Meet the 8 hedge fund managers who made the most money in 2016

2016 was an especially rough year for the once mighty kings of Wall Street.

High fees and lackluster returns have forced many investors to pull their money out of hedge funds. The $3 trillion industry shrunk by about $70 billion last year, the biggest drop since 2009, according to data tracker HFR.

But that doesn't mean that hedge fund managers, long known to be some of the wealthiest people on Wall Street, are on their way to the poor house.

Forbes has just released its list of the highest-earning hedge fund managers and traders of 2016. And it shows that top hedge funders are doing just fine when it comes to their take home pay.

In fact, the top managers pulled in fortunes, despite the fact that several of them – at least four of the top eight earners – failed to beat the S&P 500 last year, which investors can buy for close to free. (The losing funds were run by billionaires Ray Dalio, Dan Loeb, Ken Griffin and David Tepper. The S&P 500 returned 9.5% in 2016.)

Forbes identifies the earnings of each listee as well as insights about the firm's performance and background.

We've included the top eight hedge funders from the list. As a group, they earned more than $6.8 billion. The firms they founded or run manage a combined $400 plus billion.

6. David Shaw, founder of D.E. Shaw & Co

David Shaw didn't find his way to Wall Street until after he worked in academia as a computer science professor at Columbia University. That technical background has influenced the way in which his firm, D.E. Shaw & Co, has done business.

Earnings in 2016: $400 million

Firm's assets under management: $40 billion

6. Paul Singer, Elliott Management

Paul Singer's firm, Elliott Management, had an impressive 2016. According to Forbes, the firm secured $2.4 billion from outstanding bond payments from the government of Argentina after a 15-year showdown. And the hedge fund also delivered returns of 13% last year after fees.

Earnings in 2016: $400 million

Firm's assets under management: $31 billion

6. Daniel Loeb, founder of Third Point

Dan Loeb founded his activist hedge fund Third Point in 1995. According to Forbes, the firm has "navigated financial markets more deftly than many of [their] battered activist peers over the last few years." Last year, Third Point's main fund returned 6.1%.

Earnings in 2016: $400 million

Fund's assets under management: $15 billion

5. Kenneth Griffin, founder of Citadel

Despite a difficult start to the year, Ken Griffin's Citadel ended 2016 in positive territory with a return of about 5% net of fees, according to Forbes. Griffin founded the Chicago-based firm in 1990, and it has delivered "annualized net returns of 19% since inception."

Earnings in 2016: $500 million

Firm's assets under management: $26 billion

4. David Tepper, president and founder of Appaloosa Management

The founder and president of Appaloosa Management was anointed by Forbes as "arguably the greatest hedge fund manager of his generation." Still, the 59-year-old firm's posted middle-digit returns last year, failing to beat the stock market, according to Forbes.

Earnings in 2016: $750 million

Fund's assets under management: $16.5 billion

3. Raymond Dalio, founder and co-chief investment officer

Ray Dalio may oversee the largest hedge fund in the world, but he didn't take home the largest sum of cash last year. The billionaire founder of Bridgewater Associates earned $1.4 billion in 2016. In March, he announced that he would stop managing the firm in mid-April. According to Forbes, many of the firm's noteworthy funds ended the year in positive territory. The firm's main fund, Pure Alpha, returned just 2.4%.

Earnings in 2016: $1.4 billion

Firm's assets under management: $160 billion

1. Michael Platt, founder of BlueCrest Capital Management

Tying for first place is Michael Platt, the founder of BlueCrest Capital Management, which shut down to outside money and now manages Platt's fortune. According to Forbes, "highly leveraged bets on interest rates paid off for Platt in 2016, as his supersized family office turned in a 50% return net of costs."

Earnings in 2016: $1.5 billion

Firm's assets under management: $62.2 billion

1. James Simons, founder of Renaissance Technologies Corp.

The billionaire founder of Renaissance Technologies retired from the firm in 2010, but he still reaps the benefits of its "strong performance," according to Forbes. The firm's largest fund, Renaissance Institutional Equities,"was up 21.5% net fees in 2016," Forbes reported.

Earnings in 2016: $1.5 billion

Firm's assets under management: $71.8 billion