Schonfeld Strategic Advisors has expanded its exposure to quantitative trading with its commitment to Masa Capital, a newly-established investment adviser, run by quant portfolio manager Eric Tavel.

Tavel’s expertise lies in the development of quantitative trading strategies within a diverse set of asset classes, including futures and currencies. Schonfeld will support Masa Capital by investing capital as well as assisting with infrastructure and recruitment of personnel.


Tavel spent the last five years as the Head of Quantitative Trading for RBC’s proprietary trading division, known as GAT. Prior to RBC, he worked for 14 years at Goldman Sachs Asset Management as a Managing Director and Portfolio Manager within the Quantitative Investment Strategies group, where he co-managed the Global Alpha Fund, among other funds and strategies.


Schonfeld has achieved a significant level of success recruiting investment teams, due in large part to the flexibility of its offering and the entrepreneurial spirit of its management. "The structural flexibility we maintain as a multi-manager, multi-strategy investment firm allows us to adjust our model and our deal terms, as the markets dictate, furthering the ability to grow our business and become a preferred partner for great portfolio managers," says Schonfeld’s CIO, Ryan Tolkin.


The investment with Masa and Tavel represents a further extension of Schonfeld’s ambitions in the quantitative trading space as Tavel has extensive experience building quantitative trading strategies that span styles, trading horizons, and asset classes. “We are very excited to partner with a portfolio manager of this caliber who has a demonstrable track record of success,” said Andrew Fishman, President of Schonfeld