Matt Jacobs joined Balyasny in 2007 and is a Partner and Portfolio Manager covering the TMT sector.

After almost two decades at Balyasny, Matt is one of the longest-tenured Portfolio Managers in the firm's history. He covers the full sweep of TMT, from semiconductors and software to consumer tech and payments. We sat down with Matt to hear lessons from his career, how he has built a team, and why he’s remained at BAM after so long.

Nineteen years at the same firm is rare in this industry. What's kept you here?

What keeps me here is the learning, the people, and a culture I genuinely want to be part of. The longevity compounds in ways you can't fully appreciate early in your career, but you really feel it over time.

How has your approach to the job evolved? What does a typical day look like for you now?

Being ready every day is everything, and for me that starts early — a workout at the gym, then quiet time to read, think, and look for something I wasn't expecting. Habits like meditation help manage the chaos.

You've built and led teams throughout your career. What's the most important thing you've learned about developing people?

When someone on your team is struggling, that's exactly when you have to step up and make sure they know you still believe in them. The other thing I preach constantly is to live in the present by learning from your mistakes, then stop pointing fingers and just get going.

What's a lesson from early in your career that's stayed with you?

About a month in, I had an idea that went wrong, and I ended up at dinner that same evening sitting next to Dmitry feeling uneasy. He just looked at me and said, in this industry, this is going to happen a lot. It's about how you deal with it. Things go wrong in this business, and what defines you is what you do next.

Last one — what do you love to do away from the desk?

I'm at the gym most mornings, I watch a lot of sports, and I'm not above a completely dumb show that makes me laugh and switch off. If I weren't a PM, I'd probably own a gym or teach and mentor somewhere.