Politico hedge funds: No experience? No problem

Posted Jan 23rd 2007 5:25PM by Brandon Barker
Filed under: Other Issues

Moving to the private sector -- and seriously cashing in -- is a standard transition for many retiring (and even disgraced) government officials. But as this article from Slate informs us, for the truly ambitious former politicians, lobbying may not be enough.

Last Friday former SEC chairman Richard Breeden -- a man with no investment experience -- became, yep, a hedge-fund manager, "complete with $500 million under management, a Cayman Islands registry, and an office in hedge-fund capital Greenwich, Conn." The New York Times declared Mr. Breeden to be "perhaps the most senior former government official ever to run a hedge fund."

But things change fast. Clinton Secretary of State Madeleine Albright -- also with no investment experience -- last week formed Albright Capital Management, an emerging-markets hedge fund backed with $329 million.

So, is this a signal to steer clear of hedge funds? Maybe for most of us. But if you're Condoleeza Rice or Donald Rumsfeld, never say never.

B. Brandon Barker is the author of Operation EMU.

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