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Aspect Capital

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Aspect Capital
IndustryInvestment management
Headquarters
London
,
England
Key people
Anthony Todd (CEO), Martin Lueck (Research Director)
AUMUS$ 7.1 billion
(as of June 30, 2019)[1]
Number of employees
128 as of September 2016
Websitewww.aspectcapital.com

Aspect Capital is a London-based investment manager[2] that applies a systematic and quantitative approach to investment management. According to the Financial Times, Aspect uses "technology and complex mathematical models to power computers that trade the world's markets around the clock".[3] Aspect manages USD6.6bn.[4]

Aspect has approximately 128 employees.[5]

The name and logo of the company derive from one of the founders’ passion for gliding and the aspect ratio of wing design: the wider the wing span, the more stable the plane.[6]

History

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Aspect was established in 1997[7] by Anthony Todd, Martin Lueck, Michael Adam and Eugene Lambert. Two of Aspect's founders, Michael Adam and Martin Lueck, were co-founders[8] of Adam, Harding & Lueck (AHL, now a part of the Man Group Plc[9]), one of the earliest managed futures firms in Europe, with Anthony Todd and Eugene Lambert also working at AHL prior to founding Aspect.[10] Aspect was set up with seed capital, the majority of which was provided by the fund of funds manager, RMF.[10] Aspect started trading the Aspect Diversified Programme in 1998 with $22m[7] of assets under management. Aspect opened sales offices in the US in 2004[11] and in Hong Kong in 2008[12]

Investment approach

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Aspect offers a range of systematic investment strategies. The longest-running strategy is the Aspect Diversified Programme. The programme, which runs the majority of Aspect's assets under management, uses a medium-term trend following strategy which is designed to systematically and quantitatively identify and exploit trends in a broad range of highly liquid futures and foreign exchange markets to generate diversifying returns for investors.[13] The Aspect Diversified Programme's investment philosophy is based on the premise that trends are a persistent feature of markets. Aspect's tagline: “The Science of Investment” emphasises the firm's philosophy of applying a scientific approach to investment management. Aspect Diversified’s track record goes back to December 1998[6]

Registrations

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In the UK, Aspect Capital Limited (Aspect) is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. In the USA, Aspect has been registered as a Commodity Trading Advisor and Commodity Pool Operator with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) since October 1999. In addition, Aspect has been registered as an SEC Investment Advisor with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) since October 2003 and has been a member of the National Futures Association (NFA) since October 1999. In Hong Kong, Aspect Capital Asia Limited has been licensed and regulated by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) since June 2008.

Aspect has been a signatory of the Hedge Fund Standard Board (HFSB) since 2010[14]

References

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  1. ^ "The largest managers of hedge funds (P&I Sep 2019)". No. Special Report Hedge Funds. United States: Pensions & Investments. Crain Communications Inc. 16 September 2019. Retrieved 15 October 2019.
  2. ^ Philip Coggan (9 November 2010). Guide to Hedge Funds: What They Are, What They Do, Their Risks, Their Advantages. John Wiley and Sons. p. 53. ISBN 978-0-470-92655-0.
  3. ^ Sam Jones, "London funds seek an edge in 'quant' market", Financial Times, 20 April 2011. Retrieved 13 December 2016
  4. ^ Will Wainewright, "Aspect Capital Buys Hedge-Fund Firm Auriel for Currency Trading", Bloomberg, 9 March 2016. Retrieved 13 December 2016
  5. ^ Jonathan Shapiro, "Aspect's Anthony Todd says the trend is your friend"Australian Financial Review, 20 September 2016. Retrieved 13 December 2016(subscription required)
  6. ^ a b Ginger Szala, "Aspect Capital soars with diversification"Futures Magazine, August 2002. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  7. ^ a b Bill Mcintosh, "Aspect Capital – A steady performer attracts new investor custom"The Hedgefund journal, 1 June 2012. Retrieved 13 December 2016 (subscription required)
  8. ^ Extracts from the top traders unplugged podcast, "In Conversation with Martin Lueck – Aspect Capital"The Hedgefund journal, 9 October 2014. Retrieved 13 December 2016
  9. ^ Attain Capital, "A Brief History of Man AHL, Winton & Aspect"The Attain Alternatives Blog, 14 February 2014. Retrieved 13 December 2016
  10. ^ a b Phil Davies, "A not-so-big leap of faith"The Financial Times, 22 January 2007. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  11. ^ Institutional Investor, "Aspect Capital Unveils Plans For N.Y. Office;Plans New Fund", 6 April 2004. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  12. ^ Hedgeweek, "Aspect Capital opens office in Hong Kong",Hedgeweek, 27 June 2008. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  13. ^ Laurence Fletcher, "Hedge Fund Aspect Capital Buys Smaller Rival"The Wall Street Journal, 9 March 2016. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  14. ^ Politics & Regulations, "Five more managers sign up to HFSB's standards"Hedge Fund Intelligence, 6 May 2010. Retrieved 13 December 2016