Karthik Sarma | $1B+
Get in touch with Karthik Sarma | Karthik Sarma, founder of SRS Investment Management, is the hedge fund manager who turned a concentrated activist position in Avis Budget Group into one of the most spectacular investment wins of the past decade. After founding SRS in 2006, the former Tiger Cub built a reputation for deep, research-driven conviction, long time horizons, and strategic influence behind the scenes. His most famous trade—SRS’s stake in Avis—generated multibillion-dollar gains as the company’s market value surged, making Sarma one of the top-earning hedge fund managers in America. Known for his low profile, analytical intensity, and disciplined patience, he has become a defining figure in modern activist investing.
Karthik Sarma (born c. 1975) is an Indian-born billionaire hedge fund manager based in New York City. He is the founder and managing partner of SRS Investment Management LLC, a global investment firm he established in 2006 that manages approximately $10 billion in assets focused on technology, media, consumer, and industrial sectors.[1][2][3] As of November 13, 2025, Forbes estimates his net worth at $2.9 billion, ranking him #1380 among the world's billionaires.[1]
Sarma earned a Bachelor of Technology in Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology Madras in 1996.[3] He later obtained a master's degree in Operations Research and Financial Engineering from Princeton University.[3][1] Following his graduate studies, he worked as a consultant at McKinsey & Company in New York for three years before joining the newly launched Tiger Global Management in 2001, where he rose to managing director and partner over five years.[1][2][3]
In 2006, Sarma founded SRS Investment Management, naming it after his father, and has since built it into a prominent hedge fund with significant stakes in companies like Avis Budget Group, of which SRS owns approximately 49.5% through stock and equity swaps; Sarma has served on the company's board of directors since May 2020.[1][2][3][4] Under his leadership, the firm achieved a 35% return in 2021, driven in part by a 456% surge in Avis stock.[1] Sarma is also recognized for his philanthropy, including support for the IIT Madras Wellness Centre to promote mental health services, inspired by his experiences during college.[3] He received the Distinguished Alumni Award from IIT Madras for his contributions.[3]
Early life and education
Early life
Karthik Sarma was born c. 1975 in India.[1] He grew up in Kerala.[5]
Sarma's family background was marked by close ties, particularly with his father, whose initials were S.R.S. He lost his father at the age of 15, an event that profoundly influenced his later life choices.[3]
Education
Karthik Sarma completed his undergraduate studies at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras, earning a B.Tech. in Mechanical Engineering in 1996.[3]
During his time at IIT Madras, where he resided in Ganga hostel, Sarma engaged in various extracurricular activities that contributed to his campus experience, including playing football and bridge late into the night; he was known among peers by the nickname "Fido."[3]
Following his graduation from IIT Madras, Sarma relocated to the United States and pursued advanced studies at Princeton University, where he obtained a Master of Science in Operations Research and Financial Engineering in 1998.[1][6]
Career
Early career at Tiger Global
Karthik Sarma joined Tiger Global Management in 2001, within months of the firm's launch by Chase Coleman III, marking his entry into the hedge fund industry.[1][2] Prior to this role, Sarma had worked as a consultant at McKinsey & Company, where his analytical skills from a Princeton University master's degree positioned him for the opportunity at the nascent firm.[7]
Over his five-year tenure at Tiger Global, Sarma advanced rapidly to the position of managing director and partner, contributing to the firm's early growth and success in a competitive landscape.[3][8] Tiger Global, established as a hedge fund targeting public equities, employed a long/short investment strategy inspired by the Tiger Management lineage, focusing on global stocks to capitalize on market inefficiencies.[9][10] Sarma's involvement helped shape these strategies, leveraging his expertise in financial analysis to identify and manage positions in volatile public markets.[3]
This period at Tiger Global provided Sarma with foundational experiences in long/short equity investing, honing his ability to navigate high-stakes decisions amid economic shifts like the post-dot-com recovery.[11] His role exposed him to rigorous portfolio construction and risk management, building the operational acumen that defined his subsequent career.[2] By 2006, these key experiences had solidified his reputation as a skilled investor within the firm.[1]
Founding and leadership of SRS Investment Management
In 2006, Karthik Sarma founded SRS Investment Management LLC in New York as a long/short equity hedge fund specializing in value-oriented investments in public markets.[2][12] The firm was established following Sarma's tenure at Tiger Global Management, where he gained experience in equity investments, enabling him to launch his independent venture focused on generating superior risk-adjusted returns through fundamental research.[13]
The name SRS derives from the initials of Sarma's late father, S. R. Sarma, reflecting a personal tribute amid the firm's inception.[14] As Managing Partner, Sarma has led the firm with a strategy emphasizing a concentrated portfolio of long and short positions in publicly traded companies, typically holding a limited number of high-conviction investments to capitalize on perceived mispricings.[15] This approach prioritizes in-depth analysis over broad diversification, aligning with the fund's goal of long-term absolute returns across various industries.[12]
Under Sarma's leadership, SRS Investment Management has grown significantly, managing approximately $10 billion in assets as of 2025.[1][16] The firm's expansion underscores Sarma's ability to attract institutional capital through consistent execution of its value-driven mandate, while maintaining a lean operational structure centered on rigorous due diligence.[17]
Notable investments
One of the most prominent investments by SRS Investment Management under Karthik Sarma's leadership has been its long-term stake in Avis Budget Group (CAR), where the firm acquired up to 43% ownership through common stock and derivatives over more than a decade. This position, initiated around 2010, capitalized on the post-COVID travel rebound, generating approximately $2 billion in profits for the fund in 2021 as Avis's stock surged over 450% amid recovering demand for car rentals. The investment's success was driven by SRS's conviction in Avis's undervalued assets during the pandemic downturn, positioning it as a major beneficiary of economic reopening.
However, the Avis holding faced significant challenges in 2024, resulting in paper losses exceeding $1 billion due to shifting market dynamics, including elevated interest rates and softening travel demand that pressured the stock price. At the end of 2023, the position represented nearly 47% of SRS's portfolio, underscoring the concentrated risk, though the fund mitigated some downside through hedging strategies. This episode highlighted the volatility inherent in Sarma's high-conviction approach.
SRS also demonstrated agility in its technology sector exposure by significantly reducing its Nvidia (NVDA) position in stages from the first quarter of 2024 through the first quarter of 2025 but retaining 2.65 million shares as of June 30, 2025, motivated by concerns over the stock's elevated valuation following rapid gains in AI-driven demand. The reductions, based on 13F filings, allowed SRS to lock in substantial returns from an initial purchase in mid-2023 when shares traded at lower multiples, while maintaining some exposure as Nvidia's forward P/E ratio climbed above 50 by early 2025.[4][18]
Beyond these, SRS maintains significant holdings in other consumer and technology names, such as Netflix (NFLX), which comprised about 23% of the portfolio as of recent filings. The fund's strategy emphasizes concentration, with its top holdings typically accounting for over 90% of assets under management, reflecting Sarma's focus on a limited number of high-conviction bets. In 2021, these investments propelled Sarma to personal earnings of over $1 billion, placing him among the eight hedge fund managers who achieved that milestone that year.
Corporate board roles
In May 2020, Karthik Sarma was elected to the board of directors of Avis Budget Group, Inc. as an independent director, following a cooperation agreement between the company and SRS Investment Management, LLC, which beneficially owned approximately 21.9% of Avis's outstanding shares at the time.[19][2] In September 2025, the cooperation agreement was amended to increase the cap on SRS's beneficial ownership of voting securities from 35% to 45%.[20][21]
Sarma's board role has focused on strategic oversight, drawing on his investment expertise to guide key decisions at Avis, particularly in light of SRS's significant stake. He chairs the Compensation Committee, overseeing executive pay and incentive structures, and serves on the Corporate Governance Committee, contributing to board composition and governance policies.[22]
Personal life and philanthropy
Family and residence
Karthik Sarma has resided in New York City since relocating to the United States for his graduate education at Princeton University and subsequent career in finance.[1][23]
Sarma maintains close family ties, exemplified by his decision to live with his sister and her family during the COVID-19 pandemic in a modest suburban home in New Jersey.[13] He named his hedge fund SRS Investment Management after the initials of his late father, reflecting deep familial reverence; his father passed away when Sarma was 15 years old.[3]
Despite his substantial wealth, Sarma leads a simple, low-profile lifestyle, avoiding the ostentatious displays common among finance elites—for instance, he opted for his sister's unassuming two-car-driveway house in a middle-class New Jersey suburb during the pandemic rather than retreating to luxury enclaves like the Hamptons.[13][14]
Sarma emphasizes privacy in his personal affairs, with no publicly available details regarding a spouse or children.[23][14]
Philanthropic activities
Karthik Sarma's philanthropic efforts are influenced by his formative education at IIT Madras, emphasizing giving back to educational institutions to foster holistic student development and empowerment.[24] As a 1996 alumnus of the institute's Bachelor of Technology program in Mechanical Engineering, Sarma has demonstrated a commitment to supporting initiatives that address both academic and well-being needs.[24]
A key focus of Sarma's contributions has been the establishment and enhancement of the Student Wellness Centre at IIT Madras, where he has provided significant funding and leadership to promote mental health and holistic well-being among students. Sarma's support for the centre is inspired by his experiences at IIT Madras, where friends struggled with academic pressure and depression.[3][24] This support enables programs such as counseling, psychotherapy, and interactive workshops; for instance, a session titled "Understanding Stress, Worry, and Anxiety" held on February 16, 2024, engaged 80 participants.[24] Through dedicated resources channeled via the SAATHI, MITR, and Wellness Centre teams, his involvement has strengthened infrastructure for comprehensive student support, underscoring his emphasis on mental health as integral to educational success.[24]
In addition to wellness initiatives, Sarma has sustained donations to merit-based scholarships at IIT Madras, funding three annual Merit Cum Means awards named after prominent faculty members—Professors S. Balasubramanian, S. Santhanam, and G. Srinivasan—each providing Rs. 66,667 to bridge tuition gaps for deserving students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.[24] Recent beneficiaries include Dola Deepak in Electrical Engineering, Mitali Patil in Civil Engineering, and Kushagra Agnihotri in Ocean Engineering for the 2023-24 academic year.[24] His active engagement in alumni relations, including receiving the Distinguished Alumnus Award, further highlights his ongoing role in nurturing IIT Madras's legacy of excellence and accessibility.[
Disclaimer: This profile is based on publicly available information. No endorsement or affiliation is implied.
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