Key Takeaways
- • Eisler Capital is permanently laying off 79 employees at its New York office, with all positions to be eliminated by December 28, 2025, according to a filing with the New York State Department of Labor.
- • The London-headquartered multi-strategy hedge fund is closing its recently occupied office at the Spiral building at 66 Hudson Yards, vacating premium office space despite managing over $4 billion in assets as of 2024.
- • The fund initiated a formal wind-down in September 2025, citing poor investment performance that failed to keep pace with investor expectations and operational costs exceeding sustainable thresholds (approximately $300 million annually against AUM).
- • Key personnel are transitioning to competitors: Walleye Capital hired portfolio manager Greg Bugaj, and Point72 recruited Andrew Benito, Eisler's head of research, indicating talent mobility within the hedge fund sector.
- • The closure reflects a structural cost challenge—annual expenses reportedly exceeded 5% of assets under management, rendering the business model economically unviable despite the fund's significant scale.
Summary
Eisler Capital, a London-based multi-strategy hedge fund founded in 2015 by former Goldman Sachs partner Edward Eisler, is formally shuttering its New York operations with a permanent reduction of 79 staff by December 28, 2025. The company filed notice with the New York State Department of Labor confirming the closure of its office at the Spiral building at 66 Hudson Yards, a premium Manhattan location that the firm had occupied relatively recently.
The wind-down represents the culmination of a strategic decision announced in September 2025, when founder Ed Eisler communicated to investors that the fund would return capital and cease operations. The decision was driven by persistent underperformance and unsustainable cost structures. While the fund managed more than $4 billion in assets, annual operational expenses—comprising primarily staff compensation and infrastructure costs—reached approximately $300 million, creating an expense ratio exceeding 5% of AUM. This cost-to-asset ratio, according to financial professionals familiar with the matter, represents a critical threshold beyond which fund economics become untenable over the long term.
The fund's performance challenges rather than trading losses drove the closure. The bulk of financial strain stemmed from pass-through expenses charged directly to investors, including personnel costs and operational overhead, rather than from portfolio losses. As the fund transitioned from its original global macro mandate to a multi-manager approach in 2021, scale did not produce the operational leverage necessary to justify the cost base.
The New York layoffs follow earlier redundancies announced in the fall, with reported severance packages offered to departing staff. Key talent is already relocating within the industry: portfolio manager Greg Bugaj joined Walleye Capital, while Andrew Benito, who headed Eisler's research function, was hired by Point72. This talent migration underscores the competitive recruitment environment in hedge fund management and the market's ability to absorb displaced senior professionals from failed funds.
The wind-down represents the culmination of a strategic decision announced in September 2025, when founder Ed Eisler communicated to investors that the fund would return capital and cease operations. The decision was driven by persistent underperformance and unsustainable cost structures. While the fund managed more than $4 billion in assets, annual operational expenses—comprising primarily staff compensation and infrastructure costs—reached approximately $300 million, creating an expense ratio exceeding 5% of AUM. This cost-to-asset ratio, according to financial professionals familiar with the matter, represents a critical threshold beyond which fund economics become untenable over the long term.
The fund's performance challenges rather than trading losses drove the closure. The bulk of financial strain stemmed from pass-through expenses charged directly to investors, including personnel costs and operational overhead, rather than from portfolio losses. As the fund transitioned from its original global macro mandate to a multi-manager approach in 2021, scale did not produce the operational leverage necessary to justify the cost base.
The New York layoffs follow earlier redundancies announced in the fall, with reported severance packages offered to departing staff. Key talent is already relocating within the industry: portfolio manager Greg Bugaj joined Walleye Capital, while Andrew Benito, who headed Eisler's research function, was hired by Point72. This talent migration underscores the competitive recruitment environment in hedge fund management and the market's ability to absorb displaced senior professionals from failed funds.
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