Who
Paul Tudor Jones is the founder of Tudor Investment Corp., a hedge fund with some $19 billion in assets under management. Until recently, Jones was best known for having never ended a year with a loss. Alas, his fund fell in 2007, though he still managed to take home a tidy $700 million.
Backstory
Inspired by stories of legendary Chicago Board of Trade soybean trader Richard Dennis, Jones decided to ask his uncle, Bill Dunavant, then the head of the country's largest cotton merchant firm, for help landing a job. The connection paid off: The UVA grad cut his teeth trading cotton futures for Dunavant's buddy, cotton broker Eli Tullis, before jumping to E.F. Hutton, where his colleagues included future hedge fund star (and Robin Hood partner) Glenn Dubin. Jones started trading independently in 1980, and established Tudor Investment Corp. in 1983 with $300,000. Today, the "gentleman trader" has an array of hedge funds that invest mostly in stocks and currencies.
Of note
Among Jones's claims to fame over the past two decades: He's said to have predicted Black Friday in 1987 and tripled his money on short positions, making a killing in the process. Jones also has the distinction of being one of the first hedge fund managers to cross into private equity, setting up a Boston-based buyout group in the 1990s. He's also served as mentor to a handful of prominent hedge fund managers who have since established notable funds of their own, including commodities trader Dwight Anderson and Peter Borish, who runs Twinfields Capital Management. His success hasn't been untarnished, however. In 1996, Jones paid a then-record fine for a non-fraud offense to settle SEC market manipulation allegations. More recently, his distinguished record took a hit in 2007 when Tudor turned in a loss for the year amid the mortgage meltdown—his global equity hedge fund fell a startling 8.5 percent in December 2007 alone—and he shuttered his small-cap equity hedge fund due to underperformance.
Keeping score
Jones's net worth was estimated at $3.2 billion by Forbes in 2010. He pulled in an estimated $715 million in 2006 and $600-700 million in 2007.
Pet causes
One of the most philanthropically-inclined hedge fund managers, Jones helped found the Robin Hood Foundation in 1988 along with pal Glenn Dubin. Jones has since encouraged some of the most powerful players in town to donate to the group; today, the board includes Lloyd Blankfein, Dick Fuld, Steve Cohen, Dan Och, and Ken Langone. One of the first non-profits to adopt a performance-based approach—recipients of the group's funds have to meet certain benchmarks to continue receiving funds—today the David Saltzman-led anti-poverty group remains one of the most notable organizations in town. Jones has also been active in various environmental causes; he donated $10 million to try to get the sugar industry from polluting the Florida Everglades. And he's been one of his alma mater's most generous donors: UVA recently renamed their brand-new stadium in honor of his father, John Paul Jones.
Campaign trail
Jones has become increasingly politically active in recent years. Although he gave to a handful of candidates in 2008, he raised attention when he hosted a splashy fundraiser for Barack Obama at his waterfront Greenwich mansion in May 2007.
Personal
An avid hunter and fisherman and formerly a man-about-town, Jones reportedly dated Bianca Jagger and Christina Onassis back in the day. He's currently married to a former model and native of Australia named Sonia Klein, with whom he has four children. Jones and his family can hang their hats at any one of four palatial homes. In 1994, he paid $11 million for a Greenwich mansion, which he then tore down in 1998 to build a 13,000-square-foot Monticello-look-alike worth an estimated $60 million. (It features a 25-car underground garage.) Jones also has a wildlife preserve on the Chesapeake Bay (Tudor Farms), a retreat in the Florida Keys, and an oceanfront home in Sydney.
Toys
Jones can fly on any one of four planes: His fund owns two Bombardier Global Express jets ($46 million each), a Dassault Falcon 50 ($20 million), and a small, single-engine Cessna.
