Li Lu

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For the Olympic slalom canoeist, see Li Lu (canoeist). For the Chinese Paralympic athlete, see Li Lu (sprinter).

Li Lu
Born (1966-04-06) April 6, 1966 (age 55)
Tangshan, Hebei, China
EducationNanjing University
Columbia University (BA, JD, MBA)
Known forfounding Himalaya Capital Management
AwardsWorld Economic Forum Global Leader for Tomorrow (2011)
In this Chinese name, the family name is Li.
Li Lu
Traditional Chinese李錄 or 李祿
Simplified Chinese李录

Li Lu (born April 6, 1966)[1] is a Chinese-born American investor and hedge fund manager. He is the founder and chairman of Himalaya Capital Management. He was one of the student leaders of the 1989 Tiananmen Square student protests, an experience he recounted in a 1990 book, Moving the Mountain: My Life in China, that was the basis of a 1994 documentary by Michael Apted. In 2021, he also co-founded The Asian American Foundation and serves as its chairman.[2]

Early life & education[]

Li Lu was born and grew up in Tangshan, China during the Cultural Revolution. He was a survivor of 1976 Tangshan earthquake, one of the deadliest in recorded history.[3] In 1985, he went to Nanjing University, majored in Physics but later transferred to Economics. In 1989, he participated in the Tiananmen Square student protests and became one of the student leaders. He helped organize the students and participated in a hunger strike. He fled the PRC through Operation Yellowbird.[4] After the crackdown on the movement, he fled the PRC and went to New York City at the age of 23 because his grandfather had received his PhD at Columbia University.[3]

In 1990, he published a book about his experience in China titled Moving the Mountain: My Life in China. The book was the basis of a 1994 feature-film documentary, Moving the Mountain, produced by Trudie Styler and directed by Michael Apted, which probed the origins of the 1989 protests in Tiananmen Square and the consequences of the movement in the lives of several of the movement's student leaders. The book recounts a symbolic marriage ceremony on May 22, 1989, between Li Lu and his then girlfriend, Zhao Ming, at the Heroes' Monument.[5] Students gathered at the wedding to congratulate the married couple and sang the "Wedding March," which gradually turned into "The Internationale."[6] It was also Chai Ling's and Feng Congde's first wedding anniversary.[7] In the documentary "Moving the Mountain," Li is shown to peck Chai on the cheek during his marriage ceremony.[8] Chai Ling quotes Li Lu in her book as saying the marriage was meaningless .[9]

At Columbia, Li first enrolled in the American Language Program to learn English. He then studied in the School of General Studies and later transferred to Columbia College. He ended up joining the college, law school and business school over a six-year period.[3] Li Lu was one of the first in Columbia's history to receive three degrees simultaneously: a B.A. in economics, a M.B.A. and a J.D. in 1996.[10]

Investment career[]

Li was inspired to get into investment after hearing Warren Buffett, a Columbia alumnus, give a lecture at Columbia in 1993. Shortly thereafter, Li Lu began investing in stocks while a student at Columbia University.[11]

In 1997, Li Lu founded Himalaya Capital Management, known for its disciplined and value-oriented approach to investing.[12] From 1998 to 2004, he managed both a hedge fund and a venture capital fund. His fund suffered a 19% percent loss in 1998 from the Asian Financial Crisis. Since 1998 the firm has had a "phenomenal" record, with compound returns of around 30% per year during a period of general stagnation in the market.

Charlie Munger, vice-chairman of Berkshire Hathaway and a long-time partner of the legendary investor Warren Buffett, is one of the investors of his fund, and a "mentor and good friend" (in Li Lu's own words).[13] Li Lu met Charlie Munger on Thanksgiving 2003 and they have been friends since. With Munger's help, Li transformed his hedge fund into a long-only investment vehicle which is currently focused on global investment opportunities. Part of Li's agreement with Munger was that the fund would be closed to new investors.[11]

Himalaya now has almost US$18.5 billion in capital under management investing in global securities. As of June 2021, its largest U.S. investment is in Micron Technology with a value of US$1 Billion.[14]

Li Lu's investing mantra is "accurate and complete information," including understanding the character of a CEO by visiting his local church and speaking to his neighbors. The firm at one point managed the money of Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett's partner.[15]

Li Lu has been known as the man who introduced the Chinese battery and electric car maker BYD Company to Charlie Munger and Warren Buffett. He is an informal advisor to BYD. His investment partnership owns about 2.5% of BYD.[16]

Li was rumored to be the front runner to manage a large portion of Berkshire Hathaway's investment portfolio once Warren Buffett steps down. According to The Wall Street Journal, Charlie Munger once said "it is a foregone decision" that Li Lu would be going to be a member of Berkshire's top investors team after Warren Buffett retires. This was also hinted several times in some conversations with Buffett.[11] In 2010, it was revealed that Li Lu had withdrawn himself from consideration for the job.[17]

Other activities[]

In May 2021, Li Lu alongside several Asian-American business leaders, including Jerry Yang, co-founder of Yahoo and Joseph Tsai, co-founder of Alibaba, launched The Asian American Foundation (TAAF) a nonprofit organization with $125 million in initial commitments from the board. TAAF's mission statement is to serve the 23 million Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) in three key areas: anti-hate programs, education, and data and research.[18] Since launch, TAAF has raised over $1 billion to support AAPI communities.[19]

In May 2010, Li Lu helped to translate and publish the Chinese version of Poor Charlie's Almanack, The Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger (ISBN 978-7-208-08994-5) in China and wrote a foreword for the book.[20]

Li Lu currently serves as a trustee of Columbia University[21] and California Institute of Technology (Caltech).[22] He is a past recipient of the John Jay Award from Columbia College, the Raoul Wallenberg Human Rights Award from the Congressional Human Rights Foundation, and the Reebok Human Rights Award. He is featured in the Family of Voices, a part of the ongoing twenty-year Exhibition, starting in 2017, "Many Voices, One Nation" at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.[23] Li Lu is a member of The American Academy of Arts and Sciences.[24]

Published works[]

  • Moving the Mountain: My Life in China (ISBN 0-399-13545-6)

References[]

  1. ^ Date information sourced from Library of Congress Authorities data, via corresponding WorldCat Identities linked authority file (LAF).
  2. ^ "Asian-American leaders launch US$250 million effort to combat hate". South China Morning Post. May 4, 2021. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Family of Voices - Li Lu," Smithsonian, retrieved 25 August 2021.
  4. ^ Lee, Samson; Wong, Natalie (July 12, 2011). "Praise for Brit agents who helped students". The Standard. Archived from the original on October 16, 2012 – via web.archive.org.
  5. ^ Li Lu, Moving the Mountain, 174.
  6. ^ Li Lu, Moving the Mountain, 173.
  7. ^ Chai Ling, A Heart for Freedom: The Remarkable Journey of a Young Dissident, Her Daring Escape, and Her Quest to Free China's Daughters (Carol Stream: Tyndale House Publishers, 2011), 157.
  8. ^ Moving the Mountain, directed by Michael Apted (Los Angeles, CA: Hallmark Home Entertainment, 2000), DVD.
  9. ^ Ling Chai, A Heart for Freedom. Carol Stream, Illinois: Tyndale House, 2011, ISBN 978-1-4143-6246-5.
  10. ^ "2005 Columbia Investment Management Conference". Columbia Business School. Archived from the original on June 20, 2006. Retrieved July 25, 2011.
  11. ^ Jump up to: a b c Pulliam, Susan (July 30, 2010). "From Tiananmen Square to Possible Buffett Successor". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved August 19, 2021.
  12. ^ Li, Lu (2012). "Asia Society" (PDF). Retrieved May 4, 2016.
  13. ^ Li Lu’s Foreword for the Chinese version of Poor Charlie’s Almanack Archived May 24, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  14. ^ "Himalaya Capital Management Llc Quarterly Report (Form 13F-HR)". SEC.Report. SEC. August 13, 2021.
  15. ^ Value Investment Institute (September 1, 2010). "Buffett-ites or Bluff-it-ites?" (PDF). Value Investment Institute. Retrieved July 5, 2016.
  16. ^ "Buffett's Chinese electric car company". Marcgunther.com. April 13, 2009. Retrieved July 25, 2011.
  17. ^ Ovide, Shira (October 26, 2020). "Todd Combs: For Buffett, Is Good Help Hard to Find?". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved August 19, 2021.
  18. ^ Ax, Joseph (May 3, 2021). "Asian-American business leaders launch $250M effort to fight hate". Reuters. Retrieved August 16, 2021.
  19. ^ Hadero, Haleluya (May 20, 2021). "Foundation raises $1 billion to fight anti-Asian hate". Associated Press. Retrieved August 16, 2021.
  20. ^ "Chinese version of Poor Charlie's Almanack". Amazon.cn. Retrieved July 25, 2011.
  21. ^ "Alexander Navab and Li Lu Elected to Columbia Board of Trustees | Columbia News". news.columbia.edu. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  22. ^ http://www.caltech.edu/content/trustee-list Archived September 12, 2017, at the Wayback Machine
  23. ^ "Li Lu". National Museum of American History. March 16, 2017. Retrieved December 17, 2019.
  24. ^ "New Members". American Academy of Arts & Sciences.

External links[]

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