Falcon Investment Management and ex-JP Morgan strategist Arman Salavitabar are launching a US equity-focused long/short hedge fund on the London-based firm’s multi-manager investment platform.
The Sala Vita L/S Equity Fund brings together human analysis and machine learning algorithms, combining systematic equity selection and market timing signals to manage a long/short portfolio of single stocks.
The new fund, which targets uncorrelated, absolute returns of more than 10 per annum through trading S&P 500 names, will be positioned to outperform in high-volatility market environments in order to complement investors’ broader equity portfolios.
“Capital markets are just starting to see the type of innovation and disruption that other industries have enjoyed for years,” said Arman Salavitabar, a former EMEA head of FICC structuring at JP Morgan.
Salavitabar, who spent eight years at JPM before managing portfolios at a family office, received initial seed funding in late 2020.
The new fund is designed to merge the long-term benefits of being invested in equities with the security of portfolio protection against market drawdowns.
Commenting on the launch, Benny Menashe, managing director of Falcon, described the strategic partnership between Falcon and Sala Vita as “a natural fit”.
“Our platform allows sophisticated investors to access Sala Vita’s niche strategy through a centralized operational and risk management framework,” Menashe said.
“For years institutional investors could not invest in early-stage talents due to operational risks. We want to change that.”
