Bill Hwang's net worth is nowhere near the roughly $30 billion he controlled at his peak in March 2021. In a court filing ahead of his November 2024 sentencing, Hwang told the court he had around $55 million left, and he was separately ordered to pay more than $9 billion toward victim restitution -- a debt he says he cannot fully satisfy. His fund, Archegos Capital Management, collapsed within days that same month, wiping out his personal fortune and setting off a fraud prosecution that ended in an 18-year prison sentence.
Quick Facts
| Real Name | Sung Kook "Bill" Hwang |
| Born | 1964, South Korea (exact date not public) |
| Known For | Founder of Tiger Asia Management and Archegos Capital Management; Archegos's March 2021 collapse |
| Legal Status | Convicted on 10 of 11 counts (racketeering conspiracy, securities fraud, wire fraud, market manipulation) in July 2024; sentenced to 18 years in prison in November 2024; free on bail while appealing as of 2026 |
| Peak Net Worth | Roughly $30 billion (early 2021), largely tied up in concentrated, leveraged stock positions |
| Current Net Worth | Around $55 million, by Hwang's own November 2024 court filing, against more than $9 billion in ordered restitution |
Background and Tiger Cub Hedge-Fund Career
Hwang emigrated from South Korea to the United States in 1982, took the name Bill, and worked his way through a degree in economics at UCLA and an MBA from Carnegie Mellon University. He started on Wall Street at Hyundai Securities in New York, then moved to Peregrine Investments Holdings, where he met Tiger Management founder Julian Robertson. Robertson hired him as an analyst in 1996, and Hwang became one of Robertson's "Tiger Cub" proteges -- alumni who went on to launch their own hedge funds after Tiger Management closed to outside investors in 2000.
With seed capital from Robertson, Hwang started Tiger Asia Management, an Asia-focused hedge fund that grew from roughly $25 million to more than $5 billion at its peak. Tiger Asia unraveled during the 2007-2009 financial crisis, and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission separately pursued the firm over insider trading and manipulation of Chinese bank stocks. Hwang pleaded guilty on the firm's behalf to a wire fraud charge, paid settlements, and was barred from trading in Hong Kong.
Archegos and the March 2021 Collapse
In 2012, at around age 48, Hwang opened Archegos Capital Management, a family office in Midtown Manhattan that invested mostly his own money and so faced far less regulatory disclosure than a typical hedge fund. Archegos built enormous, concentrated positions in stocks including ViacomCBS, Discovery, and several Chinese tech names, using swap agreements with banks such as Credit Suisse, Nomura, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, and Wells Fargo to obtain leverage well beyond what direct margin lending would have allowed -- while keeping each bank unaware of how much exposure Hwang had built with the others.
In late March 2021, a sharp drop in ViacomCBS stock triggered margin calls Archegos could not meet. As lenders raced to sell their collateral, Archegos's positions collapsed within days, generating roughly $20 billion in losses across the banks involved. Credit Suisse alone lost about $5.5 billion and the episode contributed to the bank's later collapse; Nomura, Morgan Stanley, and others also took large hits. Archegos itself was wiped out.
Criminal Trial Verdict and Sentencing (2024)
Federal prosecutors charged Hwang with racketeering conspiracy, securities fraud, wire fraud, and market manipulation, alleging he lied to banks about Archegos's true exposure to inflate stock prices and obtain financing. After a roughly nine-week jury trial, Hwang was found guilty on July 10, 2024 on 10 of 11 counts; jurors acquitted him on one market-manipulation count tied to the Chinese company iQIYI. Archegos's former chief financial officer, Patrick Halligan, was convicted alongside him on related charges.
On November 20, 2024, U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein sentenced Hwang to 18 years in prison plus three years of supervised release -- below the 21 years prosecutors had requested. Hellerstein said the sentence was meant as "a symbol to others that if you don't live by the law, you could be punished very severely." Prosecutors had also sought more than $9 billion in restitution and asked the court to order forfeiture in excess of $12 billion; Hwang's lawyers argued he has only around $55 million left to pay toward any judgment.
Current Status
As of 2026, Hwang remains free on bail while he appeals his conviction and sentence, and his lawyers have also cited his age and health in seeking a reduced term. Hwang reportedly submitted a pardon application to the U.S. Department of Justice in 2025. His exact personal finances, including how much of the ordered restitution he has paid, are not fully public.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Bill Hwang's net worth today?
By his own November 2024 court filing, around $55 million -- a fraction of the roughly $30 billion he controlled through Archegos at its peak in early 2021, and far short of the more than $9 billion he was ordered to pay in restitution.
Was Bill Hwang found guilty?
Yes. A federal jury convicted him on July 10, 2024 on 10 of 11 counts, including racketeering conspiracy, securities fraud, wire fraud, and market manipulation, following a roughly nine-week trial.
How many years did Bill Hwang get?
He was sentenced on November 20, 2024 to 18 years in prison plus three years of supervised release, below the 21 years prosecutors sought.
Is Bill Hwang in prison now?
As of 2026, no -- he remains free on bail while appealing his conviction and sentence.
What caused the Archegos collapse?
Archegos held enormous, swap-based leveraged positions in a small number of stocks without banks knowing its full exposure. When ViacomCBS shares dropped sharply in March 2021, margin calls forced a rapid unwind that cost lending banks roughly $20 billion.