BlackRock’s Fixed Income Chief Investment Officer Rick Rieder is seeking investor capital for a new hedge fund, marking his first such launch in years, after being passed over for the top role at the US Federal Reserve, according to a report by Bloomberg.
The report cites regulatory filings and unnamed people familiar with the matter as highlighting that the fund, named TriaXial, has been in development since last year, with fundraising efforts accelerating in recent weeks. Russell Brownback will serve as a portfolio manager alongside Rieder.
Rieder has positioned the strategy as a combination of the firm’s highest conviction ideas across its fixed-income platform, packaged into a single, multi-asset approach. The fund is expected to deploy opportunistic trades with low correlation to broader markets, while using modest leverage to enhance returns.
As CIO of fixed income, Rieder oversees approximately $3tn in assets and remains one of the most prominent figures in global bond markets. His profile rose further after being considered for the Federal Reserve chair role, a process that ultimately saw Donald Trump select Kevin Warsh.
Investor demand for Rieder’s strategies has strengthened in recent months. Products including the iShares Flexible Income Active ETF have attracted significant inflows, with the ETF taking in around $6.5bn between August and February, bringing total assets to roughly $17bn.
TriaXial is not Rieder’s first hedge fund initiative. He previously founded R3 Capital Management in 2008 with backing from Lehman Brothers. Following the firm’s collapse during the financial crisis, BlackRock assumed control of the business in 2009, with Rieder subsequently joining the firm to lead fixed-income alternatives.
