Joakim Hannisdahl has revealed he plans to return with a new fund after parting company with Cleaves Asset Management.

He founded the hedge fund just over a year ago under the auspices of Norwegian investment bank Cleaves Securities, where he had been the leading shipping analyst.

The shipping analyst and investor told TradeWinds last month that he resigned “due to irreconcilable differences” with Cleaves’ head office.

“The recent developments for the shipping fund have been very unfortunate, and the past few months have been very challenging for my family and me,” he has now said in a new statement.

“I now want to focus on the future and put this whole ordeal behind me.

“It goes without saying that I instructed the fund’s administrator, Northern Trust, to fully redeem my investments in the fund after the news finally broke in mid-October. I am currently the largest investor in the fund.”

Hannisdahl’s plan is to establish a long/short shipping hedge fund fully controlled by him.

This will take between three and six months.

The investor previously owned a company called Gersemi Research, which he founded in 2017.

His new venture is called Gersemi Asset Management, Gersemi being a Norse goddess whose name means “riches” or “treasure”.

Standing alongside investors

“I have built some strong relationships with my investors over the years, and I will focus on doing the same going forward,” he said.

“I want to continue on the premise of the fund manager investing alongside investors and making money together with investors and not from the investors.

“Thus, I will offer a special share class with a lower fee structure for investors who are coming into the fund together with me from inception.”

Hannisdahl said his shipping investments hit an all-time high on Monday.

He added that he has delivered a 381% return as a shipping investor since he started investing in mid-2017.

He said he did his utmost to continue the Cleaves fund as a going concern with himself as fund manager.

Hannisdahl launched the fund in September 2021, after a decade as an analyst, and he said adopting a “strict” econometric model helped him to become one of the industry’s top observers.

Four years at Cleaves

He had been with Cleaves since 2018, joining after selling Gersemi Research to the shipbroker and financial services outfit.

The fund made well-publicised plays into dry bulk earlier in the year and a quick switch to tanker and gas carrier owners in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Cleaves has not commented, but a note from Cleaves chief executive Per Olav Karlsen to fund investors said the unnamed head of fund management at Cleaves would be leaving his post immediately and would be replaced with a “new experienced team”.