Steve Cohen

Steve Cohen grew up in Great Neck, New York, and studied economics at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School. He began trading options at Gruntal & Co. and proved to be an extraordinary natural trader, reportedly generating $100,000 in profits on his first day. He founded S.A.C. Capital Advisors in 1992 with $25 million — named for his initials. SAC Capital became the most profitable hedge fund in history on a risk-adjusted basis: the fund generated annualised returns of over 30% from its founding through 2013, making Cohen one of the wealthiest people in the United States. Cohen is widely regarded as one of the greatest equity traders alive — possessing an extraordinary ability to read market patterns, maintain discipline under pressure, and make rapid trading decisions. SAC Capital attracted enormous controversy after a decade-long government investigation concluded with the fund's operating subsidiary pleading guilty to securities fraud charges in 2013 and paying $1.8 billion in fines and penalties — the largest insider trading settlement in US history. Cohen himself was not criminally charged. SAC Capital was converted into a family office and then relaunched as Point72 Asset Management, which has grown to manage approximately $26 billion. Cohen also purchased the New York Mets Major League Baseball franchise in 2020 for $2.4 billion — the largest price ever paid for an MLB team. He has been a significant mentor to dozens of hedge fund managers who trained at SAC before founding their own firms.