A fund managed by Steve Cohen’s SAC Capital Advisors, a hedge fund manager that is attracting scrutiny from the US Securities and Exchange Commission as part of its ongoing insider trading inquiry, was the most profitable hedge fund in the world last year, according to annual rankings by Bloomberg Markets magazine.

SAC Capital International, Cohen's long/short equity strategy, tops the ranking of the 20 most profitable hedge funds in the world (see table). The $9bn fund, which was the third most profitable hedge fund in the previous year's rankings, gained 10% in the first 10 months of last year, after 8% in 2011. It brought home $789.5m in profits.