The storm of investment losses and redemptions that hit the hedge fund industry left few managers unscathed. Europe’s largest managers were no exception. Overall, Europe’s 10 biggest funds ran about $123bn (€86bn) at the end of June, 33% less than they did 12 months earlier, according to Financial News’s annual review of Europe’s biggest managers. In order to qualify for the top 30 last year, a fund had to run $4bn; this year, $1.3bn was sufficient.

One year ago, investors' predilection for large managers boosted their assets. By the middle of this year inflows, at best, only served to limit contraction.