Michael Burry Closes His Fund - The End of Scion Asset Management

Michael Burry's Fund Closure

• 💡 Michael Burry has once again closed Scion Asset Management, echoing his actions after the financial crisis.
• 🎯 The speaker suggests this closure is a form of "rage quitting" due to Burry's recent poor trading performance.
• 🔑 Burry's explanation for the shutdown is that his estimation of securities values is no longer in sync with the markets.

Burry's Investment Philosophy and History

• 🧠 Burry's past success, particularly with "The Big Short", is seen as having made him overconfident, believing he is a "crystal ball."
• 📉 He is characterized as consistently betting against the market, often with bearish put options, regardless of market conditions.
• ⚠️ The speaker criticizes Burry for not adapting his thesis or reassessing assumptions when the market doesn't conform to his predictions.

Recent Bearish Market Bets

• 📊 In Q2 2023, Burry purchased put options on S&P 500 (SPY) and NASDAQ (QQQ) totaling $1.6 billion notional value, signaling a broad market crash bet.
• semiconductor ETF (SOXX) with a notional value of $47 million, targeting the semiconductor industry amidst AI hype.
• 🚀 More recently, in Q3 2025, he acquired put options on Palantir and Nvidia worth $1.1 billion notional value, reflecting skepticism on AI valuation.

Performance and Critique

• 📉 Many of Burry's recent bearish positions, including those on SOXX, Palantir, and Nvidia, resulted in significant losses as the market rallied.
• 💬 The speaker argues that Burry's strategy of buying long-term puts on perceived bubbles is not unique and places him on the level of a retail investor.
• ✅ The speaker contrasts Burry's losses with his own success, claiming to be "riding this bubble to the top" and being up significantly on options.

Future Outlook

• 🔮 Despite the closure, the speaker predicts Burry will return with a new fund in about six months, likely with a similar market-skeptical approach.
• 🎭 The current fund closure is likened to "rage quitting a Call of Duty lobby", implying a lack of accountability for his trading outcomes.