Journalism, finance, and markets reporting by Nishant Kumar
Nishant Kumar is a PhD candidate in computer science at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where he conducts advanced research in applied cryptography, with a concentration on secure multiparty computation (MPC). Previously, he was a researcher at Microsoft Research India, contributing to the EzPC project—an open-source framework that integrates privacy-preserving machine learning with TensorFlow. Kumar’s work in efficient zero-knowledge proofs and MPC protocols supports confidentiality and compliance within blockchain and DeFi ecosystems. He has published multiple peer-reviewed papers in top-tier cryptographic journals and presented at conferences including Eurocrypt and NDSS. His academic research has been cited over 400 times and directly influences developments in secure computation frameworks used in blockchain privacy tools.
Kumar’s recent collaboration with industry researchers resulted in an MPC-based toolchain tested on private blockchain deployments. With active mentorship roles and open-source contributions, Kumar is part of the next generation of cryptographers building real-world privacy tech for decentralized finance and secure smart contracts.
Nishant Kumar: Arini and Sona hedge funds hit by junk-debt downturn
Arini and Sona’s main hedge funds have experienced significant losses in recent weeks as a sharp decline in certain segments of the junk-debt market affected their holdings. Nishant Kumar ...
Maven shifts business focus to Dubai as it closes New York office, Nishant Kumar reports
Maven is shutting down its New York office as the proprietary trading firm sees its greatest potential for business growth in Dubai, where it has recently opened an office. Nishant Kumar shared ...
Nishant Kumar: Millennium trader leaves after preliminary spinout discussions to join Balyasny
A trader from Millennium who had been in preliminary discussions about a potential spinout is leaving the firm to join Balyasny. The update was reported by Nishant ...
Big firms dominate assets, Nishant Kumar notes
Nishant Kumar observes that entering the market with backing from major firms or high-profile investors once nearly ensured a billion-dollar launch. However, he points out that leading traders ...
Nishant Kumar: Chris Rokos macro hedge fund made money last month
Nishant Kumar reports that Chris Rokos's macro hedge fund generated profits last month at a time when many competitors faced challenging trading conditions. The tweet also references the longest ...
Hedge fund returns reviewed for last month and ytd, Nishant Kumar notes
Nishant Kumar reviews the performance of major hedge funds over the last month and year to date. The returns listed are after fees, but the selection is not comprehensive. Kumar acknowledges that ...
Nishant Kumar: Hedge fund returns for September show machines outperform humans
Nishant Kumar reports that initial hedge fund returns for September indicate that machine-driven strategies outperformed human traders. Traders contended with a volatile month as inflation ...
Millennium appoints Drew Gillanders to head new equities group, Nishant Kumar reveals
Nishant Kumar reports that Millennium has hired Drew Gillanders, who previously led Citadel's International Equities business, to head a new unit in equities. Gillanders recently departed from ...
Nishant Kumar: Broad Reach fund closes to new money at $3.5 billion
Nishant Kumar reports that Bradley Wickens’ hedge fund Broad Reach has received backing from Abu Dhabi Investment Council, joining ExodusPoint, Deem, and Dymon. Wickens is closing his main fund ...
Millennium joins Rokos in hedge fund move to Athens, Nishant Kumar notes
Nishant Kumar reports that Athens is emerging as a potential hub for hedge funds, with Millennium announcing plans to open an office in the city, joining Rokos. London-based portfolio manager ...
Nishant Kumar: Chris Rokos moving from UK to Greece after £330m tax bill
Nishant Kumar reports that hedge fund manager Chris Rokos is set to leave the UK for Greece, marking the latest departure by one of the country’s top taxpayers. Rokos, a prominent figure in ...
Javier Velazquez gives back client money to manage Millennium capital, Nishant Kumar notes
Nishant Kumar reports that Javier Velazquez is returning external clients' cash from his hedge fund in order to manage money exclusively for his former employer and largest backer, Millennium ...
Nishant Kumar: RIEF, RIDA, P72, Schonfeld, Walleye, Whale Rock, Centiva listed in market update
Nishant Kumar shares a list of investment firms and funds including RIEF, RIDA, P72, Schonfeld, Walleye, Whale Rock, and Centiva. No further context or financial details are provided in the ...
Khalid Malik hedge fund secures new backing after $1.5 billion loss, Nishant Kumar reveals
Nishant Kumar reports that Khalid Malik’s stocks-focused hedge fund, which previously lost a $1.5 billion backing from Millennium over two years ago, has reset its business operations. The ...
Nishant Kumar: LMR expands external allocation group as SMA race accelerates
Nishant Kumar reports that LMR is building a group to allocate capital to traders outside of its own employee base. The move comes as multi-strategy hedge funds increasingly compete to deploy ...
Hedge fund giants now rent expensive talent instead of only hiring, Nishant Kumar notes
Nishant Kumar observes a new trend in the hedge fund sector, where major firms are moving from simply hiring expensive talent to also renting it. This shift reflects the escalating competition ...
Nishant Kumar: Abu Dhabi ADIC invests $1 billion in Deem macro hedge fund
Nishant Kumar reports that Abu Dhabi’s ADIC has provided about $1 billion in new capital to the macro hedge fund Deem. The fund now has a $15 billion pool to invest in hedge funds. This follows ...
Hedge funds deliver strongest H1 returns in five years, Nishant Kumar notes
Nishant Kumar reports that hedge funds have posted their strongest first-half performance in five years, rebounding after a challenging March period that impacted some of the world’s largest ...
Nishant Kumar: BlueCrest calls UK less attractive after $265 million court loss
Nishant Kumar reports that BlueCrest, led by Michael Platt, has described the UK as no longer a serious contender for doing business after the firm lost a $265 million UK Supreme Court ruling. The ...
Millennium to back new quantitative hedge fund firm, Nishant Kumar reveals
Nishant Kumar reports that Millennium will back a new quantitative hedge fund firm led by Paul Dou, who previously worked as a researcher at Citadel. The new firm could manage more than $1 ...
Nishant Kumar: New wave of hedge funds reject additional cash influx
Nishant Kumar reports that a new wave of hedge funds is choosing to refuse further cash investments, even as investors are looking to commit more funds. DE Shaw's main hedge funds have been closed ...
