The Activist Investor: A True Ally of Corporate Governance

Activist investors: Publicly listed companies fear them. Corporate governance pundits generally do not trust them. Retail investors quietly applaud them, and most laymen do not understand them. However, it is clear that in today’s complex corporate world, we need them. Activist investors may be the only players in the game that can effectively “Occupy Wall Street”.

We have entered the twilight zone when it comes to corporate governance. The zone where many Boards bury their head in the sand when it comes to breaches in compliance, as in the case of HSBC and the tax evasion scandal of February 2015. Certain Boards passively bow to the dictates of executive management, throwing all accountability on the corporation-as-entity, with no individual responsibility. All other stakeholders, from shareholders, to suppliers, to workers, to humble taxpayers are left to peck at what is left of net worth after the share price dives, and are left to fork out money for regulation and reconstruction.

For More: http://www.financialpolicycouncil.org/fpcnew/articledetails.aspx?id=52/The-Activist-Investor:-A-True-Ally-of-Corporate-Governance

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Interview with Mr. Ziad K. Abdelnour – President & CEO of Blackhawk Partners

Ziad K. Abdelnour is a leading Wall Street dealmaker, trader and financier with 20+ years experience in merchant banking, private equity, alternative investments and physical commodities trading. Throughout his career, Mr. Abdelnour worked on more than 125 transactions representing approximately $30 billion in value and ranging in size from $5 million – $5 billion while raising in the process in excess of $3.5 billion in privately placed debt and equity financing for more than 100 companies.

Mr. Abdelnour is currently President & CEO of Blackhawk Partners, Inc., a New York based venture capital “family office” that focuses on originating, structuring and acting as equity investor in management-led buyouts, strategic minority equity investments, equity private placements, consolidations and buildups, and growth capital financings mainly in the global energy and technology sectors.

For More: http://westernhq.com/blog/archives/16#more-16

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When Performance Doesn’t Matter

One of the most amusing phrases on Wall Street is “smart money.”

This phrase is used to describe the handful of professional investors whose abilities and foresight are thought to be so acute that they spot the big moneymaking opportunities before the average Joe Pro.

The smartest of the “smart money” is thought to be hedge funds.

A look at recent performance suggests that hedge funds are indeed extremely smart money, though not in the way that most people think.

In fact on average, hedge funds are no smarter about picking stocks or other investments than anyone else. In fact, they’re decidedly, startlingly worse.

For More: Smart Money

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