Adi Agrawal, PhD, CFA: Senior Vice President, Head of Quant Investment Research, Natixis Advisors
At Natixis Advisors I lead quantitative research for tax-managed and multi-asset portfolios: portfolio construction, back-testing, model risk, and the tools that take an investment idea into production.
Before that I spent 13 years at Wellington Management, the last eight as a Managing Director and Portfolio Manager. I ran income, low-risk bond alternative, liability-driven and return-seeking mandates. The research behind them covered strategic asset allocation, a global macro tactical strategy, systematic hedging against deep drawdowns and alternative risk premia.
I started as an engineer. I have a PhD and an MS in electrical engineering from Vanderbilt, five US patents, and six years leading a team at MathWorks on Simulink and Stateflow. I am a CFA charterholder.
In 2025 I advised a hedge fund on its trading architecture and helped a risk platform structure and launch an investment fund. From October 2025 I was VP, Wealth and Asset Management Industry Lead at Writer, where I spoke and wrote about AI in asset management.
I publish SkyWise Research, notes on rates, growth, geopolitics and the economics of AI.
Philosophy in one line
“Markets are a reflection of our collective consciousness and subconscious.”
From my belief statement · Investment Philosophy →
Macro Research
Research notes on rates, growth, geopolitics and the economics of AI. Most recent first.
AI & Finance
Essays and commentary on AI in wealth and asset management.
From the workshop
Game Maker
A small engine I built to make simple 2D games without writing code. Try the editor, or play pong, snake and space invaders.
Career
- Nov 2026–Natixis Advisors
Senior Vice President, Head of Quant Investment Research. Quantitative research for tax-managed and multi-asset portfolios. - 2025–2026Writer
VP, Wealth and Asset Management Industry Lead. Go-to-market strategy for the asset management vertical, and industry speaking and writing on AI. - 2025Strategy consulting
Advised a hedge fund on trading architecture. Helped a risk platform structure and launch an investment fund. - 2011–2024Wellington Management
Managing Director and Portfolio Manager (2017–2024). Vice President, Global Multi-Asset Analyst (2011–2016). - 2005–2011MathWorks
Manager, Engineering. Led a team working on the Simulink and Stateflow products. - 2004–2005IBM T.J. Watson Research
Researcher.
Education
- PhD, Electrical Engineering
Vanderbilt University, 2004 - MS, Electrical Engineering
Vanderbilt University, 2002 - BE, Computer Engineering
Pune University, 2000
Credentials and affiliations
- CFA charterholder
CFA Institute, since 2013 - Outreach Committee member
CFA Society Boston, 2018–2024 - Member
Boston Economic Club, since 2025 - Investment Management Workshop certification
Harvard Business School, 2018
Outside work, I coach a First Lego League team in Newton and take part in the Newton Turkey Trot.
On stage
Banking Transformation Summit, Charlotte.
“Give your Bankers the Time to Spend with their Clients”, on The Impact Stage.
By the numbers