Michael Steinhardt
Michael Steinhardt | |
---|---|
Born | New York City, U.S. | December 7, 1940
Alma mater | University of Pennsylvania (B.S.) |
Occupation(s) | Investor, hedge fund manager |
Years active | 1967 - present |
Spouse | Judy Steinhardt |
Children | 3, including Sara Berman |
Michael H. Steinhardt (born December 7, 1940) is an American billionaire hedge fund manager, philanthropist, and former antiquities collector. In 1967, he founded a hedge fund, Steinhardt Partners which he ran until he closed it in 1995. After a hiatus from work, he returned to head WisdomTree Investments in 2004. In January 2014 he was on the cover of Forbes Magazine, referred to as "Wall Street's greatest trader."[1][2] Forbes Magazine reported his net worth at $1.1 billion as of October 2018.[3]
Early life
Steinhardt earned a bachelor's degree at the
Michael Steinhardt's father was his first investment client, giving his son envelopes stuffed with cash to put in the stock market giving him seed money to begin his investment career.[4]
Investment career
Early career
Working as an analyst at
Steinhardt Partners
In 1967, using earnings from his investments, Steinhardt founded the hedge fund Steinhardt, Fine, and Berkowitz (later Steinhardt Partners) with co-investors William Salomon, former managing partner of Salomon Brothers and Jack Nash, founder of Odyssey Partners.[4]
Between 1967 and 1995, Steinhardt Partners averaged an annualized return for its clients of 24.5%, after a 1% management fee and a "performance fee" of 15% (early in his career, later 20%) of all annual gains, realized and unrealized, nearly triple the annualized performance of the
His fund lost 1/3 of its value in the 1994 bond market crisis.[8] In 1995, after finishing up 25%, decided to close his fund, stating, "I thought there must be something more virtuous, more ennobling to do with one's life than make rich people richer," before returning to work in 2004 to head WisdomTree Investments, a fund with nearly US$64 billion in assets under management.[6] The hedge fund distributed all monies to its limited partners at the end of 1995.[citation needed]
WisdomTree Investments
In 2004, Steinhardt came out of retirement to work for Index Development Partners, Inc.,[9] now known as WisdomTree Investments. He is chairman of WisdomTree, which offers dividend and earnings-based index funds rather than traditional index funds based on market capitalization. As of July 2018, WisdomTree had $41.2 billion under management.[10] During the fall of 2007 and 2008, WisdomTree's growth stagnated, as the stock market, especially the financial sector, in which WisdomTree's dividend-based funds are overweighted, tanked, as did WisdomTree's stock. However, as the WisdomTree funds tended to outperform their "bogies," asset growth resumed its earlier pace and its stock price appreciated accordingly.[1]
Wealth and philanthropy
In the 1990s, Steinhardt bought and donated Steeple Jason Island and Grand Jason Island in the Falkland Islands to the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), along with US$425,000 for a research station to be named after himself and his wife.[13] Steinhardt invested in baseball teams, owning part of the Miami Marlins and the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Steinhardt is the past chairman of the Democratic Leadership Council and a board member of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, to which he donated $250,000 in 2002.[14]
Jewish causes
Steinhardt is chairman of the board at
Steinhardt has founded a network of Hebrew-language charter schools, which are secular and open to both Jews and non-Jews. He has said "these schools teach Hebrew in a way that is demonstrably superior to Jewish day schools".[17]
Steinhardt is part of the "Mega Group" – a loosely organized club of 20 of the most wealthy and influential Jewish businessmen. The "Mega Group" was formed by
Steinhardt is a strong supporter of the
In April 2017, he made history after being selected as one of two diaspora Jews to light an official torch at the
Steinhardt served as Chairman of the Board of Tel Aviv University, where he received an honorary doctorate in 2011, and endowed the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History in Ramat Aviv.[20]
Publishing
In 2001, Steinhardt made his foray into publishing. He, along with several other investors, including
Sexual harassment allegations
On September 12, 2018,
Steinhardt stated in response to the findings "If I had been told immediately about concerns regarding anything I said at the time, I would have apologized immediately. I only recently learned about this investigation when Hillel called me about comments I made several years ago. I am sorry and deeply regret causing any embarrassment, discomfort or pain, which was never my intention."[25] As of March 2019, six women had come forward alleging that Steinhardt had made unwanted sexual requests of them.[26]
Private antiquities collection and lifetime ban from collecting artifacts
Steinhardt is an art collector, especially of antiquities. A special exhibition, "Ancient Art of the Cyclades", held at the Katonah Museum of Art included some pieces owned by him.[citation needed] He sat on the American advisory board of Christie's, the art & antiques auction house.[29]
In November 2014, Christie's had to withdraw a prehistoric sculpture from Sardinia, valued at $800,000-$1.2m, put on auction by Steinhardt and previously put on sale by the notorious and convicted antiquities dealer Giacomo Medici. In January 2018, investigators raided Steinhardt's New York City apartment and seized a large amount of stolen antiquities which had been illegally purchased by Steinhardt.[30]
In December 2021, after a four-year multinational investigation examining his "acquisition, possession and sale of more than 1,000 antiquities since at least 1987",[31] Steinhardt reached an agreement with the New York County District Attorney to relinquish 180 items with an estimated value of $70 million, in exchange for the dismissal of a grand jury investigation into his collection. As part of the deal, Steinhardt was being permanently banned from acquiring new pieces. Steinhardt kept the remaining pieces that he legally purchased. The seized antiquities were slated to be returned to their proper owners in much of the Eastern Mediterranean region, as well as Bulgaria and Iraq.[32][33] [34]
In a press release, District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. said, "For decades, Michael Steinhardt displayed a rapacious appetite for plundered artifacts without concern for the legality of his actions, the legitimacy of the pieces he bought and sold, or the grievous cultural damage he wrought across the globe."[35] The Grand Jury Investigation Statement of Facts stated that Steinhart acquired stolen antiquiries from Giacomo Medici, Giovanni Franco Becchina, Edoardo Almagià, Robin Symes, Robert Hecht, Edward and Samuel Merrin, Robert Haber, Eugene Alexander, Fritz and Harry Bürki, Gil Chaya, Rafi Brown, Michael Ward and others. [36] A lawyer for Steinhardt said many of the dealers from whom he bought the artifacts "made specific representations as to the dealers’ lawful title to the items, and to their alleged provenance."[37]
Heliodorus Stele
In 2007 Steinhardt lent Israel Museum the "Heliodorus Stele", (commons) which he had recently acquired. The stele was 2,200-year-old Greek text inscribed in limestone. However, an expert soon noted that two pieces excavated from a cave in Maresha fit the Heliodorus Stele "like a jigsaw puzzle", and hence concluded that the stele came from the same cave. In December 2021, the "Heliodorus Stele" was among the 180 artifacts Steinhardt agreed to surrender to the Manhattan District Attorney’s office. As of January 7, 2022, the "Heliodorus Stele" was still on display in the Israel Museum, together with 2 Neolithic masks.[39]
Guennol Stargazer
Steinhardt acquired the Guennol Stargazer in 1993.[41] The marble idol depicts a nude human figure and is estimated to be 6,000 years old. After attempting to sell the idol at auction in 2017, the Turkish government sued to halt the sale. The sale occurred, though the buyer later backed out. A bench trial in 2021 determined that Turkey had waited too long to attempt to repatriate the idol, and that it would remain in the United States.[42]
Personal life
In 1967, Steinhardt met his future wife, Judy, in a
In Sebastian Mallaby's 2010 book entitled More Money Than God: Hedge Funds and the Making of a New Elite, he dedicated a chapter to Steinhardt. He described Steinhardt as a "lover of botany and a collector of exotic fauna," living in his retirement "on his country estate an hour's drive north of New York City." Mallaby included a photo of Steinhardt "dancing on his estate opposite... an elegant blue crane . . . that had taken to courting him with a graceful gavotte."[46]
In 2001, Steinhardt published an autobiography: No Bull: My Life in and out of Markets. In this book, he addressed for the first time the question of his father, Sol Frank Steinhardt, who also went by the moniker "Red McGee." "Red" Steinhardt was convicted in 1958 on two counts of buying and selling stolen jewelry, and was sentenced to serve two 5-to-10 year terms, to run consecutively, in the
In 2008, he was inducted into Institutional Investors Alpha's Hedge Fund Manager Hall of Fame along with
See also
References
- ^ a b Noer, Michael. "Michael Steinhardt, Wall Street's Greatest Trader, Is Back -- And He's Reinventing Investing Again". Forbes. Retrieved 2017-02-18.
- ^ Sebastian Mallaby (2010). More Money Than God, pg.41
- ^ a b "Michael Steinhardt". Forbes. Retrieved 2018-10-28.
- ^ a b c Lenzner, Robert (November 8, 2001). "Michael Steinhardt's Voyage Around His Father". Forbes.com. Archived from the original on 2013-01-23.
{{cite magazine}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ "Michael Steinhardt – "When the Bad Guys Came to Town" – Deep Capture". www.deepcapture.com. Retrieved 2024-06-06.
- ^ a b "Michael Steinhardt, Wall Street's Greatest Trader, Is Back -- And He's Reinventing Investing Again". Forbes. Retrieved April 20, 2017.
- ^ "Michael Steinhardt's Voyage Around His Father - Forbes.com". Forbes. November 8, 2001. Archived from the original on January 23, 2013.
- ^ The great bond massacre - Fortune, December 1994; republished 3 February 2013
- ^ "IDP completed $9 million financing" (PDF). Retrieved May 10, 2007.[dead link]
- ^ "WisdomTree Investments, Inc. - Investor Relations". Wisdomtreeinvestments.com. Archived from the original on 2006-11-16. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
- ^ "NYU News". 13 October 2023.
- ^ Student government at NYU school named for Steinhardt calls for removal of philanthropist’s name, Shira Hanau, December 9, 2021, Jewish Telegraphic Agency
- ^ "News from Zoos: March and April 2002". Umich.edu. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
- ^ McCarthy, Daniel (November 17, 2003). "Most Favored Democracy". Amconmag.com.
- ^ "rajeusa.com". rajeusa.com. 2014-05-29. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
- ^ Sales, Ben (July 31, 2012). "A Jewish dead poets' society?". The Times of Israel.
- ^ a b Ben Sales, Michael Steinhardt thinks American Jews need to stop focusing on religion, Jewish Telegraphic Agency; June 9, 2017.
- ^ Titans of Industry Join Forces To Work for Jewish Philanthropy, The Wall Street Journal, 4 May 1998
- ^ "How a US billionaire's Jewish spark became an Independence Day torch". The Times of Israel.
- ^ [1] [2]
- ^ Vickers, Marcia (July 18, 2005). "The Rich Boys". Business Week. Archived from the original on July 13, 2005.
- ^ Heilemann, John (December 4, 2006). "His American Dream". Nymag.com.
- ^ Sommer, Allison Kaplan (2018-09-13). "Report: Jewish-American Philanthropist Michael Steinhardt Accused of 'Inappropriate Sexual Remarks'". Haaretz. Retrieved 2018-09-14.
- ^ "Hillel Investigating Allegations Against Major Philanthropist". Retrieved 2018-09-14.
- ^ a b Rosenblatt, Gary (13 January 2019). "Hillel Finds 'Complaints Were Justified' On Sexual Harassment By Donors". jewishweek.timesofisrael.com.
- ^ Otterman, Sharon; Dreyfus, Hannah (21 March 2019), "Michael Steinhardt, a Leader in Jewish Philanthropy, Is Accused of a Pattern of Sexual Harassment", The New York Times
- ^ D.A. Vance: Michael Steinhardt Surrenders 180 Stolen Antiquities Valued at $70 Million, Press Release, Dec 6, 2021
- ^ Exhibit 1-92, Stag’s head: exhibit no 49
- ^ "Advisory Board". Christies.com. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
- ^ "Looted Antiques Seized From Billionaire's Home, Prosecutors Say". The New York Times. 5 January 2018.
- ^ Jack Guy (7 December 2021). "New York billionaire Michael Steinhardt surrenders $70 million of stolen ancient art". CNN.
- ^ "Hedge-fund pioneer Michael Steinhardt surrenders 180 stolen antiquities valued at $70 million, Manhattan DA Vance says". CNBC. 6 December 2021.
- ^ "US billionaire surrenders $70m of stolen art". The Guardian. 7 December 2021.
- ^ Mashberg, Tom (7 December 2021). "Michael Steinhardt, Billionaire, Surrenders $70 Million in Stolen Relics". The New York Times. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
- ^ "Jewish Billionaire Steinhardt To Return Looted Antiquities". Associated Press. 6 December 2021. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
- ^ Vance, Cyrus (2021-12-06). "Statement of Facts Grand Jury Investigation" (PDF).
- ^ Mashberg, Tom (7 December 2021). "Michael Steinhardt, Billionaire, Surrenders $70 Million in Stolen Relics". The New York Times.
- ^ exhibit 72; List of exhibits
- Times of Israel
- ^ exhibit 75; List of exhibits
- ^ Ludel, Wallace (8 September 2021). "Stargazer idol will not be returned to Turkey, New York federal judge rules". The Art Newspaper. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
- ^ Moynihan, Colin (8 September 2021). "Judge Rejects Turkey's Claim That Ancient Sculpture Was Looted". The New York Times. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
- ^ "WEDDINGS/CELEBRATIONS; Anna Hoffman, David Steinhardt". New York Times. April 4, 2004.
- ^ "The Steinhardt Foundation for Jewish Life". www.jewishlife.org. Archived from the original on July 29, 2012.
- ^ Julie Wiener. "Sara Berman, 35". The Jewish Week. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
- ^ Patterson, Scott (16 June 2010). "The Long and Short of It: You'd be secretive, too, if you were making billion-dollar bets". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 31 December 2015.
- ^ Lenzner, Robert (November 8, 2001). "Michael Steinhardt's Voyage Around His Father". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2013-01-23.
{{cite magazine}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ "Cohen, Simons, 12 Others Enter Hedge Fund Hall". Institutional Investor. Institutional Investor LLC. 23 September 2008. Retrieved 16 June 2019.
Further reading
- ISBN 0-88730-610-1.
- Steinhardt, Michael (2001). No Bull: My Life In and Out of Markets. Wiley. ISBN 0-471-66046-9.
External links
- Official website
- Curated interview with Michael Steinhardt from Market Wizards
- The Steinhardt Foundation for Jewish Life official site
- "Forbes.com Profile". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2013-01-23. Retrieved 2006-11-15.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - Steinhardt Judaica Collection