Renaissance hedge fund reportedly having one of its best years ever

Most funds that include a volatility trading strategy are going to do well right now (because volatility ~ downturns). 2008 and 2011 were also really good years for vol arb desks. Not to downplay it, just seems Renaissance gets outsized credit (likely intended on their part for recruitment and fund raising) for things other shops do all the time.

It's interesting how two different news organizations report two different views about Renaissance on the same day (17 April).

* CNBC chose to only report on the Medallion fund, which is up 24% YTD.

* Bloomberg chose to primarily report on Renaissance's largest fund, REIF -- which is actually down 14% through March 31.

Link: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-04-17/renaissan...

Neither news outlet reported the weighted aggregated return of Renaissance, the firm--which manages several funds by different portfolio managers.

Seems disingenuous at best.

My sense is Renaissance might not be doing nearly as well as it wants the market and public to believe...

It’s irritating when Medallion is identified as an investment fund, instead of what it is, a market maker.

Sounds like a perfect time for a windfall tax. I mean, these companies do want to show their solidarity during a pandemic, don't they?

This is not surprising. There are firms that profit on both sides.