The world's largest hedge fund reached a settlement with its former co-CEO after she accused it of a $100 million gender pay disparity
- Bridgewater Associates, the world's largest hedge fund, has settled its compensation fight with former co-CEO Eileen Murray.
- A spokesperson confirmed the deal, but offered no details on the settlement size or terms.
- Murray originally filed her lawsuit in July, saying the firm balked on up to $100 million in deferred pay after she disclosed her internal dispute to an industry body.
Bridgewater Associates settled a multimillion-dollar gender pay-disparity lawsuit with its former co-CEO Eileen Murray for an undisclosed amount of money, it said Monday.
A spokesperson for the Connecticut-based hedge fund confirmed the settlement to Business Insider, saying: "We are pleased that we were able to amicably and fairly resolve the discussions around Eileen's post-employment benefits."
Murray, who helmed the $140 billion firm from 2009 to earlier this year, originally filed her complaint in July after departing. She claimed the firm withheld up to $100 million in deferred compensation after she told FINRA about the pay dispute when joining the self-regulatory body's board of directors.
"Bridgewater has used a false and otherwise grossly expanded, bad faith assertion under the terms of the Plan to claim forfeiture of Ms. Murray's earned Deferred Compensation, all as part of a cynical plan to intimidate and silence her," she said in the lawsuit.
The Bridgewater spokesperson declined to elaborate on the size or terms of its settlement with Murray.
"We have a tremendous amount of respect for Eileen and the many contributions she made to Bridgewater during her 10 years of helping to lead the company," their statement continued. "She will always be a valued member of the Bridgewater community and we wish her well in her various new ventures."
In September, The Wall Street Journal reported that another high-ranking woman at the hedge fund, research director Karen Karniol-Tambour, had made a similar complaint about her pay. However, both she and Bridgewater disagreed with the paper's characterization of her remarks.
"I have had ongoing conversations about my compensation, but these conversations did not involve my gender," the 35-year-old said in a statement provided by a representative at the time. "I did not make a claim of gender discrimination against Bridgewater."
Bridgewater, like many other funds, has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic and its resulting market volatility. From February to April, Business Insider reported in July, the firm's funds performance caused total asset values to fall 15% while benchmark equities markets sank only about 10% in the same period.
The speed-bumps have reportedly led to dozens of layoffs of Bridgewater's research, recruiting, client services, and other departments.