Key Facts
- ✓ Stuart Brown is stepping down as head of trading at Viking Global after 18 years
- ✓ Viking Global manages $55 billion in assets
- ✓ Brown joined Viking after working at Credit Suisse's corporate credit sales desk
- ✓ The firm's flagship fund returned less than 9% last year, trailing the S&P 500
- ✓ Viking has lost several senior members in recent years, including chief investment officer Ning Jin
Quick Summary
Stuart Brown is stepping down as head of trading at Viking Global, a $55 billion asset manager. Brown, who has worked at the hedge fund for 18 years, will take a career break.
He joined the firm after working on the corporate credit sales desk at Credit Suisse. Brown will help the firm during a transition period, though his official departure date is not yet known.
This marks the latest in a series of senior departures from Viking, including former chief investment officer Ning Jin, who left in August 2024 to start Avantyr Capital. Other recent departures include general counsel Andrew Genser, director of recruiting Kevin Curtis, and investor relations head Savina Boyadjieva.
Viking's flagship fund returned less than 9% last year, trailing the S&P 500 index. The firm, a Tiger Cub spun out of Julian Robertson's Tiger Management, is not as tech-heavy as some peers, which can impact performance when mega-stocks drive market returns.
Trading Head Departs After 18 Years
Stuart Brown is stepping down as head of trading at Viking Global to take a career break. Brown has worked at the hedge fund for 18 years, according to his profile on the firm's website.
He joined the firm after working on the corporate credit sales desk at Credit Suisse. One person close to the firm said Brown's official departure date is not yet known.
Brown will help the firm during a transition period, this person said. The firm declined to comment, and Brown could not be reached for comment.
Recent Senior Departures
Viking Global has lost several senior members of its team in recent years, which now numbers 275 employees, according to the firm's site.
From the investing side, Ning Jin, the former chief investment officer of Viking, left the firm in August 2024 to start his own fund, Avantyr Capital.
On the operations side of the business, the firm's former general counsel, Andrew Genser, joined former Viking portfolio manager Divya Nettimi's fund, Avala Global, last summer.
Viking's director of recruiting, Kevin Curtis, moved to Bobby Jain's eponymous fund in September 2025, and the firm's former investor relations head, Savina Boyadjieva, just started as a partner at Joshua Kushner's Thrive Capital.
Performance and Strategy
While Viking's peers include long-short equity funds such as Tiger Global, Coatue, Lone Pine, D1, Maverick, and others, the firm is not as tech-heavy as some of the other Tiger Cubs.
In some years, such as 2022, this can help the manager, but when mega-stocks like Nvidia, Amazon, and Microsoft drive a bulk of the market's returns, it can lead to Viking missing out on some gains.
Last year was an example of this: Viking returned less than 9% on the year in its flagship fund, a person close to the manager said, less than the S&P 500 index. The hedge fund was up only 8.6%, trailing the market and many Tiger Cub peers.
Conclusion
The departure of Stuart Brown represents another significant change in Viking Global's leadership team. With 18 years at the firm, Brown was a veteran presence in the trading operations.
The firm continues to navigate a changing landscape for hedge funds, particularly those in the Tiger Cub ecosystem. As senior talent departs and performance faces pressure from market dynamics, Viking's ability to adapt will be closely watched.
With a current workforce of 275 employees and a $55 billion asset base, Viking remains a major player in the hedge fund industry despite recent challenges.
