Terrence Matthews, previously the head of European credit at hedge fund Centiva Capital, is setting up his own venture, Athlone Investment Management, in the latest in a series of spin-offs from a multi-strategy "pod shops" that operate with teams of individual traders, according to a report by Bloomberg.

The report cites an unnamed source familiar with the plans as confirming that Athlone Investment Management, based in London, will start trading with approximately $200m in initial capital early next year. The firm’s seed funding is being provided by New Holland Capital through a separately managed account.

Athlone, which will focus on European fundamental relative value and macro-credit investments, will launch with a three-member investment team.

The move comes amid a surge of traders departing major multi-strategy firms to launch their own hedge funds, with several receiving substantial backing from large investment firms and seeding entities. New firms led by notable traders such as Bobby Jain, Diego Megia, and Todd Barker have collectively raised a record $14bn this year, according to hedge fund research firm PivotalPath.

Matthews, who brings extensive expertise in fixed-income markets, previously managed capital for multi-strategy funds like Millennium and Arrowgrass Capital Partners. His career began in proprietary credit trading at TD Securities, where he later oversaw the firm’s European and Asian divisions.