Squarepoint Capital has provided a $200m anchor investment to a newly launched hedge fund – Hong Kong-based Invictus Investment Partners – led by former senior portfolio managers from Point72 Asset Management and Citadel, according to a report by Bloomberg.
The report cites unnamed people familiar with the matter as revealing that the firm is being founded by Tomohiro Yamaguchi, formerly Point72’s head of Japan, alongside ex-Citadel portfolio manager Takeo Serizawa. The capital commitment from Squarepoint is locked up for two years.
Invictus is expected to begin trading in the first quarter of 2026 and plans to employ leverage of up to three times, allowing the fund to deploy as much as $600m in gross exposure.
The fund will focus on equity investments in Japan, targeting the country’s 300 largest and most liquid listed companies. The strategy aims to capitalise on renewed global interest in Japanese equities, driven by improving corporate governance standards, shareholder-friendly reforms and rising valuations following a prolonged period of deflation.
Serizawa, who has previously held senior roles at Citadel as well as Balyasny Asset Management and Marshall Wace, will serve as chief investment officer. Yamaguchi joined Point72 in 2019 and was responsible for building and overseeing its Japan platform, before returning to active portfolio management at Schonfeld Strategic Advisors between late 2021 and the end of 2023.
Invictus has also appointed Kirtes Bharti, formerly of Segantii Capital Management, as chief operating officer.
The launch adds to a growing list of hedge fund startups supported by Squarepoint, which has emerged as a key provider of seed and anchor capital to new managers. Other firms backed by Squarepoint in recent years include Arini, founded by Hamza Lemssouguer, and Decagon Asset Management, led by Ben Durham.
