The person in-charge of one of the hedge industry's top engineering teams is stepping down.
Alfred Spector, the well-known computer scientist who had been Two Sigma's chief technology officer for five years, is retiring, according to the $60 billion fund. Taking his place is Jeffrey Wecker, a partner at Goldman Sachs who was the bank's first-ever chief data officer. His resume also includes stints at Ray Dalio's Bridgewater and Lehman Brothers.
"Jeff brings an ideal combination of commercial experience, business acumen, and technical understanding of data analytics and architecture to Two Sigma," said David Siegel, co-founder and co-chairman of Two Sigma in the release.
"Science and technology anchor Two Sigma's offerings, and we look forward to leveraging Jeff's unique expertise as we continue to grow the company."
Compared to Spector, Wecker's financial services background is extensive. In addition to his time at Goldman, he was also the CEO of Caspian Asset Management, along with his time at Bridgewater and Lehman. Spector had worked at tech firms for his career prior to joining Two Sigma, specifically Google and IBM.
"Data-driven systems have taken on increasing importance across financial services over the last decade, and Two Sigma is a true leader in developing and applying advanced quantitative methods to discover areas of opportunity," said Wecker in the release. He is set to join Two Sigma in July.
Wecker retired from Goldman in December 2019, and his responsibilities were split up among several managing directors, according to people familiar with the matter. At Goldman, Wecker placed data offices throughout the bank's many different departments, and at Ray Dalio's fund, he was the chief business architect in charge of changing the firm's investment engine.
Two Sigma, which is notable within the fast-paced hedge-fund industry for low turnover among employees, also recently lost a longtime tech leader in Andrew Janian. Janian is joining Citadel after he waits out his garden leave, as previously reported.
The firm filled his role internally but declined to say who has taken over his responsibilities.
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