In a year where aggressive bets on rising stock markets paid off in dividends, the world's top 20 hedge fund managers of 2021 earned a record $65.4 billion on behalf of their clients. Leading in overall performance was British billionaire Sir Chris Hohn's The Children's Fund (TCI). The fund manages approximately $44 billion of assets, and Hohn has built up a reputation as an avid activist investor. It made a gain of 23.3% last year, and has made gains of $36.5 billion in its 19 years of operation.
Hohn, who reduced his own salary from $475 to $152 million from 2020 to 2021, is fueled by a passion for philanthropy and climate change activism. He had contributed over $4 billion into his personal children's charity, and plans to use TCI's investment purse to “force change on companies who refuse to take their environmental emissions seriously.” Extinction Rebellion (XR), which organizes international climate protests, counts him as its biggest individual donor. “Humanity is aggressively destroying the world with climate change and there is an urgent need for us all to wake up to this fact,” Hohn said.
Coming in second place was Ken Griffin's Citadel, which made $8.2 billion for a return of 26%. With an estimated personal fortune of $27.5 billion, Griffin is the world's 54th wealthiest person.
