Eisler Lost 14.3% Last Year as Hedge Fund Firm Closed Down

(Bloomberg) -- Losses at Eisler Capital deepened last month, according to an investor letter from the now-closed multistrategy hedge fund firm.

The money manager posted a 7.35% decline in December, extending the drop for 2025 to 14.3%, the letter seen by Bloomberg News showed. Nearly all the losses were due to pass-through expenses, people with knowledge of the matter said, asking not to be identified discussing private information. The fund has now been formally wound down. 

Pass-through fees are costs that some hedge funds charge directly to clients, such as salary and bonus expenses.

Peers in the multistrategy hedge fund industry largely posted double-digit gains last year, Bloomberg News has reported. The Eisler fund was down only 1.7% through August last year before its decision to liquidate.

Eisler’s losses show how multistrategy hedge funds are not only costly to build and run, but also to unwind, with spiraling expenses linked to layers of talent, technology and operations made worse by a shrinking asset base. Those funds still need to pay traders who made money, although Eisler has tried to impose a cut to their bonus payouts to those who wanted to quit immediately after the decision to down its shutters.

The firm founded by Edward Eisler said in September that it would close after grappling with dwindling assets, soaring staff costs and returns that failed to keep pace with expectations. In another letter dated Dec. 16, the hedge fund said it expected the portfolio to be fully unwound by Dec. 31 with a final net-asset value anticipated to be set on that day. 

The NAV is generally finalized on or before the 15th business day following month-end and the first payment of redemption/withdrawal proceeds will be made as soon as practically possible, it said.

Eisler said it’s trying to minimize costs, adding the total wind-down expenses are expected to be in the range of 10%-15% of the NAV as of Sept. 30.

“Alongside the process of selling the Master Fund’s portfolio, the firm is moving quickly to cut operating expenses by exiting contractual commitments such as staff, real estate and infrastructure, and by negotiating discounts where possible,” it said. “This includes agreements with third parties to offset employee-related costs.”

A representative for Eisler Capital declined to comment. 

Eisler, a former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. partner, started his business as a macro trading firm in 2015, but then sought to transition the hedge fund into an array of strategies starting in 2021.

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