How to Start a Hedge Fund - A CEO's Guide

How do you actually launch a hedge fund? People talk about strategies, fundraising, and legal stuff, but I didn't see any good guides about... well... everything else. When I started my hedge fund in 2012, the resources online were awful. For fun, I Googled "how to start a hedge fund" again in 2020, and the top videos are still along the lines of, "it was hard you guys." (No kidding.)

To expand upon "it was hard," I made a high-level guide detailing my first-hand experience + all of the things you need to do before launching a hedge fund.

This is my first video - if you liked it, please like or subscribe so Google pushes it above the "it was hard" videos. :p

0:00 - Introduction
0:49 - List of service providers
2:00 - Mistakes picking service providers
3:16 - Critical decisions
4:13 - Hedge fund legal structure
5:27 - Mistakes picking legal structure
6:23 - Critical legal services
7:38 - Hedge fund fee structure
9:20 - Want more videos?
10:00 - Hedge fund technology
11:11 - Market & alternative data
12:07 - Databento a la carte data
13:18 - Trade execution & DMA
14:59 - Operations & compliance requirements
15:56 - Is this even worth it?
16:21 - Should I do a startup?
17:02 - When should I start a hedge fund?
18:19 - Any questions?
19:04 - Final thoughts

Here is the list of service providers as mentioned in the video:
Prime broker (+ secondary counterparty)
Third-party administrator
Onshore fund lawyer
Offshore fund lawyer
Corporate lawyer
Fund auditor
Fund custodian
Bank account
Tax preparer (+ R&D tax credit provider)
Compliance officer (in-house or part-time)
Independent board director(s)
Software vendors (e.g. Slack, Google Suite, AWS, CRM, QBO, payroll, etc)
Data providers (market & alternative)
$$$ to afford all of the above

[smaura]

More more please and thanks this is insanely useful to some of us.

[HungLeEntrepreneur]

Absolutely love your energy, Christina!

Thank you for your passion and big heart for wanting to help others avoid the pitfalls of starting a hedge fund. Stay amazing ✌️

[billietuvshin]

Waiting for the next video already! Thank you for sharing. Best of luck to you! You are so kind to share your knowledge. Thank you!!!

[russellfernandez]

Been a fan ever since I stumbled upon your interview. Nice to see you start a YouTube channel :D

[RobTheQuant]

That was informative and fun Christina! Nailed your first video like a pro YouTuber! Would love to hear a bit more about your strategies and technology whatever you are allowed to share.

[nicholasthorne]

This is my second time ever commenting on a video. This was amazing content. Thank you so much for putting this knowledge out here and I look forward to watching many more videos.

[ProfGREvans]

Christina! You need to make more videos about this experience. This is pure Gold! There is a major part that you are leaving out. What is your marketing strategy for raising funds from strangers? How do you compete? OR are you small fund merely raising from friends and family ... enough to give you a respectable portfolio? That makes a huge difference in the difficulty component. Anyway, keep going. This is brilliant.

[brtalcabbage]

I’m excited for your next video! Thanks for the upload. Great job.

[carlobisda]

i love this; nice to see some transparency and behind the scene overview. keep it up.

[samueldennis]

Christina, I am very proud of you. This video is 100% awesome. A super great first video.

[adamhesse]

Brilliant video, Christina! Full of insight and very comprehensive. I’d be very interested to hear more about how you built your systems from scratch. I’d guess that gives you much more control. I like the ragtime piece for the title cards!

[garypan]

So informative! Thanks for sharing. So proud of you Qiqi!

[BOHAN]

Christina, I am so inspired by your accomplishments and mentality! I've learned much about the general aspect of starting a hedge fund! My friends are starting a hedge fund, and I am looking forward to your advice to benefit their company! Amazing inspiration and knowledge!

[Coolestine]

You're killing it, Christina! Very informative!

[reezvi]

Appreciate the time and effort you've put in to make this video. Very useful information indeed. Looking forward to more videos.

[jeffmorrison]

Christina is like the BFF I never had from school. She’s so brilliant and articulate that I literally take notes when she talks.

[xrpop]

I dont usually comment, but this is excellent content. Thank you.

[rime]

Happy to be one of the initial 100 subs :)

[SFA-tgbc]

Great first vid! Looking forward to your next video!

[golamsakline]

Great work Christina. Undoubtedly the most valuable youtube video I watch in weeks.