Renaissance Technologies, the world’s largest hedge fund firm handling assets worth $35.4 billion (Rs 1,41,600 crore), has received approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) to operate in the Indian stock markets as a foreign institutional investor. Renaissance is the latest — and the biggest — among several hedge fund players that entered India following a liberal approach taken by the Indian regulator on hedge fund participation in the booming Indian stock market. Others that recently entered include Vikram Pandit-founded Old Lane, DE Shaw (the world’s fifth-largest hedge fund with $29 billion or Rs 1,16,000 crore worth assets) and Och-Ziff Capital Management (the seventh largest with $28.6 billion or Rs 1,14,400 crore in assets), according to the Sebi website. Renaissance, founded by 69-year-old Jim Simons, is based out of Manhattan, the US, and is perhaps the most interesting hedge fund. It has more than 260 employees — many of them are PhDs and not conventional analysts from management schools.   more »