Jamie Mai is an American hedge fund manager and investor. He is best known for starting Cornwall Capital, a private investment firm based in New York, and being its Chief Investment Officer. Michael Lewis’s best-selling book The Big Short and its 2015 movie adaptation, in which he is fictionalized as Jamie Shipley, made Mai famous for making money during the 2007–2008 subprime mortgage crisis by betting against credit default swaps. Mai started Cornwall with just $110,000 in a garage in Berkeley, California. Now, it’s a well-respected company known for finding asymmetric risk-reward opportunities, doing deep value analysis, and having a disciplined approach to uncertainty.
Jamie Mai Wiki/Bio
| Attribute | Details |
| Full Name | Jamie Mai |
| Known As | Jamie Mai |
| Profession | CEO, CIO, Hedge Fund Manager, Financial Strategist |
| Company | Cornwall Capital Management LP |
| Net Worth (2025) | $5 Million USD |
| Primary Income Sources | Hedge Fund Management, Private Equity, Venture Capital, Financial Advisory |
| Date of Birth | 1991 |
| Age (as of 2025) | 34 Years |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | Duke University (Undergraduate), NYU Stern School of Business (Graduate) |
| Father | Vincent Mai (Private Equity Investor) |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) |
| Weight | 66 kg |
| Body Type | Slim |
| Eye Color | Brown |
| Hair Color | Black |
| Famous For | Predicting the 2008 Financial Crisis, Featured in The Big Short |
| Company Valuation Milestone | $22 Million from $110,000 Initial Investment |
Life and School in the Beginning
Jamie Mai (full name James A. Mai) came from a family with a lot of money. His father, Vincent Mai, was a well-known private equity executive who started and ran AEA Investors, one of the oldest leveraged buyout firms in the United States. Later, Vincent Mai started The Cranemere Group and worked as an advisor for Cornwall Capital. This environment taught Jamie about investment principles early on, even though he initially took a different path.
Mai studied history as an undergraduate at Duke University. This helped him become a better researcher, thinker, and questioner of accepted stories, which later shaped the way he invested. He got more education by doing things, like taking an accounting class because of his father, and he got a graduate degree from New York University’s Stern School of Business. Before starting his own business, Mai worked in private equity at companies like Golub Capital and Housatonic Partners, where he learned how to structure deals and do due diligence.
Starting Cornwall Capital
Around the age of 30, Jamie Mai started Cornwall Capital as a family office to manage and diversify parts of his father’s money. The business started small, with partners Charlie Ledley (a former colleague from private equity) and Charlie Ledley working out of a shed behind a friend’s house in Berkeley, California. They had $110,000 in a Charles Schwab account. What started as a test of independent investing quickly grew into a full-fledged hedge fund.
Cornwall’s early strategy was to find mispriced risks in markets that were either ignored or hard to understand. Mai and Ledley talked a lot about “asymmetric” bets, which are bets where the potential upside is much higher than the downside risk, even if the chance of winning is low. They did well in unique situations, event-driven chances, and situations where traders were too quick to discount unlikely outcomes. This method turned out to be smart, letting the company make a lot of money in its first ten years.
The Big Short and the Crisis of 2008
The most famous part of Cornwall Capital’s story happened just before the 2008 financial crisis. Beginning in 2005–2006, Mai, Ledley, and their team (with help from mentor Ben Hockett) found that subprime mortgage-backed securities and related derivatives were worth far too much. They bought credit default swaps (CDS) on collateralized debt obligations (CDOs) because they thought housing market defaults were severely underpriced. These were basically insurance against default that paid out a lot when the housing bubble burst.
Cornwall made hundreds of millions of dollars in profits from these trades, which helped the company grow from a garage operation to managing almost $130 million by the peak of the crisis. Michael Lewis’s book The Big Short made their story more dramatic by focusing on how they were outsiders, were skeptical of Wall Street, and kept going despite the difficulties of dealing with unclear markets. But the real success came from careful analysis, not just luck. In later interviews, including Jack Schwager’s Hedge Fund Market Wizards, Mai said that markets are good at figuring out how big risks are, but they often get the chances wrong, which gives traders an edge.
Investment Philosophy and History
Mai’s philosophy is based on looking for asymmetry, which means taking small risks for the chance of big rewards. He has talked about focusing on times when the market gives big discounts because it thinks there are problems, but it doesn’t really know how likely they are to happen. Cornwall stays away from crowded trades and instead looks for unique chances in credit, stocks, special situations, and derivatives.
The fund reportedly made net returns of about 42% per year during its first nine years, turning a $100,000 investment into more than $2.3 million. Cornwall is a low-profile company, so we don’t know exactly how well it’s doing right now. However, it has built a reputation for being consistent through many market cycles. In 2011, Mai opened the fund to outside investors who shared its intellectual approach, which focused on sharing ideas rather than mass marketing.
Bloomberg and other news outlets have written about Mai, who is the CEO, CIO, and founder of Cornwall Capital Management LP. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and serves on boards for both businesses and nonprofits, such as the Tobin Project. This shows that he is interested in policy and economics in a broader sense.
Later in their career and now
As of February 2026, Jamie Mai is still the Chief Investment Officer at Cornwall Capital, which is based in New York City. The company still works independently and does research, with Vincent Mai giving advice. Mai’s influence is still strong in value-oriented and contrarian investing circles, even though it is not as well known as it was during the Big Short era.
Recent profiles say that his personal net worth is in the millions, with some sources putting it at around $5 million, which is probably low given Cornwall’s past gains. This is because of his stake in the company and successful trades. Mai is about 35 years old (she was born around 1991, according to some biographical information). She is a link between old-school fundamental analysis and modern asymmetric risk-taking.
Legacy in Money
Jamie Mai’s story shows that outsiders with discipline and a desire to learn can do better than established players. He went from a history major in a Berkeley shed to a key figure in one of the most important stories in finance. This shows how powerful it is to question what everyone else thinks and accept uncertainty. Cornwall Capital’s long-term success shows that chasing momentum doesn’t always lead to big returns. Instead, you should think about things in a patient, probabilistic way.
Mai’s focus on deep, asymmetric opportunities is still important in a time of algorithmic trading and crowded hedge funds. His journey shows that deep market insights can come from unexpected places and encourages aspiring investors to put edge identification ahead of traditional credentials.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Who is Jamie Mai?
Jamie Mai (full name James A. Mai) is an American hedge fund manager, investor, and the founder, CEO, and Chief Investment Officer of Cornwall Capital Management LP, a New York-based private investment firm. He gained fame for his role in profiting from the 2007–2008 subprime mortgage crisis through contrarian bets on credit default swaps, as chronicled in Michael Lewis’s book The Big Short (where he is portrayed as Jamie Shipley in the film adaptation). Mai is known for his asymmetric investing style—seeking opportunities with limited downside and high potential upside.
What is Cornwall Capital, and what is its current status?
Cornwall Capital is a low-profile, independent investment firm founded by Jamie Mai in 2003 (initially as a family office to manage portions of his father Vincent Mai’s capital). It focuses on identifying mispriced risks, special situations, event-driven trades, and asymmetric opportunities in credit, equities, derivatives, and overlooked markets. As of early 2025 (latest available 13F data from January 1, 2025), the firm managed approximately $79.5 million in discretionary assets. It remains active in New York City, with Mai leading as CIO. The firm has no public website updates recently but continues its research-driven, contrarian approach without broad marketing.
What is Jamie Mai’s net worth in 2026?
Public estimates place Jamie Mai’s net worth at approximately $5 million as of 2026. This figure comes from sources tracking hedge fund managers and is derived primarily from his leadership and ownership stake in Cornwall Capital, along with prior private equity experience and investment gains. Note that exact personal wealth for private fund managers is not publicly disclosed, and some analyses suggest it could be higher given the firm’s historical performance, though conservative estimates hover around this level.
How did Cornwall Capital perform historically?
Cornwall Capital achieved exceptional early results. From 2003 to around 2012, it delivered average annual compounded net returns of about 40% (52% gross), with some periods showing even higher figures (e.g., net returns around 42% annually in the first nine years). A hypothetical $100,000 investment in the early years could have grown to over $2 million by the end of that period. The firm famously profited massively during the 2008 crisis (with some trades returning multiples of invested capital). Post-2012 performance details are limited due to the firm’s private nature, but it has maintained a reputation for consistency in asymmetric bets rather than chasing high-frequency or market-beta returns.
What is Jamie Mai’s investment philosophy?
Mai emphasizes asymmetric risk-reward trades: positions where potential upside significantly outweighs downside risk, even if success probability is low. He focuses on market inefficiencies, where participants misprice probabilities (e.g., over-discounting tail risks or underpricing improbable events). Strategies include deep out-of-the-money options (like LEAPS), special situations, contrarian bets, and avoiding crowded trades. He has highlighted in interviews (e.g., Hedge Fund Market Wizards by Jack Schwager) that markets often size risks well but misjudge probabilities, creating exploitable edges through rigorous, first-principles analysis.
What was Jamie Mai’s role in The Big Short?
Mai, along with partners Charlie Ledley and Ben Hockett, was one of the few investors to foresee and profit from the subprime housing collapse. Starting with modest capital in a Berkeley garage, they bought credit default swaps on mortgage-backed securities, turning small investments into hundreds of millions in gains during the crisis. The book and film dramatize their outsider perspective, persistence in navigating complex derivatives markets, and skepticism of Wall Street consensus.
What is Jamie Mai’s educational and professional background?
Mai studied history as an undergraduate at Duke University, which honed his analytical and research skills. He later earned a graduate degree from NYU’s Stern School of Business. Before founding Cornwall, he worked in private equity at firms like Golub Capital and Housatonic Partners. His father, Vincent Mai (founder of AEA Investors and later The Cranemere Group), provided early capital and advisory support. Mai has also served on boards, including as Chairman of Keweenaw Land Association Ltd. since 2018, and is involved in policy circles (e.g., past Council on Foreign Relations membership).
Is Jamie Mai still active in investing in 2026?
Yes, Jamie Mai remains actively involved as CEO and CIO of Cornwall Capital. While the firm maintains a low public profile (no major recent interviews or media appearances), 13F filings confirm ongoing operations and asset management. His approach continues to prioritize long-term, high-conviction opportunities over short-term trends, consistent with the firm’s founding principles.
These FAQs reflect Jamie Mai’s enduring legacy as a contrarian thinker who turned modest beginnings into significant impact through disciplined, probability-focused investing. Cornwall Capital’s private status limits granular updates, but Mai’s story continues to inspire value-oriented investors.
