Early Life
Michael Hintze was born in Harbin, China, on July 27, 1953, to Russian parents. Due to the Chinese Communist Party's rise to power, his family later moved to Australia. He was raised in Sydney, Australia, where he attended St Leo's College, Wahroonga. He studied at the University of Sydney where he obtained a BSc degree in physics and a BE degree in engineering. He also holds an MSc degree in acoustics from the University of New South Wales, an MBA from Harvard Business School, and honorary doctorates from the University of New South Wales and the University of Sydney. After graduating, he served for three years in the Australian Army, rising to the rank of captain.
Rise to Success
After his military service, Hintze began his career in finance. He worked as an electrical design engineer before moving to New York to work in financial services at Salomon Brothers. He also worked at Credit Suisse First Boston and Goldman Sachs. In 1999, he launched his own asset management firm, CQS, which has become a leading player in the credit markets. In 2024, he sold most of CQS's assets to the Canadian investment firm Manulife and started a new firm called Deltroit with his own capital.
Key Business Strategies
Hintze's success is attributed to a collaborative, multi-disciplinary approach seeking adjacencies across all areas in which he invests. He invested heavily in risk management systems, which gave him a competitive advantage in liquidity management and execution. Hintze is known for investing in non-traditional opportunities.
Philanthropy
Hintze is a dedicated philanthropist, establishing the Hintze Family Charitable Foundation in 2005 with his wife, Dorothy. The foundation has supported over 200 charities across education, health, the armed services, culture, and the arts. Notably, Hintze's contributions include supporting the restoration of Michelangelo's frescoes in the Pauline Chapel at the Vatican and donating to the Natural History Museum in London.
