The head of hedge funds at Société Générale’s alternative investment business has left the group with a 15-strong team at a crucial time for his former employer, which is gearing up to merge with the French bank’s in-house exchange traded funds business.

Arié Assayag, who joined Société Générale Asset Management Alternative Investments in 1999 as global head of hedge funds, left today to pursue a personal project, a spokeswoman for the bank confirmed.