The hedge fund world is talking about a huge new fund from the former CIO at Viking

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The hedge fund world is talking about a huge new fund from the former CIO at Viking

space shuttle

Scott Audette/Reuters

The space shuttle Atlantis STS-135 lifts off from launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center.

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  • Dan Sundheim, the former chief investment officer at Viking Global, is launching a new fund in 2018.
  • It's still early days, but hedge fund insiders say the fund launch could be one of the biggest in recent history.


Dan Sundheim, the former chief investment officer at Viking Global Investors, is expected to launch a hedge fund next year. And we keep hearing the fund launch is going to be one of the biggest in recent history.

It has previously been reported that the fund, a long-short equity fund called D1 Capital, could raise more than $1 billion when it launches next year. But according to multiple people in the hedge fund world that Business Insider spoke with, the fund could raise multiple billions, with one person putting the figure at $4 billion to $5 billion on day one.

Hedge-fund investors and others familiar with the launch told Business Insider they expect Sundheim to raise multiple billions of dollars, with the lowest estimate $2 billion. The fund is expected to include a significant amount of Sundheim's personal capital, some of the people said.

That range of $2 billion to $5 billion would make it one of the biggest fund launches next year, and comes at a time when most launches struggle to raise more than $1 billion.

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To be clear, the fund isn't yet formally being marketed, according to people familiar with the matter. The situation is fluid and could change, said one of the people, asking not to be identified discussing private matters.

Jonathan Gasthalter, a spokesman for Sundheim, declined to comment.

But there's reason to believe the fund could be one of the biggest in recent memory. Sundheim is said to have had a strong track record at Viking, and his new fund is expected to attract money from previous Viking investors. Earlier this year, Viking said it would return about $8 billion in assets to clients.

The start-up has hired Eton Park CFO Tony Fox alongside Michael Lean, the former head of equity research at Hong Kong-based investment group CLSA, HFM Week reported. D1 Capital has also rented out a 32,300 square-foot office at 9 West 57th Street with a 15-year lease, according to a press release.

Other highly anticipated launches for next year include Steve Cohen's Stamford Harbor, which is targeting close to $2 billion, and former Millennium bond chief Michael Gelband's fund. Ex-GLG and Moore manager Greg Coffey is also prepping a fund.

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