Keystone Investors, a two-year-old Singapore-based, Asia-focused hedge fund firm, has grown its assets to over $2.6bn, with existing client commitments pushing the total to $3bn, according to a report by Bloomberg.
The report cites unnamed sources familiar with the matter as revealing that Keystone’s rapid growth has led the firm to stop accepting new investments. It comes amid a challenging period for funds focused on Asia and in particular, China, including regulatory crackdowns on technology, real estate and education sectors, as well as the broader economic slowdown in the world’s second-largest economy.
Despite these hurdles, Keystone’s Chief Investment Officer, Liu Xuan, has managed to attract substantial investment, setting the firm apart in a competitive landscape where multi-manager “pod-shops” are increasingly favoured by global investors. These pod-shops, which employ teams of traders using diverse strategies, have seen their assets nearly triple since 2017, while the rest of the industry has stagnated.
Keystone was launched in April 2022 with nearly $800m in investor commitments, backed by Schonfeld Strategic Advisors. Xuan had previously worked at prominent multi-manager firms such as Point72 Asset Management, Millennium Management and Folger Hill Asset Management.
According to Eurekahedge, Keystone has racked up a 20.2% gain in H1 2024, five times the average return of its Asian stock-focused peers, and is notable given that the firm’s main focus is on China. Its exposure to the country has fluctuated between 30% and 70%.
