Trillions From LTCM to ETFs: Victor Haghani's Long Road to Index Investing
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May 27, 2021 
Victor Haghani, founder of Elm Partners and former founding partner of Long-Term Capital Management, shares his unusual path from Salomon Brothers and LTCM to low-cost ETF advisory. He discusses LTCM culture and mistakes, why many active managers turn to indexing, Elm’s 12-basis-point model and portfolio construction, and practical trading, tax and leverage lessons.
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How LTCM's Collapse Redirected His Personal Investing
- Victor recounts leaving LTCM and only then wrestling with how to manage his own savings after years focused on generating alpha for institutional capital.
- After a 2001 sabbatical he chased private deals briefly, then around 2005–2006 shifted to low-cost indexed portfolios for his family's savings, leading to Elm Partners in 2011.
Choose Low Cost Indexed Portfolios For Personal Wealth
- Do favor low-cost, tax-efficient, transparent, long-only indexed portfolios for personal savings instead of chasing expensive alpha strategies.
- Elm Partners manages ETF portfolios, offers tax-loss harvesting and advice, and charges a single 12 basis point fee.
Solomon Brothers' Academic Roots Shaped Index Thinking
- Victor describes Solomon Brothers as a mix of academic influence and street smarts, with direct links to thinkers like Paul Samuelson and Bob Merton.
- That environment exposed him early to indexing ideas and the intellectual lineage behind modern portfolio theory.
