Est. 2025

Disciplined. Fundamental. The Alpha of Ross.

Michigan's hedge fund club. The book is live.

Analyst at the trading desk
Live CapitalReal Consequences
16 Senior Practitioners
100+ Members
6 Trading Desks
$5,000 Live Capital
The Thesis
“We believe that when stakes are high, people perform and learn better.”
New Wave Capital · Articles of Operation
The Speaker Series · Fall 2026

Sequoia. a16z. Millennium. Bain.

Next Fireside Hernán Sáenz · Bain & Company ··· RSVP
16 senior practitioners this season, and more still to be announced. See the full lineup →
The Network

On the calendar. On the resumes.

The Trading Division

Six desks. One live book.

01

Value

Bottom-up. Price against worth.

Cash-flow quality, balance-sheet strength, margin of safety. Buys businesses the market has mispriced and is willing to wait to be right.

02

Special Situations

Asymmetric plays on specific catalysts.

M&A arbitrage, spin-offs, earnings setups, activist shadows. Catalyst-driven mispricings, found and sized.

03

Alternative

Return streams that do not track the index.

Private credit, secondaries, real assets and digital assets. Where the payoff is uncorrelated and the diligence is the edge.

04

Commodities

Physical markets. Supply, demand, storage.

Energy, metals and agriculture. Curve structure, inventories, and the macro that moves them.

05

Long / Short

Fundamental stock picking. Two-sided book.

Long high-conviction names, short broken ones. Bottom-up, with sector rotation on the macro backdrop.

06

Strategic Partnerships

Real problems from funds and the firms behind them.

Hedge funds, quantitative firms and emerging managers hand the desk a defined problem. We scope it, staff it and deliver to the standard a fund holds its own analysts to.

Division Leadership
Arjun Saini
Chief Investment Officer · Division Head

Sets desk mandates with the Presidents, chairs the investment process, owns the live book.

Kyle Linnhan
Portfolio Risk Manager

VaR and drawdown across the five trading desks. Sizing, leverage limits, crowded-factor flags.

Andriana Duda-Mishko
Portfolio Design Manager

Aggregates every desk view into one fund-level book. Capital allocation with the CIO, and alpha attribution.

Cristian Martin Talamantes
Portfolio Research Manager

Owns the research process behind every desk view. Sourcing, diligence standards, and the bar a memo clears before it reaches the book.

Desk Directors
Andy Zheng
Desk Director · Value
Marc Akella
Desk Director · Special Situations
Sam Zoller
Desk Director · Alternative
Sam Karp
Desk Director · Commodities
Adam Beydoun
Desk Director · Long / Short
Akash Saini
Desk Director · Strategic Partnerships
Take a seat on a desk.
Applications open Fall 2026
Apply to Trading
The Quant Division · In Development

The model rules.

Q01

Statistical Arbitrage

Mean-reversion. Pairs. Market-neutral alpha.

Pairs trading, basket mean-reversion, cointegration signals. Market-neutral by construction.

Q02

ML / AI Alpha

Machine learning applied to price and fundamental data.

Alternative data, NLP on transcripts and filings, gradient boosting and neural signals. Code is the edge.

Q03

Systematic Macro

Rules-based cross-asset trend and carry.

Trend, carry, and momentum across equities, rates, FX, commodities. No discretionary overlay.

Q04

Options & Volatility

Derivatives. Vol surface. Structured payoffs.

Implied versus realized vol, tail hedging, structured payoffs. Prices risk while everyone else guesses.

Division Leadership
Chief Quantitative Officer · Division Head

Appointed by the Presidents. Owns the systematic book, the research agenda, and the build-out.

Seat Open
Quant Engineering Lead · Cross-Desk

Shared data, backtesting, execution, code standards. Every desk runs on their rails.

Seat Open
Risk & Analytics Lead · Cross-Desk

Factor exposure, drawdown attribution, regime detection. The division's conscience.

Seat Open
Build the division from day one.
Engineers, mathematicians, and quants · Applications open Fall 2026
Apply to Quant
The Speaker Series · Fall 2026

Senior practitioners. Unfiltered.

Next Fireside Hernán Sáenz · Bain & Company ··· RSVP
Hernán Sáenz
Sept 15 · 5:30–7:00 PM ETFireside Chat · Virtual

Hernán Sáenz

Senior Partner · Bain & Company

Global Head of Bain's Strategy and Transformation practice, appointed in 2026 after tripling the firm's Performance Improvement practice into its largest capability. Walks our analysts through how the world's best operators think about strategy when the macro picture is fogged in.

Reserve your seat ↗
James Root
Sept 29 · 7:00–8:15 PM ETFireside Chat · Virtual

James Root

Senior Partner · Chairman, Bain Futures

Bain partner based in Hong Kong and author of The Archetype Effect. Presents the global research behind the six worker archetypes, and what actually unlocks motivation, productivity, and engagement at work.

Reserve your seat ↗
Maria Jesus Ramirez
Oct 1 · 6:00–7:30 PM ETFireside Chat · Virtual

Maria Jesus Ramirez

Senior Fellow · McKinsey Global Institute

Leads MGI's research on generative AI and the future of work, and co-wrote the Agents, robots, and us series on skills in the age of AI. Formerly an associate partner in McKinsey's Financial Services Practice. On which skills hold their value as AI moves through the labor market.

Reserve your seat ↗
Alex Taussig
Oct 5 · 4:30–6:00 PM ETFireside Chat · Virtual

Alex Taussig

Board Partner · Lightspeed Venture Partners

Public and private company director and former Co-Head of Consumer Practice at Lightspeed Venture Partners. Backed Faire, Vinted, and Whatnot. Serves on boards of United Rentals (NYSE: URI) and Mobility Global (NYSE: MBGL).

Reserve your seat ↗
Fred Reichheld
Oct 7 · 9:00–11:00 AM ETWith ZingTrain · Ann Arbor

Fred Reichheld

Bain Fellow & Advisory Partner · Bain & Company

Creator of the Net Promoter Score. Author of The Ultimate Question and Winning on Purpose. In conversation with Ari Weinzweig at ZingTrain on referrals, loyalty and what actually drives sustainable growth. New Wave Capital members are attending; tickets are $40 through ZingTrain, breakfast included.

Tickets & details ↗
Shaun Maguire
Oct 7 · 6:00–8:00 PM ETFireside Chat · Virtual

Shaun Maguire

Partner · Sequoia Capital

Partner at Sequoia focused on seed and early stage deep tech and defense. Early backer of SpaceX, X, and Bridge. Will share how Sequoia underwrites bets where the market doesn't yet exist.

Reserve your seat ↗
Michael Mankins
Oct 14 · 5:30–7:00 PM ETFireside Chat · Virtual

Michael Mankins

Senior Partner · Bain & Company

Leader in Bain's Strategy & Transformation and Organization practices. Author of Time, Talent, Energy. 35+ years advising on execution and organizational design.

Reserve your seat ↗
Christian Keil
Oct 16 · 4:00–6:00 PM ETFireside Chat · In-Person, Ann Arbor

Christian Keil

Investing Partner · a16z American Dynamism

Investing Partner on a16z's American Dynamism team, which backs founders building in the national interest across aerospace, defense, and advanced manufacturing.

Reserve your seat ↗
Christopher Caron
Oct 21 · 6:00–7:30 PM ETFireside Chat · In-Person, Ross

Christopher Caron

Managing Director · G2 Capital Advisors

Spent more than two decades running finance and operations inside manufacturers, rising from assistant controller to CFO at Hitec Sensor Solutions and steering it through the automotive downturn, before crossing to the deal side. Now leads industrials and manufacturing at G2 Capital Advisors out of metro Detroit, advising founder-owned businesses on middle market M&A. On what an operator sees in a company that a banker does not.

Reserve your seat ↗
Matt Cronin
Oct 28 · 6:00–7:00 PM ETFireside Chat · Virtual

Matt Cronin

Senior National Security Advisor · a16z

Michigan Law graduate who prosecuted cybercrime at the Justice Department, ran national cybersecurity at the White House, then led investigations for the House Select Committee on China. Now advises a16z's American Dynamism portfolio where technology and national security meet.

Reserve your seat ↗
Jason Scheller
Nov 11 · 5:00–6:30 PM ETFireside Chat · In-Person, Ann Arbor

Jason Scheller

Investor · Bessemer Venture Partners

Ross BBA who invests in enterprise software and defense tech out of Bessemer's New York office, and co-author of the firm's Defense Tech roadmap. Before Bessemer he was one of the first hires at Patch, a Series B startup, on the growth side. On how a venture firm underwrites a company whose first customer is the Department of Defense.

Reserve your seat ↗
Jeff Verschleiser
Nov 20 · 6:00–8:30 PM ETFireside Chat · In-Person, Ann Arbor

Jeff Verschleiser

Senior Advisor · Millennium Management

Senior Advisor at Millennium and former Co-Head of Mortgage Trading at Bear Stearns and Head of Global Mortgages at Goldman Sachs. A firsthand account of 2008 from the center of the storm, on leverage, risk, and what really happens when markets seize.

Reserve your seat ↗
Rob Markey
Dec 2 · 6:00–8:00 PM ETFireside Chat · Virtual

Rob Markey

Advisory Partner, Boston · Bain & Company

Founder of Bain's Customer Strategy and Marketing practice and co-author, with Fred Reichheld, of The Ultimate Question 2.0. On building businesses that compound through customer loyalty rather than churn.

Reserve your seat ↗
David Abrams
Jan 27, 2027 · 6:00–8:00 PM ETFireside Chat · Virtual

David Abrams

Founder & Managing Partner · Abrams Capital

One of the most respected value investors of his generation, running Abrams Capital's concentrated book with famously little fanfare. On patience, conviction, and finding asymmetric value where others look away.

Reserve your seat ↗
Greg Lewis
Feb 3, 2027 · 6:00–8:00 PM ETFireside Chat · In-Person, Ann Arbor

Greg Lewis

Lecturer, Ross · Former Partner, McKinsey & Company

Fifteen years a partner in McKinsey's healthcare practice, on payment model design and the reality of implementing the Affordable Care Act, and latterly the firm's global dean of faculty. Now teaches strategy at Ross.

Reserve your seat ↗
Martin Reeves
Feb 17, 2027 · 6:00–8:00 PM ETFireside Chat · Virtual

Martin Reeves

Senior Advisor · Former Chairman of the BCG Institute

Former chairman of the BCG Institute and author of Your Strategy Needs a Strategy and The Imagination Machine. On matching your strategy to your environment, and building companies that keep imagining.

Reserve your seat ↗
One Seat Remaining · Late October
Nominate a speaker.
Send a Nomination
Sit in the room next semester.
New Wave Capital · Fall 2026 cohort
Join the Fund
Also confirmed, dates to be announced: Nelson Peltz · Trian Partners  /  Dmitry Balyasny · BAM Funds  /  Jeff Jordan · a16z  /  Zack Urlocker · Index Ventures
Events

One name. One conviction. $1,000.

Pitch competition winners, Fall 2025
The Winning Desk · Fall 2025$1,000 Prize
Phase 01 · TrainWk 01–06

Members learn the craft.

Modeling, valuation frameworks, sector analysis, and how to build a defensible thesis.

Phase 02 · PickWk 07

Each desk picks a single name.

Every desk commits to one ticker. No backups, no hedges.

Phase 03 · BuildWk 08–09

Two weeks to build the pitch.

Three-statement models, valuation, scenario analysis. Written in the desk's own voice.

Phase 04 · PanelWk 10

Live pitch · judges decide.

Ten minutes, then twenty of Q&A. Alumni and practitioners judge. Winners split $1,000.

“The Private Markets team showed up with a thesis that would've held up in a Monday morning meeting.”
Stephen Lin · PJT Partners · Pitch Panel Judge
“The Carlyle pitch stood out because they understood the capital structure, not just the headline multiple.”
Jason Nuridjanian · BlackRock · Pitch Panel Judge
Partnerships

Put your name on a desk.

Network
$1,500 / year
  • Resume book of ranked analysts
  • Logo placement and recognition
  • Ranking ballot at the Pitch Competition
Corporate
$3,500 / year
  • Everything in Network
  • Hosted recruiting event on campus
  • Coffee chats with top members
Premier
$7,500 / year
  • Everything in Corporate
  • Guaranteed fireside chat
  • Judging seat at the Pitch Competition
  • Branded workshop or tech talk
Most Visible
Anchor
$10,000 / year
  • Everything in Premier
  • Your named desk
  • Title sponsor of the Pitch Competition
  • Industry exclusivity
Panel Judge
2–3 hrs / semester

Grade analyst pitches alongside desk directors at the semester-end panel.

Guest Speaker
60–90 min once

Tell your story at a Wednesday mass meeting. 100+ members, any background. We handle everything.

Mentor Match
2–4 hrs / semester

One-on-one with an assigned analyst. Two check-ins a semester, matched by desk and track.

Advisory Board
Ongoing

Strategic advisors to fund leadership. Six seats.

Partner with New Wave.
NWC.eboard@umich.edu
Get in Touch
The Fund

Live capital. Real consequences.

$5,000
Live Capital
100+
Active Members
$1,000
Semester Pitch Prize
Fund Index · Inception = 100 +19.0% since inception
QuarterIndexQoQ
Fall 2025 · Inception100.0·
Winter 2026112.0+12.0%
Spring 2026121.0+8.0%
Summer 2026 · through July119.0−1.7%
Fund index · Marked to market · Reported to members at quarterly holding updates
Strategy Ledger Reviewed by the Fund Council
Strategy Division Mandate
Long / Short Equity
Trading Fundamental long-short equity across large-cap and mid-cap names. Thesis-driven with a 6–12 month horizon. Primary strategy for the Trading Division.
Global Macro
Trading Top-down macro trades expressed through equities, rates, and FX proxies. FOMC, geopolitical, and commodity-driven.
Event-Driven
Trading Earnings, M&A, regulatory catalysts. Short-duration, catalyst-specific position sizing.
Systematic / Quant
Quant Alpha signals sourced from price action, cross-sectional momentum, and factor models. Backtested in Python. Live signals monitored weekly.
Event Contracts
Quant Binary event markets on Kalshi and Polymarket. FOMC outcomes, elections, macro releases. Quantitative edge applied to regulated prediction markets.
Positions pending disclosure · The live book is presented to members at quarterly holding updates
Ross School of Business
The Firm

Leadership.

Xander Bartlett
Founder
President · Head of Operations
Nafea Aqrawi
Founder
President · Head of Strategy
Julia Zou
Founder
President · Head of Education
Arjun Saini
Chief Investment Officer
Violet Karp
VP Recruitment & Community Affairs
Carlo Brancati
VP Internal
Alexis Ruiz
VP External
Taylor Rode
VP Marketing
Riya Kalapurakkal
VP Education
Brittney Watkins
VP Community Affairs
Blake Feinstein
VP Finance
Chairs & Advisors
Matthew GlimDevelopment Chair
Raghav SivakumarDevelopment Chair · Co-educator
Minjin WuAdvisor
Campbell McGarrigalDevelopment Chair
Recruitment · Fall 2026

Apply.

Status
The application opens after the Mass Meeting on 11 September.
Interest Form
Come find us in September.

Five chances to meet the club before anything is due. Nothing here is required, and none of it is an application.

  1. Festifall

    3:00 to 5:00 PM · 2 September · Central Campus · Table C33
  2. BBA Meet the Clubs

    5:30 to 7:30 PM · 9 September · Ross Winter Garden
  3. Mass Meeting

    3:00 to 4:00 PM · 11 September · R0210
    The application opens here
  4. Coffee Chats

    12:00 to 4:00 PM · 20 September · Around Ann Arbor
  5. Office Hours

    4:30 to 6:00 PM · 23 September · Location to be confirmed