Women on top: Female hedge fund bosses out-perform their male counterparts

Date: Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Author: Mail Online

Women in the hedge fund industry have given strength to the theory that the world of finance would be more efficient if females were in control.

According to new figures from Hedge Fund Research, funds run by women have been doing much better than those managed by men during the past year of the financial crisis.

But they were still unable to work miracles - the figures showed female-run hedge funds were down 9.6 per cent over the 12 months, comparing with a fall of 19 per cent for the rest of the male-run industry.

But over a longer period, the women — such as Elena Ambrosiadou, said to have amassed £200 million from her Ikos fund — are still on top.

During the past decade, female investment managers achieved an average annual return of just over 9 per cent against less than 6 per cent for the men.

Jacki Zehner, a former partner at Goldman Sachs behind the research, said: 'Where women are present at decision-making tables, the quality of those decisions improves.'

Recent research from the University of California suggest men suffer from 'biggest balls syndrome' — they tend to make riskier investment decisions at a time of crisis in an attempt to assert their dominance over rivals.