Breitbart Money Man Mercer Steps Back From RenTech, Not Politics

Mercer's decision to resign as co-chief executive may insulate the $50 billion Renaissance Technologies from political controversy a year after Donald Trump won the White House. Mercer became a lightning rod for activists and drew criticism from at least one former executive at Renaissance.

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In his Nov. 2 memo to colleagues that announced his resignation as co-CEO and director, Mercer distanced himself from some incendiary political elements. The hedge fund wizard, who funded Stephen Bannon's Breitbart News, wrote that he was selling his stake in the website, a mouth-piece for the nationalist movement. Mercer also denounced former Breitbart writer Milo Yiannopoulos, who he had championed, and defended his own character as well.

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Mercer, who also mentioned his "great respect" for Bannon in the memo, didn't break entirely with the movement that his bounty helped finance. He and his daughter, Rebekah, an early adviser to Trump, rank among the nation's most powerful Republican donors. Mercer is limiting his duties to research at the firm partly to allow him to increase his political involvement unencumbered by his business responsibilities, said a person familiar with the matter.

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Last month, Sleeping Giants, an anonymous group that is opposed to racist news sites, sent letters to universities and pension funds urging them to pull their money from Renaissance because of Mercer's stake in Breitbart.

While some investors have privately denounced Mercer's politics, they continue to be drawn by double-digit returns in the firm's three public hedge funds. Renaissance saw a net $1 billion of inflows this month, a person familiar with the firm.