Hedge Fund News: John Paulson, Allan Teh, Louis Bacon

Ex-Taconic Fund Manager Hampaul Readies Own Hedge Fund – Sources (Reuters)
Former Taconic Capital Advisors portfolio manager Kelly Hampaul is preparing to launch his own hedge fund in the second half of the year, sources said, joining a string of other high profile European start-ups expected in coming months. A combination of buoyant equity markets and divergent monetary policies has helped push first-quarter European hedge fund returns past 4 percent, giving them their best start for three years, data from industry tracker Eurekahedge showed. London-based Hampaul, 37, invested in equity and credit markets for Taconic but left at the end of last year after more than a dozen years at the $8 billion New York-based hedge fund.

Hedge Fund Machines Cash in – Again (CNBC)
The robots are winning again. Hedge funds that rely on sophisticated computer algorithms to invest are once again producing the industry’s best returns. Funds managed by ISAM, Cantab, AHL, Systematica and others produced double-digit gains over the first three months of 2015, according to private performance figures obtained by CNBC.com. Those funds practice a so-called trend-following strategy using contracts on the future price of securities related to stocks, bonds, currencies and commodities.

Meet the Activist Targeting the Activist Who Runs Steak ‘n Shake (The Wall Street Journal)
A small Minneapolis hedge fund has tried to take a bite out of the company that runs Steak ‘n Shake and the activist that runs it. Groveland Capital is seeking to remove the entire board of Biglari Holdings Inc., including its chairman and CEO Sardar Biglari, himself an activist. It’s a campaign that’s garnered attention among activists, no strangers to fighting and mudslinging, for its unusually colorful twists and turns. Who is Groveland? The hedge fund was started in 2009 and currently manages about $25 million. It’s run by Nick Swenson, a 46 year-old trader who got his start in distressed debt and previously built a $1.7 billion high-yield debt fund before launching Groveland.

Vivendi, Under Pressure From Hedge Fund, Increases Payout (The New York Times)
Vivendi, the French media conglomerate, said on Wednesday that it planned to raise the amount of money it will pay to shareholders, settling a fight with the American hedge fund P. Schoenfeld Asset Management. The move settles an unusual challenge by a United States investor against one of France’s top companies. The hedge fund, commonly known as PSAM, has pressed Vivendi for bigger payouts and the sale of the Universal Music Group.