If it wasn’t clear already, nothing on the Internet is a secret.
AI-CIO took a look at Google analytics for the top searched hedge funds and their founders. Hedge funds may have seemingly prehistoric websites, but the masses are still searching for what little information they can get about the black-box alternatives world.
Since 2004, the most popular Google-searched funds, excluding those tied to giant firm such as BlackRock, were Bridgewater Associates, DE Shaw & Co., Man Group, AQR Capital Management, and SAC Capital/Point72 Asset Management. Size seems to be everything. No surprise, the world’s biggest hedge fund, Bridgewater has topped the search list year after year, growing its assets with searches.
But the hedge fund world’s biggest personalities don’t seem to correspond with the biggest funds. Ray Dalio of Bridgewater was no where near as searched as Steve Cohen, John Paulson, or Billy Ackman. Paulson & Co. and Pershing Square aren’t among the top searched firms. Billionaire hedgie George Soros was Googled almost 10 times as much as Cohen or Paulson, and 26 times as much as Dalio. Soros Fund Management got only about a sixth of the searches Bridgewater did.
Fortunately, Google searches don’t equate assets. None of us are ready to see Cohen trying to break the Internet with an oil-upped nude photo any time soon. But investors are clearly doing their research on the Internet. AQR grew from $25 billion in 2012 to $65 billion at the end of last year. In 2012, AQR had more search traffic than almost any other fund, besides Bridgewater and Man Group. At the other end, the U.K.-based BlueCrest Capital has barely been Googled, and the firm has suffered a 60% asset loss in two years. Writes AI-CIO:
“Looking back 10 years ago, a firm’s profile or brand was less important for both private equity and hedge funds,” says Bill Haynes, CEO of alternatives brand-builder BackBay Communications. “They enjoyed being low profile, and there was some allure to investors that these firms were doing interesting things and that they had access to exotic investments. But over time, as the market gets more and more competitive, there’s a need to stand out to investors. And the Internet is the first touchpoint.”
Sorry hedge funds, looks like the Google fad is sticking around. It may be time to invest in some website staff.
Photo: Wikipedia.