Boaz Weinstein

Boaz Weinstein
Born	Boaz Ronald Weinstein 1973
Birthplace	New York City, New York, U.S.
Nationality	American
Occupation	Hedge fund manager, founder of Saba Capital Management
Known for	Credit default swap trading, London Whale trade, closed-end fund activism
Education	University of Michigan (BA)
Children	3

Boaz Ronald Weinstein (born 1973) is an American hedge fund manager and the founder of Saba Capital Management, a New York–based investment firm that manages approximately $6 billion in assets. Weinstein first gained attention on Wall Street as a young trader at Deutsche Bank, where he built one of the financial industry's most prominent proprietary trading operations focused on credit default swaps and capital structure arbitrage. He became one of the youngest managing directors in Deutsche Bank's history and ran a trading book that at times exceeded $10 billion in notional value. After leaving Deutsche Bank in 2009 in the wake of trading losses tied to the global financial crisis, Weinstein launched Saba Capital Management as an independent hedge fund. He attracted widespread attention in 2012 when he was among the first investors to identify and profit from the trading anomaly that became known as the "London Whale" incident at JPMorgan Chase, which ultimately cost the bank approximately $6.2 billion in losses. In more recent years, Weinstein has become known as an activist investor in the closed-end fund space and, as of 2026, has expanded his activist strategy into the private credit market through campaigns targeting funds managed by firms such as Blue Owl Capital.

Early Life

Boaz Ronald Weinstein was born in 1973 in New York City. He is of Israeli descent; his family has roots in Israel, and Weinstein has maintained connections to the Israeli and broader Jewish community throughout his career. He grew up in the New York City area and showed an early aptitude for strategic thinking and competitive pursuits. Weinstein became a skilled chess player at a young age, achieving the rank of Life Master from the United States Chess Federation, a distinction that requires a sustained high level of tournament performance. His chess background has been frequently cited in media profiles as a parallel to his analytical approach to financial markets, particularly his focus on complex strategies that require the ability to evaluate multiple variables and potential outcomes simultaneously.

Weinstein's early interest in markets and quantitative reasoning led him to pursue studies in economics and finance. He attended the University of Michigan, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree. After completing his undergraduate education, Weinstein moved directly into a career on Wall Street, entering the financial industry at a time when the credit derivatives market was still in its nascent stages.

Education

Weinstein earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Michigan. His academic background provided a foundation for his subsequent career in quantitative and credit-focused trading strategies. While specific details about his field of study or academic achievements at Michigan are not extensively documented in public sources, his early hire at Deutsche Bank—reportedly at the age of 24 as a derivatives trader—suggests he distinguished himself academically or through early internship and professional experience sufficient to enter one of the world's largest investment banks at a junior level.

Career

Deutsche Bank (1998–2009)

Weinstein joined Deutsche Bank in the late 1990s as a trader focused on credit derivatives, a class of financial instruments that was rapidly growing in volume and complexity at the time. He quickly rose through the ranks of the bank's trading operations and was appointed a managing director at a young age, making him one of the youngest individuals to hold that title in Deutsche Bank's history. By the mid-2000s, Weinstein had become the co-head of global credit trading at Deutsche Bank and oversaw a proprietary trading group that deployed the bank's own capital in credit default swap markets and capital structure arbitrage strategies.

Weinstein's approach at Deutsche Bank involved identifying mispricings in the credit markets, particularly through the use of credit default swaps—contracts that function as insurance against the default of a debt issuer. His strategies also encompassed capital structure arbitrage, which seeks to exploit pricing discrepancies between different securities issued by the same company, such as between a firm's equity, debt, and credit derivatives. At the height of his operations at Deutsche Bank, the notional value of his trading positions was reported to be substantial, reflecting the scale of the proprietary trading operation he had built within the institution.

The 2007–2008 financial crisis dealt a severe blow to Weinstein's trading book. As credit markets seized and liquidity evaporated in 2008, Weinstein's proprietary trading group incurred significant losses. The Wall Street Journal reported that the losses contributed to his departure from Deutsche Bank. Weinstein left the bank in early 2009 amid broader restructuring efforts across Wall Street, as major financial institutions scaled back or eliminated their proprietary trading desks in the aftermath of the crisis and in anticipation of new regulations that would later be codified in the Volcker Rule provisions of the Dodd–Frank Act.

Founding of Saba Capital Management

Shortly after departing Deutsche Bank, Weinstein moved to establish his own investment firm. In mid-2009, he raised approximately $160 million in seed capital to launch Saba Capital Management. The name "Saba" is derived from the Hebrew word for "grandfather," reflecting Weinstein's Israeli heritage. The fund's initial strategy focused on credit-related trading, drawing on the expertise Weinstein had developed over a decade at Deutsche Bank. Saba Capital was headquartered in New York City and focused on credit default swaps, corporate bonds, and related instruments.

The timing of Saba's launch proved favorable. Credit markets were in the early stages of recovery from the 2008 crisis, and mispricings were abundant. Bloomberg reported in 2010 that Weinstein profited from credit market distress during a period when European sovereign debt concerns roiled global markets, generating returns that outpaced many of his peers. By establishing his fund during a period of dislocation, Weinstein was able to capitalize on the types of opportunities that had originally defined his career as a credit trader.

The London Whale Trade (2012)

Weinstein's most publicly prominent trade came in 2012, when he identified an unusual pattern in the credit default swap market that he traced to a large position held by a trader at JPMorgan Chase's Chief Investment Office in London. The JPMorgan trader, Bruno Iksil, had built up an enormous position in credit derivative indices that had become so large it was distorting market prices. Iksil became known in the press as the "London Whale" due to the sheer size of the trades.

Weinstein was among the first market participants to recognize the opportunity presented by the Whale's outsized positions. In a 2013 account published by The New York Times DealBook, Weinstein described the process of identifying the trade as relatively straightforward, noting that the pricing anomalies were visible to those with expertise in credit derivative indices. Saba Capital and several other hedge funds took positions opposite to Iksil's trades, effectively betting that the pricing distortions would correct.

When JPMorgan's position unraveled over the course of 2012, the bank ultimately disclosed approximately $6.2 billion in trading losses. The opposing positions held by Weinstein's fund and other hedge funds generated substantial profits. The London Whale episode became one of the most scrutinized trading events of the post-crisis era and cemented Weinstein's reputation as a skilled credit trader capable of identifying structural mispricings in derivative markets.

Growth of Saba Capital and Activist Strategy

Following the London Whale trade, Saba Capital continued to grow as an investment firm. Weinstein maintained the fund's focus on credit markets while also expanding into other strategies. Institutional Investor profiled Weinstein and Saba Capital, noting the firm's growth and Weinstein's desire to maintain a relatively low public profile despite his increasing prominence in the hedge fund industry.

During the market volatility surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Weinstein's fund performed strongly. Bloomberg reported that Saba Capital generated a 90 percent gain during the early months of the pandemic-driven market upheaval, as credit spreads widened dramatically and volatility spiked across asset classes. The performance underscored Saba's strength in periods of market dislocation and its ability to capitalize on sharp moves in credit markets.

Weinstein has also spoken publicly at major industry events. In 2017, he appeared at the CNBC Delivering Alpha conference, where he discussed his investment views and strategies.

In more recent years, Saba Capital has become one of the most active activist investors in the closed-end fund market in the United States. The firm has accumulated large positions in closed-end funds trading at discounts to their net asset value and has engaged in campaigns to pressure fund boards into taking actions to narrow those discounts, such as converting to open-end structures, implementing share buybacks, or merging funds. This activist closed-end fund strategy has become a significant component of Saba's overall investment approach and has brought Weinstein into frequent public disputes with fund managers and boards.

Private Credit Activism (2026)

By early 2026, Weinstein had expanded his activist efforts beyond traditional closed-end funds into the private credit market. In February 2026, Saba Capital, in partnership with Cox Capital Partners, disclosed its intention to commence a tender offer for shares of several business development companies (BDCs) managed by Blue Owl Capital. The offer targeted stakes in three semiliquid private credit vehicles managed by Blue Owl, including Blue Owl Capital Corporation II and Blue Owl Technology Income Corp., at prices representing a steep discount to their stated net asset values.

The campaign attracted significant media attention. The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, and Barron's all covered the tender offer and its implications for the broader private credit industry. CNBC reported that shares of Blue Owl tumbled as activist hedge funds circled the firm, and described growing concerns about liquidity risks in the private credit sector more broadly.

On February 24, 2026, Weinstein escalated his public commentary, warning that "the wheels are coming off" private credit funds and arguing that the turmoil surrounding Blue Owl Capital's funds was indicative of broader structural vulnerabilities in the approximately $1.8 trillion private credit market. The campaign positioned Weinstein as one of the most prominent public critics of the rapid growth of the private credit sector and raised questions about liquidity, valuation practices, and investor protections in semiliquid fund structures.

Personal Life

Weinstein resides in New York City. In 2012, Bloomberg reported that he purchased a Manhattan cooperative apartment for $25.5 million, one of the higher-priced residential transactions in the city at the time.

Weinstein is married to Tali Farhadian Weinstein, an attorney who has held positions in public service. She previously served as general counsel of the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office and was a candidate in the 2021 Democratic primary election for Manhattan District Attorney. The couple has three children.

Weinstein has been involved in philanthropic activities in New York City. He and his wife made a charitable gift aimed at supporting efforts to combat domestic violence, as reported by Bloomberg in 2020. Weinstein has also been involved with the UJA-Federation of New York; in 2012, he was among Wall Street figures who attended a UJA-Federation philanthropy dinner, as covered by The New York Times DealBook.

In 2018, Weinstein wrote an opinion piece for The New York Times regarding education policy, specifically addressing proposals by New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio concerning admissions at Stuyvesant High School, one of the city's specialized public high schools.

Weinstein is an accomplished chess player who holds the title of Life Master from the United States Chess Federation.

Recognition

Weinstein has been the subject of extensive media coverage throughout his career. His profile at Deutsche Bank led to feature articles in The Wall Street Journal, which profiled his role as one of the bank's top traders in the mid-2000s. Following the London Whale episode in 2012, he received further attention from The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, and other financial media outlets for his role in identifying and profiting from the JPMorgan trading anomaly.

Institutional Investor included Weinstein in its coverage of leading hedge fund managers, describing him as a significant figure in the credit trading space. His performance during the 2020 market downturn—generating a reported 90 percent gain during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic—drew additional media attention and reinforced his reputation as a trader who performs well during periods of market stress.

Weinstein's activist campaigns in the closed-end fund and private credit markets have brought a new dimension to his public profile. His 2026 campaign targeting Blue Owl Capital's private credit funds was covered by Bloomberg, The Wall Street Journal, the Financial Times, CNBC, Barron's, and other major financial publications, reflecting the market significance of his investment activities and public statements.

Legacy

Weinstein's career spans several defining episodes in modern financial markets. His early work at Deutsche Bank placed him at the center of the credit derivatives revolution of the early 2000s, when instruments such as credit default swaps grew from a niche product to a multi-trillion-dollar global market. His subsequent losses during the 2008 financial crisis and departure from Deutsche Bank reflected the broader reckoning that the banking industry underwent as proprietary trading desks were dismantled or restructured in the aftermath of the crisis.

The London Whale episode of 2012 remains one of the most analyzed trading events in recent financial history, and Weinstein's role in identifying the trade from outside JPMorgan contributed to public understanding of how market participants can detect large institutional positions through pricing anomalies. His account of the trade, as relayed through media interviews and conference appearances, has been cited in discussions of market efficiency, regulatory oversight, and the role of hedge funds as a counterbalance to large institutional positions.

Through Saba Capital's evolution from a credit-focused hedge fund into an activist investment firm, Weinstein has also played a role in shaping the governance landscape of the closed-end fund industry. His campaigns to pressure closed-end fund boards into narrowing discounts to net asset value have contributed to a broader industry trend toward greater accountability and shareholder responsiveness in that segment of the market.

As of 2026, Weinstein's expansion into activism targeting private credit funds represents a new chapter in his career and in the evolving relationship between activist investors and the private credit industry. His public warnings about structural risks in the $1.8 trillion private credit market have contributed to a growing debate among investors, regulators, and market participants about the liquidity, valuation, and governance practices in semiliquid fund structures.