Jersey-based global macro hedge fund firm Brevan Howard Asset Management is scaling back traders’ risk limits as the firm’s flagship fund faces mounting losses, erasing last year’s gains, according to a report by Bloomberg.
The report cites unnamed sources familiar with the matter as revealing that CEO Aron Landy has moved to reduce risk-taking in response to heightened market volatility, implementing stricter trading limits for some portfolio managers. These defensive measures come as the firm’s $11.7bn Master Fund posted a 1% decline in the first week of March, extending its year-to-date losses to 5.4%, according to an investor letter seen by Bloomberg News. The fund had gained 5.1% in 2023.
Brevan Howard’s Alpha Strategies fund, another of its key vehicles, was also down 0.8% during the week, though it remains up 1.5% for 2024 so far, a separate letter showed.
The $35bn macro hedge fund, co-founded by billionaire Alan Howard, is known for its high-conviction trades in interest rates and currencies. However, its performance has been challenged by increased geopolitical uncertainty and sharp swings in asset prices following Donald Trump’s election victory in November. Rising tensions over trade policies, tariffs, and European defence spending have amplified investor uncertainty.
While the year is still in its early stages, Brevan Howard’s Master Fund has only posted an annual loss exceeding 5% once since its inception in 2003.
