Quantedge posts 34.6% YTD with graduate hiring model

Quantedge, a Singapore-based systematic hedge fund, has returned 34.6% year-to-date in 2026 while managing a $6 billion systematic fund and hiring primarily recent university graduates.

The fund’s 34.6% YTD performance compares with gains of 8.2% at Millennium Management, 10.9% at Point72 and 12% at Citadel’s Wellington fund over the same period.

Rather than recruiting established portfolio managers, Quantedge hires directly from universities and develops staff through graduate programmes and internships. Recent interns and hires have come from Nanyang Technological University, the London School of Economics and Yale University.

On the ‘Odds on Open’ podcast, chief executive Suhaimi Zainul-Abidin told listeners: ‘We rarely hire experienced investment professionals.’ He added: ‘We view hiring as a long-term investment and aim to give employees careers that can span decades.’

The firm allows employees to invest in Quantedge funds, subject to withdrawal rules designed to encourage long-term capital growth.

Quantedge runs systematic strategies across roughly 300 global markets in multiple asset classes, including about 50 commodity markets. The firm says broad diversification reduces portfolio-specific risk and allows it to allocate greater risk to individual trading strategies without materially increasing overall portfolio volatility.

Founded about 20 years ago, Quantedge reports average annual returns near 20% since inception.

The firm recruits candidates from a wide range of academic backgrounds and looks for analytical and systematic thinking rather than degree labels alone.

Quantedge’s internal development model contrasts with many large multi-manager funds that commonly hire seasoned portfolio managers and monitor performance against strict, short-term risk limits.