When it comes to hedge fund business, who you know counts just as much as what you know. That’s why it’s not too surprising to learn newly launched activist hedge fund Hudson Executive Capital has signed on two more big names from the financial world. Former SEC chair Mary Schapiro and former chairman and CEO of Wells Fargo, Richard Kovacevich, both joined the new hedge fund this week.
While you might think an ex-SEC chair would be embarrassed to work for a hedge fund, the concepts of propriety or even shame apparently pale before the opportunity to be paid a huge salary for minimal work. All is good as long as the revolving door is turning
Of note, Mary Schapiro signed on to the consulting firm Promontory Financial Group when she departed the SEC in back 2013, but resigned from a full-time role after some months. She does, however, remain the vice chair of Promontory’s BoD and also serves on the board of General Electric Co.
More on Hudson Executive Capital hiring Mary Schapiro and other big names
According to a statement released by Hudson on Wednesday, Mary Schapiro is slated to join the fund as a senior advisor for governance and regulatory matters.
Hudson Executive Capital was founded a couple of months ago by Douglas Braunstein, JPMorgan’s ex-CFO, and James Woolery, chairman-elect at law firm Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft and a former J.P. Morgan associate.
The new funds calls itself as an activist firm that is willing work closely with management, according to the Wall Street Journal. A good bit of the financial backing for Hudson comes from CEOs such as Kovacevich, whose presence at the fund will support that idea.
The CEO Partners associated with the fund include former VeriFone Holdings CEO Douglas Bergeron, Thermo Fisher Scientific CEO Marc Casper and the ex-CEO of Verizon Communications, Ivan Seidenberg.
Of note, Mary Schapiro is the only woman among the 16 advisory partners who have signed on with Hudson.
In its initial press release, Hudson said it was planning to target companies between $500 million and $15 billion in market valuation where it sees “actionable opportunities.” When asked by the WSJ, a spokesperson for Hudson Executive Capital declined to comment regarding whether the fund had made its first investment yet.
