The Top 3 DARWIN Indices of 2022

2022 was a challenging year for stock markets. In a year where the S&P 500 accumulated a loss of almost 19%, the Top 3 Investable Indices (DARWINs) in Darwinex achieved annual gross returns of between 7% and 37%.

As of 7 December 2022:

– The DARWIN JTL accumulated an annual return of 33.28%.

– The DARWIN THA had an annual return of 36.95%.

– And the DARWIN SYO had an annual return of 7.64%.

Next, we will go through each of the strategies of these three DARWIN indices in more detail:

1- The DARWIN JTL

JTL’s trading is based on traditional Japanese candlestick patterns. Its execution is based on a series of simple strategies that seek momentum situations in each of the assets it trades. It takes advantage of this market context, establishing an exit zone without setting limits to its objective, neither in price nor in time.

JTL operates by replicating the momentum strategy in an automated way, monitoring and controlling the risk, and adjusting the position to the changing volatility of the market. This enables the strategy to perform optimally in volatile environments.

The strategy’s track record dates back to August 2019 and its DARWIN JTL began one month later, on September 28th 2019.

Last December 7, the trader behind this index was managing $14,756,081.48 from 994 investors. Up to that point, it had generated €151,175.80 in performance fees.

During 2022, JTL ranked three times in the top three positions of our Seed Capital Allocation Programme, DarwinIA, achieving a total of €1,280,000 notional investment in its strategy. This achievement not only places this strategy in the Top 50 Historical Allocations in DarwinIA, but also as the DARWIN with the highest seed capital earned in DarwinIA over the past year.

As of December 2022, this investable index had a return –after fees– of 24.54%, and since its inception it had a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 21.65%, which is more than double that of the S&P 500 over the same period. In the Darwinex ecosystem, JTL is the Darwin with the largest number of Assets Under Management.

2- The Darwin THA

From the Swiss Investment Advisory Firm, Finbou AG, comes the Darwin THA. This strategy trades economic news such as Non-Farm Payroll (NFP) or interest rate decisions. Last summer, the Hedge Fund Journal recognised it as the “Best Performing Fund over 5 years”.

THA’s core strategy is based on trading high-impact news, in particular central bank monetary policy announcements. The strategy seeks to exploit price errors in currency markets in relation to unexpected monetary policy data or changes or any perceived price errors related to them. Before each trade, an in-depth scenario analysis is carried out to asses how the price action might unfold.

This DARWIN was created on April 1st, 2017, however, its track record dates back to January 2015. As of December 7th, it had captured the attention of 1,052 investors and had $12,734,155.26 in Assets Under Management. During 2022, THA also generated €435,000 in Performance Fees.

THA also won seed capital from our allocation programme, DarwinIA. On four occasions it ranked among the top 150 indices, which brought it €455,000 in notional capital during 2022. Like JTL, this Darwin is part of the Top 50 Historical Allocation on DarwinIA.

By December 2022, the Darwin THA had a return –after fees– of 27.17% and since its inception had a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 18.61%, nearly tripling the return of the S&P 500.

All these achievements position THA as the DARWIN with the highest return, the highest number of investors, and the highest amount of Performance Fees of our platform in 2022.

3- The Darwin SYO

The strategy of the DARWIN SYO is based on algorithmic trading with the objective of seeking Alpha. It targets capital preservation regardless of the market situation, whether it is a bull, bear, or flat market, distributing exposure at all times through a portfolio of trend-following, counter-trend, and market-neutral strategies.

This Darwin was created on 17 February 2018, although the strategy’s track record dates back to December 2016. By December 7th, the Darwin SYO had $7,375,756.96 in Assets Under Management from 794 investors and €356,688.37 in Performance Fees. Regarding our Seed Capital Allocation Programme, DarwinIA, this index obtained allocation on four occasions during 2022, achieving a total of €555,000 in seed capital and also securing a place in the Top 50 Historical Allocation.

As of December 2022, the SYO index had a return of 3.94% net of Performance Fees and since its inception it had a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.27%, comfortably outperforming the S&P 500 in the same period.