Chris Rokos

Chris Rokos (Christopher Charles Rokos, born 21 September 1970) is a British hedge fund manager and philanthropist. He is the founder of macro hedge fund Rokos Capital Management and a former founding partner of Brevan Howard Asset Management.

Early life

Chris Rokos is an Old Etonian. He holds a BA and MA in Mathematics from the Pembroke College, University of Oxford ('89).^[2]

Career

Rokos first made his name as a swaps trader at Goldman Sachs, then as a director at Credit Suisse – where Alan Howard worked – before co-founding Brevan Howard along with James Vernon, Jean-Philippe Blochet, and Trifon Natsis, all from CSFB's proprietary fixed-income trading desk.^[3] The company name was created by using the first letters of the last names of the co-founders, with Rokos giving Brevan its "R".^[4]

Rokos became widely known as the firm's "star trader" and one of the world's most influential government-bond traders, with positions so vast Wall Street trading desks reportedly sought to stay abreast of his views on the market, as they could move long-standing relationships between prices.^[5] He generated $4 billion in profits trading securities tied to interest rates for the firm's flagship Master Fund,^[6] including $1.11 billion in 2007, equivalent to 27% of the fund's total profits that year, as well as $549 million in 2008 and $933 million in 2009. His best year for the Brevan Howard Master Fund came in 2011, when he made $1.27 billion, according to documents filed in his subsequent court case.^[7][8] In 2012 he was responsible for a $383 million loss before leaving the firm.^[9] Court documents also revealed that Rokos personally earned about $900 million during his 10 years at Brevan, a figure dwarfing previous estimates of his net worth.^[10]

After retiring in 2012, Rokos set up a family office in Mayfair to manage his fortune.^[11] In the summer of 2014 he filed a suit in the Royal Court of Jersey against Brevan Howard contesting the five-year noncompete restrictions which would have prevented him from managing outside capital until at least 2018.^[12][13] The high-profile case was settled out of court in January 2015, clearing the way for Rokos to start his own firm^[14] in one of the "most anticipated hedge-fund launches of recent years", according to the Wall Street Journal.^[15] With investors reportedly forbidden from discussing the launch, Reuters reported most of the money invested in the fund would be allocated by Rokos himself, with a primary focus on foreign exchange, fixed income and equity index products in developed markets and relatively liquid emerging markets.^[16] Rokos works alongside two portfolio managers, former Goldman Sachs co-head of Asia Pacific macro trading Stuart Riley,^[17] and former Brevan partner Borislav Vladimirov.^[18] Other pre-launch hires among the firm's 60+ headcount included Nomura chief European economist Jacques Cailloux,^[19] and Barclays Capital global head of quantitative analytics Vladimir Piterbarg.^[20] Rokos Capital was granted regulatory approval in September 2015.^[21] In late January 2016 Bloomberg reported that Rokos was managing US$3.5 billion for the fund, including US$500 million from Blackstone,^[22] and would stop accepting new money in February 2016.^[23] In April 2016 it was announced that Seth Carpenter, former assistant US Treasury secretary, had joined Rokos Capital and would continue to be based in Washington, DC. ^[24] A few weeks later, the Sunday Times Rich List reported that Rokos had expanded his assets by £260 million in 2015.^[25] In August 2016, Rokos Capital Management has promoted four of its senior staff, including Jacques Cailloux and Vladimir Piterbarg, to partners.^[26] Rokos Capital manages about $4 billion (£3,229 billion) following the 9 percent return through September 23.^[27]

Political affiliations

Chris Rokos is a major donor of the Conservative Party,^[28] and a member of David Cameron's dining club, the Leader's Group.^[29]

Social contributions

Rokos has made a number of charitable donations including to Amnesty International,^[30] WaterAid,^[31] UNICEF,^[32] and the Institute of Cancer Research, where he funds a five-year fellowship in Evolution and Cancer.^[33] In 2010 the Financial Times alleged him to be the anonymous collector who saved Domenichino's Saint John the Evangelist from export to the United States after British museums were unable to raise enough money to buy it.^[34][35] The painting was then loaned to the National Gallery.^[36]

His former Oxford University college, Pembroke, named the Rokos Quad after him when he gave the lead gift to a campaign which funded the new buildings complex that now surrounds the quad.^[37] Rokos has also established the Oxford-Rokos Graduate Scholarship, which covers the entire cost of living and fees for the full duration of a student's course.^[38]

Personal life

Described by the Telegraph as a highly secretive man, Chris Rokos is reputed to be extremely private. Little is known of his personal life.^[39]

References