Hedge fund manager slams ‘idiot’ bankers By James Mackintosh in London Published: October 17 2008 21:13 | Last updated: October 17 2008 21:13
A hedge fund manager who made what is thought to be one of the biggest percentage profits of all time bowed out of the business on Friday with a fierce attack on the “idiots” running big banks who were willing to take the other side of his bets. Andrew Lahde, founder of California’s Lahde Capital, used his farewell letter to investors to round on the US “aristocracy” able to pay for their children to gain a top-class education. Mr Lahde, who has made tens of millions of dollars from his highly successful bets against the financial and property sectors during the past two years, also called for the legalisation of cannabis and said he was now dropping out to spend time with his money. Saying he was “in this game for the money”, Mr Lahde went on to mock those who traded with him. “The low-hanging fruit, ie idiots whose parents paid for prep school, Yale and then the Harvard MBA, was there for the taking.” “These people who were (often) truly not worthy of the education they received (or supposedly received) rose to the top of companies such as AIG, Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers and all levels of our government. “All of this behaviour supporting the aristocracy only ended up making it easier for me to find people stupid enough to take the other side of my trades. God bless America.” Mr Lahde is one of the few hedge fund managers to have correctly predicted the subprime crisis. One of his funds made a return of 870 per cent last year. Money is now being returned to investors as the remaining business is shut down. On Friday, Mr Lahde said he would no longer run other people’s money, preferring to concentrate on managing his own, and urged wealthy hedge fund managers and corporate chieftains to “throw the Blackberry away and enjoy life”. “I will let others try to amass nine, 10 or 11 figure net worths,” he said. “Meanwhile, their lives suck . . . What is the point? They will all be forgotten in 50 years anyway. Steve Ballmer [Microsoft chief executive], Steven Cohen [founder of hedge fund SAC Capital] and Larry Ellison [chief executive of Oracle] will all be forgotten.” Mr Lahde did not immediately return calls. Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2008 u
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