Episode 43: Ryan Tolkin - CEO and CIO of Schonfeld Strategic Advisors

This week on Generating Alpha, I sat down with Ryan Tolkin — CEO of Schonfeld, a multi-billion dollar alternative asset manager that has quietly become one of the most powerful and consistent forces in the hedge fund industry.

Ryan's history with the firm dates back to a high school internship, where his analytical talent was first spotted. He joined the firm as Chief Investment Officer at 27, a role he ascended to just a few years out of college, demonstrating a precocious understanding of risk and capital markets. It was under his leadership that Schonfeld transitioned from a proprietary family office to a major global player, making the pivotal decision to accept outside, third-party capital in 2016 and build the multi-strategy platform we know today.

We discussed how his early experiences—from trading (perhaps even starting with baseball cards) to managing risk at a young age—shaped his systematic approach to portfolio management.

In our conversation, we spoke about how Schonfeld designs its platform to maximize manager performance and minimize drawdowns, what it takes to seperate signal from noise in todays age, and the habits and mindset required to compound advantage over decades in a highly competitive industry.

It’s a rare look inside the thinking of a modern hedge fund leader helping shape the next generation of top portfolio managers—and the quiet architecture behind enduring success.

Presented by: rho.co/generatingalpha