Stockholm (HedgeNordic) – Hedge fund manager Sean George has decided to leave Strukturinvest Fondkommission and Sweden for new challenges abroad. Consequently, Hamiltonian Global Credit Opportunities (Hamiltonian GCO), the credit-focused hedge fund founded and co-managed by George, is closing down at the end of April, a few months after reaching $100 million under management.
“I want to thank all unitholders for the trust you have given me. Having the opportunity to manage your money has been a great honor,” says Sean George in a press release. “I would also like to thank Strukturinvest for making this possible,” adds the money manager, who founded Hamiltonian GCO in the first half of 2018 under the umbrella of Strukturinvest. “It is one of the greatest professional achievements of my life and has been a fantastic personal journey.”
“It is one of the greatest professional achievements of my life and has been a fantastic personal journey.”
Sean George, who grew up in the Caribbean before moving to Sweden at the age of 12, embarked on an international career in 1996. After about 20 years of working overseas, the founder and CIO of Hamiltonian GCO moved back to Stockholm to be closer to his daughter. Before launching Hamiltonian GCO in Sweden, Sean George headed trading desks for Credit Default Swaps (CDSs) at Bank of America, Deutsche Bank, and Jefferies.
“Leaving Strukturinvest and Sweden has been a difficult decision to make,” George comments on the decision to leave Sweden and Strukturinvest. “At the same time, the new opportunity I have been given is of such a nature that I can’t turn it down,” adds George, without providing details about the new opportunity. According to Bloomberg, George’s new job involves a major hedge fund in London, where he will build out his own team. In light of George’s decision to leave Sweden and Strukturinvest, Hamiltonian GCO’s board of directors has decided to repay the capital to all investors and close the fund.
“The new opportunity I have been given is of such a nature that I can’t turn it down.”
After a rocky start to its journey in 2018, Hamiltonian Global Credit Opportunities enjoyed two strong years in terms of risk-adjusted performance, with the fund earning a nomination as the “Best Credit Fund under $100m” last autumn at the 2020 HFM EuroHedge Emerging Manager Awards. Hamiltonian GCO delivered an annualized return of about 2.0 percent since launching in May of 2018, achieving an inception-to-date Sharpe ratio of 0.53. In the past 24 months, the fund returned a cumulative 9.7 percent and reached a Sharpe ratio of 1.44.
“Hamiltonian GCO has been unique in its kind in the Swedish fund market, and Sean George has contributed to innovation and new thinking through both his management and his media presence.”
“Hamiltonian GCO has been unique in its kind in the Swedish fund market, and Sean George has contributed to innovation and new thinking through both his management and his media presence,” Strukturinvest writes in a press release. “Sean, for example, very early warned about the risks of illiquid bond holdings, something that would prove absolutely crucial during the crisis period in the early part of 2020, when several Swedish bond funds experienced major problems due to a lack of liquidity,” the press release adds. “Thanks to a liquidity-focused management model, Hamiltonian GCO managed to handle the pandemic year well.”
