Brain Drain: Are Mutual Funds Losing Their Best Minds?

Abstract

I investigate the effect of labor market competition from hedge funds on the mutual fund industry. I find evidence of an increasing flight of top-performing young managers from mutual funds, a drop in mutual fund returns, and deterioration in recruiting standards. These findings are not explained by differences in fund characteristics, risk loadings, fund styles, or the intervening dot-com bubble. The results suggest that industry-specific government regulations, especially ones focused on employee compensation, can lead to brain drains that have crippling effects on the health of the regulated sector.