Shiprock Capital Management is preparing to launch a new hedge fund in 2026 as it looks to expand its debt trading capabilities, and has hired ex Deutsche-bank debt trader Alex Williamson to support the build-out of the new strategy, according to a report by Bloomberg.
The report cites an investor letter seen by Bloomberg as revealing that Williamson, who was formerly Deutsche Bank’s head of emerging market debt, will play a key role as the the London-based hedge fund strengthens its debt trading expertise, which is expected to be a central focus of the new fund.
Details of the new vehicle, including its size and investment mandate, were not disclosed in the investor letter.
The planned launch comes despite subdued capital raising conditions across the hedge fund industry. Shiprock has continued to grow, however, with assets under management reaching approximately $1.1bn after launching with $80m in early 2023. The firm closed to new capital earlier this year, joining a small group of managers, including Ilex Capital Partners and Kite Lake Capital Management, that have turned away fresh inflows amid capacity constraints.
Williamson’s appointment follows a series of senior hires at the firm over the past year. Shiprock has added senior sovereign strategist Mauro Roco, senior investment counsel Eric Ho and chief operating officer Gav Sangha, who joined in March. Former King Street Capital professional Nicolai Vickman also joined as chief risk officer in December.
Shiprock was co-founded by chief investment officer Andrey Pavlichenkov, previously a senior portfolio manager specialising in emerging market distressed debt at VR Capital Group, and Simon Milledge, who spent more than a decade at emerging markets-focused distressed debt manager GML Capital.
Performance has remained strong since launch. Shiprock was up around 6 per cent for the year through November, following gains of 32.4 per cent in its launch year and 34.5 per cent in 2024, according to the investor letter.
