Hugh Hendry

Hugh Hendry (born 16 March 1969) is a Scottish hedge fund manager and podcaster.

He was the founding partner and chief investment officer of the now defunct hedge fund firm, Eclectica Asset Management. Despite returning 50 per cent in his fund's first calendar year, from the revival in the gold price back in 2003, it was not until 5 years later that he began to attract media attention when his fund achieved a 31.2 per cent positive return in 2008 during the depths of the financial crisis, earning him a reputation as a contrarian investor. Hendry has been referred to as "the most high-profile Scot" in the hedge fund sector.Sharp, Tim
"Scottish hedge fund king: I’m heading offshore to avoid Brussels"
'' The Herald'', 20 December 2009. Retrieved 8 June 2012.

Background and career

Hendry was born in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1969; he grew up in the city's Castlemilk district and graduated from Strathclyde University in 1990 with a BA in economics and finance.Werdigier, Julia
"An Outspoken Man in a Secretive Trade"
'' The New York Times'', 19 July 2010. Retrieved 8 June 2012.

In 1991, Hendry joined the Edinburgh investment management firm, Baillie Gifford. He has been highly critical of EU regulatory policy.

After Baillie Gifford he worked briefly for Credit Suisse Asset Management. Following a chance meeting with Crispin Odey, Hendry joined Odey Asset Management in 1999. "It was a meeting of minds," Hendry said. "He checked my references, got the message that I was a troublemaker, and said, 'You're one of us, you're one of the pirates'."Usborne, Simon
"Master of the universe: Can Hugh Hendry teach us to love hedge funds?"
The Independent, 28 May 2010. Retrieved 8 June 2012.

He learned the art of "momentum investing""Hugh Hendry Bio"
Valueslots. Retrieved 8 June 2012.Fieldhouse, Stuar
"Focus In the Eye of the Storm: Choppy waters are meat and drink for Eclectica's Hugh Hendry"
The Hedge Fund Journal, May 2008. Retrieved 8 June 2012. and was responsible for managing a range of funds from the Eclectica Fund to more than a $1 billion of long-only European mandates, including the award-winning Odey Continental European Fund. "(Odey) taught me how to manage money," Hendry said. "More than that, he taught me how to misbehave. Misbehaviour is all about curiosity, how you invoke and think about change, which is very necessary in the management of money."Blackhurst, Chris
"The MT Interview: Crispin Odey of Odey Asset Management"
Management Today, 1 April 2011. Retrieved 13 June 2012.

Hendry once said to an interviewer: "To my mind, the three most important principles when it comes to investing are Albert Camus's principles of ethics: God is dead, life is absurd and there are no rules." He suggested that a great fund manager was defined by "an ability to establish a contentious premise outside the existing belief system, and have it go on and be adopted by the rest of the financial community".

Eclectica Asset Management

Eclectica Asset Management was founded in 2005 when Hendry and another ex-Odey partner purchased the management contract of the Eclectica Fund from Crispin Odey to establish themselves as a stand-alone fund manager group. "A lot of people define investors as value or growth. We are neither. We are time investors," Hendry said at the time.

Despite his reputation as a contrarian, Hendry explained to the '' Financial Times'' in July 2012 that his approach continued to be based in taking advantage of market momentum. "Our ideas are harshly disciplined by market trends. You will never see us pursue a homegrown idea when it is to the detriment of the prevailing trend," he said.

The hedge fund announced its closure in late 2017.

Media appearances

Hendry has become known in the United Kingdom for his outspoken commentary on the financial crisis which began in 2007-2008. On an episode of the BBC's '' Newsnight'' programme aired on 9 April 2010, Hendry began his response to comments by the Nobel Prize–winning economist Joseph Stiglitz on the financial position of Greece by saying, "Erm, hello. Can I tell you about the real world?""Euro currency crumbling?, discussion on BBC Newsnight"
Newsnight, 9 April 2010. Retrieved 8 June 2012. On the same programme in May 2010, Hendry responded to a question from host Jeremy Paxman about the current European economic situation and the possibility of a Greek sovereign debt default with the comment, "I would recommend you panic"."Greece, discussion on BBC Newsnight"
Newsnight, 27 May 2010. Retrieved 8 June 2012. An outspoken appearance on the BBC's '' Question Time'' followed in October 2010.

At the LSE Alternative Investments Conference in 2011, during a discussion with Steven Drobny, Hendry joked that his clients have banned him from further media appearances. Hendry is the anonymous 'Plasticine Man' in Drobny's book on hedge fund managers 'Invisible Hands: Top Hedge Fund Traders on Bubbles, Crashes, and Real Money'."Hugh Hendry Explains His "Self Loathing" And The "Voices Inside His Head"
'' Business Insider'', 31 January 2011. Retrieved 8 June 2012.

References

External links

26 May 2010 BBC Newsnight discussion on Youtube

London School of Economics Alternative Investment Conference 2011 Invisible Hands Unveiled: A Keynote Dialogue Between the Plasticine Macro Trader and Author. Conference recording on Vimeo.

Candid short film about Hugh Hendry by Dean Freeman
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hendry, Hugh
1969 births
Living people
Alumni of Strathclyde Business School
Businesspeople from Glasgow
British hedge fund managers
People from Notting Hill
People from the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea
Scottish financial businesspeople
20th-century Scottish businesspeople
21st-century Scottish businesspeople
Scottish podcasters