A second straight year of losses has prompted Antara Capital, a $1.3bn hedge fund backed by Blackstone, to block redemptions from its illiquid assets by placing them in a so-called side-pocket, according to a report by Bloomberg.

The report cites unnamed people with knowledge of the matter as revealing that Antara implemented the freeze on private investment redemptions in February in a move designed to avert a fire sale of the investments that led to declines in its returns in 2023.

According to a full-year update sent by Antara, its main fund lost 14% in 2022 and was down an estimated 18% for 2023. However, excluding the private investments, the fund would have reported gains for 2023, and more than 80% of the investors consented to the creation of the side pocket, according to a one of Bloomberg's sources.

Antara was founded by Himanshu Gulati, who previously helped run the distressed credit business at Man GLG, and started trading in 2018, with Blackstone providing $150m for the new fund, according to previous Bloomberg reports.