An icon of the financial world has passed away. James Harris Simons, the mathematical genius who revolutionized quantitative trading, died in May 2024 at the age of 86. A loss that the investment industry will not forget easily.

Before becoming a legend in finance, Simons was a top-level mathematician, decorated and respected in the academic world. But around the age of 40, he decided to make the big leap: to leave pure research behind and found Renaissance Technologies, writing one of the most extraordinary success stories in investment history.

This is where everything changed. While Warren Buffett built his empire on value investing and fundamental analysis, James Harris Simons was doing something completely different. He decided to entrust trading decisions to mathematical models and computers. He himself described as 'Mr. Model,' convinced that mathematics could reduce risk and seize opportunities that human eyes could not see.

The Medallion Fund, his masterpiece, is the most impressive result of this philosophy. We’re talking about average annual returns of around 40% from 1988 to 2023, even after high fees. Four times the S&P 500. Numbers that seem almost impossible, yet are real.

Simons’ legacy is not only in the wealth accumulated but in how he demonstrated that mathematics and computational intelligence could dominate financial markets. He paved a path that the industry continues to follow. Renaissance Technologies remains one of the most profitable investment firms ever created, and the name James Harris Simons will remain synonymous with quantitative genius for generations.