, the most of any firm.
Pershing Square Capital Management’s William Ackman, who ranks fourth with $950 million, is the only stock picker among the six highest earners. The New York activist, who runs a very concentrated portfolio, posted the highest gains among the managers on the Rich List.
Rounding out the top five is New York-based Millennium Management’s Israel (Izzy) Englander, with $900 million in earnings last year.
Michael Platt, co-founder of London-based BlueCrest Capital Management, is the highest-ranked non-U.S. hedge fund manager. Platt, a former J.P. Morgan swaps trader, earned $800 million in 2014, good enough for No. 6.
All in all, last year turned out to be the worst one for this elite group of investors since the financial markets melted down in 2008: The top 25 made $11.62 billion in 2014, barely half of the $21.15 billion the top 25 gained the previous year and roughly equal to what they took home during nightmarish 2008.
The average earnings were just $465 million, down from $846 million in 2013. To qualify for this year’s Rich List, a manager needed to generate a mere $175 million for himself in 2014, far below the $300 million of the preceding year and the lowest minimum in three years.
Many familiar names from the ranking failed to qualify this year because they lost money in 2014. They include Discovery Capital Management’s Robert Citrone, Omega Advisors’ Leon Cooperman, Coatue Management’s Philippe Laffont, ESL Investments’ Edward Lampert and Paulson & Co.’s John Paulson. As a result, just 13 people who earned a spot this time were among the top 25 moneymakers the previous year.
What’s more, at least 12 individuals on the list posted single-digit gains in their main fund or funds, underperforming the S&P 500’s 13.7 percent return for 2014.
The full 2015 Rich List, manager profiles, a ranking of the all-time top hedge fund earners and more can be viewed at www.institutionalinvestorsalpha.com/HedgeFundRichList.
The 2015 Rich List – Top Ten
| 1 | Kenneth Griffin (Citadel) | $1.3 billion |
| 2 | James Simons (Renaissance Technologies) | $1.2 billion |
| 3 | Raymond Dalio (Bridgewater Associates) | $1.1 billion |
| 4 | William Ackman (Pershing Square Capital Management) | $950 million |
| 5 | Israel (Izzy) Englander (Millennium Management) | $900 million |
| 6 | Michael Platt (BlueCrest Capital Management) | $800 million |
| 7 | Larry Robbins (Glenview Capital Management) | $570 million |
| 8 | David Shaw (D.E. Shaw Group) | $530 million |
| 9 | O. Andreas Halvorsen (Viking Global Investors) | $450 million |
| 10 | Charles (Chase) Coleman III (Tiger Global Management) | $425 million |
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