Bobby Jain, the former Co-CIO of Izzy Englander's Millennium Management, has made the first major hire for his upcoming hedge fund launch – former BofA executive Jonathan Barton, who has been appointed as Chief Operating Officer.

Jain, who was prevented from hiring staff until the start of this month as part of his exit agreement from Millennium, where he spent seven years, has wasted no time in tapping the former BofA Managing Director and Head of Equities Product Development and Strategic Initiatives. Barton will be tasked with helping to build-out what many on Wall Street are predicting will be one of the largest ever hedge fund launches.

Before BofA, Barton was COO at Meru Capital and Old Lane, having begun his career at Morgan Stanley.

The name of Jain's new firm or the amount of capital he is targeting have yet to be revealed, but trading cannot commence until next year under the terms of his Millennium exit agreement.