LEADERSHIP
Meet the Versor Partners
Deepak Gurnani
Founder and Managing Partner
Deepak Gurnani is the Founder and Managing Partner of Versor Investments. Deepak is the former CIO of Investcorp’s Hedge Fund Group and was one of the founding members in 1996. He was also a member of the Management Committee there. Deepak retired from Investcorp in March 2013. Prior to Investcorp, Deepak Gurnani spent six years with Citicorp.
Deepak has conducted extensive research over the last 20+ years into various aspects of hedge fund investing – analyzing risk and return of hedge funds, quantifying alternative risk premia inherent in hedge fund returns, using tactical asset allocation to enhance hedge fund portfolio returns, integrating hedge funds into institutional asset allocation and using separate accounts for risk management. Deepak holds a BTech from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, and an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad.
Ludger Hentschel
Founding Partner, Investments
Ludger Hentschel joined Versor Investments as a Founding Partner and is based in New York. Ludger has over 20 years of experience in quantitative research and investing. Prior to joining Versor Investments, he was Managing Director of Analytical Research at MSCI for leading research in global multi-asset class risk models. This included alternative investments, asset allocation and macroeconomic risk and liquidity risk. Before joining MSCI, Ludger was Head of Quantitative Research and Asset Allocation for the Hedge Fund Group at Investcorp. Previously, he was the Director of Equity Research at New York Life Investment Management, was an Associate Professor of Finance at the University of Rochester and served as an Economist for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.
Ludger earned a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Yale and a PhD in Economics from Princeton. He has published articles in leading academic finance journals, served as an Associate Editor for the Journal of Financial Economics, and is a frequent speaker at financial seminars and conferences. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Lester B. Pearson College of the Pacific US Foundation.
DeWayne Louis
Founding Partner
DeWayne Louis joined Versor Investments as a Founding Partner and is based in New York. DeWayne has over 20 years of experience in quantitative investment strategies, investment banking, private equity and hedge funds. Prior to Versor Investments, DeWayne joined Investcorp’s Hedge Fund Group at the inception of the North America and Europe branches. He remained there for nearly a decade. Prior to Investcorp, DeWayne was an Associate Director in UBS’ Private Equity Secondary Group, focusing on buying and selling private equity interests in the secondary market. Earlier in his career, DeWayne was an Associate in the Investment Banking Division of Credit Suisse where he focused on mergers, acquisitions and project finance transactions.
DeWayne serves on the board of the New York City Economic Development Corporation (“NYCEDC”). NYCEDC is the City’s primary vehicle for promoting economic growth in each of the five boroughs. DeWayne also serves on the Board of the Brooklyn Public Library (“BPL”), one of the nation’s largest public library systems. BPL is a recognized leader in cultural offerings, literacy, out-of-school-time services, workforce development programs, and digital literacy. DeWayne holds a BS in Finance and International Business with a French minor from Georgetown University. There, he was a four-year varsity letterman on the football team.
Andrew Flynn
Founding Partner, Chief Operating Officer
Andrew Flynn has over 20 years of experience in hedge fund operational management and control. Prior to joining Versor Investments, he spent 10 years at Tudor Investment Corporation and was Global Head of Operations, reporting to the COO. At Tudor, Andrew was extensively involved in the setup of Tudor’s quantitative trading business, regulatory compliance, legal negotiations, enterprise risk management, and matters of industry best practice. He was co-chair of Tudor’s Brokerage Committee, and a member of the Credit Committee and Global Risk Forum.
Previously, Andrew held operations management positions at Citco Fund Services, Maximus Capital and Moore Capital. Andrew received a BBA in Finance from the IONA College Hagan School of Business in New Rochelle, New York.
Nirav Shah, CFA
Founding Partner
Nirav Shah has over 18 years of experience in quantitative research, asset allocation and developing scalable systems. Within Versor, Nirav serves on the management committee and is also the Head of the India Office. In his role, Nirav assumes leadership of critical functions including Trading Technology, Infrastructure, HR, and management of client relationships across Asia. Beyond his operational roles, Nirav is passionate about continuous learning and nurturing young research talent. He played a pivotal role in establishment of the ‘Versor Academy’, a comprehensive hub of educational resources encompassing finance, quantitative research, statistics, and technology. Before his tenure at Versor Investments, Nirav was the founder of a consulting firm focused on quantitative research. Prior to that, Nirav was a Vice President at Investcorp in New York focused on asset allocation and quantitative research. In early stages of his career, Nirav worked as a Quantitative Researcher at Phoenix Global Capital Management, a CTA based in Chicago.
Nirav earned an M.S. in Finance from the Illinois Institute of Technology, Chicago, and a B.E. in Computer Engineering from Mumbai University. Nirav is also a CFA charter holder.
Nishant Gurnani
Partner, Investments
Nishant leads futures and FX research at Versor Investments working closely with the Investment Committee in driving the investment research agenda across all strategies. Based in New York, Nishant operates across the full spectrum of strategy development from alpha signal generation to portfolio construction. Additionally, he plays an integral role in the Firm’s efforts in alternative data sourcing and the applications of machine learning.
Prior to joining Versor Investments, Nishant was the second hire on the data team at Brex, a San Francisco-based financial technology firm, working on a mix of data science, analytics and engineering projects focused on credit risk.
Nishant holds an A.B. in Mathematics from Princeton and an M.S. in Statistics from UC San Diego.