Key Takeaways
- • Neil Smith, a senior London relative value portfolio manager, quietly left ExodusPoint's London office in February 2025, according to eFinancialCareers.
- • Smith previously spent six years as a senior partner at Millennium's London office before joining ExodusPoint in 2018.
- • ExodusPoint declined to comment on Smith's departure, and his next move has not been disclosed.
- • Per the report, nine ExodusPoint partners shared £79m ($103m) in profit in 2023, a figure that gives context to Smith's seniority at the firm.
- • eFinancialCareers reports that volatile markets this week may increase demand for experienced traders at large hedge funds that need to replace staff with significant drawdowns.
Summary
Neil Smith, a relative value trader and portfolio manager based in London, quietly left ExodusPoint's London office in February, according to eFinancialCareers. The departure was not publicly announced, and the publication reported it only after the fact, during a period of sharp market volatility.
Smith's career spans more than two decades in London trading. He joined RBS in 2002 after graduating from Edinburgh University and worked on the bank's trading floor at Stamford during the financial crisis. He then joined Millennium's London office, where he spent six years as a senior partner and was described as one of the firm's top London portfolio managers. He moved to ExodusPoint in 2018. The publication says he is thought to be in his mid-40s.
Smith's strategy is relative value trading, which seeks to profit from price discrepancies between historically correlated securities. eFinancialCareers notes that the recent market dislocations created many such discrepancies, meaning Smith could have generated or lost substantial sums had he remained in his role.
ExodusPoint declined to comment. The report indicates that Smith was a partner at the firm, where nine partners shared £79m ($103m) in profit in 2023. eFinancialCareers also suggests that large hedge funds may need to replace staff after this week's market turmoil, which could create opportunities for experienced portfolio managers such as Smith. Smith's next role has not been disclosed.
Smith's career spans more than two decades in London trading. He joined RBS in 2002 after graduating from Edinburgh University and worked on the bank's trading floor at Stamford during the financial crisis. He then joined Millennium's London office, where he spent six years as a senior partner and was described as one of the firm's top London portfolio managers. He moved to ExodusPoint in 2018. The publication says he is thought to be in his mid-40s.
Smith's strategy is relative value trading, which seeks to profit from price discrepancies between historically correlated securities. eFinancialCareers notes that the recent market dislocations created many such discrepancies, meaning Smith could have generated or lost substantial sums had he remained in his role.
ExodusPoint declined to comment. The report indicates that Smith was a partner at the firm, where nine partners shared £79m ($103m) in profit in 2023. eFinancialCareers also suggests that large hedge funds may need to replace staff after this week's market turmoil, which could create opportunities for experienced portfolio managers such as Smith. Smith's next role has not been disclosed.
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