Millennium just rehired Balyasny's top macro PM in London
Where is James Watson? Not, it seems at Balyasny Asset Management (BAM) in London. Not any more.
Bloomberg reported Watson's exit from BAM an hour ago. We understand that he is returning to Millennium.
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Millennium and BAM declined to comment for this article. Watson didn't respond to a request to comment.
Watson joined BAM from Millennium in London in September 2024. He spent nearly seven years at Millennium and is thought to have run a pod of over 20 people there.
Watson built a pod at Balyasny too, although it was smaller. It is not clear what will become of this, although various people appear to have left already. The exits are understood to include Aditya Singh and George Tyrell who joined from Goldman Sachs in 2024 and who both left in July according to the FCA Register. Olek Gajowniczek from Nomura is also thought to be/have been in Watson's pod. There are suggestions that John Sun at BAM in New York is going to Millennium too.
If Watson is indeed returning to Millennium, his brief sojourn at Balyasny looks expensive for the smaller fund. Headhunters say Watson was an expensive hire; so too were members of his team.
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