Hedge fund megadonors capitalize on offshore opportunities | OpenSecrets Blog
Hedge funds — partnerships of big-money investors that, put simply, try
to beat the market by pursuing riskier-than-normal investments, often
using debt and other forms of leverage — have boomed in recent years,
with many producing huge financial gains for an elite pool of
individuals, pension funds or other repositories of great wealth.
Private and exclusive, the funds are not for the average American;
often, the customers are not Americans at all. The industry has made
certain Americans very, very rich,
though — and has helped create a new class of megadonors in U.S.
politics. Besides Griffin (of Citadel Advisors LLC), Singer (Elliott
Management Corp.) and Asness (AQR Capital Management), they include
Robert Mercer and James Simons (Renaissance Technologies), Donald
Sussman (Paloma Partners) and Seth Klarman (Baupost Group). These seven
individuals who lead six hedge fund firms have together given at least
$60 million to candidates, super PACs and political party committees
since the beginning of 2015.
Citadel
Advisors head Kenneth Griffin testified at a House hearing at the
height of the financial crisis in 2008. (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf)
Advisors head Kenneth Griffin testified at a House hearing at the
height of the financial crisis in 2008. (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf)
