News, Media

At Ten Cap, we don’t see ourselves at war with passive investments and/or their impact on the market. That’s not because we manage a non-core (alpha extension) investment strategy. It’s because we think passive and active approaches are complementary rather than competitors. To understand this perspective, it’s important to recognise what each type of investment strategy is intended to do. Passive investing is designed to replicate index returns, whereas active investing is designed to outperform a benchmark. As an active fund manager, is this unfair? Not really. It’s just how markets evolve.

Despite a 22% run from the April (Liberation Day) lows, Ten Cap thinks Australian equities will finish the year strongly and can add to these gains through 2026. While the RBA has removed a little of the optimism around the economic / equity market outlook following its recent hawkish commentary, we think its balanced off by a stronger than expected consumer and housing backdrop. As easier monetary policy flows through into the broader economy we expect a modest cyclical upswing with rate sensitive areas to lead the charge. With corporates in good health and the cult of equity investing intact, markets can continue to climd despite some lingering concerns such as valuations. Hear more form Ten Cap;s CIO as he speaks with Juliette Saly from ausbiz.

Our lead portfolio manager, Jun Bei Liu described MYER's FY25 performance as underwhelming in an interview with Kirsten Aiken on Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC)'s The Business. While sales held up, profit margins were squeezed, and earnings came in below expextations. She pointed to operational challenges and heavy reliance on promotions as key concerns.

If you've ever wondered what happens when one of Australia's most successful and mysterious telecom founders sets his sights on Singapore, look no further than Tuas (ASX:TUA). This is not your average telco story. It's a tale of disruption, relentless growth, and the magic touch of David Teoh, a man who's built not one but two billion-dollar telecom empires.

After arriving from Shanghai at 16, she has risen through Australia’s stock picking ranks by force of will and a determination not to blend in. In the pale, male funds management industry (and yes, active investment is increasingly stale too), Liu stands out for any number of reasons. She’s Chinese-born, female, outspoken, and usually dressed ready for a party. Even before she ran the hedge fund at Tribeca Investment Partners, her media profile was sky-high. In "lunch with the AFR" Jun Bei gives a candid interview about all things Jun Bei Liu.

Jun Bei Liu is betting against ASX Limited, expecting intense regulatory scrutiny into the market operator’s failures will ultimately slash its share price. Liu said the ASX “looks super expensive at the moment” and there was the risk it would be forced to disclose higher spending and sluggish earnings growth when it announced its annual results next month.

Welcome to BofA 2025 Emerging Manager Class! It is an honor to be included in Bank of America's 2025 Emerging Manager Class. Each year, this recognition is given to a handful of fund managers around the globe. It has been a great start for Ten Cap and we are very proud that our potential is being recognized and the help that BofA are providing. We are excited to be in this journey together. Thank you BofA from the Ten Cap team.

Listen to a replay of the Alpha Plus Fund 3Q25 webinar held on Wednesday July 9. Jun Bei Liu, Co-founder / Lead portfolio manager for Ten Cap provides an update on the Alpha Plus Fund, with particular emphasis on how she has navigated the first 6 months of the year and how the portfolio is positioned as we head into the second half of the year and into a more aggressive policy easing cycle. Joining the call is Jason Todd, Co-founder / CEO who will also provide an overview of the macroeconomic backdrop and why he believes risk assets can withstand current market volatility and uncertainty.

We remain optimistic on the Australian equity market. While it has rallied hard since early April, further policy support should provide a solid tailwind and help temper concerns around elevated valuations. We don't expect the upcoming reporting season to disappoint despite the potential for management commentary to be cautious. As we look ahead, a global easing cycle alongside modest cyclical upside should support risk assets with investors tilting towards areas where there is greater upside valuation potential. Investors should remain focused on an improving macro picture and not get overly worried about near term risks.

Throughout the first half of 2025, we have been more optimistic than the consensus on the ability of equities to absorb and/or look through downside risks. On April 9th, when US President Trump paused the implementation of tariffs, we pivoted back towards risk assets. Since then, we’ve ridden the wave higher without the accompanying fear of doing something wrong. Outside of a US recession, we think there is enough positive tailwinds to offset short term headwinds and that equity fundamentals - namely improving earnings and easier policy settings - will continue support the market as we move deeper into 2H25. Hear our CIO, Jason Todd, discuss his latest thoughts with AusBiz.

We think last week's May CPI print, which was better than expected at both a headline and core level and showed a favourable mix with services and housing both stepping down, has provided a green light for the RBA to cut faster and deeper. A rate-cutting cycle outside of an economic recession is bullish.

"Every housing cycle has a leader. In Australia, that leader is REA. It has the brand, the platform, and the pricing power. It has margin, cash flow, and multiple growth levers." Our lead portfolio manager, Jun Bei Liu, explains why REA Group’s dominant market position, powerful data assets, and pricing power make it a standout in the digital real estate sector and why she believes REA is well-placed to capture growth while maintaining strong margins.

On airlines, Warren Buffett once said “the worst sort of business is one that grows rapidly, requires significant capital to engender the growth, then earns little or no money”. This is hard to argue against, but everything has a price, even airlines as we have seen with the hype around the listing of Virgin.

At present, we have our own version of the “mag seven”, only it’s called the “mag one” – Commonwealth Bank. I cannot remember a time when one stock, in this case Commonwealth Bank, has caused so much angst for fund managers or when one stock can explain such a large proportion of relative underperformance. I don’t know whether it’s in a valuation bubble or not, but it should not matter because as a fund manager, my objective is to achieve the return objectives of the fund and to navigate the nuances of the market.

We are delighted to share that the Ten Cap Alpha Plus Fund has received a ‘Recommended’ rating by Lonsec. This recognition is a strong endorsement of our business and investment process, especially at such an early stage. A big congratulations to Jun Bei Liu and the investment team for their dedication and expertise. A sincere thank you to the Lonsec team for its thorough research and support.

Experience has taught me to know what I do not know. Pretending we can outfox Trump and know where his decisions are going, before he makes them, is not a sound investment approach. Instead, we have tried to understand what is going on, work out the implications based on what we know and try to insulate ourselves from the chaos (as best we can). Through this approach, we have tried not to make a call on outcomes that are unpredictably binary. Instead, we have gone back to our investment basics because at the end of the day, and no matter what direction the market is travelling, we are always trying to identify and exploit mispriced opportunities.

Jun Bei Liu rarely used to speak up. The co-founder and portfolio manager at Ten Cap shied away from talking in meetings because she felt her English wasn’t good enough and she didn’t understand jokes. But a teacher at a presentation course told Liu her speech patterns and energy levels were what separated her from others. “I took that into account. It changed how I perceive myself.

Sydney’s Macquarie Street, home to some of Australia’s most deep-pocketed money managers, has just welcomed its newest entrant: high-profile stock picker Jun Bei Liu and her new investment firm, Ten Cap.

Jun Bei Liu and Jason Todd’s new hedge fund business, Ten Cap, will launch with $1.5 billion of FUM and a drive to do more with it than just perform. Todd and Liu want to shoot the lights out, of course. But they also want to “build a better funds management business” by differentiating Ten Cap on more than just the metrics that define most of the players in the Australian market.