Hedge fund managers who earned more than $1 billion last year, including George Soros and Philip Falcone, are being summoned to Washington tomorrow to testify under oath before Congress about potential risks their firms pose to the broader economy, the Financial Times reported.

The hearing before the House oversight committee will be headed by Democrat Henry Waxman. Mr Soros and Mr Falcone will appear alongside John Paulson of Paulson & Co, James Simons of Renaissance Technologies Corp and Kenneth Griffin of Citadel Investment Group, the paper said.

Hedge funds have been blamed for causing, or aggravating, the financial crisis due to their supposedly risky dealing in financial derivatives and in short-selling the securities of firms. The hedge fund sector, which has boomed in recent years to reach more than $2 billion in assets, has suffered a run of poor performance in recent months. In its defence, figures in the hedge fund industry say these vehicles provide much-needed financial liquidity and facilitate price discovery in markets.

The five hedge fund managers were chosen because they were the top earners, according to a rough calculation from Alpha magazine, the FT said, citing people familiar with the matter.

WealthBriefing could not immediately reach the firms for comment.

Hedge fund executives expect the hearing will focus on questions including whether hedge funds have become so large that they threaten the stability of the financial system, either because of the impact of their trading or because of the impact of the failure of even one big hedge fund, the FT said.