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Miami Herald – The Obama administration’s bid for $50 million to move prisoners from the Guantánamo Bay detention facility was left out of the Democratic-authored emergency war spending bill unveiled Monday.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates had sought the funds in case the U.S. wanted to build or retrofit an alternative facility for the detainees in the United States. He called the funds ”a hedge” in case the government wanted to start construction.
However, when Democrats in the House of Representatives released their spending package Monday for funding the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and related expenses, the $50 million for Guantánamo was missing.
New York (HedgeCo.Net) – While some top banking execs choose to blow millions on lavish area rugs or fancy, non functional commodes, Leonard Abess Jr. of Miami-based City National Bank had a better idea; give back to the people who made him his fortune.
According to an exclusive published in the Miami Herald, Abess took $60 million of his personal fortune and distributed it to over 400 current and former employees of the bank.
For some employees who had given their life to the bank, that amounted to tens of thousands of dollars. All employees were recognized and compensated, from janitors, to clerks, to tellers.
”Those people who joined me and stayed with me at the bank with no promise of equity — I always thought someday I’m going to surprise them,” Abess told the Miami Herald. “I sure as heck don’t need [the money].”
Last November, Abess sold a majority stake in the bank to Caja Madrid for $927 million. He held onto his CEO position while maintaining a minority share. While most people would assume his father who founded City National, merely handed down a cash cow, it wasn’t the case at all.
Abess Jr. took a bankrupt establishment worth only $21 million at one point and convinced about 200 investors to put their faith into it. He was then able to grow the bank from $400 million in assets to over $2.75 billion while more than doubling the offices.
Abess never seemed to let his status give him an ego. He told the paper, “”I saw that if the president doesn’t come to work, it’s not a big deal. But if the tellers don’t show up, it’s a serious problem.’
Let’s hope other billionaire banking execs are as modest and as appreciative.
Julie Scuderi Senior Editor for HedgeCo.Net Email: julie@hedgeco.net
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Miami Herald – Nearly two-thirds said they had lost 70 percent of their investments or more, according to the survey by the Shanghai Securities News, a newspaper affiliated with the stock exchange.
Many Asian hedge funds, meanwhile, took a drubbing and closed shop by the dozens, with their traditionally long bets on the markets’ moves souring amid the furious sell-off.
Whether 2008′s lows, reached mostly in October and November, hold in 2009 is a matter of debate.
West Palm Beach (HedgeCo.net) – Due to their recent share decrease, Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. has agreed to sell majority interest to asset manager Neuberger Berman. The transaction will create a new, independent investment management company to be called Neuberger Investment Management, managing approximately $160 billion of assets as of 30 November 2008.
Lehman Brothers Private Equity Partners Limited (LBPE) and certain of its affiliates will be a part of this transaction. The sale is subject to final Bankruptcy Court approval, and closing is expected in the first quarter of 2009.
LBPE’s Board of Directors believes this transaction will significantly benefit the Company by providing the management team of the Investment Manager a strong platform from which to continue managing LBPE’s high quality private equity portfolio and support the long term success of the Company.
LBPE will also host a conference call later this week for investors and analysts to discuss the Investment Manager update and the Company’s performance. An updated investor presentation will be published on the Company’s Web site prior to the conference call on 12 December 2008.
HedgeCo.Net is a premier hedge fund database and community for qualified and accredited investors only. Membership on www.hedgeco.net is FREE and EASY. We also offer FREE LISTINGS for Hedge Funds!
