"Others Fear, I Greed"! "Citrini Panic" marks the market bottom, and bullish hedge funds have already started to act.

According to the Tonghuashun Finance APP, a Sydney-based hedge fund has stated that the sell-off in software stocks has bottomed out, and they have taken advantage of this decline to buy approximately 200 million AUD (about $143 million USD) worth of tech stocks.

GCQ Asset Management sold some of its best-performing holdings, including European luxury brands, and redirected funds into software stocks that have been heavily hit. The firm’s Chief Investment Officer, Doug Tainan, revealed that in recent weeks they have targeted Microsoft, accounting software company Intuit, and tech giant SAP.

After a series of updates from startups like Anthropic heightened market concerns about the short-term outlook for the software industry, tech companies were caught up in what is called the “AI panic trading.” Earlier this week, an obscure firm, Citrini Research, published an article on its blog depicting a severe technological disruption scenario, sparking new worries about the industry’s vulnerability to rapid AI iteration, which further dragged down the stock market.

Tainan mentioned in an interview about Citrini’s blog: “Monday was one of the strangest days I’ve seen in the market, a sci-fi hypothetical scenario proposed by someone I’ve never heard of, which not only caused the market to fall but also drew comments from the White House. That’s the bottom of the market—I dare say.”

Since then, U.S. software stocks have rebounded from Monday’s sharp decline, rising for the third consecutive trading day through Thursday, as investors refocus on companies actively embracing emerging technologies. Block Inc. surged 25% in after-hours trading after announcing plans to cut nearly half of its staff (about 4,000 employees) as part of its AI transformation strategy.

GCQ, managing AUD 2 billion in assets, is also facing challenges, with some of its major holdings underperforming and dragging down performance. For example, Swedish real estate portal Hemnet Group’s stock has fallen more than 70% from its peak in 2025.

Nevertheless, the fund is expected to set a record for monthly net capital inflows in February, having attracted AUD 50 million in January. Its distribution team and Tainan himself are encouraging clients to take advantage of the low prices in software stocks to position themselves.

Tainan said, “The greatest disruption happened last week.” He added that this round of software stock sell-off is “one of the most illogical market sell-offs I’ve ever seen.”

GCQ also doubled down on real estate portals, buying UK’s Rightmove PLC and Swiss market group SMG, and after previously reducing holdings due to falling prices, increased its stake in Hemnet.