Tuesday, June 3, 2014

Hedge-Fund World's One-Man Wealth Machine

David Abrams Built His Fortune Effectively Going It Alone 
In the Back Bay neighborhood of Boston, one man is building a moneymaking machine that rivals some of the hedge-fund industry's biggest names. 
Calls to his office go unreturned even from those eager to fork over eight-figure sums, potential investors say. One industry veteran referred to him as "a unicorn," as few people have ever seen him. 
The hedge-fund manager, David Abrams, has personally become a billionaire, and earned billions more for his wealthy investors, over the past five years running what is effectively a one-man shop, according to company and investor documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal and people who have worked with him. His firm, Abrams Capital Management LP, manages nearly $8 billion across three funds and is discussing raising money for a fourth fund that could help push its assets past $10 billion. 
In an era of star investors who appear regularly on television and talk up their ideas at hyped confabs, Mr. Abrams, 53 years old, has never spoken at an event open to the public.

[H/T Corner of Berkshire & Fairfax…..where someone was also kind enough to post THIS transcript from the October 2008 Graham & Dodd Breakfast.]