Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio marked his 77th birthday on Aug. 8 by spending the night at UNVRS in Ibiza, Spain, where he stayed until 4 a.m. Two days later, he posted the video himself on X, saying he had celebrated with family and friends and wanted to share the venue with followers in case they happened to be nearby.
Birthday celebration at UNVRS
The footage showed aerial performers, falling streamers, smoke cannons and heavy electronic bass throughout the night. The event was an elrow-themed party, which the official description called “a psychedelic adventure,” with De La Swing and Nic Fanciulli listed as the DJs.
The report also cited a side-angle clip shared by another user, who joked on X that Dalio spending his 77th birthday in an Ibiza club until 4 a.m. was somehow not included in Principles.
UNVRS was rebuilt at a cost of €80 million
According to the input, UNVRS opened on May 30, 2025, and is described as a “hyperclub.” The venue was rebuilt for €80 million, spans 6,500 square meters and can hold 10,000 people. The report says it was ranked No. 1 in DJ Mag’s global Top 100 clubs list in 2026.
The article says the venue earned the hyperclub label because it combines nightclub service and production detail with the scale and hardware standards of a large concert venue.
Dalio has fully exited Bridgewater
The Ibiza outing came just after Dalio’s formal departure from Bridgewater. On July 31, 2025, he sold his final remaining stake in the firm and resigned from the board, ending all ownership ties and closing a 50-year chapter.
His exit unfolded in stages. The report says he stepped down as chief executive in 2017, handed over day-to-day management in 2022, resigned as co-chief executive in April 2025, and then completed the process on July 31, 2025 by selling his last stake and leaving the board.
Bridgewater now manages about $92 billion and has roughly 1,500 employees, according to the report. It also describes the firm as the world’s largest hedge fund and says its total profits generated for clients exceed those of any rival. The current leadership team includes co-CEOs Nir Bar Dea and David McCormick, and co-chief investment officers Bob Prince and Greg Jensen. The report also says Brunei’s sovereign wealth fund holds about a 20% stake.
Still talking debt, AI and Bitcoin in retirement
Retirement has not quieted Dalio’s public commentary. The article says that in January, while discussing the $38 trillion U.S. national debt, he said, “My grandchildren and great-grandchildren who haven’t been born yet will have to pay this back.” He described the U.S. economy as moving toward a heart attack and said debt crises tend to deteriorate slowly before breaking all at once.
At the end of July, he also warned about an AI bubble and said investors should put 15% of their holdings in Bitcoin or gold to get the best risk-reward ratio.
His Bitcoin view remains unchanged
On crypto, the report says Dalio’s position has not shifted. He personally holds Bitcoin at roughly 1% of his portfolio, but does not view it as a better asset than gold. The article quotes him as saying, “There is only one gold.”
It adds that his reservations about Bitcoin focus on three points: the lack of central bank support, insufficient privacy and future risks tied to quantum computing.
A retirement milestone and a nightclub birthday in the same stretch
The report places two recent developments side by side: Dalio’s full break from Bridgewater on July 31, 2025, and his 77th birthday celebration at UNVRS in Ibiza on Aug. 8, followed by his X post on Aug. 10.
As framed in the article, the investor who has spent years warning about a possible economic “heart attack” in the U.S. used his first birthday after fully leaving Bridgewater to stay on the dance floor until closing time.