Using MSCI HedgePlatform for holdings-based risk management

A Case Study for the State of Wisconsin Investment Board

At year-end 2015, the State of Wisconsin Investment Board (SWIB) held assets under management of $99 billion, with a hedge fund allocation of 3.5%.  In this case study, we show how SWIB employs the MSCI transparency service called HedgePlatform, which collects holdings data from fund administrators for more than 1,400 hedge funds each month.  While this study used hypothetical data, the risk management techniques were taken from SWIB’s actual practices.  By adding HedgePlatform, SWIB was afforded holdings-based analysis to help manage hedge fund risk, including manager style drift, excessive tail risk and large factor bets.