Press release
Converium Capital Inc. selected by QEMP for a hedge fund strategy
Montreal, Quebec, October 15, 2024
The Quebec Emerging Manager Program (“QEMP”) is proud to announce that Converium Capital Inc. (“Converium”) has been selected to manage a hedge fund mandate as part of its alternative class.
Converium has been allocated a $50M mandate in their flagship opportunistic multi-strategy product, an allocation that is part of the QEMP’s commitment to grant impactful mandates to emerging managers in order to accelerate their
growth. The QEMP benefits from the collaboration of 12 Quebec institutional investors and offers, through Innocap, a rigorous institutional framework for manager support, governance, due diligence, risk management, and ongoing
monitoring of the investment firms involved in the program.
Converium invests in distressed and event-driven opportunities globally and across the capital structure. The strategy managed by Converium employs multiple strategies globally and across different asset classes. Converium’s contrarian approach positions it as a liquidity provider, particularly during periods of financial distress or market dislocation. The
Converium approach tends to focus on long and short credit opportunities, but also targets engagement-related investments, capital structure arbitrage, and event-driven situations such as operational restructurings and spin-offs.
The strategy’s objective is to deliver positive and uncorrelated returns to traditional assets over the long term, regardless of macroeconomic conditions. Through controlled risk management, the strategy emphasizes capital
preservation while minimizing portfolio leverage.
Converium is a Montreal-based investment firm co-founded in 2020 by Aaron Stern and his partners Michael Rapps and Elliot Ruda. After spending fifteen years in New York, Aaron Stern, a McGill University graduate, moved back to Montreal to launch Converium. Prior to that, he worked at New York-based Fir Tree Partners as Partner and Managing Director for ten years, with his partner Elliot Ruda, who served as Head of Trading at Fir Tree for fifteen years. Michael Rapps, former CEO of Clarke Inc., a diversified Canadian conglomerate, leads the firm’s engagement, restructuring and activism investments.
“Converium Capital is honored to be the first manager entrusted with a mandate that takes advantage of the PGEQ’s new capabilities with longer duration capital. As a member of the Quebec investment community, we are excited to partner with the PGEQ and its stakeholders to drive returns for some of Quebec’s largest institutional investors. Together, we look forward to building a strong and lasting partnership that supports Quebec’s financial future.”
– Aaron Stern, Co-Founder & Chief Investment Officer, Converium
“We are excited to welcome another promising emerging manager to the QEMP. Led by a team of seasoned professionals and the passion of its Co-founder and Chief Investment Officer Aaron Stern, Converium has multiple strengths paving the way for its continued growth with institutional clients . Montreal continues to establish itself as a leading financial center for emerging investment firms, Converium is proof of this, and the QEMP is proud to support an opportunistic strategy with a global focus and contribute to its future success.”
– François Rivard, CEO, Innocap
About the QEMP
Created in 2016, the QEMP’s mandate is to promote the growth of financial entrepreneurship in Quebec by offering institutional investors diversified investment strategies managed by independent Quebec-based emerging managers. This project was developed in connection with the work of Finance Montreal’s Entrepreneurship Work Group, in collaboration with established portfolio management firms. The QEMP seeks emerging managers offering traditional strategies (fixed income, equities, sustainable or ESG strategies, etc.) and alternative strategies (hedge funds, sustainable or ESG strategies, real asset funds, etc.). In order to invest in the growth of leading managers of the future, the QEMP encourages allocators, cities and municipalities, pension funds, foundations and universities to join the program. For more information about the QEMP, visit www.qemp.ca or consult our LinkedIn page.
About Innocap
Innocap is the combination of two of the most respected firms in the dedicated managed account industry: Innocap + HedgeMark. Since 1996, Innocap has offered institutional investors a superior model for structuring, monitoring and accessing their alternative investments thanks to its dedicated managed account platform. Innocap is the world’s first dedicated managed account platform, with USD 66 billion in assets as at December 31, 2023, >300 funds and >USD 900 billion in assets held by clients using its technology. Innocap benefits from strong and committed long-term institutional shareholders. Innocap’s team is made up of over 400 innovative and talented individuals backed by robust financial technology operating from seven offices worldwide. For more information about Innocap, visit www.innocap.com or consult our LinkedIn page.
About Converium
Converium is a multi-strategy opportunistic investment firm headquartered in Montreal. The firm seeks to generate positive and uncorrelated returns to traditional assets, regardless of macroeconomic conditions, by investing in distressed and event-driven opportunities. Converium’s investment philosophy is based on the belief that the best opportunities come in times of abrupt change or distress. The strategy combines quantitative and qualitative methods to screen opportunities and invests in distressed and event-driven opportunities globally and across the capital structure. Founded in 2020 by Aaron Stern, Michael Rapps, and Elliot Ruda, Converium’s team has deep, broad and complementary expertise derived over decades investing in and driving outcomes across asset classes, industries and geographies. For more information about Converium, visit www.converiumcap.com or consult our LinkedIn page.
Contact Information
Quebec Emerging Manager Program
www.qemp.ca
Isabel Trépanier, Principal, Program Management
isabel.trepanier@innocap.com
Innocap
www.innocap.com
Allocators interested in learning more about the QEMP should contact:
Caroline Bergeron
Global Head, ESG and Impact Solutions
438-993-4351
caroline.bergeron@innocap.com