An important year for the Hedge Fund Compensation Report—one that marks our eleventh year. It is also the first year the hedge fund industry has enjoyed back-to-back monthly gains since the financial crisis. As a result, we have an excellent opportunity to meet our objective, which is to quantify, to the extent possible, how industry trends affect compensation in the industry, an industry that was mired in underperformance for the past three years.

Additionally, this year marks declining industry outflows and greater assets under management – a record high of around $3.25 trillion – despite the fact that hedge fund closures outpaced startups through much of the year.

The 2018 Hedge Fund Compensation Report reveals that some hedge fund professionals have not entirely accepted their own good fortune. While positive sentiments for increased earnings have grown in some pay bands, that sentiment stayed flat in others, and certain pay bands expressed negative expectations as compared to last year. That said, 53 percent of respondents anticipate higher earnings this year.

This year’s report reveals a higher level of correlation between bonus pay and performance than we have seen in recent years. This is particularly evident in firms with negative gains. The respondents working in such firms continue to expect bonuses, but at a depressed level compared to previous years.

On the subject of performance, the 2018 report reveals that
83 percent of our respondents are working in firms with positive gains, 40 percent in firms expecting gains of 10 percent and greater. Last year, we saw 72 percent of respondents in firms with positive gains.

The current report with 50 detailed charts and graphs sells for $697 at HedgeFundCompensationReport.com

A complimentary version is also available to our Premium Members for no additional cost.