ZEGA Financial

ZEGA Financial specializes in hedged equity strategies that use options to create a risk-managed exposure to the S&P 500. The firm's flagship approach — branded as 'Buy and Hedge' — holds a long equity position while buying protective puts and selling covered calls to fund the hedge. This creates a defined-outcome profile designed to participate in a portion of market upside while limiting downside during corrections, targeting investors who want equity exposure with explicit risk parameters.

ZEGA distributes primarily through financial advisors on major custody platforms including Schwab, Fidelity, and Pershing. The firm offers its strategies in multiple wrappers: traditional open-end mutual funds, separately managed accounts, and a closed-end interval fund. The interval fund structure is particularly important to ZEGA's model because it allows the firm to write uncovered put options — a premium-collection strategy that requires less liquid vehicle terms than daily-redeemable funds permit.

ZEGA was co-founded in 2011 by Jay Pestrichelli (CEO) and Mick Brokaw (President). Pestrichelli previously worked in derivatives and structured products and co-authored the book 'Buy and Hedge: The 5 Iron Rules for Investing Over the Long Term.' The firm's investment philosophy is directly derived from the principles outlined in that book, emphasizing systematic hedging rather than market-timing or pure long-only exposure.

ZEGA Financial is an SEC-registered investment advisor and asset manager — not a family office. The firm does not manage the capital of a single wealthy family. It operates as a specialist investment manager that constructs options-based portfolios and distributes them through financial advisors and directly to retail investors. Its structure, regulatory registration, and client base all conform to an asset management business model.

ZHOAX is ZEGA's flagship publicly-traded mutual fund. It implements the Buy and Hedge strategy by maintaining a core equity portfolio paired with an options overlay designed to reduce downside capture. The fund aims to provide equity-like returns with lower volatility and drawdowns than the S&P 500, serving as a core or tactical allocation for risk-conscious investors in advisor-managed portfolios.

No. ZEGA Financial does not participate in private equity, venture capital, or direct company investing. The firm trades exclusively in liquid public markets, using equities and listed options to construct its hedged-portfolio strategies. Its client base is retail and advisor-driven, requiring daily or periodic liquidity rather than the lockups associated with private market allocations.

ZEGA systematizes tail-risk management through a rules-based options framework that defines explicit hedge budgets and strike parameters rather than making discretionary timing calls. The firm's strategies involve continuously rolling listed put options to create a persistent floor under the portfolio, funded by option premium collected from covered calls or put-writing activity. The methodology prioritizes mechanical consistency over predictive market views.