Some might consider Platinum Partners' 2013 performance, estimated at 10.32% according to an investor letter reviewed by ValueWalk, to be subpar when compared to nearly 30% index returns found in the equity markets. But that misses the point.
Platinum Partners is a diversified fund with many niche strategies with a significant focus on risk management. Since its founding in 2003 it has never had a losing year. But perhaps most significant to hedge fund allocators might be the fact that while the annualized standard deviation is 4.96%, the vast majority of that volatility came from the upside. Downside deviation was just 0.88%.
“For us controlling drawdowns and downside volatility is as important as the overall return. We always look at returns on...

