Schonfeld to Open Zurich Office, Adds Two from Millennium

Schonfeld Strategic Advisors plans to open an office in Zurich later this year and has recruited portfolio managers Yohan Hwang and Pierre Kling from Millennium Management. Both hires are expected to be based in Zurich and will work on the firm’s multi-strategy platform.

People familiar with the plans confirmed the Zurich office is slated to launch before year-end and that Hwang and Kling have been secured to staff the outpost. Representatives for Schonfeld and Millennium declined to comment, and Hwang and Kling did not respond to requests for comment.

Yohan Hwang spent about six years at Millennium and previously worked at Element Capital Management. Pierre Kling worked at Millennium for more than three years and had been at Bell Rock Capital Management for about five years before that.

Switzerland attracts alternative investment firms because of its pool of experienced financial professionals and an established investment ecosystem. Millennium operates offices in Geneva and Zug. Other large firms maintain bases in Geneva, while Zurich offers access to continental European markets and local investment talent.

Schonfeld has increased assets under management to roughly $20 billion over the past two years. During that period the firm added convertible arbitrage and structured credit strategies to its credit platform and made several hires across its macro investing business. The Zurich office is intended to support those expanded capabilities and to house portfolio managers working across Schonfeld’s multi-strategy operations.

The Zurich launch is part of a broader effort by multi-strategy managers to expand their geographic presence in Europe and to give investment teams greater location flexibility.