Here are the star traders trying to become the hedge fund honchos of tomorrow

It may be tough to run a hedge fund, but that isn't stopping senior-level folks from trying to branch out on their own.

Here's a short, and non-exhaustive, list of some of the top new funds to have come across our radar.

The competition to raise assets is steep, particularly for start-ups that don't have long performance track records to woo investors. Instead, new managers often rely on the pedigrees of their previous employers and the backing of high-and-mighty investment titans to sway potential investors to open their checkbooks.

Recent data is not the most promising, however, with more hedge funds closing than opening. In 2015, 979 hedge funds closed their doors while 968 opened. This year through the first quarter, 291 have shut while just 206 opened, Hedge Fund Research data shows.

But the glory of raising assets, running one's own proper business and investment strategy, alongside the (potentially very lucrative) benefit of charging high fees, are alluring. At the moment, the global hedge fund industry is managing close to its peak in assets, at about $2.9 trillion, HFR says.

To the new start-ups, bon courage.