Geopolitical Shock Triggers Losses Across Major Hedge Funds

LONDON — The world’s biggest "multistrategy" hedge funds investment giants designed to make money in any weather hit a wall in March 2026. A sudden escalation of conflict in the Middle East disrupted global trade and sent bond markets into a tailspin, proving that even the most sophisticated firms remain vulnerable to geopolitical shocks.

The Performance Hit

The closure of the Strait of Hormuz sent oil prices soaring and broke the steady trends many funds rely on. Several industry leaders reported rare monthly losses:

• ExodusPoint: Down 4.5%

• Balyasny: Down 4.3%

• Citadel (Wellington): Down 1.9%

• Millennium: Down 1.2%

The pain was deepest in bond trading. Citadel’s Global Fixed Income fund plunged 8.2%, its worst month in recent memory. Meanwhile, specialist commodity funds thrived; Andurand Commodities surged 30.6% as energy prices spiked.

Cash Keeps Flowing

Despite the losses, investors are not pulling their money out. Instead, they are doubling down on the sector’s top talent:

• Taula Capital raised $1.75 billion in fresh cash this month, despite being down nearly 10% in early March.

• Kite Lake reopened for just one day, taking in $700 million before closing to new investors again.

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