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Light Street Capital Review

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This review was produced by SmartAsset based on publicly available information. The named firm and its financial professionals have not reviewed, approved, or endorsed this review and are not responsible for its accuracy. Review content is produced by SmartAsset independently of any business relationships that might exist between SmartAsset and the named firm and its financial professionals, and firms and financial professionals having business relationships with SmartAsset receive no special treatment or consideration in SmartAsset’s reviews. This page contains links to SmartAsset’s financial advisor matching tool, which may or may not match you with the firm mentioned in this review or its financial professionals.

Light Street Capital Management, LLC is a hedge fund headquartered just south of San Francisco in Palo Alto, California. The firm manages nearly $4.5 billion in client assets spread across 24 pooled investment vehicles, which are also known as funds. Light Street Capital has just 15 financial advisors on staff. Unlike some other similar firms, it's exclusively a fund manager and does not work with separately managed accounts.

While not everyone can invest in a hedge fund, you can invest your money for your specific goals. A financial advisor can often be a huge help when it comes to figuring out how to effectively invest, and SmartAsset's free tool can help you find an advisor.

Light Street Capital Management Background

Light Street Capital has been in business for just over 10 years. Founded in 2010 by Glen T. Kacher, the firm has been registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) since then. Kacher serves as the firm's chief investment officer (CIO) and controlling owner. He owns the firm indrectly, through a family trust for which he is the trustee. Kacher has over 20 years of financial industry experience and is a graduate of the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Light Street also has an office in San Francisco.

Light Street Capital Management Investment Philosophy

The investment philosophies and strategies of Light Street Capital vary based on the specific type of fund that's in question. Hedge funds and long-only funds invest in equity securities that are publicly traded in both foreign and domestic markets. Venture capital funds invest in private companies around the world, specifically in the technology sector. These investments tend to focus on eCommerce, social media and the sharing economy. Closed-end funds use a single investment each.

As you can tell, Light Street Capital invests in a wide range of securities. It also manages all assets entirely on a discretionary basis, so it has trading authority and ultimately makes all investment decisions. It may use a variety of trading techniques, and no securities are off limits to the firm. Its methods of analysis also vary based on each fund, as advisors use both technical and fundamental analysis to evaluate potential investments.

Largest Hedge Funds Managed by Light Street Capital Management

Light Street Mercury Master Fund, LP

  • AUM: $3,322,220,980
  • Minimum: $100,000
  • Beneficial Owners: 3

Light Street Argon, LP

  • AUM: $1,184,944,185
  • Minimum: $10,000,000
  • Beneficial Owners: 664

Light Street Xenon, Ltd

  • AUM: $911,860,168
  • Minimum: $10,000,000
  • Beneficial Owners: 255

Fees at Light Street Capital Management

Light Street Capital charges maintenance fees to each of its funds. You will need to reach out to the firm directly to get a breakdown of the fees. Management fees industry-wide tend to range from 1% to 2% annually, though.

The firm also charges performance-based fees to many of its funds, which it calls special profit allocations. Only certain series of the long-only funds do not charge these fees.

What to Watch Out For

There are no legal or regulatory disclosures present on Light Street's SEC-filed Form ADV.

Remember that only accredited investors can invest in a hedge fund. If you want to be considered an accredited investor, you need to have at least $200,000 of earned income ($300,000 for couples) over the past two years, plus a reasonable assumption that the same will be true for the upcoming year. Another way to become an accredited investor is if you have at least a $1 million net worth, minus the value of your primary residence, on your own or with a spouse.

Becoming a Client of Light Street Capital Management

As noted earlier, only accredited investors can invest in Light Street Capital Management's hedge funds. If you meet this criteria, you should reach out directly to the firm and inquire. You can reach the firm over the phone or by visiting one of its two Bay Area offices.

All information is accurate as of the writing of this article.

Investing Tips

  • Financial advisors are typically experts in investing, so partnering with one could be valuable for your portfolio. Luckily, finding the right financial advisor doesn’t have to be hard. SmartAsset’s free tool matches you with up to three financial advisors in your area in just five minutes. Get started now.
  • One of the most important things to have in place when you're investing is a proper asset allocation. Use SmartAsset's asset allocation calculator to ensure your needs and investor profile are aligned with your current portfolio's structure.

How Long $1mm Lasts in Retirement

SmartAsset's interactive map highlights places where $1 million will last the longest in retirement. Zoom between states and the national map to see the top spots in each region. Also, scroll over any city to learn about the cost of living in retirement for that location.

Least
Most
Rank City Housing Expenses Food Expenses Healthcare Expenses Utilities Expenses Transportation Expenses

Methodology We analyzed data on average expenditures for seniors, cost of living and investment returns to determine how many years of retirement a $1 million nest egg would cover in cities across America.

First, we looked at data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) on the average annual expenditures of seniors. We then applied cost of living data from the Council for Community and Economic Research to adjust those national average spending levels based on the costs of each expense category (housing, food, healthcare, utilities, transportation and other) in each city. Using this data, SmartAsset calculated the average cost of living for retirees in the largest U.S. cities.

We assumed the $1 million would grow at a real return (interest minus inflation) of 2%. Then, we divided $1 million by the sum of each of those annual numbers to determine how long $1 million would cover retirement expenses in each of the cities in our study. Cities where $1 million lasted the longest ranked the highest in the study.

Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), Council for Community and Economic Research