Key Takeaways
- • Ning Jin's Avantyr Capital Partners delivered the strongest Q1 performance among next-generation Tiger Cubs, down just 0.5% for the quarter and outperforming his former employer Viking Global, which fell 4.6%.
- • March's US-Iran conflict volatility inflicted widespread damage across the Tiger Cub network, with Avantyr down 2%, SurgoCap down 6.5%, and established funds Coatue and Tiger Global falling 3.5% and 10.5%, respectively, for the quarter.
- • Mala Gaonkar's SurgoCap Partners, managing over $6 billion in assets, posted a 4.4% Q1 loss after absorbing a 6.5% decline in March, placing it among the harder-hit equity-focused managers.
- • The broader Tiger Cub cohort—comprising emerging managers from former Viking Global, Lone Pine, Maverick, and Discovery—struggled to insulate their portfolios from technology and growth stock exposure during the volatile quarter.
Summary
The Tiger Cub network's newest generation of hedge fund managers faced significant headwinds in the first quarter of 2026, with geopolitical tensions and equity market volatility eroding returns across the board. Funds managed by former executives from Viking Global and Lone Pine—two of the network's most prominent houses—all posted losses, though performance diverged sharply among individual managers.
Ning Jin's Avantyr Capital Partners emerged as a relative outperformer, declining just 0.5% for Q1 despite absorbing a 2% loss in March. As the former chief investment officer of Viking Global, Jin's ability to preserve capital exceeded that of his previous employer, which fell 4.6% for the quarter after a 4.1% March decline. This performance differential underscores the execution challenges facing larger, more established funds during volatile markets.
Mala Gaonkar's SurgoCap Partners, a larger fund managing more than $6 billion, suffered more acute losses. The fund declined 4.4% for the quarter, driven largely by a sharp 6.5% pullback in March as equity positions were pressured by the US-Iran conflict. Meanwhile, longer-tenured Tiger-connected funds also struggled: Coatue and Tiger Global fell 3.5% and 10.5%, respectively, over the three-month period.
The Tiger Cub network's characteristic emphasis on growth stocks and technology exposure left the cohort vulnerable to March's geopolitical shock. The network, descended from late billionaire Julian Robertson's legendary Tiger Management, typically allocates heavily to high-growth equities, a positioning that proved costly when macro uncertainty spiked. Neither the established guard nor the newer generation of managers spawned from firms like Viking Global, Lone Pine, Maverick, and Discovery could fully insulate their portfolios from the broader market dislocation.
Ning Jin's Avantyr Capital Partners emerged as a relative outperformer, declining just 0.5% for Q1 despite absorbing a 2% loss in March. As the former chief investment officer of Viking Global, Jin's ability to preserve capital exceeded that of his previous employer, which fell 4.6% for the quarter after a 4.1% March decline. This performance differential underscores the execution challenges facing larger, more established funds during volatile markets.
Mala Gaonkar's SurgoCap Partners, a larger fund managing more than $6 billion, suffered more acute losses. The fund declined 4.4% for the quarter, driven largely by a sharp 6.5% pullback in March as equity positions were pressured by the US-Iran conflict. Meanwhile, longer-tenured Tiger-connected funds also struggled: Coatue and Tiger Global fell 3.5% and 10.5%, respectively, over the three-month period.
The Tiger Cub network's characteristic emphasis on growth stocks and technology exposure left the cohort vulnerable to March's geopolitical shock. The network, descended from late billionaire Julian Robertson's legendary Tiger Management, typically allocates heavily to high-growth equities, a positioning that proved costly when macro uncertainty spiked. Neither the established guard nor the newer generation of managers spawned from firms like Viking Global, Lone Pine, Maverick, and Discovery could fully insulate their portfolios from the broader market dislocation.
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