THE FOUNDER OF CITADEL · CITADEL

Ken Griffin

Multi-strategy quantitative trading: thousands of positions, obsessive risk management, technology as the edge.

Ken Griffin started trading from his Harvard dorm room, with a satellite dish installed on the roof to receive real-time prices. In 1990, aged 22, he founded Citadel: today it's one of the most profitable hedge funds in history, with tens of billions under management and returns that made him and generations of his traders billionaires.

Citadel runs multi-strategy: equities, fixed income, commodities, pure quant. Its sister company Citadel Securities is America's largest market maker: it handles an enormous share of all US retail stock trades, including order flow from brokers like Robinhood.

In 2021 Citadel landed at the center of the GameStop saga through the Melvin Capital rescue. Griffin is also one of America's biggest art collectors and political donors.

Famous moves

The flagship Wellington fund's record year: +38% in 2022, when almost everyone lost
Building Citadel Securities, which processes billions of retail orders a day
Buying a copy of the US Constitution for $43 million, outbidding a crypto collective

What are they buying today?

Citadel's positions are public: see the 13F portfolio of Citadel or follow it explained in the app.

Frequently asked questions

What does Citadel buy according to its 13Fs?

Citadel's 13F lists thousands of positions reflecting quant strategies: single names matter less than the aggregate direction. InsiderFlow tracks its main moves.

Are Citadel and Citadel Securities the same?

No: Citadel is the hedge fund, Citadel Securities the market maker. Same ownership, separate businesses.