DANNY YONG
The co-founder of Dymon Asia Capital, one of the largest macro hedge funds in Singapore.
Yong is Singapore's homegrown macro star. He learned the trade at Goldman Sachs and Citadel, then co-founded Dymon Asia Capital in 2008 with $100 million of seed money from Paul Tudor Jones. Bad timing, since he launched right into the financial crisis and lost about 14% in the first five months. He recovered and built Dymon into an Asia macro powerhouse managing billions. A former national badminton player who plays markets the way he played sport, all in or not at all.
Net Worth
Undisclosed
Nationality
Singaporean
Time Horizon
Swing
Risk Appetite
7 / 10
Fund
Dymon Asia Capital
CAREER & BACKGROUND
Yong graduated with first class honours in banking and finance from Nanyang Business School in 1997. He got his first break as an Asian currency derivatives trader at JP Morgan after a colleague pulled his application from the rejection pile.
He joined Goldman Sachs in 2000 and became head of trading for Southeast Asian foreign exchange and derivatives. In 2005 he moved to hedge fund giant Citadel, running Asia macro and relative value trading, then became chief investment officer of Hong Kong's Abax Global Capital.
In July 2008 he co-founded Dymon Asia Capital with Keith Tan, backed by $100 million from Paul Tudor Jones's Tudor Investment Corp. By 2014 the firm's macro fund managed around $4.5 billion and ranked among the top large hedge funds globally.
COMPANIES & ROLES
Dymon Asia Capital, Dymon Asia Macro Fund
INVESTING STYLE & PHILOSOPHY
Yong runs an Asia-focused global macro strategy, making directional bets on currencies, rates, and markets across the region and beyond. His edge is deep knowledge of Asian foreign exchange and derivatives, built over years at Goldman and Citadel.
He trades with conviction and is willing to sit out or size down when he does not see an opportunity. The Dymon Macro Fund made its name by posting strong returns in years when most macro funds struggled, notably gaining about 20% in 2011 as rivals fell.
He treats commitment as the whole game, arguing you cannot do well in investing halfway.
THE PLAYBOOK
Risk Approach
Yong takes meaningful macro risk but manages it with the discipline of someone who launched into a crisis and survived. He is comfortable with volatility and concentrated bets when his conviction is high.
His early loss taught him to respect drawdowns without fearing them.
Money Habits
Yong keeps his personal wealth private, though years of strong performance fees have clearly made him rich. He has channeled energy into building Dymon's people rather than chasing a public profile.
A former national-level badminton player, he brings an athlete's discipline to his routine. In recent years he shifted from being the star trader to coaching younger managers at the firm, a sign he cares more about building a lasting institution than maximizing his own trading book.
He stays largely out of the celebrity-finance spotlight that some peers court.
BIGGEST WIN
Yong's standout year was 2011, when the Dymon Asia Macro Fund returned about 20% while most macro funds around the world lost money. That performance cemented Dymon's reputation and helped grow it into one of Asia's largest hedge funds, managing billions.
Building a firm from a crisis-era launch into a multi-billion-dollar franchise, seeded originally by Paul Tudor Jones, is the real long-run win.
BIGGEST MISTAKE
The timing of the launch was brutal. Dymon opened its doors in July 2008, just before the global financial crisis hit full force, and the fund lost about 13.7% in its first five months.
It was a rough start that could have sunk a new firm. Yong steadied it and recovered, but the episode is a reminder that even a skilled trader cannot control when the market turns against a brand-new fund.
FINANCIAL PHILOSOPHY
Yong believes investing rewards total commitment. He has said you have to be 100% committed to do well, and he approaches trading the way he once approached competitive badminton.
He built Dymon around the idea that Asia deserved a serious homegrown macro fund rather than relying on Western giants. He values independence, which is why he left big firms to build his own.
In recent years he has stepped back from daily trading to coach and mentor Dymon's next generation of portfolio managers.
FAMILY & PERSONAL LIFE
Yong keeps his family life private. Publicly he is known for his sporting background as a national-level badminton player rather than personal details, which he does not discuss in the press.
EDUCATION
Yong studied at Catholic Junior College, where he competed in badminton at national level, then earned a first class honours degree in banking and finance from Nanyang Business School in Singapore in 1997. That finance grounding launched his trading career at JP Morgan.
BOOKS & RESOURCES
Yong has not written a book
His story is covered in Singapore and Asian finance press as a case study in building a homegrown macro fund
QUOTES (5)
Making money is just a means of keeping score, to know how well you are doing as a trader and investor.
This is what I love doing. To do well in investing, one has to be 100 per cent committed. The day one feels like slowing down, it is better to just retire. In this business, you are either 100 per cent engaged, or not at all.
We wouldn't be here if it wasn't for Tudor. In my mind, Tudor is the best macro fund in the world. There's a culture of fairness and excellence.
Hedge-fund investing is like a marathon. I intend to do this for at least the next 20 years.
It has been our experience that undisciplined managers easily become victims of their own success.
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