Odey Asset Management has halted redemptions in two funds and closed another as investors head to the exits in the wake of sexual assault accusations against the firm’s founder Crispin Odey.
The Odey Swan Fund has been shut down, while investors are no longer able to redeem their investments in the Brook Developed Markets Fund and the LF Brook Afternoon fund.
The halting of redemptions came as the number of investors pulling out exceeded 10% of the fund’s value.
Odey Asset Management has sold well over £100 million worth of shares in the past two days as investors looked to cash out, including most notably selling a £75 million stake in AO World to Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group.
The spate of investors looking to withdraw their funds follows reports in the Financial Times last week in which multiple women accused Crispin Odey of sexual harassment or assault. He told the FT that “none of the allegations have been stood up in a courtroom or an investigation”.
Following the reports, Odey Asset Management removed Crispin Odey as a partner and said he would no longer have “any economic or personal involvement” in the hedge fund.
It comes as JP Morgan has also reportedly become the last of the major banks to cut ties with the scandal-hit firm as it comes under mounting pressure in the wake of sexual assault and harassment allegations against Mr Odey. Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and Exane all severed their ties with Odey Asset Management last week.
