20 Things You Didn’t Know About Andreas Halvorsen
Andreas Halvorsen is a Norwegian investor who is well-known and respected for his business savvy and expertise in the hedge fund sector of business. He is widely regarded as one of the top experts in the business throughout the globe. We were interested in learning more about his life and how he came to become so successful in the business. After looking into her personal and professional life, we made some interesting discoveries that we’d like to share with you. Here are 20 things you didn’t know about Ole Andreas Halvorsen.
1. He was born in 1961
Andreas Halvorsen is the name that he is best known by, but the name given to him at birth was Ole Andreas Halvorsen. He was born in 1961 in the country of Norway. This is the country of his citizenship and he grew up, attending schools in Norway. Even in his youth, he was an extraordinarily energetic person.
2. Halvorsen was in the Norwegian military
Andreas Halvorsen attended the Norwegian Naval Academy and graduated from the institution. After graduation, he went on to become a member of a Norwegian SEAL team. The group that he joined in Norwegian is Marinejegerkommandoen (MJK), which is a special warfare unit of the Norwegian Special Operations Command. This team was founded in 1953. He wasn’t just one of the team, he became the leader of the group, which tells us that he’s shown his natural ability in the leadership arena throughout most of his life. You can’t accuse Andreas Halvorsen of being a late bloomer.
3. He has a college education
Mr. Halvorsen enrolled in classes at Williams College. He completed his courses and earned his degree in economics in 1986. One of the first realizations that Andreas had was that formal education was necessary for the development of the skills and the knowledge base that he would need to build any kind of a future in business.
4. Halvorsen built a solid foundation
He continued his education after receiving his bachelor’s degree and applied for acceptance to the Stanford University Graduate School of Business. It’s difficult to secure admission as only a small percentage of applicants are accepted. Andreas met the criteria for qualification and was admitted into the prestigious school. He graduated with his MBA in 1990.
5. Halvorsen was recognized early in his life, for excellence
One of the marks of a true leader is to put forth the effort to excel in important undertakings. When it came to the preparatory phase of his life, Andreas was completely committed to his education, and his dedication and overall successfulness was recognized formally. While he was in attendance at Stanford, he was the recipient of the Alexander A. Robichek Student Achievement Award in Finance. He was also an Arjay Miller Scholar.
6. He started out in a high position after college
So impressive was Andreas’ educational track record that his first job after completing his studies was in the investment banking sector of the Morgan Stanley company. His next job was at Tiger Management Corporation in the role of senior managing director, and in addition, he served as an analyst for the firm and the director of equities. He was also appointed to the management committee of Tiger, and he sat on the advisory board as well as the supervisory board for the Jaguar Fund N.V. which was the largest fund for the company.
7. He founded his own investment firm
After gaining experience working for Tiger, Andreas made the decision to start his own company. He founded the Viking Global Investors company in 1999. He is a founding partner and serves as the Chief Executive Officer of the company.
8. Halvorsen is a multi-billionaire
Andreas Halvorsen has an estimated net worth of $3.7 billion as of October of 1999. He is listed as number 568 on the Forbes’ magazine list of the top billionaires in the world. Halvorsen is regarded as a self-made tycoon who went out on his own to earn his fortune. He’s shown his skill in the management of assets in the hedge fund business.
9. His new company is highly successful
Halvorson traded equities at Tiger management and learned under one of the most highly regarded mentors in the business. This was the Tiger Management owner Julian Robertson. After striking out on his own with Viking, Halvorsen’s company does over $25 billion in asset management business at the Connecticut based hedge fund business.
10. He was one of the highest-earning managers
In 2018 Andreas Halvorsen was named as the ninth highest-earning hedge fund managers for the year by Forbes magazine. This is an annual list that the publication produces based on the current statistical date found on select groups throughout the world. This was quite a distinction out of thousands to be within the top ten. Things changed within a year’s time and he was no longer included in the list for 2019.
11. Andreas Halvorsen is married with a family
Halvorsen is married to his wife Diane Halvorsen. The couple has three children together. They make their home in the United States, living near the business that he founded in Darien, Connecticut. Mr. Halvorsen is 58 years of age.
12. He’s known as a “Tiger Cub”
Andreas Halvorsen was one of an elite group of successful protege’s of the great Julian Robertson of Tiger Management. As such, he and others who worked under Robertsons’ mentorship have become known as “Tiger Cubs.” He is considered to be the most successful of all of the cubs, carving out a niche for himself and amassing a personal fortune of $3.7 billion, making him a part of the wealthiest people in the world group.
13. His business strategies are impressively effective
Halvorsen went out to raise $2 billion for the Viking Global Opportunities fund in 2014. The focus on illiquid investments was a priority. This included investing in public and private companies which are difficult to trade. This was something that Viking has been known for doing. The invested in Alibaba and First Data before anyone else did. This has increased their opportunities in the sector.
14. Andreas has a unique investment philosophy
Halvorsen is a stock picker who believes that there must be a thoughtful analysis as well as a disciplined valuation over time which includes a portfolio made up of investments in the long and short terms. Deviation in stock price developments is a part of his formula and this, in turn, amounts to a profitable spread over time. It is worth noting that the top 20 long term investments of Vikings appreciated by 26.5 percent during 2014.
15. His professors expected great things from Andreas
When Andreas attended Stanford University in the institution’s graduate program, he came into contact with professors who were impressed with him even as a student. One of his professors named Jack McDonald taught him when he was getting his MBA. He shared that it came as no surprise to him that Halvorsen went out and established a multi-billion dollar company. He showed all of the signs of being an astute businessman and a great leader even while he was still a student in college. This is the natural leadership that is evident in nearly every phase of his life.
16. He has a strong sense of integrity
Not every successful businessman or rich tycoon has integrity, but it’s something that is a big part of Mr. Halvorson’s character. It has been his unusually strong sense of personal integrity that has given him the advantage of gaining credibility with those in big business that he’s been dealing with for several decades now. He’s honest and dependable and he didn’t have to do anything dishonest or unethical to become successful in his chosen profession. He’s a very trustworthy person with a sense of integrity that is rare in the business world today. Investors as well as the top leaders and executives in business trust his judgment and his word. Some of this may come from his time in the military.
17. Halvorsen was a competitive skier
Here is another bit of trivia that many people don’t know about Andreas Halvorsen. When he was an active student at Williams College, he was also a part of the ski team there. He was good at it and he enjoyed participating in competitive skiing as a sport. He has carried his passion for the sport for all of these years and has passed it on to his own children. Andreas and his wife enrolled their three kids at a ski racing academy, which is a prestigious New England high school.
18. His advice is highly valued
Andreas Halvorsen is a busy man but he still finds time to speak for select groups. He spoke at the Milken Institute in 2013 to discuss a variety of topics within the investment arena. Although the opportunities to hear him speak are rare, they do happen on occasion. He’s one of the most brilliant hedge fund managers on the face of the earth today.
One of the most important things that attendees at the lecture came away with that day was the fact that there are two major problems with management teams within the industry. These are the underappreciation for good management teams and the second is that poor management teams do not get enough attention for the damage that they can do in a short period of time.
Executive leadership that lets a poor management team slide for too long will soon realize the loss and the need to go in and fix the mess created. The moral of this story is to ensure you have a great management team, turn them loose to do their jobs and appreciate their efforts.
19. His curriculum vitae is beyond impressive
After conducting a thorough investigation of the life and career of Mr. Ole Andreas Halvorsen, we can sum up our findings with one statement. It’s far beyond impressive. The fact that he’s a multi-billionaire isn’t the most impressive thing about him. It’s more about the man behind the fortune, how he lives his life, what he did to become successful and all of the little things that combine to make him a person that many high ranking business executives look up to.
Perhaps one of his most admirable traits is his personal sense of integrity, but there are many poor people who also have integrity. He is a natural-born leader with a love for success and although he’s been known to take some risks, he doesn’t go overboard with it.
He is a man of patience who doesn’t look for instant gratification in the business and investment world, instead, he’s calculating and he uses his vast database of head knowledge to proceed forward in business ventures and investment strategies. It’s obvious that he knows what he’s doing because of his rampant success in business and the fact that he’s amassed a fortune of billions.
20. There are things that we can learn from Andreas Halvorsen
Anyone who is pursuing a career in business, and in the financial sector, in particular, can learn from Andreas Halvorsen. He stands as an example of how taking your time to do things the right way, to build a proper foundation, and commit yourself to achieve your goals can lead you in the right direction.
Granted, not all of us have his natural leadership ability. However, there are certain aspects of his personality and philosophies that we can emulate. He’s an inspiration that teaches us all that one of the most important things to possess in business is a good name, respect and a high level of integrity because they can take you a long way in the business world.
