Situational Awareness Hedge Fund Faces Margin Calls After 439% Gains
The hedge fund Situational Awareness, founded by Leopold Aschenbrenner, saw a dramatic rise of 439% in six months before being forced to liquidate its stock positions due to margin calls. The fund had heavily invested in power and chip companies but later shifted focus toward Bitcoin miners, making them one-quarter of its portfolio as reported in SEC filings. In July 2026, the fund faced significant losses amid a broader market downturn that saw the Nasdaq-100 fall by nearly 10% from its June peak. The liquidation came after borrowed money amplified the impact of falling stock prices and triggered margin calls. Brokers including Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, and JPMorgan Chase were reportedly involved in unwinding positions worth $45 billion at the start of July. Ken Griffin’s Citadel hedge fund acquired these assets while other major funds like Millennium Management passed on the opportunity. The sudden shift from AI infrastructure to Bitcoin miners has drawn attention due to its strategic alignment with Aschenbrenner's earlier predictions about power constraints in achieving artificial general intelligence (AGI). However, market speculation suggests that Citadel may have played a role by influencing rate hike expectations just before acquiring Situational Awareness’s stock book.
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Topics: AGI crypto hedge fund blowup margin_call