(Bloomberg) -- A well-publicized short bet by General Industrial Partners on Spanish company Grifols SA helped the hedge fund earn double-digit gains while bullish wagers on the same stock caused losses to former Elliott Management trader Franck Tuil.

GIP’s fund gained 31.5% through April this year, according to an investor document seen by Bloomberg News. It made 28% in January alone from bearish wagers on the blood plasma company after its publishing arm Gotham City Research LLC questioned Grifols’ financial reporting in a report in early January. That sent the shares of the Barcelona-based firm tumbling 40% this year. 

After facing accusations from Gotham that it manipulated its debt and earnings, Grifols sued the short seller the same month, calling its principals “predatory short sellers” who illicitly profit from “rigged short-and-distort schemes.” Grifols’ board of directors this week approved plans to expand its annual self-review, including several resolutions to strengthen the firm’s corporate governance. 

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GIP is a London-based hedge fund that started operations in the third quarter of last year, resulting from a merger of Gotham and short-selling fund Portsea Asset Management. Run by Cyrus de Weck and Daniel Yu, it is now establishing itself as one of the very few short-biased hedge funds in the world. Such traders, who sell borrowed stocks to buy them back at lower prices, have been facing tough challenges over the past decade amid soaring stocks and regulatory scrutiny. 

On the other side of the Grifols trade is Tuil’s Sparta Capital Management. It lost 8% in the first quarter, largely driven by bets on the medical business and Scottish engineering firm John Wood Group Plc, Bloomberg News reported last week. Tuil’s hedge fund said it remained committed to its bet and had added to its position. 

Tuil started Sparta in 2021 after a two-decade career at Elliott, one of the world’s most feared activist investors. 

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GIP offers a catalyst-driven strategy as well as co-investment opportunities to its investors, another document show. The firm manages about $52.4 million and is closed to new money.

A representative for GIP declined to comment. 

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