Quant Hedge-Fund Blowups vs. Tuatara (M&A Ripple)
2026 · Tuatara figures from the live
/fund-performance index · external figures cited
Photo: Financial Times
The two events
| # | Event | Date(s) | What |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | Hedge funds' worst month vs S&P 500 in 20+ years | July 2026 (full month) | AI/semis de-gross. Rokos −1.2%, Brevan −1.2% (July). |
| B | Quant hedge funds' worst day in two years | 2026-08-19 (turbulence 2026-08-18..21) | Moderna +177% intraday 08-19 (melanoma vaccine) torched quant shorts; Treasury buyback doubling added bond havoc. |
Tuatara — M&A Ripple index
+14.99%
inception → Aug-14 peak (115.0)
+3.77%
July 28→31 window
2026-08-18
last loaded close (113.6)
Days before 2026-08-11 are the model index on real
announced deals with paper execution; from 2026-08-11 on, live broker
fills.
Side-by-side
| Quant hedge funds | Tuatara M&A Ripple | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| July: worst month vs S&P in 20+ yrs (Rokos/Brevan −1.2%) | +3.77% 2026-07-28 100.00 → 2026-07-31 103.77 | paper (model index; live execution began 2026-08-11) |
| Aug 18–22: worst day in 2 yrs (08-19, Moderna +177%) | n/a | no index point after 2026-08-18; 08-19..22 closes not yet loaded — does not yet reflect the 08-19 blowup day (last close 2026-08-18 = 113.57) |
No returns are fabricated. Every Tuatara number is
the live-chart index; the Aug close-data gap is disclosed, not
filled.
Sources
Hedge funds' worst month vs S&P 500 in 20+ years
- CNBC 2026-08-21 — Goldman: hedge funds' worst underperformance vs S&P 500 in July in 20+ years
- Bloomberg 2026-08-19 — Rokos, Brevan Join Hedge Fund Peers Wrongfooted in July Havoc
- Hedgeweek 2026-08-21 — Hedge funds suffer historic July setback as AI trade unravels
Quant hedge funds' worst day in two years
- Financial Times 2026-08-20 — Quant hedge funds suffer worst day in 2 years as Treasury boosts buyback and Moderna shares leap (Pollard, Shah, Franklin)
- Fortune 2026-08-19 — Moderna & Merck mRNA melanoma vaccine sends stocks soaring
- TIKR 2026-08-19 — Moderna stock skyrockets 177% after positive late-stage skin cancer vaccine trial
- WSWS 2026-08-21 — Bessent's bond market intervention falls flat