New York-headquartered quant and hedge fund firm DE Shaw plans to open an office in Singapore next year, in a move to expand its footprint in Asia, according to a statement from the firm.
The office in the Lion City, which is subject to regulatory approval, will support a range of investment-related and other capabilities, the firm said. It has commenced the preparation of its fund management licence application and initiated other preliminary steps toward establishing the office.
“Opening an office in Singapore will further enable us to tap into the region’s talent, capital and investment opportunities,” Kevin Patric, general manager for Asia-Pacific, said in the statement.
“This is the next step in the growth of our geographic footprint.”
Currently, the firm does not have any funds registered with the MAS for distribution to both accredited and retail investors, according to data from FE Fundinfo.
Globally, the firm has 13 offices in North America, Europe and Asia and has at least $50bn in investment capital as of 1 September, according to the statement.
Separately, Vonotobel Asset Management also announced last week that it has opened an office in Singapore.
Growing China business
In Asia, DE Saw established an office in Hong Kong in 2007 has been in Shanghai since 2010, according to the statement.
The move to expand in Singapore follows after the firm has grown its business in the mainland. It first received its private fund management (PFM) licence in April 2019 and launched its first onshore product, the DE Shaw Razer China Fund, in September last year.
In May, the firm announced that it concluded fundraising for the Razer China Fund, which deploys a systematic futures strategy.
In Hong Kong, the firm only provides services to professional investors and has licences for dealing in securities and asset management, according to records from the Securities and Futures Commission. As of 2018, it is the second largest hedge fund in Hong Kong, with around $81m in assets, according to data compiled by Hedgelists.
However, the overall hedge fund industry in Asia has continued to see net outflows. As of the end of July, Asia (ex-Oceania)-domiciled hedge funds had net redemptions of $1.48bn this year, after seeing outflows of about $4.46bn last year, according to data from Evestment. Hedge fund AUM in the region stood at $77.07bn in July.
