Monolith Management, a technology-focused hedge fund with $300m under management, has delivered an impressive 53% year-to-date return, riding gains in semiconductors, data centres, and a September rally in Chinese equities, according to a report by Reuters.

The Hong Kong-based firm is now set to expand, with plans to launch a new fund in January that will boost its long-short equity strategy to approximately $500m.

Monolith's success stands out in a challenging year marked by global economic uncertainty, with Asia's equity long-short funds achieving an average return of 12.8% through November, according to Goldman Sachs, placing Monolith well ahead of its peers.

The firm has profited from strategic bets on US and Taiwanese semiconductor stocks tied to the artificial intelligence supply chain, investments in US data centre infrastructure, including cutting-edge technologies like liquid cooling solutions, as well as power and network connectivity assets, and gains from crypto and Bitcoin mining companies that support data centre operations.

In September, the fund ramped up its net exposure to Chinese internet and consumer stocks to 50%, capitalising on the government's massive monetary stimulus. By October, Monolith had pared back its exposure to 20%, avoiding a 17% downturn in Chinese equities since then.