(Bloomberg) -- Aster Capital Management founder Nabil Ouajjane is moving to Dubai from London, joining a rush of portfolio managers decamping to the emerging hub for investment firms.
Ouajjane is expanding his London-based Aster Capital’s operations to a new office in Dubai, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Ouajjane and four colleagues are preparing to move to the city this year, one of the people said, asking not to be identified because the details are private.
A former money manager at BlueCrest Capital Management, Ouajjane runs a quant equity strategy and employs 14 people at offices in London and New York. He will retain the London office, the person familiar with the matter said.
A representative for Aster Capital declined to comment.
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Aster Capital won backing from Schonfeld Strategic Advisors in 2019 and manages money exclusively for them. Schonfeld has its own expanding team of traders based in Dubai, which has emerged as a magnet for hedge funds over the past few years.
Izzy Englander’s Millennium Management, Michael Platt’s BlueCrest and Balyasny Asset Management have all expanded operations in the city. They’ve sent dozens of traders to Dubai, drawn by a slew of incentives, a favorable timezone and a low tax regime.
Neighboring Abu Dhabi, which has the added attraction of being one of few cities globally to manage more than $1 trillion in sovereign wealth, has also managed to draw in big names.
Brevan Howard Asset Management now manages more money from that emirate than anywhere else, while Marshall Wace and Capula Investment Management have held talks with Abu Dhabi authorities to potentially expand operations there, Bloomberg News has reported.
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