The #MeToo movement finally arrived in the financial services industry. Crispin Odey is a British hedge fund manager and the founding partner of Odey Asset Management (website). In the wake of a Financial Times investigation detailing decades of abuse inflicted by Odey on female staff, the partners at his his hedge fund said they had removed him from the business. The name of the company, which has about $4.4bn of assets under management, will also change.
The Financial Times revealed that 13 women had accused Crispin Odey of sexual harassment or assault over a span of 25 years. The allegations range back to 1998, with the most recent incident reportedly occurring in December 2021.
Odey points out that none of the allegations have been substantiated in a court of law or through an investigation. He vehemently denies these claims, referring to them as “rubbish” in his statement to the paper and implying that he may resist the firm’s decision.
Following the Financial Times revelation, a number of financial institutions acting swiftly to cut ties with the hedge fund, including Morgan Stanley, Exane, Goldman Sachs, and Schroders.The partners at Odey Asset Management on Saturday said they had removed him from the business. The hedge fund acknowledges the seriousness of the misconduct allegations and emphasizes its commitment to addressing such issues. However, it is not clear what mechanism the firm’s executive committee had used to remove Odey, who holds a majority stake.
For over 30 years, Crispin Odey had been leading the hedge fund he established in 1991, managing over £10 billion worth of investments at its peak. Known as a prominent supporter of Brexit, he claimed to have made substantial profits as the value of sterling dropped following the referendum vote.
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