Blue Pool Capital, the family office and investment company of Alibaba co-founder Cai Chongxin, is rapidly withdrawing from the U.S. stock market and focusing more on the private market.
On Wednesday, according to regulatory filings, Blue Pool Capital has liquidated more than 30 U.S. stocks since the beginning of last year, mostly technology stocks including Google parent Alphabet, Microsoft and Twitter. As of the end of June this year, the only U.S. stock held by Blue Pool Capital was asset management company Blue Owl Capital, but its shareholding ratio has dropped from 14% in December last year to 9.8%. At the same time, since the beginning of 2021, Blue Pool Capital has invested in more than 10 unlisted startups around the world, covering fields such as sports, blockchain and healthcare.
Blue Pool is changing asset allocation as rising interest rates, slowing economic growth and widespread inflation hit U.S. tech stocks, which were once a major part of the public portfolio of the Cai Chongxin family office. Many wealthy investors have turned to private assets, which are illiquid and whose valuations are often less susceptible to market volatility.
It is worth mentioning that Cai Chongxin, 58, is not only the executive vice chairman of Alibaba, but also the owner of the NBA team Brooklyn Nets. His net worth is $6 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Cai Chongxin co-founded Blue Pool Capital with Alexander West in 2004. The company mainly invests in public companies and private equity, hedge funds and real estate. It is managed by former Castle Investment executive Oliver Weisberg. Weisberg is also responsible for Blue Pool Capital’s sports in the United States. Investments such as WNBA teams New York Liberty and Los Angeles FC. In China, Blue Pool has backed a private equity fund launched by Hanergy Investments, which has taken stakes in Chinese companies including oral healthcare company Rier Group.
Blue Pool Capital first disclosed its total U.S. stock holdings in early 2018. As of the end of 2017, the company held shares in 34 companies worth $211.5 million. It still holds stakes in more than 30 companies at the end of March 2021.