Hedge fund performance declined in March, according to SS&C Technologies, with the SS&C GlobeOp Hedge Fund Performance Index recording a 1.79% fall for the month, while the firm’s Capital Movement Index showed a modest 0.26% increase in hedge fund flows in April.
While capital flows typically trend negative during seasonal portfolio rebalancing periods, SS&C said the Movement Index’s increase stood out against historical patterns.
Bill Stone, chairman and chief executive of SS&C Technologies, said the latest reading came amid elevated global volatility driven by geopolitical tensions, higher energy prices and disruption linked to artificial intelligence. He argued that such conditions can create a more supportive environment for hedge fund managers, particularly those able to generate returns uncorrelated to broader markets.
The SS&C data, which is based on actual subscriptions, redemptions and fund performance across its administration platform, is widely used as a snapshot of industry trends. The hedge fund performance index is asset-weighted and designed to reduce bias by reflecting aggregated net asset value data rather than individual fund selection effects.
The Capital Movement Index tracks net investor inflows and outflows across funds serviced by SS&C GlobeOp, expressed as a percentage of assets under administration. The latest reading brings the index to 129.79 points, up 0.26 points from March and nearly five points higher over the past year.
