FirstFT: Tiger Global cuts tech bets after stock market selloff

Tiger Global, the hedge fund known for making big bets on tech companies, has cut its holdings and dumped stakes in companies such as Netflix and Rivian as it suffered heavy losses in this year’s stock market rout.

The total value of Tiger Global’s public equity positions fell from $46 billion at the end of last year to just over $26 billion at the end of the first quarter, according to regulatory filings released Monday. The decline in value reflects falling stock market valuations as well as equity sales.

In a significant pullback, the New York-based company sold its entire stake in consumer technology companies including dating app Bumble, vacation rental company Airbnb and Chinese ride-sharing group Didi.

Its sale came as research analysts at JPMorgan Chase approved a handful of Chinese internet stocks as “uninvestable” just two months ago, in a significant change in sentiment towards the sector. In a series of changes on Monday, analysts raised their ratings for NetEase, Tencent, Alibaba, Meituan, iQIYI, Dingdong and Pinduoduo.

Tiger Global also significantly reduced its exposure to trading app Robinhood, selling nearly 80% of its stake, and struggling connected fitness company Peloton. Tiger Global declined to comment.

• Go further: Sudden sobriety has hit the U.S. tech sector, sparked by a sell-off in stocks as investors fret about rising interest rates and slowing economic growth.

Do you have any comments on today’s newsletter? Email me at [email protected]. Thanks for reading FirstFT Europe/Africa — George

Five other stories in the news

1. Investors pull $7 billion from Tether as stablecoin jitters escalate Traders have withdrawn $7 billion from Tether, slashing its market value by around 9% since the world’s largest stablecoin briefly lost its peg against the US dollar last week, heightening concerns over assets that are under -tend the global cryptocurrency market.

• Learn more about cryptography: Just weeks after Treasury Secretary John Glen launched an unexpected speech calling for the UK to become a global crypto hub, digital currency markets have experienced a disorderly meltdown, writes Helen Thomas.

2. Companies support 2035 EU petrol ban A cross-industry coalition of companies including Unilever, Zurich, Sanofi and Uber has urged the EU to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles from 2035, saying such a move would “set systemic transformation in motion. urgently needed and would make Europe a world leader in a key industry”.

3. UK criminal justice creaks under ‘unacceptable’ delays Criminal justice is being “delayed, denied or disrupted in too many cases” in England and Wales even as crime rates rise, according to a report by chief inspectors on the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

4. Putin signals acceptance of Finland and Sweden into NATO Vladimir Putin indicated that Russia would tolerate Finland and Sweden joining NATO, but warned that the Kremlin would react if the alliance set up bases or equipment as it did in the Baltic countries . Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, however, opposed the candidacies of the nations.

5. The NBA expands its global reach with international stars Nikola Jokić of Serbia became the fourth foreign-born player to win the United States National Basketball Association’s Most Valuable Player award multiple times last week. The success of international players is the result of a decades-long effort by American sports to build fanbases overseas.

The day ahead

Economic data Eurozone gross domestic product data for the first quarter is released, while France has unemployment data for the first quarter and Italy releases the consumer price index for April. UK releases unemployment figures, April insolvency and first quarter productivity flash estimate. In the United States, the April retail sales and industrial production and the May housing market index are out.

business profits Home Depot, Imperial Brands, Land Securities, Vodafone and Walmart report their results, as does JD.com, the Chinese e-commerce group whose founder Richard Liu resigned last month.

NATO enlargement Finnish President Sauli Niinistö pays a state visit to Stockholm as Finland and Sweden prepare to join NATO.

Events Andrea Enria, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the European Central Bank, delivers a keynote speech at the Institut Montaigne in Paris. Both days Clean Energy Forum for EU Islands opens on the Greek island of Rhodes, hosted by EU Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson.

Fixed: In Friday’s quiz, one of the questions did not match the answer. We apologize for the error.

What else we read

Deutsche Bank seeks to escape a decade of scandals and strife For new chief Alex Wynaendts, the priority will be to ensure Deutsche Bank is in the best financial shape before what is likely to be a bloody years-long battle to create a European banking champion capable of competing with the heavyweights. Americans. But some shareholders are already wondering if he is the right person for the job.

The rise of the dollar increases the risks for the world economy With so much going on in the global economy and financial markets, the recent appreciation of the US dollar has attracted less attention than expected, writes Mohamed El-Erian. The greenback’s rapid rise carries risks.

Food insecurity is a bigger crisis than energy Governments are spending a lot of time and resources trying to mitigate soaring energy costs following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. But Megan Greene warns that the war has sown the seeds of an even bigger crisis: a global food shortage.

The new ESG realpolitik The world is not ready for an immediate switch to green energy, writes Patrick Jenkins. Pushing companies out of fossil fuels into renewables is the next step – but unattractive as long as ultra-high oil and gas prices persist. Being candid is as important to ESG’s reputation as it is to the future of the planet. register here for our ESG and sustainable finance newsletter, Moral Money.

Is Elon Musk too big to regulate? Many on Wall Street saw Elon Musk’s tweet announcing he was putting his purchase of Twitter “temporarily on hold” – and his statement Monday that the deal could “fail” – as a negotiating tactic. But legal experts said it was another example of Tesla’s chief executive flouting securities laws.

Travel

The King’s Highway in Jordan is one of the oldest, winding and romantic roads in the world, as legendary and evocative as the Silk Road. Follow in the footsteps of Jean-Baptiste and TE Lawrence.