The Tiger Global team celebrated their 25th anniversary on March 1, penning a letter to remind investors of their guiding principles that reflect what the firm is and what pushes it forward. Tiger Global launched with just $42 million in seed capital and two employees under the name Tiger Technology in the waning shadow of the internet bubble. Today the firm manages over $50 billion in assets and has 160 employees, generating robust returns through multiple major technology transitions and market cycles.
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The 2026 investor letter dated March 1st was obtained and reviewed by Hedge Fund Alpha.
Also see: Tiger Global Remarks on Its Process After 25 Years in Business
Returns are Tiger Global’s north star
The first of the firm’s guiding principles for investing is that returns are its north star. A fixture above the North Pole that hardly moves, Polaris is a critical tool for navigation. In short, Tiger Global exists to drive returns for its investors. The team learned in the early years that a robust performance brings a multitude of benefits.
Talented people want to be part of a winning team, while investors want to give capital to winners. Companies also like to be associated with well-performing firms, and early investors appreciate robust returns over the long term.
The Tiger Global team admitted that certain “flywheels” can improve with larger size, but they also said that growth shouldn’t ever come at the expense of strong performance.
Also see: The Business Genius Of Tiger Global’s Chase Coleman
The “right and wrong side of change”
Finding their jobs as “endlessly interesting,” the Tiger Global team said they provide a “densely populated mosaic of research and information” they use to try to predict the future. The firm and its partners have enjoyed significant long-term gains from supporting companies globally that are aligned with major changes in technology and society, like the internet, cloud, mobile and artificial intelligence.
“On the other hand, even the strongest swimmer, when forced to swim against a powerful current, makes little progress,” the Tiger Global team wrote. “Identifying those companies that find themselves on the wrong side of innovation and change yields opportunities if their multiples compress or their earnings shrink.”
They believe a proper orientation of the portfolio and of companies is critical for long-term success.
Compound interest
Describing compound interest as the “8th wonder of the world,” the Tiger Global team explained that this was one of their most important insights when they started the firm. They noted that changing $1 into $38 feels “incredibly daunting,” while managing 20% returns for 20 years looks more easily attainable. This is the power of compounding, which doesn’t just apply to investing returns. It also applies to company growth rates, technological advantages and business progress.
At the firm level, the Tiger Global team feels steady improvements in research process, culture, relationships and decision making can turn incremental gains into “transformative results.”
Synergies between public and private companies
Tiger Global delved into the private side of investing just two years after launching the firm, following extensive research on the Chinese internet business. The team also had negotiated investments in the private companies that would end up enjoying the same tailwinds Tiger Global had spotted within its research of public companies.
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