Key Takeaways
- • ExodusPoint Capital Management hired Roman Shukhman, a veteran credit trader and managing director from Citi, to its New York office in February 2020, expanding its portfolio management team.
- • Shukhman brings nearly 15 years of experience at JPMorgan and approximately 3 years in credit index trading at Citi, along with prior tenure at hedge fund Aesir Capital Management.
- • Michael Gelband has hired at least four portfolio managers within two months, including three from rival hedge fund Millennium Management (Matthew Russman, James Kincade, and Paul Chung) in January 2020, signaling aggressive talent acquisition.
- • ExodusPoint, founded by Gelband in 2017 after departing Millennium, had raised $8 billion in assets under management and announced plans to raise an additional $2 billion in spring 2020, despite recent performance challenges.
- • The hiring trend reflects a strategic pivot toward recruiting from hedge funds rather than exclusively from banking institutions, as demonstrated by four additional portfolio manager hires from alternative funds in September 2019.
Summary
ExodusPoint Capital Management continues its aggressive hiring campaign under founder Michael Gelband, welcoming Roman Shukhman as a veteran credit trader from Citigroup to its New York office in February 2020. Shukhman's appointment represents part of a broader expansion effort that has added at least four portfolio managers to the firm within a two-month window.
Shukhman's background spans substantial institutional and alternative asset management experience. He most recently held the position of managing director in credit index trading at Citi for nearly three years, and previously spent nearly 15 years at JPMorgan, establishing deep expertise in credit markets and institutional trading operations. Between his JPMorgan and Citi tenures, Shukhman worked at hedge fund Aesir Capital Management for two years beginning in 2015, demonstrating familiarity with the multi-strategy hedge fund environment.
The recruitment of Shukhman coincides with Gelband's broader January hiring drive, which brought three portfolio managers from Millennium Management—Matthew Russman and James Kincade, who focus on energy and utilities, and Paul Chung, who covers healthcare. This activity reflects ExodusPoint's strategic shift toward recruiting experienced talent from competing hedge funds rather than exclusively from banking institutions. In September 2019, the firm added four additional portfolio managers from alternative funds: Samrat Batth from DRW, Sean Tang from Art Advisors, Tony Meconiates from Millennium, and Sing Su from Capula.
ExodusPoint, founded by Gelband in 2017 following his departure from Millennium Management, had accumulated $8 billion in assets under management by 2020. Despite reporting disappointing performance in recent periods, the firm announced plans to raise an additional $2 billion in spring 2020. The aggressive hiring campaign comes after various departures from ExodusPoint during the second half of 2019, suggesting management's intention to strengthen portfolio management capabilities and rebuild internal resources. UK regulatory filings from 2018 indicated ExodusPoint was operating on narrow margins while offering generous compensation; the London office averaged £627,000 ($774,000) per employee in that year, substantially above compensation levels at peer hedge funds.
Shukhman's background spans substantial institutional and alternative asset management experience. He most recently held the position of managing director in credit index trading at Citi for nearly three years, and previously spent nearly 15 years at JPMorgan, establishing deep expertise in credit markets and institutional trading operations. Between his JPMorgan and Citi tenures, Shukhman worked at hedge fund Aesir Capital Management for two years beginning in 2015, demonstrating familiarity with the multi-strategy hedge fund environment.
The recruitment of Shukhman coincides with Gelband's broader January hiring drive, which brought three portfolio managers from Millennium Management—Matthew Russman and James Kincade, who focus on energy and utilities, and Paul Chung, who covers healthcare. This activity reflects ExodusPoint's strategic shift toward recruiting experienced talent from competing hedge funds rather than exclusively from banking institutions. In September 2019, the firm added four additional portfolio managers from alternative funds: Samrat Batth from DRW, Sean Tang from Art Advisors, Tony Meconiates from Millennium, and Sing Su from Capula.
ExodusPoint, founded by Gelband in 2017 following his departure from Millennium Management, had accumulated $8 billion in assets under management by 2020. Despite reporting disappointing performance in recent periods, the firm announced plans to raise an additional $2 billion in spring 2020. The aggressive hiring campaign comes after various departures from ExodusPoint during the second half of 2019, suggesting management's intention to strengthen portfolio management capabilities and rebuild internal resources. UK regulatory filings from 2018 indicated ExodusPoint was operating on narrow margins while offering generous compensation; the London office averaged £627,000 ($774,000) per employee in that year, substantially above compensation levels at peer hedge funds.
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