About Priori

A first-principles approach to equities and derivatives markets

Priori combines fundamental equity research with macroeconomic, statistical, and derivatives expertise in a single portfolio, run on an operating platform built around agentic AI.

The background

Built from complementary investment methods, run on one platform.

Priori is an agentic hedge fund: two managers, two complementary strategies, and an operating platform run on agentic AI. Fund administration, valuation, fee and tax accrual, reconciliation and reporting run continuously on systems the firm owns and controls. Investment decisions, trading authority, risk ownership and accountability remain entirely with the managers. The technology gives the people who make those decisions more time to research, to manage risk, and to talk to investors.

Priori Capital Management Investment Fund is a private investment vehicle available to wholesale or eligible investors. It was founded on the back of two independently developed and tested approaches.

Thomas Argueso developed a personal investment track record grounded in company-specific research, with particular depth across technology hardware, software, and infrastructure. Mudiwa Makaza developed a disciplined derivatives framework combining macroeconomic analysis and statistical modelling.

The co-founders met as members of Westpac's 2024 graduate cohort. Their working relationship quickly became a daily process of testing ideas, challenging assumptions, and refining their respective methods. Priori was established to combine those disciplines and pursue stronger risk-adjusted outcomes than either approach could target in isolation. Both founders now work on the fund full time.

Fund managers

Experience across markets, credit, and structured finance.

Both managers remain directly responsible for research, portfolio decisions, risk oversight, and investor communication.

Founder

Thomas Argueso

Head of Equities

Thomas progressed through Corporate Banking and Leveraged Finance at Westpac, followed by Investment Banking at Campbell MacPherson, where he worked across capital raisings and mergers and acquisitions. He later moved within Westpac into Portfolio Management, covering a diversified corporate book with transaction sizes ranging from approximately A$15 million to A$250 million.

Thomas's investment methodology focuses on deep fundamental underwriting and valuation, with particular attention to technology supply chains across semiconductors, hardware, software, and AI infrastructure. He seeks opportunities where company-specific research supports an attractive asymmetry between expected return and downside risk.

Founder

Mudiwa Makaza

Head of Derivatives

Mudiwa began in Westpac's Institutional Bank, spending much of his time on the structured finance desk and helping maintain a securitisation portfolio of approximately A$8 billion. His work included assessing credit and market trends and analysing how risk is structured through tranching, derivatives, and covenants. He later joined Volkswagen Financial Services in treasury and securitisation before moving to AMAL Trustee, now part of IQ-EQ, in securitisation modelling and analytics.

Mudiwa's methodology is built on macroeconomic analysis. He pairs a regime-based approach with statistical modelling to rotate between index, commodity, and currency markets. He uses derivatives to express a fundamental outlook on capital flows.

Operating model and oversight

Where AI is used, and where it is not.

Priori runs its back office on agentic AI connected to the firm's internal database. Tax accounting, fund administration, unit pricing and reconciliation run continuously rather than in a monthly batch. The two managers remain responsible for market research and execution, and review the entire operation.

Manager-led

Trade execution
Position sizing
Portfolio construction
Research interpretation
Investment decisions
Risk appetite
Final approval of all reporting

AI-enhanced

Research coverage and data gathering
Market and position monitoring
Routine risk analysis
Fund metric tracking
Scenario and sensitivity runs
Document and filing review

AI-led

Tax accounting
Mark-to-market NAV calculation
Unit pricing
Trade reconciliation
Fee and tax accrual
Reporting data and design
Audit trail

Why it matters to an investor

A substantial proportion of repetitive back-office work is automated, which keeps overheads low and lets a small team spend its time on security selection, portfolio construction and risk management. Those savings are passed to investors through the absence of a management fee.

Auditability

Administration runs against a single internal database, so valuations, unit prices, fee accruals and tax provisions are reproducible from source records rather than reconstructed at period end. Nothing is released without manager review.

Scalability

The operating model is designed to scale without a corresponding increase in headcount. Administration, valuation, tax and reporting are integrated through proprietary back-end platforms rather than assembled from disconnected spreadsheets, so the cost of servicing an additional investor or sub-fund is close to unchanged. Each function draws on one governed data source with permissioned access and a complete audit trail.

Development of Priori

From shared research to an operating fund.

2024 Methods combined

The managers begin jointly testing fundamental, macro, and derivatives ideas.

2025 Fund structure established

Governance, reporting, operations, and the quarterly vintage structure are formalised.

1 January 2026 External capital accepted

The inaugural Priori Q1 Fund commences with external investor capital.

1 April 2026 Q2 Fund commences

The second quarterly vintage opens, mirroring the Q1 Fund's exposure.

1 July 2026 Q3 Fund commences

The Q3 Fund is active and first reports for the quarter ending 30 September 2026.

Investor communications

Quarterly reporting and investor updates.

Approved investors receive quarterly performance reporting, quarterly intelligence reporting, an Annual Report covering strategic, operational and ESG matters alongside the financial result, and annual founder letters. Priori accepts new investors on a quarterly cycle and answers enquiries within one business day. Wholesale investors can contact the management team to discuss fund information and onboarding requirements.

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