Boaz Weinstein, 36, joined Deutsche Bank in 1998, became a managing director at 27 and was the youngest ever global co-head of credit in the German bank’s history before leaving at the end of 2008 to run his hedge fund, Saba Capital Management.
After years of racking up billion-dollar profits for Deutsche, Weinstein’s prop trading group took a hit during the market crisis of 2008 when credit spreads blew out and counterparty risk skyrocketed. The $1 billion losses Saba Capital sustained ate into Deutsche’s year-end results, diminishing the bank’s bonus pool and grabbing headlines in media outlets from the Wall Street Journal to New York Magazine. What most of the press failed to report, however, was that though Saba ended 2008 down 16 percent, the average loss for hedge funds that year was 18.7 percent.
The majority of Saba’s trades came back in the first quarter of 2009, vindicating Weinstein’s approach (though not much helping the bank, which had exited many of the positions). As New York–based Saba’s CIO, Weinstein continues the long-short credit strategy for his fund, which has already raised close to $1 billion.
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