MPC Investors has launched the $900 million Samsara hedge fund, managed by Ajay Gambhir who joined MPC Investors at the beginning of May 2007. The fund’s size will make it one of the largest hedge fund launches in Europe this year. MPC Samsara is a pan-European directional long short equity strategy. It uses bottom-up stock selection as the principal driver for fund returns blended with an element of top down overlay. Mr Gambhir was previously managing director and head of the European high alpha team at JPMorgan Asset Management, running over $8 billion of assets. He himself personally managed $6 billion of assets, all of which was in either absolute return or unconstrained vehicles. Peter Harrison, chief executive at MPC Investors, said: “The $90 million raised was at the top end of our expectations and highlights the confidence investors have in both Ajay and MPC Investors even with the market turbulence of the last couple of months.”