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1938 New York City truckers strike
|
[
"History of New York City",
"1938 labor disputes and strikes",
"Labor disputes in New York City",
"Labor disputes led by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters",
"1938 in New York City",
"1930s strikes in the United States",
"Transportation labor disputes in the United States"
] | 5,037 | 40,912 |
The New York City truckers' strike started on September 15, 1938, as an unsanctioned strike by some of NYC's Teamsters members, with union leadership initially opposing it. It was caused by a contract expiration, demanding lower hours at the same weekly pay and by its end somewhere between 30,000 and 35,000 strikers were directly involved.
On September 25, it was officially sanctioned by a union vote at the Mecca Temple by union Locals 807, 282, and 816. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, it was one of the largest US strikes of 1938.
The strike ended in October as a partial union victory, they won lower hours at the same weekly pay & benefits, but it was not lowered to the demanded maximum 40-hour week but instead to a maximum 44-hour week limit.
Background
The immediate beginnings of the strike originate from the expiration of the Teamsters Locals 807, 282, 816's previous contract on September 1, 1938.
On Wednesday, September 14, a meeting was held at the Manhattan Opera House. The executive committee of the unions reported on their negotiations with the Merchant Truckmen's Bureau for a new contract to the rest of the members.
Negotiations had started six weeks earlier, in anticipation of the contract expiring, employers had originally pushed for a pay cut. While union members had been calling for a reduction from a 47 to a 40-hour week, without any pay cut ($56.50/week) and one week's vacation. One motivation behind this was to spread work to the 4,000 unemployed members of the drivers unions.
At the meeting, the executive committee reported that the employers had backed away from cutting pay instead proposing to extend on the previous contract's terms.
It was then taken to a vote on whether to accept these negotiations, with members voting to reject them. During this meeting around 1,000 workers also stood up and cheered for a strike. However, no strike vote was held.
Course of the labor dispute
The 'Outlaw Strike'
15th
On September 15, unions members, principally from Local 807, began an unsanctioned strike within New York City. Believing that negotiators were not making a genuine effort to win shorter hours at the same weekly wage.
The strike froze up much of interstate trucking in and out of NYC, using driving pickets throughout the downtown waterfront district to shut down work. Special police details were deployed at 8 am, in an unsuccessful attempt to stop the picket line. Somewhere between 300 and 400 trucking firms stopped operations the same day because of it.
At some point strikers formed their own separate elected leadership to head a strike committee.
Union officers attempted to convince the strikers, with an order to return to work issued later that night by the executive committee. Newbold Morris, was the acting mayor of NYC, as Mayor La Guardia was on a tour of the US South and West, partially to attend the American Legion conference.
16th
On the morning of September 16, around 1,000 strikers, of the three local unions, voted in a meeting at St. John's Park for a general strike of truck drivers in NYC waterfront to start the next morning at 6 am. They then sent this information over to the union executive committee. A union officer that stayed anonymous estimated that around 5,000 truck drivers were involved in this initial strike. Police presence was significantly increased alongside the East and West side waterfronts, and sent to strike areas, in response to the strike.
Michael J. Cashal, Teamsters Vice President, promised that even in the case of a general trucking strike, newsprint would be excluded from the strike. William Devery, president of Local 807 also commented on the strike. Saying each union officer was trying to get the men to return to work. But, that the strikers would not be expelled because they were, "fighting for the same principle as their officers, namely the five-day, forty-hour week." At this time foodstuffs remained unaffected by the strike.
17–18th
On September 18, Acting Mayor Newbold Morris successfully asked the 'outlaw' strikers to ship food supplies from the Emergency Relief Bureau to home relief depots (people were evacuating, due to the yet to hit New England hurricane) and ballots for New York's primary election. At the time accusations were made by the union that non-relief workers had been used to load supplies at the Bronx Terminal Market.
The same day, the Merchant Truckmen's Bureau of NY and Highway Transport Association jointly announced they had accepted an invitation to a City Hall settlement negotiations arranged by Mayor La Guardia from San Francisco the day before.
19th
On September 19, a mass meeting was held at the 69th Regiment Armory, between striking workers and the NYC Government. It was attended by 4,000–5,000 of the striking workers among others.
One of the leaders of the 'outlaw' strike Abe Klein, commented in interview at City Hall:
He cited the recent indictment, that was put against 67 officers and members of the union, among other people, under the Sherman Antitrust Act and the then new federal anti-racketeering laws.
On the government side, Newbold Morris, & the New York Social Security Board members Anna M. Rosenberg & Arthur S. Meyer, who called for the workers to end the strike pending negotiations, which strikers rejected. Newbold Morris called for five-day truce, which was loudly rejected. Then they proposed a three-day truce which was again rejected, with some strikers reportedly holding up 2 fingers to suggest they would prefer two days. However a truce was still rejected.
During this meeting, the NY branch of the Sailor's Union of the Pacific announced their support for, and intention to not cross, any trucker picket lines held on piers where they dock.
Picketing by strikers continued in the city, one of the focuses was the Holland Tunnel which connects New York and New Jersey. That day several hundred picketers were present and shouted to truck drivers from the sidewalk to pullover and redirected them to park at the Hudson while they communicated with their employers. According to the NYT, the vast majority of truckers would not cross the picket line.
20th
By September 20, 12,000 NYC truckers were striking and it had spread to three locals in New Jersey that same morning. Of the strikers, 5,000 teamster truckers were running driving pickets to stop trucking business inside the city.
An editorial in the Socialist Appeal disagreed with the assessment of other newspapers of it as an 'outlaw' strike. Arguing mass support among the workers and on the basis that while leadership hadn't explicitly supported it, they specifically avoided punishing it.
21st
On September 21, acting mayor Newbold Morris (with the wired telegraph approval from mayor La Guardia in LA), gave an ultimatum to drivers to end the strike within 24 hours. That afternoon the New England hurricane made landfall in Long Island as a Category 3 hurricane.
According to the NYT's, the strike also spread to Westchester County, and Connecticut. The strike also shut down delivery's for 1939 New York World's Fair construction, lead to the Eastern Steamship Lines stopping their southern division temporarily because of freight piling up on the pier, and led freight to accumulate for both the Pennsylvania's and New York Central Railroads in their yards & warehouses.
The expanding nature of the strike led to New York State Federation of Labor president George Meany and Thomas Lyons of the Central Trades and Labor Council to be included in negotiations. Alongside the already included Teamster vice president, Michael J. Cashal.
That midnight, the unions agreed to a truce starting the next day and lasting until Saturday, September 24. During which the union temporarily returned to work. And after which, if an agreement hadn't been reached, the union would then take an official strike vote encompassing the entire union.
22–24th
On September 22, the unions and employers groups met from 2–6 pm to negotiate, after which George Meany of New York State Federation of Labor criticized the operators for offering the union "absolutely nothing", adding that if that was maintained there would be "a real strike".
That day Walter B. Holt, the vice president of the International Longshoremen's Association when asked, said they would support the strike if it occurred again, given it was an official vote.
During this period goods were rushed from piers and warehouses with many union workers receiving overtime pay due to the longer hours. Reportedly as an attempt by employers to prepare for any potential resumption of the strike by building up a surplus of supplies. However, some of the damage to the roads from the hurricane partially hampered this.
On September 24 midnight, the truce expired. Union members swiftly voted to continue the strike on September 25.
Sanctioned strike
On September 25, 3:30 pm the strike was officially sanctioned by a union vote at the Mecca Temple by Locals 807, 282, and 816. The vote count was 4,071, in favor, to 365. Food, medicine and newsprint were exempted from the strike through this vote.
Mayor La Guardia returned the same day after a three-week trip of the US South and West, during which Newbold Morris had been the acting mayor.
Final days
On September 26, 11:30 am, 20,000 teamster drivers in New Jersey officially voted to concurrently strike alongside the New York truckers for the same conditions.
Around 30,000 truck drivers in total were striking within Greater New York and New Jersey area.
Francis M. Sheridan, general organizer of Motor & Bus Terminal Checker Platform & Office Workers also announced that day that they would be joining the strike. The C.I.O (a part of the A.F.L) also announced its support for the strike.
The Longshoremen's Association, whose contract would expire in 4 days, reiterated they would not cross the picket line or handle "hot" cargo i.e. from any companies involved with the strike. They also mentioned they would similarly be demanding a reduction of their work week, from 44 to 40 hours a week.
The same day, 1,000 emergency sanitation vehicles were stationed outside city hall and prepared by Mayor La Guardia in response.
At the time, accusations were made that materials headed for the New England and Long Island communities, which had suffered from floods due to the New England hurricane, were being blocked by the strike. However strikers claimed to allow these goods to travel, only stopping and checking trucks attempting to carry non-exempt goods under false 'flood signs'. This connects to a modern-day practice under current union law in the US, known as neutral gates.
Connecticut governor, Wilbur L. Cross urged a truce that day, in a telegram to the Associated Press, representing other governors as the chairman of a New England governors conference held in Boston.
The truckmen unions within Philadelphia (Atlantic City Trucker Union, Philadelphia Joint Council 53 of the Brotherhood of Teamsters) were also going to meet with the Camden, New Jersey Teamster local the next day to decide on joining the strike. It comprised seven different Philadelphia locals, with Local 107 alone having 8,000 members.
That night Mayor La Guardia proposed a contract between the workers and corporate associations. The conditions were as follows:
The striking workers voted to accept these terms. While the Highway Transport Association & Merchant Associations of NY representing the trucking corporations, voted to reject it early the next morning on September 27 at 1:40 am. The Merchant Associations of NY represented 500 members/businesses within NY.
Reportedly according to one source, during this meeting a shoe was hurled from a balcony at Michael Cashal, Teamster Vice President, hitting him in the thigh. After which Cashal reportedly stepped away from a microphone with anger and shouted.
In response to the rejection of the deal, the sanitation vehicles were then deployed by Mayor La Guardia the same day manned by pairs with one union member & one NYC sanitation department worker. Its efforts were directed by a group called the Mayor's Citizen's Committee filled with other business owners within NYC, such as rail, reportedly uninvolved in the businesses involved in the strike. This was done through the declaration of a public emergency. To ship foodstuffs and other materials.
End of strike
That same day, around 50 NYC businesses, that the associations represented, signed and around 35 businesses in New Jersey signed, both under the terms proposed by La Guardia.
Piecemeal, a significant portion of the represented companies signed under the terms individually over the next few days. By September 30, most metropolitan transportation was back to normal.
However, interstate firms, represented by the Highway Transportation Association, refused to accept Mayor La Guardia's compromise proposal. In response an ultimatum was delivered by Walter J. Burke, president of Local 20408 of the Gasoline Station Attendants' Union on the night of September 29. Unless the strike was settled in 48 hours, 2,000 gasoline stations would be closed in the five boroughs by a sympathy strike from their 8,000 to 10,000 union gas station workers.
That same day, on September 29, Newark Teamster Local 863, a union of moving firm drivers, called a one-day sympathy strike in support of the striking New Jersey Teamster truck drivers.
48 hours later, the strike officially ended for most on October 2 when the Highway Transport Association signed the contract agreement with Teamster Local 807. The same day the Associated Express and Truck Owners of New Jersey also signed the agreement ending the strike in New Jersey. The strike is mostly regarded as a partial union victory, by the workers at the time and in retrospect by the Teamsters union.
In December, the smaller Checker Platform & Office Workers Union, who joined the strike on September 26, would also win their contract after other unions held walkout sympathy strikes.
Aftermath
Regulations
Before the strike, on December 29, 1937, the Interstate Commerce Commission announced its finalized hours of service trucking regulations effective July 1, 1938 under the Motor Carrier Act (1935). These original Motor Carrier Safety rules would have limited on-duty trucking hours to 60 hours a week, 15 hours max on-duty in a day, and 12 hours of working in a day. With this it also required that a daily log be kept. Lastly, it approved sleeper cabs, in spite of organized labor's criticisms of it being unsafe.
The hour regulations were immediately criticized by those within organized labor. With the American Federation of Labor, the Teamsters, and the Machinists petitioning for a pause of the regulations. William Green, president of the American Federation of Labor on January 7 released a public letter of protest which was sent to Joseph B. Eastman of the I.C.C. Stating,
Since at the time, the eight hour day was the generally recognized standard for workers. They argued implementing such a high limit as a legal standard, and claiming it is the safe driving limit, would simply be used by trucking companies to lengthen their hourly demands for workers, in effect making the eight hour day a more difficult goal. So on June 14, the implementation of the rule was delayed till August 1.
Then in July, following pressure from organized labor, who called for an 8-hour daily limit & 48 hour weekly limit. They lowered the limit from 12 to 10 hours of working a day. While the 60 hour weekly limit remained unchanged and the effective date delayed again until October 1.
Between this period the New York trucker strike occurred, the role that the strike could have played within the regulations timeline is unclear. However at some point during it the regulation was delayed again, till it was officially implemented on March 1, 1939.
1946 strike
Later on in 1946, the NYC Teamsters would win the reduction to a 40-hour maximum week, with a $7.40 () weekly pay raise, following a 31,000 person trucker strike in the city.
See also
2005 New York City transit strike
1937 New York City department store strikes
1919 New York City Harbor Strike
|
Taula de canvi de Barcelona
|
[
"Crown of Aragon",
"History of Barcelona",
"1401 in Europe",
"Former central banks and banks of issue",
"Banks established in the 1400s",
"Banks established in the 15th century"
] | 1,206 | 9,070 |
The Taula de canvi of Barcelona, created in 1401 and still extant in diminished form in the 19th century, was a municipal bank in Barcelona that has been described as the first-ever central bank. A Taula de canvi ("Table of change" in Catalan), also Taula de cambi or simply Taula, was a type of municipal public bank that existed in the Crown of Aragon in the late Middle Ages and early modern period.
The first Taula de canvi was created following a request of the city of Barcelona's main governing body, the Consell de Cent, calling for the establishment of a public bank on 25 April 1400. It ceremonially started its operations on 20 January 1401, inside Barcelona's .
Structure and governance
The Taula's charter, dated 1405 or 1412 depending on authors, is the oldest preserved public bank regulation. Its design remained essentially unchanged for 300 years until the early 18th century. The Taula was a fully owned operation of the city with a city guarantee of its deposits, and there is no evidence that it had capital of its own. The city appointed the Taula's taulers who worked on the table and its cashier for two-years fixed terms and paid their salaries. Other Taula officers, including its regent, chief of deposits, credencer in charge of first bookings, and notary, were appointed for life. The Taula's coffers had six keys, of which two were held by each tauler and two by the city councillors. The Taula was also subject to frequent inspection by municipal auditors.
In 1609, the city council created the Bank of the City of Barcelona (Banc de la Ciutat) as an independent department of the municipal administration, to accept lower-quality coins than were allowed under the Taula's regulation. In practice, that bank appears to have operated as an extension of the Taula rather than a separate let alone competing institution.
The Taula's objective was to provide an efficient and stable central deposit and giro transfer system, and, in its initial decades of operations, to provide funding to the city. From 1413 it also served as fiscal agent for the Generalitat of Catalonia.
It accepted both sight deposits and term deposits, in coin or jewellery, from residents of the city or its immediate surrounding; deposits were transferable as long as that did not result in overdraft, thus the taula's characterization as an early central bank. Cheques were in use from the 1520s at the latest. The bank operated on its eponymous table, installed in Barcelona's and covered with a carpet decorated with the arms of Barcelona. It was open every working day from 8 to 10am.
From its inception the Taula was systemically significant. Its oldest surviving book records over 500 individual accounts. It kept the deposits of the Generalitat, of the Barcelona Cathedral chapter, of religious institutions, of trade bodies, of military orders, and of the Aragonese monarchs.
The Taula was granted a monopoly on certain types of deposits, e.g. those of minors. From 1446 to 1499 it also had a legal monopoly on the clearing of bills of exchange. It competed with private banks to attract deposits, but unlike these did not pay interest on sight deposits.
The Taula suspended the convertibility of deposits in 1463-1468 during the Catalan Civil War, 1640-1653 during the Reapers' War, and 1706-1713 during the War of the Spanish Succession; in the two latter episodes the Banc de la Ciutat also suspended payments. In 1468, existing depositors were offered the option to convert to bonds of the city at 5 percent, or accept prolonged non-convertibility. After that restructuring and until the 17th century, lending to the city was prohibited. Following the Siege of Barcelona (1713–14), the Taula continued to exist but in restricted form without giro banking, while the Banc was entirely separated from the city and brought under direct Spanish state control. Another episode of payments suspension occurred in 1812. The Taula's remaining activities were gradually discontinued or taken over by other institutions. It was eventually absorbed by the Bank of Spain in 1853 and stopped paying its last staff in 1865.
Other Taules de canvi
Several successive Taules de canvi were established in Valencia, respectively from 1408 to 1416 (or 1418), 1519 to 1649 (Taula Nova), and 1649 to 1719 (Taula Novisima). The Taula of Valencia was a deposit bank and fiscal agent of the city.
A royal document authorized the creation of a Taula de canvi in Girona on 23 January 1443. The bank was again established by the City Council on 28 February 1568 and operated until being finally closed by order of King Philip V in 1741.
Other locales
Taules de canvi were also created in Perpinyà (1404), Vic (1413, 1583), Tarragona (1420), Palma de Mallorca (1507), Lleida (1585), and Cervera (1599). A Taula de comunes depósitos also existed in Zaragoza from the 15th to the 18th centuries. No comparable institutions appear to have existed in Castile until the creation of the Banco Nacional de San Carlos in 1782.
See also
Gran Tavola
Bank of Saint George
Banco del Giro
Bank of Amsterdam
Hamburger Bank
List of central banks
|
Cade McNown
|
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"1977 births",
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"American football quarterbacks",
"College Football Hall of Fame inductees",
"Chicago Bears players",
"People from West Linn, Oregon",
"Players of American football from Clackamas County, Oregon",
"Players of American football from California",
"Players of American football from Portland, Oregon",
"UCLA Bruins football players",
"People from Hollister, California",
"Sportspeople from San Benito County, California",
"The Carlyle Group people",
"JPMorgan Chase people",
"UBS people"
] | 3,262 | 26,652 |
Cade Brem McNown (born January 12, 1977) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for four seasons. He played college football for the UCLA Bruins, winning the Johnny Unitas Award as a senior. McNown was selected by the Chicago Bears in the first round of the 1999 NFL draft with the 12th overall pick. However, his Bears tenure would only last two seasons due to injuries and inconsistent play. McNown spent his final two seasons as a backup for the Miami Dolphins and San Francisco 49ers. He was inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2020.
Early life
McNown was born in Portland, Oregon. He went to high school at San Benito High School in Hollister, California, before transferring as a senior to West Linn High School in West Linn, Oregon, where he played quarterback and free safety.
He led his high school to the 1994 Oregon Class 4A semifinals, becoming wildly touted by newspapers as a college prospect. He also was active on the school track team, where he set a school pole vault record. McNown signed with UCLA after high school. His selection of UCLA was influenced by future NFL quarterback Brock Huard signing with Washington. Huard, along with McNown, were the top high school quarterback prospects in the western United States in 1994.
College career
McNown attended the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and played for the Bruins from 1995 to 1998. He became the starting quarterback as a true freshman, four games into the season, ranking first among all freshmen quarterbacks in many statistics. In 1995, UCLA finished 7–5 and played in the Aloha Bowl (losing to Kansas).
McNown was less successful as a sophomore in 1996, when UCLA went 5–6 and he was ranked 9th in the Pac-10 in pass efficiency. The season ended on a high note as UCLA overcame a 17-point fourth quarter deficit to beat rival USC in overtime, 48–41.
As a junior in 1997, McNown announced the team's goal to score an average of 30 points per game. They ended up averaging 39.75 points per game. After an 0–2 start, UCLA won its remaining 10 games, including the 1998 Cotton Bowl Classic over Texas A&M, to finish Pac-10 co-champion and ranked No. 5 in the nation. McNown was named Most Outstanding Offensive Player for that year's Cotton Bowl Classic. He also was a finalist for the Davey O'Brien Award, was named an All-American by the Associated Press (third-team), The Sporting News (third-team), made the All-Pac-10 team (second-team) behind Washington State's Ryan Leaf, and finished eighth in the Heisman balloting. He led the nation in passing efficiency with a 168.6 rating. His play broke many UCLA records, most of which had been previously set by Tom Ramsey.
In his senior season in 1998, McNown led UCLA to a 10–2 record, including a Rose Bowl appearance as the sole Pac-10 champion. With McNown at the helm, the Bruins' explosive offense carried them on a school-record 20-game winning streak from the previous year, as they won their first 10 games in 1998, before losing to Miami Hurricanes in their regular season finale in a loss that broke the 20-game winning streak and knocked UCLA out of the BCS Championship Game vs. Tennessee. The disappointed Bruins then lost to Ron Dayne-led Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl, 38–31. McNown set numerous school records in passing and offense, became the Pac-10's all-time career leader in total offense, and won a collection of post-season honors, including Pac-10 co-Offensive Player of the Year, the Pop Warner Memorial Trophy for best senior player on the West Coast, consensus first-team All-American honors and the Johnny Unitas Award as the top senior quarterback in college football. McNown also finished third in balloting for the Heisman Trophy. In the 1999 Senior Bowl, McNown earned MVP honors as he threw two touchdowns in helping to lead the South team to victory.
For his career, McNown still holds many of the passing and total-offense records. McNown also holds the distinction of being the only UCLA quarterback to go 4–0 against cross-town rival USC. On October 9, 2009, McNown was inducted into the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame. McNown was inducted into the Rose Bowl Hall of Fame on December 30, 2017. He was later inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2020.
College statistics
Season Team Passing Rushing Cmp Att Pct Yds Y/A TD Int Rtg Att Yds Avg TD 1995 UCLA 122 245 49.8 1,698 6.9 7 8 110.9 71 311 4.4 5 1996 UCLA 176 336 52.4 2,424 7.2 12 16 115.2 88 58 0.7 4 1997 UCLA 189 312 60.6 3,116 10.0 24 6 166.0 79 26 0.3 4 1998 UCLA 207 357 58.0 3,470 9.7 25 11 156.6 75 182 2.4 3 Career 694 1,250 55.5 10,708 8.6 68 41 138.9 313 577 1.8 16
Professional career
Chicago Bears
Following the NFL Scouting Combine, some scouts questioned the strength of his throwing arm. McNown, along with Akili Smith, Daunte Culpepper, and Donovan McNabb, appeared on the cover of ESPN The Magazine in the issue highlighting the draft. He was selected by the Chicago Bears with the twelfth overall pick in the first round of the 1999 NFL draft, following a draft pick trade with the Washington Redskins. He was the highest-drafted Bears quarterback since Jim McMahon.
In the months preceding draft day, the Bears had declared that Erik Kramer would be the starting quarterback, but waived him prior to signing McNown. McNown held out for most of training camp, missing 11 days before eventually agreeing to a $22 million contract. Following the preseason, head coach Dick Jauron announced Shane Matthews would be the starter but that McNown would play at least one series every game to gain experience.
McNown started his first game for the Bears on October 10 against the Philadelphia Eagles, taking over following a hamstring injury to Matthews the previous week. He completed 17 of 33 passes for 255 yards, a touchdown, and two interceptions as the Bears rallied from a 20–6 deficit but lost by four points. Early in a 14–13 win over the Green Bay Packers, he suffered a sprained right knee and was replaced by third-string quarterback Jim Miller. McNown returned to the starting role following Miller's suspension. Against the Detroit Lions, he set franchise rookie records with 27 completions, 301 yards and 4 touchdowns as the Bears won 28–10; McNown was also the first Bears rookie quarterback to throw for 300 yards in a game. He was injured again the week after in St. Louis, missing the second half with a strained right thigh. In the season-ending loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, McNown threw 42 passes, which was the Bears' single-game rookie record before being snapped by Caleb Williams' 52 against the Indianapolis Colts in 2024.
He was named the Bears' 2000 starter over Matthews (Miller was injured during the preseason), but his performance grew noticeably worse through the season. The Bears under McNown fell to 1–6, leading the home crowd to regularly chant for Miller's return. He suffered a shoulder injury during the seventh game of the season against Philadelphia, was briefly replaced by Miller, who also suffered an injury and was replaced by Matthews. McNown started one more game that season, losing 17–0 to San Francisco as he completed just 9 of 29 passes for 73 yards with an interception. He was benched for Matthews for the season finale in Detroit, but came in after Matthews was injured again and led the Bears to an upset win that eliminated the Lions from what appeared to be a sure playoff berth.
McNown lasted two seasons with the Bears, recording a 3–12 record as a starter. Due to his performance, he is considered one of the worst draft picks in team and league history. His generally cocky attitude also frequently put him at odds with fans and other players: he told booing fans to stay home from games, and remarked following a 2000 loss to the New York Giants that his receivers were likely "tired" when he overthrew them four times. Following the loss to the 49ers that year, a Chicago Tribune report stated elements of the locker room were "in near revolt" over his performance, and his teammates made little effort to refute the story. Some players mentioned one of McNown's significant issues was his tendency to boast about his $6.1 million signing bonus in front of veteran players who were earning the league's minimum salary, while he did not attend as many offseason workouts as his fellow quarterbacks and often left early. After McNown was ordered to apologize for skipping a charity event, Northwest Herald writer Mike Gibb wrote that although he was young, "immaturity in an NFL quarterback cannot and should not be tolerated" and that "more should be expected of McNown, who is making millions of dollars."
Miami Dolphins
McNown's personality and drop down the depth chart behind Miller and Matthews prompted the Bears to trade him to the Miami Dolphins during the 2001 preseason. He was sent to Miami along with a seventh-round pick for a sixth rounder and a conditional 2003 seventh-round pick.
As the third-string quarterback for the Dolphins, he saw no action during the season.
San Francisco 49ers
The Dolphins traded McNown to the San Francisco 49ers for a conditional seventh-round draft pick during the 2002 offseason. By then, Terry Donahue, former head coach at UCLA, was the general manager. Interest was briefly raised in McNown, as the 49ers were searching for a quarterback for the West Coast offense. Although he was initially competing against Tim Rattay, Giovanni Carmazzi, and Brandon Doman for the backup spot behind starter Jeff Garcia, McNown reinjured his shoulder during the preseason. When it was revealed he required season-ending surgery, he was placed on injured reserve. McNown was released by the 49ers during the 2003 offseason. His rights were shortly thereafter acquired by the Calgary Stampeders, although he was never signed.
NFL career statistics
Year Team Games Passing Rushing 1999 CHI 15 6 127 235 54.0 1,465 6.2 8 10 66.7 32 160 5.0 0 2000 CHI 10 9 154 280 55.0 1,646 5.9 8 9 68.5 50 326 6.5 3 Career 25 15 281 515 54.6 3,111 6.0 16 19 67.7 82 486 5.9 3
Personal life
McNown was charged in September 1999 with the illegal possession of a disabled parking pass while playing football at UCLA in 1996, to which he pleaded no contest. Other players charged included Skip Hicks, Larry Atkins, Marques Anderson, and Brendon Ayanbadejo.
In 2000, it was reported that McNown had been dating 1999 Playboy Playmate of the Year Heather Kozar, and future (2001) Playmate of the Year Brande Roderick.
McNown is married to Christina Brascia, daughter of actor and dancer John Brascia and actress and model Sondra Scott. As of June 2016, he and Christina have four children.
McNown later worked for UBS in the private wealth group before joining JPMorgan Chase Private Bank. In 2013, McNown joined capital management firm Lourd Murray as a vice president. In 2016, McNown joined Kayne Anderson as a senior managing director. In June 2022, McNown joined The Carlyle Group as a managing director and Client Relationship Manager.
On October 22, 2021, Tunnel 8 at the Rose Bowl was named in Cade McNown's honor.
See also
List of NCAA Division I FBS quarterbacks with at least 10,000 career passing yards
List of NCAA major college football yearly passing leaders
|
Vieri de' Medici
|
[
"Medieval bankers",
"1395 deaths",
"Italian bankers",
"Italian Roman Catholics",
"1323 births",
"14th-century people from the Republic of Florence",
"House of Medici",
"Italian nobility",
"14th-century Italian businesspeople"
] | 1,052 | 7,762 |
Vieri di Cambio de' Medici (1323 – 13 or 14 September 1395) was a Florentine banker, a distant relative of the Medici banking dynasty.
He was the son of Cambio di Filippo de' Medici of the Lippo di Chiarissimo branch of Medicis. His first cousin was Salvestro di Alamanno de' Medici, a Florentine patrician known for causing the Ciompi Revolt in Florence.
Career
Vieri de' Medici was enrolled in the Arte del Cambio, a major banking guild in Florence, where he presumably mastered the banking trade. He pursued different ventures over the course of his lifetime. His first prominent company, Vieri di Cambio de' Medici & Co., was responsible for shipping Florentine goods through the Republic of Pisa in 1369. De' Medici later partnered with other prominent bankers at the time, notably Niccolò di Riccardo Fagni, Giovanni di Arrigo Rinaldeschi da Prato and Jacopo di Francesco Venturi. Vieri de' Medici's distant relative, Francesco di Bicci de' Medici joined as a junior partner in 1382. By 1385, Vieri de' Medici ran a successful joint venture with Venturi called Vieri de' Medici and Jacopo di Francesco Venturi. This joint venture maintained a branch in Venice which "dealt in foreign bills" and had correspondents along the Dalmatian coast, most notably in Zara. Francesco de' Medici later became senior partner, as evidenced in a letter dated 4 July 1390, which also indicated a branch in Genoa. Vieri de' Medici also maintained a branch in Rome, under a separate partnership with Francesco's younger brother, Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici. This venture was known as Vieri e Giovanni de' Medici in Roma and was established in 1386.
Records suggest Vieri de' Medici retired from banking in 1393. His bank was dissolved prior, in either 1391 or 1392. The remnants were sold off to relatives, who established three independent banks. The first bank was established by Vieri's nephew, Antonio di Giovanni de' Medici. Joining Antonio de' Medici was banker Giovanni di Salvestro and Vieri de' Medici's old business partner, Jacopo di Francesco Venturi. This bank is thought to have been dissolved by 1395. The second bank was established by Francesco di Bicci de' Medici, in the name of his son Averardo di Francesco de' Medici. This bank eventually was dissolved by 1443. The third, and most successful, bank was established by Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici and junior partner Benedetto di Lippaccio de' Bardi in Rome. Later known as the Medici Bank, it rose the Medici family to prominence. Its precursor was the earlier joint venture established in Rome in 1386. Records dated from 1397 suggest that Giovanni de' Medici was "forced to take over all the assets and liabilities" of Vieri de' Medici, which included "a number of bad debts". Giovanni lost over 860 florins as a result of the deal, but managed to create a successful bank that lasted for decades afterward.
Political stance
Following his retirement from banking, Vieri de' Medici became politically active. He was an ally to Maso degli Albizzi, and was selected Gonfaloniere of Justice, serving the role May–June 1392. Many Florentine citizens expected Vieri de' Medici to lead a renewed revolt against the Albizzi regime, following in the footsteps of his cousin Salvestro in the earlier Ciompi Revolt.
Personal life
Vieri de' Medici married twice. He married his first wife, Valenza, sometime before 1364. She died childless in September 1378. He later married Bice di Pazzino Strozzi, the daughter of a political ally, late in his life. Bice Strozzi gave birth to two sons, Niccola in 1384 or 1385 and Cambio on 1390 or 22 February 1391, and two daughters, Valenza and Bice. Upon the death of Vieri de' Medici, as stipulated by his will signed on 12 August 1395, each daughter was to receive 1,200 florins for their dowries, and whatever remained of Vieri's fortune was to be inherited by his surviving sons. Niccola and Cambio eventually established a bank of their own in Florence, with a branch in Rome. Unlike their father, the two proved incompetent in running their business, and by 1433, they had "sold most of their real estate in order to extinguish the liabilities of their bank".
Vieri de' Medici died on either 13 or 14 September 1395, and was buried in the Florence Cathedral.
|
John Rowand
|
[
"1780s births",
"1854 deaths",
"Canadian fur traders",
"Hudson's Bay Company people",
"North West Company people",
"Businesspeople from Edmonton",
"Businesspeople from Montreal",
"People of North-Western Territory",
"19th-century Canadian merchants",
"Chief factors",
"Persons of National Historic Significance (Canada)",
"Burials at Mount Royal Cemetery"
] | 1,698 | 11,250 |
John Rowand ( – 30 May 1854) was a fur trader for the North West Company and later, the Hudson's Bay Company. At the peak of his career, he was Chief Factor at Fort Edmonton, and in charge of the HBC's vast Saskatchewan District.
Early life
Montreal
John Rowand was the son of Dr. John Rowand, a surgeon in Montreal. Though possessing only an elementary education, Rowand joined the firm McTavish, Frobisher and Company at sixteen years. The firm's head, Simon McTavish, was the leading share-holder in the North West Company.
North West Company clerk
1803 saw Rowand posted to Fort Augustus, the NWC companion to the Hudson's Bay Company's Edmonton House (then name for Fort Edmonton), as an apprentice clerk. Apart from his regular duties there, Rowand participated in hunting bison and indulged in another of his most notable pastimes through the years: horse-riding. Over the next few years, Rowand was positioned either at Fort Augustus or another of the nearby NWC posts.
Rowand suffered a broken leg from a riding accident in 1810. He was rescued by Louise (Lisette) Umfreville (daughter of Edward Umfreville), a Metis woman who nursed him back to health. Subsequently, John Rowand engaged Louise in a country marriage, and received a herd of horses as a dowry. According to some traditions, Rowand also adopted several of Louise's children by another man. John and Louise had at least five children together. In 1838 when Catholic priests passed through Fort Edmonton John and Louise did not get their marriage solemnized, but after living together almost 30 years they seem to not have felt the need for external affirmation of their relationship. Rowand described Louise as "my old friend the mother of all my children" and remain connected with her until her death in 1849.
Joining the Hudson's Bay Company
The Battle of Seven Oaks in 1816 threatened a further escalation of violence between North West Company and Hudson's Bay Company servants. Meanwhile, in the aftermath of the battle, the NWC lost several of its investors who were wary of the company's continued existence. In a move brokered to end hostilities between the companies, shareholders in the NWC agreed to merge with the Hudson's Bay Company, signing an agreement in 1821 that saw its name dissolved and its employees & properties absorbed under the HBC name. The agreement named several persons as chief factors and chief traders at this time; with Fort Augustus consequently being absorbed by Fort Edmonton, John Rowand was made a chief trader at Edmonton.
Chief factor at Fort Edmonton
In 1823, Rowand started his first of three appointments, totalling nearly 17 years, as the chief factor at Fort Edmonton, making him answerable only to Governor Simpson or the HBC's London committee. Rowand's fort was positioned on one of the best means of transportation across the continent at the time: the North Saskatchewan River. In the early years of Rowand's administration, overland routes to northern posts such as Fort Assiniboine were made, and Edmonton became a central hub for furs to be shipped.
The fort, then in its fourth iteration, was located on a volatile flood plain, and Rowand oversaw the moving of the fort to higher ground a short distance west, to its fifth and final location, by 1830. On this new site, which is now home to the Alberta Legislature Building, he had a massive house constructed for his own use along the fort's courtyard. The house was known as "Rowand's Folly" for its extravagance; it is reputed to have been the first house to have glass windows in the west.
Relations with workers
Rowand was regarded as something of an ill-tempered taskmaster by the workers under him. Noted Rowand on the subject, "When they misbehave I will tell them of it without fearing to hurt their feelings – they must do their duty as I was made to do mine." Rowand's high expectations of the workers also showed in his little sympathy for illness; Father Albert Lacombe came upriver with a boat brigade with Rowand in 1852, and recalled that when he tried to convince Rowand that one of the labourers was ill and needed rest, Rowand responded, "Any man who is not dead after three days sickness is not sick at all."
Rowand's various abuses against the workers earned their ire, but it was an unfair Hudson's Bay Company practice that put a mutiny over the top in 1851. The issue that drove the work stoppage was that labourers were required to pay for work horses; horses were drawn randomly from lots and cost the same regardless of their condition. The men were only permitted to do the company's work with the horses. If the horse died, which was common, the man would have to pay for a new one. In response to the work stoppage, the company agreed to provide horses for free, but according to labourer William Gladstone, the men made a further demand that John Rowand provide each man a quart of rum in a stirrup cup. Rowand capitulated, but as per Gladstone's account, only after presenting himself in a dramatic fashion to them, fearless and defiant, to be struck dead by the mutineers, though the revolting workers told him that that was not their intent at all.
Some workers were in the habit of calling John Rowand by a nickname, "One-Pound-One". This was from the shuffle-step-shuffle sound made when Rowand walked, owing to the broken leg he had suffered earlier in his career.
Relations with First Nations
Rowand prided himself as a fair trader, writing of himself, "No one will say that I ever spoilt Indians. [...] I give them due but they must do their duty." Rowand was bold in his dealings, evidently bold enough to raise his voice to native chiefs in their own camps when surrounded by their warriors. This spirit is captured in a 1947 painting by Henry Simpkins (seen here ) that was used for an HBC calendar; the painting shows Rowand (stylistically slimmer) standing up to a mounted Blackfoot attack on the plains. According to the accompanying story, the chief recognized Rowand, apologized, and turned away.
Impressed by Rowand, the natives referred to him as "Big Mountain" or "Iron Shirt". Rowand's term as chief factor saw greater fur returns than before.
Family
Although John never had his marriage to Louise solemnized he had his four daughters baptized by the Catholic priests. Also when his daughter Nancy Rowand married John Edward Harriott it was a marriage performed by a Catholic priest with John Rowand serving as the lead witness.
In spring of 1854, Rowand joined the boat brigades which annually carried furs to Hudson Bay where they would be loaded onto ships and commence their voyage to England. Rowand would stop at Norway House as usual to attend the Council of the Northern Department, but he did not make it this far. On May 31, while at Fort Pitt - a post commanded by his son John - Rowand was about to intervene into a dispute between two tripmen, when he clutched his chest and fell suddenly dead.
Initially buried at Fort Pitt, Rowand's remains were exhumed. George Simpson explained in a letter to Rowand's son Alexander, "It was one of the last instructions your father gave John [Alexander's brother], on the day preceding his death, that his bones were not to be left in the Indian Country but removed to Canada and interred near those of his own father." The intended burial place was Montreal, but lacking means to preserve Rowand's body for a journey of so many weeks, his cadaver was boiled down to the bones. Ripley's states that his remains were "pickled" in a keg of rum and shipped overland. Simpson took the bones in a package to Red River, but from fear that superstitious boatmen might try to dispose of it on the longer journey to Montreal, he had them repackaged and shipped to England via York Factory instead, where they could then be shipped again to Montreal. In a course of years, Rowand was buried at Mount Royal Cemetery with a sizeable monument.
In popular culture
Edmonton musician Cadence Weapon recorded a timpani-based dance music song about Rowand titled "One Pound One".
|
Separation property (finance)
|
[
"Finance theories",
"Mathematical finance",
"Financial economics"
] | 199 | 1,558 |
A separation property is a crucial element of modern portfolio theory that gives a portfolio manager the ability to separate the process of satisfying investing clients' assets into two separate parts.
The first part is the determination of the "optimum risky portfolio". This portfolio is the same for all clients. In one version, it has the highest Sharpe ratio. See mutual fund separation theorem for a discussion of other possibilities. It is the construction of a universal portfolio that is kept separate from the individual needs of each client.
The second part is tailoring the use of that portfolio to the risk-aversive needs of each individual client. This is achieved through simulation of a given risk-return range by allocating the client's total investments partly to that universal portfolio and partly to the risk-free asset.
See also
Markowitz model #Choosing the best portfolio - an expansion of the above
Mutual fund separation theorem - relating to the construction of optimal portfolios
Fisher separation theorem - discussing an analogous result in corporate finance
category:Financial economics
|
Richard E. Snyder
|
[
"1933 births",
"2023 deaths",
"20th-century American businesspeople",
"21st-century American businesspeople",
"20th-century American memoirists",
"American book publishers (people)",
"Businesspeople from Brooklyn",
"Deaths from congestive heart failure in the United States",
"Military personnel from New York City",
"Tufts University alumni",
"United States Army soldiers"
] | 731 | 5,914 |
Richard Elliot Snyder (April 6, 1933 – June 6, 2023) was an American publishing executive best known for his tenures at Simon & Schuster and Western Publishing.
Biography
Richard Elliot Snyder was born in Brooklyn on April 6, 1933. He graduated from Tufts University in 1955 and served in the United States Army, receiving an honorable discharge in 1956. He began as a trainee at Doubleday & Co., rising to assistant marketing director in 1958. Snyder began working at Simon & Schuster in 1960, serving as President from 1975 to 1986, CEO from 1978 to 1994, and Chairman from 1986 to 1994. From 1975 to 1994, Simon & Schuster went from US$40 million to US$2 billion in annual revenue and became the largest book publisher in the world, home to notable authors including Bob Woodward, Graham Greene, Larry McMurtry, Mary Higgins Clark, Philip Roth, Joan Didion, Joseph Heller, Ian McEwen, Mario Puzo, Stephen Ambrose, Thomas Keneally, Walter Isaacson, and David McCullough. The trade division won nine Pulitzer Prizes in a row during his tenure.
After being abruptly dismissed by Viacom president Frank Biondi Jr. in 1994, Snyder formed an investment group to acquire control of Western Publishing, publishers of the Golden Books series of children's books. That deal was completed in 1996, and the company was renamed Golden Books Family Entertainment. By 1998, shares of Golden Books lost 98 percent of their value. The company filed for bankruptcy protection in early 1999, emerged in January 2000 and entered bankruptcy once again in 2001. The company was purchased by Random House and Classic Media following the 2001 bankruptcy.
The Richard E. Snyder President's Lecture Series at Tufts was endowed by him in 2004. Snyder was a Trustee of the New York-Presbyterian Hospital.
In 2007, Snyder sued Edgar Bronfman Jr. over an alleged oral joint venture between the two involving the acquisition of Warner Music Group. Judge Bernard J. Fried of the New York State Supreme Court dismissed 4 of the 6 charges in 2008, allowing the rest to go forward.
At the request of Norman Mailer, Snyder was a major component in the resurrection of International PEN, an international literary organization. He also cofounded and chaired the National Book Awards and ran them for over 10 years. Snyder was also a member of the National Book Foundation and the Association of American Publishers.
The Richard E. Snyder President's Lecture Series at Tufts University was endowed by him in 2004 to invigorate the intellectual environment on campus by providing a forum for the presentation of provocative points of view on matters of global importance. Notable speakers have included Bob Woodward and Niall Ferguson. Snyder was a Trustee of New York-Presbyterian Hospital and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
Personal life and death
Snyder had four children. His high-profile divorce from second wife Joni Evans made headlines in 1990.
Snyder died of heart failure at his Los Angeles home on June 6, 2023. He was 90.
|
Virginia Gilder
|
[
"1958 births",
"Living people",
"Yale Bulldogs women's rowers",
"Rowers at the 1984 Summer Olympics",
"Olympic silver medalists for the United States in rowing",
"American female rowers",
"Seattle Storm owners",
"NBA owners",
"Women sports owners",
"Medalists at the 1984 Summer Olympics",
"Women basketball executives",
"People from the Upper East Side",
"Chapin School (Manhattan) alumni",
"World Rowing Championships medalists for the United States",
"Congressional Gold Medal recipients",
"20th-century American sportswomen",
"20th-century American LGBTQ people",
"American lesbian sportswomen",
"LGBTQ rowers"
] | 735 | 6,987 |
Virginia Anne Gilder (born June 4, 1958), also known as Ginny Gilder, is a former American rower and Olympic silver medalist. Gilder is a co-owner of the Seattle Storm, a professional women's basketball team in the WNBA.
Early life
Gilder is the daughter of Richard Gilder and was raised on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. She attended the Chapin School, followed by Dana Hall School where she graduated one year early.
In 1976, Gilder attended Yale University, graduating with a degree in history in 1979.
Rowing career
While at Yale, Gilder was on the women's crew team. However, there was no locker room available for the women's crew team, so they had to wait on the bus after practice while the men showered before they could return to campus.
In 1976, she was part of a protest in which nineteen members of the Yale women's crew wrote "TITLE IX" on their bodies and went into athletic director Joni Barnett's office naked, and then rower Chris Ernst read a statement about the way they were being treated. This protest was noted by newspapers around the world, including The New York Times. By 1977, a women's locker room was added to Yale's boathouse.
Gilder was first selected for the U.S. Olympic team in 1980, the year that the United States boycotted the Olympic Games in Moscow, Russia. She was one of 461 athletes to receive a Congressional Gold Medal many years later. She was a member of the American women's quadruple sculls team that won the silver medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California.
Author and private life
She is the author of Course Correction: A Story of Rowing and Resilience in the Wake of Title IX which was released April 14, 2015 by Beacon Press. The paperback and audiobook were released April 12, 2016.
In 2012, Gilder married Lynn Slaughter.
References
|
Naomi Simson
|
[
"Living people",
"Australian non-fiction writers",
"Australian women writers",
"Participants in Australian reality television series",
"Australian investors",
"1964 births",
"Australian women company founders",
"Australian company founders",
"Shark Tank"
] | 1,645 | 16,395 |
Naomi Simson (born 22 February 1964) is an Australian businessperson, entrepreneur, podcaster and blogger. After launching the Australian online success story RedBalloon in 2001, Naomi went on to co-found Big Red Group with partner David Anderson in 2017. Headquartered in Sydney's CBD, Big Red Group is the largest marketplace of experiences in ANZ, and home to leading brands including Adrenaline, Experience Oz, Experience Oz Local Agent, Lime&Tonic, and RedBalloon.
Career
Simson began her career in the corporate marketing field and gained experience with IBM, KPMG, Apple Computer Australia, and Ansett Australia. In 2001, she founded RedBalloon, an online experience gift retailer based in Australia. She began the company out of her house with a $25,000 personal investment and grew it to 46 employees by 2011. Simson was CEO of the company until 2011 when she took a step back from the operational side of the business. In 2017, Simson co-founded Big Red Group with David Anderson, a company that became the parent company for RedBalloon. It also acquired and operates the companies Adrenaline, Experience Oz, Experience Oz Local Agent and Lime&Tonic.
In late 2014, Simson was named as one of five 'Sharks' on Network Ten's Shark Tank in Australia along with Andrew Banks, John McGrath, Steve Baxter, and Janine Allis. Simson's time on Shark Tank was spent supporting the start-up community and investing in many businesses during all four seasons of the show. Simson had much advice for the start-up community about pitching, purpose and scaling. Simson has also been a guest host on Network Ten's Studio 10.
Simson was a secret millionaire in the 2009 season of the reality television show The Secret Millionaire – Australia. On the show, Simson volunteered for 10 days in different disadvantaged areas of Australia. Upon conclusion of the show, Simson reveals her true identity to others and donates money to a number of the causes and individuals she volunteered for during the show. She was one of five benefactors for the season who gave more than $750,000 to various individuals and organisations in the community.
Simson is a blogger and owner of , ranked number two in the 15 Top Business Blogs by SmartCompany.com as of 2016. Simson was named one of Australia's best business bloggers as far back as 2009 and in 2020 was named top business blogger. Simson has the furthest reach for any Australian on the LinkedIn business networking platform with close to 3 million followers.
Simson is the author of two books, Live What You Love (2015) and Ready to Soar (2016). She was one of 13 authors who collaborated to write the 2008 book The Power of More Than One:Success Strategies from Australasia's Leading Business and Motivational Specialists and also wrote a preface for the 2013 book Appvertising – How Apps are Changing the World. In 2016 she released the book Ready to Soar: Turn Your Brilliant Idea into a Business You Love.
Simson is also a philanthropist and joined the council of Voiceless to spread the word about the need for greater animal protection. She is also an advisor to Heads Over Heels and a governor for the Cerebral Palsy Alliance.
Ready To Soar (2016)
Live What You Love (2015)
Awards and recognition
Simson has won numerous awards throughout her career including the 2005 Westpac NSW Entrepreneur of the Year. Additional awards and recognition include the National Telstra Business Women's Award for Innovation in 2008, and being a 2011 finalist in BRW's Entrepreneur of the Year.
Simson was recognised by LinkedIn in 2012 as one of the World's Most Influential Thought Leaders, a recognition shared by only 150 people. She was one of only two from Australia with the other being Freelancer.com founder Matt Barrie. The recognition was part of LinkedIn's Influencer Campaign to share business knowledge, allowing Simson to author content to be shared with LinkedIn members.
As of 2017, Simson is one of the 10 business executives in Australia, to hold a "Power Profile" on LinkedIn.
In October 2018 Simson was named in The Australian Financial Review 100 Women of Influence awards in the Business and Entrepreneur category.
Select awards
2013, Pearcey Entrepreneur of the Year Award
2013, Lifetime Achievement Silver Stevie Award
2011, Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award
2008, National Telstra Business Women's Award for Innovation
2005, Westpac NSW Entrepreneur of the Year Award
|
Bucyrus-Erie
|
[
"Bucyrus-Erie",
"Manufacturing companies established in 1880",
"Companies formerly listed on the Nasdaq",
"Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1994",
"Construction equipment manufacturers of the United States",
"Manufacturing companies based in Wisconsin",
"Milwaukee County, Wisconsin",
"Mining equipment companies",
"Former Caterpillar Inc. subsidiaries",
"1880 establishments in Ohio",
"2011 mergers and acquisitions"
] | 1,914 | 19,296 |
Bucyrus-Erie was an American surface and underground mining equipment company. It was founded as Bucyrus Foundry and Manufacturing Company in Bucyrus, Ohio, in 1880. Bucyrus moved its headquarters to South Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1893. In 1927, Bucyrus merged with the Erie Steam Shovel Company to form Bucyrus-Erie. In 1997, it was renamed Bucyrus International, Inc. In 2010 the enterprise was purchased by Caterpillar in a US$7.6 billion ($8.6 billion including net debt) transaction that closed on July 8, 2011. At the time of its acquisition, the Bucyrus product line included a range of material removal and material handling products used in both surface and underground mining.
History
1880-1927
Bucyrus was an early producer of steam shovels in its Bucyrus, Ohio headquarters and manufacturing facility. In 1893, Bucyrus moved its operations to South Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
In 1904 Bucyrus supplied 77 of the 102 steam shovels used to dig the Panama Canal. These were 95 ton models with five-cubic-yard buckets that could move approximately eight tons of material at once. They were operated by a crew of four. Similar to a locomotive, the crew was headed by an engineer, and included two firemen who stoked the boiler with coal, and a craneman. A support crew of six on the ground laid rails on which the shovel moved. A photograph of President Theodore Roosevelt was taken in November 1906 operating a Bucyrus shovel in Panama during his inspection trip. In March 1910, a single Bucyrus shovel excavated 70,000 cubic yards in 26 days at the Culebra Cut, setting a canal construction record. Each shovel averaged over 1,000,000 cubic yards of earth excavated at the cut.
The company changed its name to Bucyrus-Erie in 1927 when it merged with the Erie Steam Shovel Company, the country's leading manufacturer of small excavators at that time.
In 1930 Bucyrus joined with Ruston & Hornsby Ltd Lincoln, England, forming the Ruston-Bucyrus Ltd firm in England. Ruston & Hornsby Ltd were the pre-eminent manufacturers of steam excavators at the time, having started in 1874. The merger gave the company access to previously unavailable world markets.
Ruston & Hornsby Ltd sold their share in Ruston-Bucyrus in 1985, during a period of recession and consolidation in the mining industry, as they divested non-core businesses to survive.
For a time in the 1980s the company was known as Becor Western following its merger with Western Gear.
On February 18, 1994, Bucyrus-Erie filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, and remained under bankruptcy protection until December 14, 1994.
The company adopted the name Bucyrus International, Inc. in 1997.
Bucyrus built hundreds of large mining machines, as well as construction equipment, competing with Marion Power Shovel. Bucyrus acquired Marion Power Shovel in 1997.
On May 4, 2007, Bucyrus completed the acquisition of the DBT Group, a Lunen, Germany-based manufacturer of underground mining equipment, from Ruhrkohle AG of Herne, Germany. Bucyrus acquired DBT because DBT's underground mining equipment complemented Bucyrus' surface mining products.
In February 2010, Bucyrus International completed a US$1.3 billion acquisition of the mining equipment division of Terex Corporation, which partly sprang from O&K, including worlds largest hydraulic excavator RH 400, later produced as Cat 6090.
On November 15, 2010, Bucyrus agreed to be acquired by Caterpillar in a transaction valued at US$8.6 billion. Caterpillar said it intended to create a new mining business headquarters at the former Bucyrus headquarters location in South Milwaukee. The transaction closed in mid-2011.
The Intellectual Property Rights for Bucyrus Erie marine cranes was acquired by Sparrows Group which has crane manufacturing operations based in Houston, Texas
Products
Bucyrus owned the Bucyrus, Bucyrus-Erie, Marion, and Ransomes & Rapier brands and provided OEM parts and support services for machinery which bears those brands.
4250-W walking dragline, also known as Big Muskie, was built in 1969, with a bucket and weighed 13,000 metric tons. Big Muskie's bucket is currently near McConnellsville, Ohio in a small park dedicated to coal mining.
3850-B power shovels for stripping, one built each in 1962 and 1964, with bucket capacities of .
2570-W or WS, one of B-E's most popular dragline models with bucket capacities between . Ursa Major at Black Thunder Coal Mine was reported to be the third largest dragline ever built.
The Silver Spade and its twin the GEM of Egypt, 1950B power shovels, were built in 1965 and 1967 respectively, with a bucket capacity of . The Silver Spade was dismantled in 2007.
Big Brutus, an 1850-B power shovel, was built in 1962, with a 90-yard bucket. It is in West Mineral, Kansas, as the centerpiece of a museum.
Bucyrus-Erie 50-R, 55 feet high and housing a massive drill, was used in the successful rescue of two miners during the 1963 Sheppton, Pennsylvania mining disaster.
1250-B/W and 1260-W walking draglines, with buckets between .
5-W walking dragline, with a bucket and produced until around 1970.
1150RB walking dragline, transported to Britain in 1946 as part of the Marshall Plan. It was used to remove overburden at various mines around the UK, lastly at St Aidan's opencast coal mine, Yorkshire, until the River Aire burst its banks and flooded the mine in March 1988. It has been preserved as a static monument at the site.
|
Hasbro
|
[
"Hasbro",
"1923 establishments in Rhode Island",
"1960s initial public offerings",
"3D publishing",
"American companies established in 1923",
"Companies based in Providence County, Rhode Island",
"Companies formerly listed on the New York Stock Exchange",
"Companies listed on the Nasdaq",
"Conglomerate companies of the United States",
"Doll manufacturing companies",
"Entertainment companies established in 1923",
"Game manufacturers",
"Holding companies of the United States",
"Manufacturing companies based in Rhode Island",
"Toy companies established in 1923",
"Mass media companies established in 1923",
"Mass media companies of the United States",
"Multinational companies headquartered in the United States",
"Pawtucket, Rhode Island",
"Toy brands",
"Toy companies of the United States"
] | 10,102 | 112,656 |
Hasbro, Inc. (; a syllabic abbreviation of its original name, Hassenfeld Brothers) is an American multinational toy manufacturing and entertainment holding company founded on December 6, 1923 by Henry, Hillel and Herman Hassenfeld and is incorporated and headquartered in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. Hasbro owns the trademarks and products of Kenner, Milton Bradley, Parker Brothers, and Wizards of the Coast, among others. As of August 2020, over 81.5% of its shares were held by large financial institutions.
Among Hasbro's products are Transformers, G.I. Joe, Power Rangers, Rom the Space Knight, Micronauts, M.A.S.K., Monopoly, Furby, Nerf, Potato Head, Bop It!, Play-Doh, Twister, and My Little Pony, and with the Entertainment One (now Lionsgate Canada) acquisition on December 30, 2019, franchises like Peppa Pig and PJ Masks. Hasbro also spawned TV shows to promote its products, such as Family Game Night on Discovery Family, which has been co-owned by Hasbro since 2014. The company sold Entertainment One to Lionsgate (now Starz Entertainment) on December 27, 2023, however, it kept eOne's family brands and eOne's stake in Astley Baker Davies, placing them into a new division known as Hasbro Entertainment, formed on August 16, 2023. The company celebrated their 100th anniversary on December 6, 2023. Hasbro primarily competes with Mattel.
History
Hassenfeld Brothers
Three Polish-Jewish brothers, Herman, Hillel, and Henry Hassenfeld, founded Hassenfeld Brothers in Providence, Rhode Island, in late 1923, a company selling textile remnants. Over the next two decades, the company expanded to produce pencil cases and school supplies. On January 8, 1926, Hassenfeld Brothers was incorporated in Rhode Island; Hillel left for another textile business while Henry took charge of the corporation. They began making their own pencils after their pencil supplier began making pencil cases as well.
Hassenfeld Brothers produced modeling clay and then doctor and nurse kits as their first toys, and they became primarily a toy company by 1942. Hillel died in 1943 and Henry Hassenfeld became CEO, while his son Anthony Merrill became president. The company entered the plastic fields during World War II to support its toy line. The Hassenfeld brothers, immigrants from Ulanów, Poland, also spent the war years helping to rescue and employ fellow Jews from Ulanów; Jacob Klapper, a holocaust survivor born in Ulanów, recalled being told when he arrived in the United States that Hassenfeld Brothers would employ any survivor from Ulanów, no questions asked. Hassenfeld Brothers' first popular toy was Mr. Potato Head, which the company purchased from George Lerner in 1952. In 1954, the company became a Disney major licensee.
In 1960, Henry died and Merrill took over the parent company, and his older brother Harold ran the pencil-making business of Empire Pencil. Hassenfeld Brothers expanded to Canada with Hassenfeld Brothers (Canada) Ltd. in 1961.
In 1962, Hasbro purchased the former Potter & Johnston manufacturing company building on Newport Avenue in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. The Pawtucket plant facilities were eventually expanded to over 300,000 square feet.
In 1963 the company introduced Flubber, but reports of sore throats and rashes from the product and knock-offs prompted an investigation by the Food and Drug Administration and a voluntary recall by Hassenfeld Brothers. The company was approached in 1963 to license a toy based on The Lieutenant, which they turned down because they did not want to be tied to a possibly short-lived television series. Instead, Hassenfeld Brothers produced the G.I. Joe toy in 1964 which they termed an "action figure" in order to market it to boys who wouldn't want to play with dolls. In 1964 and 1965, G.I. Joe accounted for two-thirds of Hassenfeld's sales.
Hasbro Industries
The company had previously sold toys under the Hasbro trade name, and it shortened its name to Hasbro Industries on July 12, 1968, and sold a minor stake in the corporation to the public. The Vietnam War was at its height in 1969, so Hasbro redesigned GI Joe to be less militaristic and more adventure-oriented. Its promotional efforts included the catchphrase "Boy Oh Boy! It's A Hasbro Toy!" in television commercials and print ads. Also in 1969, Hasbro bought Burt Claster Enterprises which produced "Romper Room" and had just begun a Romper Room toy line. A month-long Teamsters strike and Far Eastern supplier troubles caused the company to post a $1 million loss for the year.
In 1970, Hasbro began a plan of diversification and opened the Romper Room Nursery School franchise chain to cash in on President Richard Nixon's Family Assistance Plan which subsidized day care for working mothers. By 1975, the company had ended the nursery chain. Hasbro also entered the cookware field with the Galloping Gourmet line based on a television cooking show.
Two new 1970s toys were public relations disasters. One of the toys was named Javelin Darts which were similar to the ancient Roman plumbata. On December 19, 1988, the Consumer Product Safety Commission banned lawn darts from sale in the United States due to their hazards as a flying projectile with a sharp metal point causing multiple deaths. The other toy was named The Hypo-Squirt, a hypodermic needle-shaped water gun tagged by the press as a "junior junkie" kit. Both were recalled. Romper Room and its toy line had continued success, although Action for Children's Television citizens group considered the program to be an advertising channel for toys.
Merrill Hassenfeld took over as CEO in 1974, and his son Stephen D. Hassenfeld became president. The company became profitable once again but had mixed results due to cash flow problems from increasing the number of toys in the line to offset G.I. Joe's declining sales. Hasbro ended the G.I. Joe line in 1975 because of the rising prices of plastic and crude oil. In 1977, Hasbro's losses were $2.5 million, and the company held a large debt load. That same year, Hasbro acquired licensing rights to Peanuts cartoon characters. With the financial situation poor, Hasbro's bankers made the company temporarily stop dividend payments in early 1979. The toy division's losses increased Harold Hassenfeld's resentment regarding the company's treatment of the Empire Pencil subsidiary as Empire received lower levels of capital spending relative to profits than did the toy division.
With Merrill's death in 1979, Harold did not recognize Stephen's authority as the successor to the chairman and CEO position. As a solution, Hasbro spun off Empire Pencil in 1980, which was the nation's largest pencil maker, with Harold trading his Hasbro shares for those of Empire. Stephen then became both the CEO and chairman of the board. Between 1978 and 1981, Stephen reduced the Hasbro product line by one-third and its new products by one-half. Hasbro focused on simple, low-cost, longer life-cycle toys like Mr. Potato Head. Hasbro thus stayed out of the electronic games field which went bust in the early 1980s.
In 1982, Hasbro revived its G.I. Joe line with the help of Marvel Comics, as an anti-terrorist special forces team based on current events. Following an interest in Takara's Diaclone and Micro Change toylines in the 1983 , the company licensed the toylines and subsequently launched the successful Transformers toy line along with a children's animated TV series two years later. With the toys and TV series being popular, Stephen Hassenfeld posed with the toys for a People magazine cover photo.
In 1982, Hasbro produced the successful toy franchise My Little Pony. In 1983, they purchased GLENCO Infant Items, a manufacturer of infant products and the world's largest bib producer, and Knickerbocker Toy Company, a struggling Warner Communications subsidiary. Hasbro paid 37% of its stock to Warner, which was paid into Hasbro's executive-controlled voting trust, and also received a cash infusion. In 1984, Alan G. Hassenfeld took over as president from his brother Stephen, who continued as CEO and chairman. That same year, the company was the nation's sixth best-selling toymaker, and then acquired the Milton Bradley Company, which was the nation's fifth best-selling toymaker. This brought The Game of Life, Twister, Easy Money, and Playskool into the Hasbro fold and on September 10 transformed Hasbro into Hasbro Bradley. Stephen Hassenfeld became the merged company's president and CEO, with Milton Bradley chief James Shea Jr. taking the chairman position. However, the executives clashed and Shea left after a few months, and Stephen and Alan returned to their previous positions.
Hasbro
1985–2007
On June 6, 1985, the company changed its name again to just Hasbro, Inc. The Jumpstarters toys were the subject of a lawsuit in 1985 when Hasbro sued a toy manufacturer for selling toys based on their Transformers design. Hasbro won the suit.
In the mid-1980s, Hasbro moved past Mattel to become the world's largest toy company. Hasbro then moved to outsell Mattel's Barbie in the fashion doll market with the 1986 introduction of Jem, a record producer/rock musician dual identity fashion doll. Jem initially posted strong sales but plummeted and was withdrawn from the market in 1987. Hasbro followed up in 1988 with Maxie, a Barbie-sized blonde doll, so that Barbie clothing and accessories would fit. Maxie lasted until 1990.
Under Alan's initiative in the late 1980s, Hasbro moved to increase international sales by taking toys overseas that had failed in the US market and selling them for as much as four times the original price. This increased international sales from $268 million in 1985 to $433 million in 1988.
In 1988, Hasbro purchased part of Coleco Industries' indoor and outdoor children's furniture and ride-on toy product lines for $21 million including two just closed manufacturing plants in Amsterdam, New York. In July 1989, Hasbro acquired bankrupt Coleco for $85 million. Stephen Hassenfeld died later that year with the company having gone from sales of $104 million in the year he took control to 1989 sales of over $1.4 billion.
Alan succeeded Stephen as chairman and CEO. In 1991, Hasbro purchased Tonka Corp. for $486 million, along with its units Parker Brothers, the maker of Monopoly, and Kenner Products. Milton Bradley and Parker Brothers were merged into one division. Alan moved to expand Hasbro overseas with new units in Greece, Hungary, and Mexico.
Alan saw the Far East as an important market to expand. In 1992, Hasbro purchased Nomura Toys Ltd. in Japan, and majority ownership of Palmyra, a Southeast Asian toy distributor. These increased the proportion of international sales from 22% in 1985 to 45% ($1.28 billion) in 1995. In 1993, Hasbro lost its bid for J. W. Spear & Sons, a U.K.-based game maker, to Mattel.
In the US, Hasbro's growth since 1980 was from acquisitions and the leveraging of the new assets. New product development was not as successful except for film and TV tie-in product lines with Jurassic Park and Barney. Thus, US sales were stagnant in the early 1990s, falling from 1993 to 1995. To turn domestic performance around in 1994, Hasbro merged the Hasbro Toy, Playskool, Playskool Baby, Kenner, and Kid Dimension units into the Hasbro Toy Group. Meanwhile, Mattel purchased Fisher-Price and retook the top spot in the toy industry.
Hasbro Interactive was started in 1995 and released the Monopoly game on CD-ROM. Mattel also proposed a merger that year, but was turned down by the Hasbro board in 1996 due to antitrust issues and Justice Department investigation into exclusionary policies between toy manufacturers and toy retailers, particularly Toys "R" Us.
In 1998, Hasbro bought Avalon Hill for $6 million and Galoob for $220 million. That same year, Milton Bradley merged with Parker Bros. to form Hasbro Games. In 1999, Hasbro paid for rights to Pokémon toys. The same year, Wizards of the Coast was bought in a deal worth $325 million. Wizards of the Coast is now a subsidiary of Hasbro and has Avalon Hill as its division. In 2001 money-losing Hasbro Interactive was sold to Infogrames, a French software concern, for $100 million. Hasbro entered the building block toy with its Built to Rule line in 2003, which did not hold together well or were too hard for the targeted age group, thus ended in 2005.
In 2004, the company entered into a deal with Paramount Home Entertainment to release its programs based on its games and toys on VHS and DVD.
In 2008, Hasbro acquired game maker Cranium, Inc. for $77.5 million. The deal was announced on January 4 and closed on January 25.
Hasbro and Universal Pictures signed an agreement in February 2008 to derive four films from seven Hasbro properties for production. In May, Bennett Schneir was hired to lead its Hasbro Films division, while Hasbro also reacquired series based on their properties from Sunbow Productions.
The year of his promotion to CEO of Hasbro, Brian Goldner was named CEO of the year by News Corporation affiliate website MarketWatch.com. Goldner became the first person not from the founding Hassenfeld family to hold the position.
In 2009, the Milton Bradley and Parker Bros. brands were retired after 25 years and eighteen years of Hasbro ownership respectively. That same year, Hasbro Studios was formed for TV development, production and distribution. On December 11, 2012, Hasbro transferred all entertainment divisions to Hasbro Studios, including their LA-based film group, and Cake Mix Studio, the company's Rhode Island–based producer of commercials and short form content.
Hasbro collaborated with Discovery on The Hub, a cable television network targeting younger children and families, which launched on October 10, 2010. The venture found unexpected success with the revival of the My Little Pony franchise, My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, which became the network's highest-rated program and attracted a significant cult following among teens and adults. The Hub was renamed to Hub Network in 2013, and was rebranded again as Discovery Family on October 13, 2014. In 2013, Hasbro renewed its deal to produce Marvel Comics and Star Wars toys through at least 2020.
In 2011, Greenpeace accused Hasbro of purchasing paper for its packaging from ancient forests in Indonesia. Hasbro changed its paper purchasing policy, earning the company praise from Greenpeace executive director Phil Radford, who said: "The new Hasbro policy will also increase the recycled and Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified paper in its toy packaging. Hasbro's new commitments are great news for Indonesian rainforests and the people and wildlife that depend on them."
By April 2011, Hasbro started 360 Manufacturing Services, a contract OEM game manufacturing operating out of Hasbro's USA plant. Having been absent from the building block market since the failure of the Built to Rule line, Hasbro re-entered the market with the Kre-O line in late 2011, starting with some Transformers-based sets.
In 2012, Hasbro received a $1.6 million tax credit from the state of Rhode Island with a promise to create 245 new jobs in the state. Instead, they laid off more than 125 workers. This was followed in 2013 with further layoffs of North American workers, amounting to 10% of its salaried employees. Meanwhile, CEO Brian Goldner signed a new five-year contract. As of fiscal year 2012, Goldner had a total calculated compensation of $9,684,285. On July 9, 2013, Backflip Studios sold a 70% stake in the company to Hasbro for $112 million in cash.
On November 6, 2012, it was rumored that the Walt Disney Company was discussing a multi-billion dollar deal to acquire Hasbro. While Hasbro declined to discuss the rumor, advisors stated there was "absolutely nothing going on" they knew of between the two companies. Additionally, financial analysts said the deal was illogical, as the rumor came out just a week after Disney had bought out Lucasfilm.
Hasbro was named by Fortune magazine as one of the top 100 companies to work for in 2013, citing that the "company enhanced its vacation policy by giving new employees three weeks off in their first year instead of having to wait five years."
On November 12, 2014, it was reported that Hasbro was in talks to buy DreamWorks Animation. The proposal reportedly calls for the combined company to take the name "DreamWorks-Hasbro" and for Jeffrey Katzenberg to become its chairman, but as a matter of policy, neither Hasbro nor DreamWorks publicly comment on mergers and acquisitions. Two days later, the talks were reported to have fallen through. The company has been owned by NBCUniversal since 2016.
On July 14, 2015, the company announced the intent to sell its last two factories, in Ireland and East Longmeadow, Massachusetts (including its 360 Manufacturing Services), to Cartamundi. The deal was set to close in sixty days. Hasbro signed a five-year deal with Cartamundi to produce their board games at the East Longmeadow plant.
With Mattel adding two competing lines, and the expiration of their Disney Princess license at the end of 2015, Disney gave Hasbro a chance to gain the license given their work on Star Wars, which led to a Descendants license. DCP was also attempting to evolve the brand from one of them less as damsels and more as heroines. In September 2014, Disney announced that Hasbro would be the doll licensee for the Disney Princess line starting on January 1, 2016.
On July 13, 2016, Hasbro acquired Dublin-based Boulder Media Limited and placed it under the control of its chief content officer. Hasbro announced that it would launch its own convention, named HasCon, and featuring "all things Hasbro" in 2016, with the inaugural event being held at the Rhode Island Convention Center in September 2017.
On November 15, 2017, Mattel rejected an offer from the company. At the time, Mattel's worth was $5 billion, while Hasbro's worth was about $11 billion. On February 27, 2018, Variety reported in a detailed article that Hasbro came close to buying Lionsgate (now Starz Entertainment), exploring options to expand its entertainment division and bolster its content production capabilities due to interest in film and television ventures, but the deal fell through.
2018–present
On February 16, 2018, Saban Brands appointed Hasbro as the global master toy licensee for Power Rangers with a future collaboration and option to purchase the franchise. On May 1, 2018, Hasbro agreed to purchase Power Rangers and other entertainment assets from Saban Brands for $522 million in cash and stock with the licensing fee recently paid with credit. The sale, which also collaborated with My Pet Monster, Popples, Julius Jr., Treehouse Detectives and additional properties, was expected to close in the second quarter until it was finished with Saban's collab. On October 19, 2018, the company announced plans to cut jobs amounting to less than 10% of its 5,000-plus global workforce in response to changes in how consumers buy toys.
In 2018, Hasbro signed a number of licensing agreements for hospitality deals based on Hasbro brands. On May 1, 2018, the Monopoly Mansion hotel agreement was announced by Hasbro, with M101 Holdings overseeing construction and M101's Sirocco Group assigned to manage the hotel when it opened in 2019. Hasbro granted Kingsmen Creatives a license to build a chain of NERF Action Xperience family entertainment centers, with the first to be opened in Singapore in fall/winter 2019. In November, the company issued a license for family entertainment centers to Kilburn Live, who were to launch a new division for the centers. That December, the company granted a license for theme parks to Imagine Resorts and Hotels, co-founded by Bruce Neviaser. Neviaser had previously co-founded Great Lakes Companies, which launched Great Wolf Resorts indoor waterpark resorts. On December 18, 2019, Hasbro and West Edmonton Mall announced that Galaxyland would get a makeover, with rides being redone and renamed to Hasbro properties. Construction was begun later that month and scheduled to wrap up in late 2020.
On August 22, 2019, Hasbro announced its purchase of Entertainment One for about US$4 billion. The deal was completed on December 30, 2019. On October 24, 2019, Hasbro announced the closing of Backflip Studios, while its Wizards of the Coast subsidiary purchased Tuque Games in October. On February 28, 2020, Hasbro announced that Campbell Arnott's former CMO David McNeil had joined the company as the managing director for Pacific operations. On September 30, 2020, Renegade Game Studios announced they had acquired licensing for creating tabletop games for multiple Hasbro brands. Several of the games would be using the 5E role-playing system owned by Wizards of the Coast.
On February 25, 2021, during the 2021 Investor Event, Hasbro announced a company reorganization with three divisions: Consumer Products, Entertainment, and Wizards & Digital. The Wall Street Journal reported that "Hasbro's net revenue fell 8% last year to $5.47 billion, due in part to retail shutdowns related to Covid-19," however, its Wizards of the Coast subsidiary "posted revenue of $816 million last year, up 24% from 2019, fueled by what Hasbro says were record years for" Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering. ICv2 reported, "the WotC and Digital Gaming segment is over $112 million more than the operating profit for Hasbro's entire consumer products segment" and that "Wizards of the Coast on its own is also more profitable than Hasbro's consumer products segment [...]. From the outside, Hasbro looks like a toy company, but with these numbers, it's revealed to be a geek game company with toy and entertainment divisions".
In April 2021, Hasbro agreed to sell eOne Music unit to Blackstone for $385 million, offloading part of the Entertainment One operations that it acquired in 2019. Hasbro's longtime CEO Brian Goldner died on October 12, 2021, after a 7-year battle with cancer. Richard Stoddart served as the interim CEO of the company following Goldner's death; Chris Cocks was named as Goldner's successor on January 5, 2022, and became CEO on February 25, 2022. Cocks was formerly the president and chief operating officer of Wizards of the Coast, a division of Hasbro.
In June 2022, Hasbro defeated a board challenge from activist investor Alta Fox Capital Management LLC. The hedge fund company, which owns a 2.5% stake of Hasbro, had been pushing to spin out Wizards of the Coast "into its own company in an attempt to create what they saw was more value by making a second publicly traded company with a more profitable line of business".
On November 17, 2022, Hasbro announced they had put Entertainment One up for sale. This includes their film and TV business but would exclude the company's kids and family division, which would remain under Hasbro. On March 15, 2023, it was reported that Fremantle, Lionsgate and Legendary Entertainment are interested in the buyout. However, Fremantle dropped out of the bid while CVC Capital Partners and GoDigital Media Group joined in the bid for the eOne buyout. On April 20, 2023, it was reported that Hasbro was in talks with Throop on the possibility of buying the company back. On July 17, 2023, Deadline reported that Lionsgate was a frontrunner to acquire eOne. In June 2023, Hasbro announced the return of Furby, an interactive plush toy that was highly popular in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
On August 3, 2023, Hasbro announced that Lionsgate would acquire Entertainment One for $500 million, with the transaction closed on December 27, 2023. eOne was rebranded as Lionsgate Canada in 2024, the same year that it became a subsidiary of Lionsgate Studios. Hasbro kept eOne’s family brands and its stake in Astley Baker Davies, and created a division called Hasbro Entertainment later that month, which held Astley Baker Davies and Discovery Family.
On December 12, 2023, TechCrunch reported that paperwork Hasbro filed with the SEC contained information announcing layoffs of 1,100 employees (20% of their entire workforce across all divisions) effective immediately. President and COO Eric Nyman left the company. Hasbro's CEO, Chris Cocks, stated that this reduction is part of a broader cost-saving strategy, aimed at saving $350 million to $400 million by 2025, with a renewed focus on high-profit areas like licensing and entertainment, particularly in the Wizards of the Coast division. Hasbro also announced to have signed a deal with McFarlane Toys as part the latter's Page Punchers line-up.
On February 13, 2024, following the completion of its sale of Entertainment One assets, Hasbro reported losses of $1 billion for the fourth quarter of 2023 and $1.49 billion for the full year, resulting in its entire total net income from December 31, 2019 to December 31, 2023 to plummet to $0. The company now plans to cut its costs by $750 million by December 31, 2024.
On July 18, 2024, Hasbro announced the appointment of two new leadership positions: Holly Barbacovi, former COO of Bungie, as Chief People Officer, and John Hight, previously the Senior Vice President and General Manager of the Warcraft Franchise at Blizzard Entertainment, as President of Wizards of the Coast and Digital Gaming.
On November 20, 2024, Cocks announced to Bloomberg that Hasbro would stop co-financing future movies based on the company's list of brands in order to focus on mobile games and digital entertainment, leaving film studios that hold the film rights to various Hasbro brands to exclusively finance such projects.
Subsidiaries
Consumer products
Hasbro Games (formerly named as Hasbro Gaming)
Avalon Hill (brand)
Hasbro Retro Arcade
HasLab (defunct in 2012, re-established in 2018)
Hasbro Pulse
Playskool
Tonka
Entertainment
Hasbro Entertainment
Discovery Family (40% with The Cartoon Network, Inc.)
Astley Baker Davies (70%)
Left Foot Blue
Cake Mix Studios
SCG Characters LLC
SCG Power Rangers LLC
SCG Luna Petunia LLC
Treehouse Detectives LLC
Saban Brands Voyagers LLC
Wizards & Digital
Wizards of the Coast
Archetype Entertainment
Atomic Arcade
D&D Beyond
Invoke Studios
Mirrorstone Books
Boulder Media (sold to Princess Pictures)
Entertainment One (sold to Lionsgate (now Starz Entertainment) in 2023, renamed as Lionsgate Canada)
Secret Location
The Mark Gordon Company
AutoMatik
eOne Films (merged into Lionsgate Films)
Amblin Partners (minority)
Amblin Entertainment
Amblin Television
DreamWorks Pictures
Makeready
Momentum Pictures
Les Films Séville
Séville International
Sierra/Affinity
eOne Music (sold to The Blackstone Group, renamed as MNRK Music Group)
eOne Television (merged into Lionsgate Television)
Daisybeck Studios (United Kingdom)
Whizz Kid Entertainment (United Kingdom)
Blackfin (United States)
Renegade83 (United States)
Round Room Entertainment
Hasbro Interactive (Sold to Infogrames Entertainment SA in January 2001, rebranded Infogrames Interactive, Inc. and Atari Interactive, Inc.)
Atari Interactive, Inc.
MicroProse
Allspark (formerly Hasbro Studios, LLC, folded into Entertainment One)
Allspark Pictures (formerly Hasbro Films/Hasbro Film Group, folded into Entertainment One)
Backflip Studios (70%) (known for making the popular mobile games Paper Toss and Graffiti Ball)
Claster Television
Cranium, Inc.
Empire Pencil
eOne Family & Brands (replaced by Hasbro Entertainment)
Galoob
Kenner Products
Larami (name is now retired and part of the Nerf brand)
Milton Bradley Company
Parker Brothers
Selchow and Righter
Saban Brands
Secret Location
Tiger Electronics
Wrebbit
Toys and games
Hasbro has several brands of toys and games aimed at different demographics. Some of its better-known toy lines (past and present) are:
Action Man
Battle Beasts
Beyblade (co-product with Tomy)
B-Daman (co-product with Tomy)
Dungeons and Dragons
Duel Masters
Easy-Bake Oven
Flubber (recalled)
Fortnite (Since 2019)
Furby (Since 2005)
FurReal Friends
G.I. Joe
Ghostbusters (Since 2020)
Gobots
Hamtaro (co-product with Bandai)
Hanazuki & Kiazuki
Idaten Jump (co-product with Tomy)
Inhumanoids
Javelin Darts (discontinued)
Jem
Jurassic Park (Since 1993)
Kre-O
Lincoln Logs
Lite-Brite
Littlest Pet Shop
M.A.S.K.
Mario (co-product with Nintendo)
Marvel
Maxie
Micronauts
Minecraft (co-product with Mojang Studios)
MoonDreamers
Mr. Potato Head
My Little Pony
My Little Pony: Equestria Girls
My Pet Monster
Nerf
Overwatch (2019–2020)
Play-Doh
Pokémon (Since 1998)
Pound Puppies
Power Rangers (Since 2019) (co-product with Toei)
Rom the Space Knight
Peppa Pig
PJ Masks Sesame Street (2010–2022)
Sonic (co-product with Sega)
Spirograph Star Trek (2013–2014)
Star Wars Stretch Armstrong Tinkertoy Transformers (co-product with Tomy)
Trolls Visionaries: Knights of the Magical Light WWF Wrestling figure line (1990–1994)
Yo-kai Watch (co-product with Level-5)
Zoids (co-product with Tomy)
Hasbro is the largest producer of board games in the world as a result of its component brands, such as Parker Brothers, Waddingtons, Milton Bradley, Wizards of the Coast, and Avalon Hill (all acquisitions since the 1980s). As a result, it has well known and top selling games such as:
Axis & Allies Battleship Buckaroo! Candy Land Cranium Clue (Cluedo) Diplomacy Don't Break The Ice Duel Masters Trading Card Game Dungeons & Dragons (role-playing game)
The Game of Life The Grape Escape Guess Who? Hungry Hungry Hippos (arcade adaptation)
Magic: The Gathering
Mirror-Mirror (winner of ITV's "Design a Board Game Competition")
Monopoly (best selling board game ever according to the Guinness World Records)Mouse Trap Operation Ouija Pictionary (1994–2001, sold to Mattel)
Risk Scrabble (US/Canada, all international rights owned by Mattel)
Trivial Pursuit Trivial Pursuit Infinite (inspired by Wordle)
TroubleHasbro also produces many variations of most of their games. For example, in addition to original Scrabble, the game is also available as "Scrabble Deluxe Edition", "Scrabble Deluxe Travel Edition", "Scrabble Junior", and "Scrabble Onyx Edition".
Hasbro also offers Game of skill such as:
Bop It JengaThey also formerly sold:
Brain Warp and its sister products which include Brain Shift, Brain Bash, Death Star Escape, Hyperslide and Torx.
Bull's-Eye BallHasbro also offers a memory game called Simon which involves memorising sequences of colors and lights.
In 1995, Hasbro began a short-lived video game development and publishing venture called Hasbro Interactive, but disbanded it in 2001 when it was bought by the now defunct Infogrames. Now Hasbro develops video games based on its brands through third-party developers and licensing strategies, notably with major American companies such as Activision, Electronic Arts, and THQ. Following the rise of smartphones and tablet PCs in the 2010s, as well as major video gaming publishers cutting back on releasing games based on licensed IPs for various reasons, such as economic slumps, several of Hasbro's brands were licensed towards mobile game developers such as Gameloft, releasing their games under the label Hasbro Gaming.
On February 25, 2005, Hasbro announced that it would be introducing a musical toothbrush to the market. The Tooth Tunes, released in early 2007, transmits music from the jawbone to the ear when the bristles touch the teeth.
In November 2023, Hasbro signed a licensing deal with Ageless Innovation to design toys and games for people over 65. Hasbro will produce "Generations" versions of known games such as Scrabble, Life, and Trivial Pursuit. The new versions will include larger fonts and game pieces as well as content that is relevant to different generations.
In January 2024, Hasbro launched a new line of Star Wars figures to join The Black Series and The Vintage Collection for the 25th anniversary of The Phantom Menace. The line includes a Destroyer Droid that can roll. In the same month, Hasbro announced a pre-order for a new crowdfunding project; the creation of Omega Prime, a Transformer that is a combination of the Robots in Disguise 2001 iterations of Optimus Prime and Ultra Magnus.
In February 2024, Hasbro announced a new game, Life in Reterra, a Eurogame-style board game created by Eric M. Lang and Ken Gruhl.
Criticism and controversy
In 2007, a workers' rights group investigated several of Hasbro's Chinese suppliers and found that, in one instance, a toy factory in China's Guangxi Province had hired 1000 junior high school students. The same group discovered other widespread labor violations, including unsafe working conditions, mandatory overtime, verbal abuse and sexual harassment of employees. Hasbro issued a statement, saying that it would "act swiftly and decisively in making any necessary changes" and had "increased the intensity of [its] ongoing safety review efforts." Critics pointed out that Hasbro had no official regulatory control of these factories. Hasbro responded by hiring independent auditors. These auditors made unannounced visits to the East Asian subcontractors. Reports then emerged that the factory managers have been coached in how to deceive the auditors.
Hasbro has also been criticized for focusing some of its products on specific demographic groups. For example, a letter spread widely on social media in November 2012 written by a six-year-old Irish girl complaining about the lack of female characters in the guessing game Guess Who?. This garnered attention in the press after the girl's mother posted the exchange on her blog. Guess Who? had previously received complaints over gender and ethnic bias in its choice of 24 images.
Hasbro primarily sells toys directed at girl or boy markets. As such, there have been criticisms that Hasbro's toys reinforce gender stereotypes. For example, in December 2012, 13-year-old McKenna Pope started a campaign on Change.org, calling on the company to create a "boy-friendly" version of the popular Easy-Bake Oven and to feature boys on their packaging and materials. Within a week, over 30,000 people signed her petition.
Hasbro was criticized for "sexist" product design when its 2015 Star Wars Monopoly board game failed to feature Rey, the female protagonist in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, while including all of the supporting male characters. Hasbro explained that Rey was left out of the Monopoly game to avoid spoilers, because the game was released months before the movies. On January 5, 2016, Hasbro announced that Rey would be included in future versions. Hasbro later stated that it struggled to distribute the updated Monopoly game that includes the Rey piece, because retailers (especially in the United States) showed "insufficient interest" after having already purchased stock of the first release.
On October 2, 2015, Lorraine Markham sued Hasbro for breach of contract for failure to pay royalties to her. She was seeking a declaration from the U.S. District Court in Providence that her husband Bill Markham was the sole creator of The Game of Life.
On August 7, 2020, Hasbro produced a DreamWorks Animation Troll doll device for pre-school children which had an unadvertised activator on the doll's private parts that caused the device to emit several audio recordings that were questioned by some American mothers; in particular one of them posted a Facebook video stream that went viral. In it, she questioned whether the intent was to groom children for depravity. A Hasbro senior officer for global communications said that it was "not intentional" and the company removed the device from the marketplace. A writer for USA Today opined that "We rate the claim that the doll was designed to groom children as PARTLY FALSE."
In late December 2022, continuing into 2023, Hasbro and subsidiary company Wizards of the Coast received backlash from Dungeons & Dragons fans due to leaked information indicating the companies planned to revoke a longstanding open license and to replace it with one that imposed severe new regulations on content created under the previous license agreement. The legality of this move by Hasbro has been debated.
In 2023, subsidiary Wizards of the Coast hired several Pinkerton employees to seize the upcoming March of the Machine: The Aftermath card set for trading card game Magic: The Gathering from a YouTuber who had purchased them from a local game store and published their contents on YouTube ahead of release.
Philanthropy
In 2017, Corporate Responsibility Magazine rated Hasbro number one on its 100 Best Corporate Citizens list, a measure of corporate philanthropy. The company was ranked number five for 2018, and number 13 in 2019.
Conventions
HasCon (2017)
HasCon was a fan convention created by Hasbro to promote its various licensed properties, including Transformers, G.I. Joe, My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, and Magic: The Gathering.'' It thus replaces the previous fan convention from Fun Publications, BotCon. However, Fun Publications' G. I. Joe Convention continued to be held as of 2017. It was subsequently announced that the first HasCon is scheduled for September 8–10, 2017, at the Rhode Island Convention Center. Meanwhile, Summer Hayes, LLC., which organizes My Little Pony Fair convention, has announced that their convention will not be held for 2017, and would collaborate with HasCon instead.
There was supposed to be a HasCon event in 2019 at the Rhode Island Convention Center and Dunkin' Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island, but it has been cancelled..
Hasbro Pulse Con (Since 2020)
Hasbro Pulse Con is a virtual convention held through the Hasbro Pulse website due the COVID-19 pandemic, following the cancellation of HasCon 2019. Since 2020, four yearly conventions were made at the moment.
Other
BotCon (1994–2002, 2005–2016)
OTFCC (Official Transformers Collectors Convention) (2003–2004)
G.I. Joe Collectors Club (by Fun Publications, 2005–2016)
Transformers Collectors Club (by Fun Publications, 2005–2018)
Other media
List of comics based on Hasbro properties
List of television programs based on Hasbro properties
List of films based on Hasbro properties
See also
List of game manufacturers
Fisher-Price
Bandai
LEGO
Mattel
Spin Master
MGA Entertainment
TOMY
|
Makarem Sobhi Batterjee
|
[
"1977 births",
"Living people",
"Saudi Arabian company founders",
"Chief executives in the healthcare industry",
"Saudi Arabian investors",
"21st-century Saudi Arabian businesspeople",
"Alumni of London Business School"
] | 735 | 9,584 |
Makarem Sobhi Batterjee (Arabic: مكارم صبحي بترجي) is a Saudi business leader, investor and entrepreneur. He is the President of Saudi German Hospitals (SGH) Group, one of the largest private hospital networks in the MENA region. He also serves as the Vice President of Middle East Healthcare Company Limited (MEAHCO).
Batterjee holds an MBA from London Business School.
Batterjee currently serves as the President of Saudi German Hospitals Group. He also holds the position of president at the family-owned Bait Al Batterjee Holding Company, a diversified organization with investments in 25 subsidiaries and more than 12500 employees. Additionally, he is the founder and CEO of the New City Company.
Batterjee is the founder and chief executive officer of Shababco Enterprises, which has established the largest award-winning gym, Gold's Gym, in Saudi Arabia. He is also the founder of Humania Capital (2005 – Present), a healthcare investment company, owner of JanPro, a commercial cleaning brand, and the founding president of the Saudi Chapter of the Entrepreneurs' Organization.
Batterjee is a health and wellness advocate as well as a supporter of women empowerment initiatives. On July 7, 2011, he received an honorary doctorate from the United Nations for opening the first women-only fitness centre in Saudi Arabia.
Batterjee was chosen as a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum in Davos in 2008. In the same year, he was selected as the Middle East Young Entrepreneur of the Year by the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Batterjee received the Randi Carrol Award for the establishment of the Saudi chapter of global Entrepreneurs' Organization and was named a Young Arab Leader by the ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum
In August 2018, Gold's Gym awarded Batterjee the Gold's Gym Vision Award duringss its convention that was held in Las Vegas.
In 2009, Batterjee became the youngest member and one of the few Arab members to serve on the Bretton Woods Committee.
TV Appearance
Batterjee has appeared as an investor on the Arab version of the US-based reality TV show Shark Tank program since its launch in 2017.
|
Administration (law)
|
[
"Business law",
"Insolvency",
"Corporate finance",
"Court orders",
"Insolvency law of the United Kingdom",
"Corporate liquidations"
] | 1,975 | 17,155 |
As a legal concept, administration is a procedure under the insolvency laws of a number of common law jurisdictions, similar to bankruptcy in the United States. It functions as a rescue mechanism for insolvent entities and allows them to carry on running their business. The process – in the United Kingdom colloquially called being "under administration" – is an alternative to liquidation or may be a precursor to it. Administration is commenced by an administration order.
A company in administrative receivership is operated by an administrator (sometimes referred to as a receiver and manager) (as interim chief executive with custodial responsibility for the company's assets and obligations) on behalf of its creditors. The administrator may recapitalize the business, sell the business to new owners, or demerge it into elements that can be sold and close the remainder.
Most countries distinguish between voluntary (board-decided) and involuntary (court-decided) receivership. In voluntary administrative receivership, the administrator is appointed by the company directors. In involuntary administrative receivership, the administrator is appointed by a judicial court. The legal terms for these processes vary from country to country, and the processes may overlap.
In Australia, an external administrator, also called an insolvency practitioner, is an independent person that is formally appointed to control an insolvent company's affairs. External administrators can be appointed either by the company's directors, a secured creditor, or by a court, and include: provisional liquidators, liquidators, voluntary administrators, deed administrators, controllers, and receivers. A receivership is when an external administrator known as a "receiver" (usually a "receiver and manager" if it requires controlling the company) is appointed by a secured creditor to sell off a company's assets in order to repay the secured debt, or by the court to protect the company's assets or carry out other tasks.
Voluntary administration is when the directors of an insolvent company appoint an external administrator to investigate whether winding up the corporation can be prevented or delayed and to make recommendations to the directors and their creditors as to whether the company should enter into a deed of company arrangement, be wound up (i.e. liquidated), or be returned to the control of the directors. After an administrator is appointed, there are two meetings of creditors, held within tight time-frames, with the second being the most important as it will decide whether to enter into a deed of company arrangement (DOCA), end the administration or wind the company up. The DOCA is a binding agreement between a business and its creditors overseen by a deed administrator relating to how the company's assets will be managed to ensure better returns for its creditors than an immediate winding up.
When a creditor petitions the court seeking a court liquidation (a court-mandated winding up) of an insolvent company, the court appoints a "provisional liquidator" to temporarily preserve the company's assets while the winding-up application is pending. Administrators are required to be registered liquidators since they have broad powers to deal with company property. The appointment of an administrator "freezes" any legal proceedings against the company and control of the company is given entirely to the administrator. Directors of the company are prohibited from acting in their capacity as directors for the duration of the administration, while administrators are personally liable for any debts incurred by the company in the course of the administration.
The Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act provides mechanisms for consumer and general proposals in order to give time for an insolvent person to be able to reorganize his affairs. For insolvent companies (or affiliated groups) owing more than million, a more flexible regime is available under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act ("CCAA").
United Kingdom
In UK law, the administration regime is governed by the Insolvency Act 1986, as amended by the Enterprise Act 2002. An "administrator" can be appointed without petitioning the court by the holder of a floating charge (created since 15 September 2003), by the company or by its directors. Other creditors must petition the court to appoint an administrator. The administrator must act in the interests of all the creditors and attempt to rescue the company as a going concern. If this proves impossible the administrator must work to maximise the recovery of the creditors as a whole. Only then may the administrator attempt to realise property in favour of one or more secured creditors. A firm is usually in administration for no more than 12 months, after which an extension from the court can be produced at the courts discretion. Administration is analogous to going into "Chapter 11" in the United States, although there are certain key differences, mainly stemming from the fact that English law does not include the debtor in possession concept. During the reorganisation period, as a result, the administrator usually runs the business rather than the directors, and any additional liquidity requirements effectively have to be met by funds provided by existing creditors rather than by any super-senior 'DIP financing'.
The administrator is an officer of the court and an agent of the company, and is not personally liable for any contracts they make on behalf of the company. They have the power to do anything necessary or expedient for the management of the affairs, business and property of the company. The new administration regime introduced by the Enterprise Act 2002 replaces the previous situation where administrative receivership was available as an alternative to administration, which has traditionally been a more rescue-oriented insolvency regime. This regime allowed the holder of a floating charge to appoint an administrative receiver to realise assets in his favour, and also to block an administration order sought by a borrower. This was felt to be too favourable to the floating charge holder at the expense of other creditors. Holders of a floating charge created prior to 15 September 2003 retain their right to appoint an administrative receiver, but all purported rights to do so created after that date will be construed as rights to appoint an administrator, subject to certain specific, rare exceptions. A court order is issued that forbids any form of legal or insolvency action without the court's permission. An application to the court for an administration order may be made by the company, the directors, a creditor or any combination of them. The Enterprise Act 2002 amended the Insolvency Act 1986 to provide an out-of-court process to appoint an administrator to the holder of a floating charge or the company or its directors. This is considerably cheaper and simpler than the previous system, which involved an application to court.
Administration order
In the United Kingdom, an administration order is a process designed to protect limited companies from their creditors while a debt restructuring plan is carried out and presented to creditors and courts. This administration order process requires a licensed insolvency practitioner to act as the administrator appointed by the court. The administration order does not concern joint debt.
Pre-pack administration
Pre pack is an insolvency procedure where a company arranges a deal to sell its assets to a buyer before appointing administrators to facilitate the sale. It is a legal way of selling the business on to a trade buyer or third party.
A pre-pack is the process of selling the assets of a company immediately after it has entered administration. It is sometimes the case that the previous directors or management purchase the assets of the company from the administrator and set up a new company. This process has advantages in that it enables the administrator to realise a greater amount for the assets due to business continuity and that the goodwill of the company is preserved. The employees of the company are also usually transferred to the new company, preserving jobs. Pre-packs have attracted criticism because of the appearance it gives to unconnected parties that the company has just continued without its creditors. SIP 16 was introduced in January 2009 to assist Insolvency Practitioners in pre-pack cases. It was designed to make the process more transparent for creditors, and to ensure that fair value was obtained for the assets.
In November 2009, the Office of Fair Trading announced a study into corporate insolvencies, with particular focus on pre-pack administrations, to report on whether the insolvency market is operating efficiently, with enough freedom of competition between insolvency practitioners and whether consumers and creditors are being treated as fairly as possible. An example of a pre-pack is the sale of the assets of Cobra Beer to Coors immediately after Cobra Beer entered administration. This allowed the brand to continue and saved jobs, but also left suppliers out of pocket by an estimated £75 million.
Individual administration order in England, Wales and Northern Ireland
In this process, a debtor who has enough money left over after priority creditors and essential expenses may be able to arrange an individual voluntary arrangement. (Debtors with less serious problems may prefer a debt management plan.)
Republic of Ireland
The Republic of Ireland operates a similar process called examinership, but companies require permission from the High Court to enter and leave examinership.
New Zealand
In New Zealand, voluntary administration is covered by the Companies Act 1993, as amended under the Companies (Voluntary Administration) Regulations Bill in 2007.
Ukraine
In Ukraine, a system of "sanation" () measures take place to prevent or lessen the effect of insolvency. The basic components of those measures include providing special loans and subsidies; exemptions for issuing a credit or taxation; restructuring of the business's debts and capital; change of organizational and production structure of the debtor; full or partial nationalization; others.
Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union and reforming the existing socialist law, in 1999 there was established a law "About restoring the debtor's solvency or declaring him bankrupt".
The official who administers "sanation" is known as an "arbitral director" () and is appointed by a court.
See also
Administration (British football)
Administrative receivership
Chapter 11, Title 11, United States Code
Examinership a similar process in the Republic of Ireland
|
Philip M. Shannon
|
[
"1840s births",
"1915 deaths",
"19th-century American businesspeople",
"American businesspeople in the oil industry",
"American company founders",
"American investors",
"Pennsylvania Republicans",
"Mayors of places in Pennsylvania"
] | 470 | 4,416 |
Philip Martin Shannon (September 2, 1846 – November 22, 1915) was an American politician, businessman, millionaire, and soldier who discovered oil in Wyoming.
Philip Martin Shannon was born in 1843, in Bradford, Pennsylvania and during his childhood he worked on the oil fields during the early Pennsylvania oil rush. He discovered the Shannon Oil fields, which were named in his honor, in the early 1880s and gained controlling oil interests in Texas and Alabama oil fields. In 1861, he enlisted into the 62nd Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment, but was later honorably discharged in 1862 due to wounds he received from the Battle of Gaines's Mill. In 1874, he was elected as the Burgess of Millerstown and in 1876 ran for a seat in the Pennsylvania legislature, but did not receive the Republican nomination at the state convention. On June 18, 1881, he married Hattie M. McIntosh and in 1885, he was elected as mayor of Bradford.
In 1884, he visited Wyoming and in 1889, he discovered oil in Wyoming at the Salt Creek Oil Field and later built an oil refinery in 1894. In 1900, Harry Oscar Lordon, a veteran of the Spanish–American War, attempted to rob Shannon and was found underneath his bed in the Waldorf-Astoria hotel. On November 22, 1915, he died in his Duquesne Club apartment in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
|
Samuel Pandolfo
|
[
"1874 births",
"1960 deaths",
"20th-century American businesspeople",
"American people convicted of fraud",
"People from Las Cruces, New Mexico",
"People from St. Cloud, Minnesota",
"People from Macon, Mississippi",
"Businesspeople from Minnesota",
"Businesspeople from New Mexico",
"Educators from New Mexico",
"Educators from Minnesota"
] | 1,497 | 10,477 |
Samuel Conner Pandolfo (November 22, 1874 – January 27, 1960) was an American businessman most noted for founding the Pan Motor Car Company (1917–1919), and being convicted of fraud in its promotion. Pandolfo raised $9.5 million through stock sales and built an automobile plant in St. Cloud, Minnesota. During the next two years, the plant turned out 737 automobiles and fulfilled numerous U.S. government war contracts. However, he was found guilty of mail fraud and received a three-year prison sentence in the United States Penitentiary, Leavenworth.
The government claimed that Pandolfo defrauded the 70,000 stockholders in his company by sending them misleading information. Others have countered that Pandolfo was done-in not because of his business practices, but because of his beliefs. Pandolfo had the vision to believe that the average person could own shares of stock, and he eagerly sold it to them.
Early business career
In 1899, Pandolfo became the superintendent of schools in Las Cruces, New Mexico Territory. He began selling insurance on the side in 1901, and soon discovered that he "made more money in three months selling insurance than I had made in three years teaching school."
Pandolfo eventually quit his job as superintendent to form the Pandolfo Insurance Company which covered all of Texas, Oklahoma, Arizona, and New Mexico. Pandolfo claimed that he placed nearly $100 million on the books of the companies he represented. He disbanded his company after a crop failure in 1916, and turned his sights to the motorcar business.
Auto magnate
Pandolfo was no stranger to the automobile, having owned 37 of them in his 15 years in the insurance business. He had developed very particular opinions of what constituted a good car: it needed high clearance for the back roads of the day, should have provisions for accommodating the driver overnight if required, and should have the ability to carry extra supplies that might be needed in sparsely populated areas.
Pandolfo incorporated his company in Delaware, and began selling shares of stock for $10. Half of this money went into what Pandolfo called a "surplus fund" and was used to pay stock sales commissions and company expenses. The other half went into the company's capital fund. The stock's par value of $5.00 was clearly printed on each of the stock certificates.
Pandolfo selected St. Cloud, Minnesota, as the site for his plant because of its proximity to iron-ore mines, access to two major transcontinental railroads, access to a deep-water port in Duluth, a well-trained work force that was free of labor union issues, and a ready supply of electrical power.
The Pan Motor Company's infusion of capital and industry was well-remembered by residents of the time. Pandolfo threw a Fourth of July picnic in 1917 where 15,434 pounds of beef were barbecued for the crowd. Part of the city was dubbed "Pantown" where 58 first-class homes were erected for the company's growing labor force. The company began production of his Pan-Model 250, the first model produced by his new factory that covered of land, and included the biggest drop-forge plant in the U.S. west of Chicago.
Pandolfo's troubles began when the Associated Advertising Clubs of Minneapolis, a forerunner of the Better Business Bureau, lodged a complaint with the State of Minnesota that Pandolfo was spending more on promotion than its Minnesota Charter permitted. The complaint was dismissed, but on November 16, 1918, a federal grand jury in Fergus Falls, Minnesota, indicted Pandolfo on four counts of "using the mails in furtherance of a scheme to defraud". Pandolfo demanded an immediate trial on the charges, and when the government asked for more time to prepare its case, U.S. Judge Page Morris dismissed the charges.
Despite the dismissal of the case, the matter had slowed the sale of stock, and the Pan Motor Car Company was in need funds to put its premier Pan Model A into full-scale production. Pandolfo went on a whirlwind tour to promote this vehicle, which was his dream car. It had high clearance to negotiate just about any roadway, fold-down seats that transformed into a bed, and contained an ice chest to carry food and other refreshments. A flood of pamphlets and mailings were produced and sent out to promote the vehicle, and it was these promotional materials that ultimately ruined Pandolfo.
Indictment and conviction
On February 1, 1919, a federal grand jury in Chicago indicted Pandolfo, and all officers of the company, with seven counts of mail fraud for sending misleading materials through the federal mails. (Among the charges was that a company flier included a "plane's eye view" of the Pan Motor Car Company that wasn't actually drawn from an airplane.) The case was heard by cantankerous Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis who made several rulings hostile to Pandolfo. The week the trial took place, the Pan Motor Car Company went into full production of the Pan Model A, and by the end of that month 70 cars had been produced. Nevertheless, the jury was made to believe that the company was a sham, a shell company organized for no other purpose than to sell stock.
Requests by Pandolfo's defense team to show the jury motion pictures of the plant in operation were denied by Judge Landis, who declared, "I have had as much experience with moving pictures as anyone in the past fifteen years, and I am not to be denuded of the opinion I have formed regarding them." The case went to the jury with the jury unaware that the plant was in full-scale production of its second model motorcar, or that the plant had fulfilled numerous U.S. government war contracts, including production of a tank-tread tractor (dubbed "the tractor that will win the war").
Pandolfo was convicted, and mounted an aggressive appeal of his case. The company continued to produce Pan Model A cars in his absence, but publicity of the trial affected public sentiment so greatly that it was impossible to sell additional stock to raise much-needed capital. The Pan Motor Company eventually closed for lack of funds. On April 5, 1923, Samuel Pandolfo surrendered to Chicago authorities, and was taken to Leavenworth Federal Penitentiary, where he served two-and-a-half years of a three-year term.
Legacy
Upon his return to St. Cloud, Minnesota, in October 1926, Pandolfo was greeted by some 600 well-wishers and a band. He summed up the affair with his comment, "You don't meet a crook with a brass band."
As for Judge Landis, he was appointed the first commissioner of baseball in November, 1920, following the "Black Sox Scandal". A commission of several members had originally been proposed, but Landis demanded that he be the sole representative, and that he be given lifetime tenure. He refused to relinquish his federal judgeship even after being censured and threatened with impeachment by the House Judiciary Committee, where the lone dissenting vote against censure was cast by Minnesota Representative Andrew Volstead, who was known for authoring the Volstead Act to enforce Prohibition. Landis resigned from the federal bench in 1922.
Of the 737 Pan cars produced, only 5 are known to exist: three by private owners (two in Minnesota, including one displayed in the Stearns County Museum, and one in New York); one by the Pantowners Car Club in St. Cloud, MN; and one in the Antique Automobile Club of America (AACA) Museum in Hershey, PA.
Pandolfo suffered a stroke in December 1959 and died January 27, 1960, in Fairbanks, Alaska.
The Pan Motor Company Office and Sheet Metal Works building on 33rd Avenue North, St. Cloud, Minnesota, still stands, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
|
S&P Global
|
[
"S&P Global",
"Financial data vendors",
"Publicly traded companies based in New York City",
"Publishing companies established in 1917",
"Financial services companies established in 1917",
"1917 establishments in New York (state)",
"Financial services companies of the United States",
"Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange",
"Financial technology companies"
] | 3,421 | 35,218 |
S&P Global Inc. (prior to 2016, McGraw Hill Financial, Inc., and prior to 2013, The McGraw–Hill Companies, Inc.) is an American publicly traded corporation headquartered in Manhattan, New York City. Its primary areas of business are financial information and analytics. It is the parent company of S&P Global Ratings, S&P Global Market Intelligence, S&P Global Mobility, S&P Global Sustainable1, and S&P Global Commodity Insights, CRISIL. It is also the majority owner of the S&P Dow Jones Indices joint venture. "S&P" is a shortening of "Standard and Poor's".
Corporate history
The predecessor companies of S&P Global have histories dating to 1888, when James H. McGraw purchased the American Journal of Railway Appliances. He continued to add further publications, eventually establishing The McGraw Publishing Company in 1899. John A. Hill had also produced several technical and trade publications and in 1902 formed his own business, The Hill Publishing Company. In 1909, both men, having known each other's interests, agreed upon an alliance and combined the book departments of their publishing companies into The McGraw–Hill Book Company. John Hill served as president, with James McGraw as vice-president. In 1917, the remaining parts of each business were merged into The McGraw–Hill Publishing Company.
In 2009, McGraw Hill Cos. sold Business Week to Bloomberg L.P. In 1964, after Hill died, both McGraw–Hill Publishing Company and McGraw–Hill Book Company merged into McGraw–Hill, Inc. McGraw–Hill purchased credit rating agency Standard & Poor's from Paul Talbot Babson in 1966. In 1979, McGraw–Hill acquired Byte magazine from its owner/publisher Virginia Williamson, who then became a vice-president of McGraw–Hill. In 1986, McGraw–Hill bought out competitor The Economy Company, then the United States' largest publisher of educational material. The buyout made McGraw–Hill the largest educational publisher in the United States. In 1994, McGraw–Hill's broadcasting division signed a deal with ABC, due partly to the fact that its stations in San Diego (KGTV) and Indianapolis (WRTV) had already been aligned with the network, and that Denver (KMGH-TV) and Bakersfield (KERO-TV) joined the ABC family. (Bakersfield sister station KERO-TV was also involved in the deal between McGraw–Hill and ABC; however, that station had to wait for its affiliation contract with CBS to expire in March 1996, before it could finally switch to ABC).
On October 3, 2011, McGraw–Hill announced it was selling its entire television station group to the E. W. Scripps Company for $212 million. The sale was completed on December 30, 2011. It had been involved in broadcasting since 1972, when it purchased four television stations from a division of Time Inc. The sale included McGraw–Hill Broadcasting's stations KERO-TV and KZKC-LP Bakersfield; KGTV and KZSD-LP San Diego; KZCS-LP Colorado Springs; flagship station KMGH-TV and KZCO-LD Denver; KZFC-LP Fort Collins; and WRTV Indianapolis. On November 26, 2012, McGraw–Hill announced it was selling its entire education division, known as McGraw–Hill Education to Apollo Global Management for $2.5 billion. On March 22, 2013, McGraw–Hill announced it had completed the sale for $2.4 billion cash. On May 1, 2013, shareholders of McGraw–Hill voted to change the company's name to McGraw Hill Financial. McGraw–Hill divested the subsidiary McGraw–Hill Construction to Symphony Technology Group for US$320 million on September 22, 2014. The sale included Engineering News-Record, Architectural Record, Dodge and Sweet's. McGraw–Hill Construction has been renamed Dodge Data & Analytics.
In February 2016, McGraw–Hill announced that McGraw–Hill Financial would change its name to S&P Global Inc. by the end of April 2016. McGraw Hill Financial officially changed its name following a shareholder vote on April 27, 2016. In April 2016, McGraw–Hill announced that it was selling J.D. Power and Associates to investment firm XIO Group for $1.1 billion. On August 3, 2020, S&P Global Platts launched S&P Global Platts Analytics fundamental oil information on the redesigned S&P Global Platts Developer Platform. The Platts Developer Platform offers customers with quick exposure to product price databases, business statistics and insights at the pace of market changes. In November 2020, S&P Global agreed to acquire IHS Markit analytics company in a $44 billion transaction. In 2023, S&P sold the former IHS engineering operations to KKR & Co, which rebranded IHS as Accuris.
Corporate organization
S&P Global organizes its businesses in six units, based on the market in which they are involved:
S&P Global Ratings
S&P Global Ratings provides independent investment research including ratings on various investment instruments.
S&P Global Market Intelligence
S&P Global Market Intelligence is a provider of multi-asset class and real-time data, research, news and analytics to institutional investors, investment and commercial banks, insurance companies, investment advisors and wealth managers, corporations, and universities. Subsidiaries and brands include Capital IQ, EViews, Journal of Commerce, Panjiva, and Global Insight.
S&P Dow Jones Indices
Launched in July 2012, S&P Dow Jones Indices is the world's largest global resource for index-based concepts, data, and research. It produces the S&P 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average.
S&P Dow Jones Indices calculates over 830,000 indices, publishes benchmarks that provide the basis for 575 ETFs globally with $387 billion in assets invested, and serves as the DNA for $1.5 trillion of the world's indexed assets.
S&P Global Commodity Insights
Headquartered in London, S&P Global Commodity Insights is a provider of information and a source of benchmark price assessments for the commodities, energy, petrochemicals, metals, and agriculture markets. It has offices in more than 15 cities, including major energy centres such as London, Tokyo, Dubai, Singapore, and Houston, and international business centres such as São Paulo, Shanghai, and New York City.
S&P Global Mobility
S&P Global Mobility is the parent company of Carfax, Market Scan, Polk Automotive Solutions, and other brands. In April 2025, S&P announced plans to spin off its global mobility unit into a standalone public company.
Presidents of the company
James H. McGraw (1917–1928)
Johnathan Heflin (1928–1948)
James McGraw Jr. (1948–1950)
Curtis W. McGraw (1950–1953)
Donald C. McGraw (1953–1968)
Shelton Fisher (1968–1974)
Harold McGraw Jr. (1974–1983)
Joseph Dionne (1983–1998)
Harold W. McGraw III (1998–2013)
Douglas L. Peterson (2013–2024)
Martina Cheung (2024–present)
Acquisitions
During the course of its history, McGraw Hill and from 2016 S&P Global has expanded significantly through acquisition, not just within the publishing industry but also into other areas such as financial services (the purchase of Standard & Poor's in 1966) and broadcasting (the 1972 acquisition of Time-Life Broadcasting). The publishing and education assets are a part of McGraw–Hill Education from the company separation in 2013:
Date of acquisitionAsset acquiredIndustry1920Newton Falls Paper Company -1928A.W. Shaw Company Publisher of magazines and textbooks1950sGregg CompanyPublisher of vocational textbooks1953Companies of Warren C. Platts, including PlattsPublisher of petroleum industry information1954Blakiston, from DoubledayPublisher of medical textbooks1961F.W. Dodge Corporation Publisher of construction industry information1965California Test BureauDeveloper of educational testing systems1966Standard & Poor'sFinancial Services1966Shepard's CitationsLegal publisher1968National Radio InstituteCorrespondence School1970The Ryerson PressEducational and trade publishing1972Television Stations of Time Life BroadcastingBroadcasting1979Data Resources Inc.Economic data, models and consulting1986The Economy CompanyEducational publishing1988Random House Schools and CollegesEducational publishing1996Times Mirror Higher EducationEducational publishing1993Macmillan/McGraw–Hill School Publishing CompanyEducational publishing1997Micropal Group LimitedFinancial Services1999Appleton & Lange Publisher of medical information2000Tribune Education, including NTC/Contemporary Publisher of supplementary educational materials2001Mayfield Publishing CompanyPublisher of humanities and social science textbooks2004Capital IQCompany information aggregation2005J.D. Power & Associates Marketing information provider2015SNL FinancialFinancial News2018Kensho Technologies Artificial Intelligence2019451 Research Global IT research and advisory2022IHS MarkitInformation Provider2022The Climate ServiceInformation Provider2023ChartIQ Charting Provider2023TradenetVessel-Tracking Platform2023TruSight Solutions LLC Third-party Risk Assessments2023Market Scan Information Systems, Inc Automative Data Provider2024Visible Alpha Consensus Estimates Data2024World Hydrogen LeadersHydrogen Information Provider
This list only includes acquisitions made by McGraw–Hill, not its subsidiaries. McGraw–Hill typically does not release financial information regarding its acquisitions or divestitures.
Divestitures
After acquiring a portfolio of diverse companies, McGraw Hill later divested itself of many units to form McGraw Hill Financial which is now S&P Global:
Date of divestitureAsset relinquishedIndustry1996 Shepard's legal publisher to Times Mirror Publishing2009Vista Resources to Guidepoint Global Expert Networks2011Television station group to the E. W. Scripps Company Broadcasting2013McGraw–Hill Education to Apollo Global Management Publishing2013Aviation Week to Penton Publishing2014McGraw–Hill Construction to Symphony Technology GroupPublishing2016J.D. Power & Associates to XIO GroupMarketing information provider2016Equity Research Group to CFRA Equity research
This list only includes divestitures made by McGraw–Hill, not its subsidiaries.
McGraw–Hill Building
The company was based at 1221 Avenue of the Americas until July 2015.
The predecessor company McGraw Hill Inc. had been based at 330 West 42nd Street and both have been known as The McGraw–Hill Building, a name originally used for a prior headquarters at 469 Tenth Avenue.
Connection to the family of George W. Bush
The McGraws and the George W. Bush family have close ties dating back several generations. Harold McGraw Jr. (deceased) was a member of the national grant advisory and founding board of the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy.
McGraw–Hill Federal Credit Union
Established in 1935, the McGraw–Hill Federal Credit Union originally served employees of the McGraw–Hill companies in New York City only. The credit union moved from its location inside the McGraw–Hill building to East Windsor, New Jersey, in 2005. Its accounts are insured by the National Credit Union Administration. It provides savings, checking accounts, CDs, money-market accounts, IRAs, credit cards, auto loans, and home mortgages. In February 2019, the credit union announced plans to merge with Pentagon Federal Credit Union, completing to convert customers to those of PenFed on May 1, 2019. The East Windsor branch currently operates as a PenFed branch as of September 2019.
Awards
In 1999, the National Building Museum presented the McGraw–Hill Companies with its annual Honor Award for the corporation's contributions to the built environment.
In 2023, S&P Global was recognized in Newsweek's ranking of America's Greenest Companies 2024 for its commitment to sustainability.
|
Golden parachute
|
[
"Business terms",
"Executive compensation",
"Mergers and acquisitions",
"Termination of employment",
"Takeover defense"
] | 1,534 | 12,623 |
A golden parachute is an agreement between a company and an employee (usually an upper executive) specifying that the employee will receive certain significant benefits if employment is terminated. These may include severance pay, cash bonuses, stock options, or other benefits. Most definitions specify the employment termination is as a result of a merger or takeover, also known as "change-in-control benefits", but more recently the term has been used to describe perceived excessive CEO (and other executive) severance packages unrelated to change in ownership (also known as a golden handshake).
History
The first use of the term "golden parachute" is credited to a 1961 attempt by creditors to oust Howard Hughes from control of Trans World Airlines. The creditors provided Charles C. Tillinghast Jr. an employment contract that included a clause that would pay him money if he lost his job.
The use of golden parachutes expanded greatly in the early 1980s in response to the large increase in the number of takeovers and mergers. American executive pay practices were subject to increasing public scrutiny in the 1980s. During the 1980s hostile takeover wave, the practice of using golden parachutes in an executive's compensation package began to spread rapidly. By 1981, some 15% of the 250 largest U.S. corporations had golden parachutes in place.
In Europe the highest "change-in-control benefits" have been for French executives, as of 2006 according to a study by the Hay Group human resource management firm. French executives receive roughly double their combined salary and bonus amounts in their golden parachute.
News reference volume of the term "golden parachute" spiked in late 2008 during the global economic recession, and 2008 US presidential debates. Despite the poor economy, in the two years before 2012 a study by the professional services firm Alvarez & Marsal found a 32% increase in the value of "change-in-control benefits" provided to US executives. In late 2011, USA Today reported several CEO retirement packages in excess of $100 million, "raising eyebrows even among those accustomed to oversized payouts".
In the 1980s, golden parachutes prompted shareholder suits challenging the parachutes' validity, SEC "termination agreement disclosure rules" in 1986, and provisions in the Deficit Reduction Act of 1984 aimed at limiting the size of future parachutes with a special tax on payouts that topped three times annual pay. In the 1990s in the United States, some government efforts were made to diminish "change-in-control benefits". As of 1996, Section 280G of the Internal Revenue Code denies a corporation a deduction for any excess "parachute payment" made to a departing employee, and Section 4999 imposes on the recipient a nondeductible 20% excise tax, in addition to regular income and Social Security taxes.
The 2010 United States Dodd-Frank Act includes in its provisions a mandate for shareholder votes on any future adoption of a golden parachute by publicly traded firms. In Switzerland, a referendum which "would give shareholders the power to veto executive pay plans, including golden parachutes" was put to a vote on March 3, 2013. Voters approved measures limiting CEO pay and outlawing golden parachutes.
Studies and reports
One study found golden parachutes associated with an increased likelihood of either receiving an acquisition offer or being acquired, a lower premium (in share price) in case of an acquisition, and higher (unconditional) expected acquisition premiums. It found firms adopting golden parachutes have lower market value compared to assets of the company and that their value continues to decline during and after adopting golden parachutes.
"Gratuitous" payments made to CEOs on agreeing to have their companies acquired (i.e. payments made to CEOs by the acquiring company not mandated under the CEO's contract at the time the company is acquired) have been criticized. A "prominent" mergers and acquisitions lawyer told the New York Times that "I have had a number of situations where we've gone to management looking to do a deal and been stopped at the door until a compensation arrangement was signed, sealed, and delivered." Another lawyer told the Times: "Publicly, we have to call these things retention bonuses. Privately, sometimes it's the only way we would have got the deal done. It's a kickback."
A study investigating acquirer-paid sweeteners at 311 large-firm acquisitions completed between 1995 and 1997 found that CEOs of the acquired companies accept lower acquisition premiums when the acquirer promised them a high-ranking managerial post after the acquisition.
Golden parachutes are often viewed as excessive due to the substantial payouts given to senior management after an acquisition. This is further seen as excessive because other stakeholders during these acquisitions can be subject to layoffs. Golden parachutes can preserve a firms value for all stakeholders and are set in place to protect CEO’s during potential takeover situations.
On June 24, 2013, The Wall Street Journal reported that McKesson Corporation chairman and CEO John Hammergren's pension benefits of $159 million had set a record for "the largest pension on file for a current executive of a public company, and almost certainly the largest ever in corporate America." A study in 2012 by GMI Ratings, which tracks executive pay, found that 60% of CEOs at S&P 500 companies have pensions, and their value averages $11.5 million.
On June 29, 2013, The New York Times reported on research findings suggesting that "despite years of public outcry against such deals, multimillion-dollar severance packages are still common", and they continue to become "more complex and opaque".
Arguments for and against
Support
Proponents of golden parachutes argue that the parachutes provide benefits to stockholders:
Make it easier to hire and retain executives, especially in industries more prone to mergers.
Help an executive to remain objective about the company during the takeover process, and possible loss of position after takeover.
Dissuade takeover attempts by increasing the cost of a takeover, often part of a poison pill strategy.
It helps the CEO to implement long-term targets thereby increasing revenue of the organisation (Mapetuse 2018)
Opposition
While critics have pointed out that:
Dismissal is a risk in any occupation, and executives are already well compensated.
Executives already have a fiduciary responsibility to the company, and should not need additional incentives to stay objective.
Golden parachute costs are a very small percentage of a takeover's costs and do not affect the outcome.
Benefits create perverse incentives.
See also
Golden handcuffs
Golden handshake
Poison pill
|
French West India Company
|
[
"1664 establishments in France",
"Companies established in 1664",
"1674 disestablishments in Europe",
"Defunct companies of France",
"History of the Caribbean",
"18th century in France",
"Trading companies of France",
"Chartered companies",
"History of Le Havre",
"French slave trade",
"Sugar industry of France"
] | 1,152 | 9,144 |
The French West India Company () was a trading company of the Kingdom of France founded in May 1664 and eventually closed in late 1674. The brainchild of King Louis XIV's First Minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert, the company was part of an ambitious strategy to compete with the colonial ventures of the Dutch Republic on a global stage, but did not survive the turmoil associated with the Franco-Dutch War in the early 1670s. In Africa, it was succeeded by the Compagnie du Sénégal, and by private traders' operations in America.
On the Conseil du Roi created the West India Company and gave it a monopoly on commercial exchanges between France and "... all lands of our obedience in North and South America and the islands of America" as well as in French trading posts on the coast of Africa from Cape Verde to the Cape of Good Hope. It was primarily intended to reclaim the profits and geopolitical advantages of long-distance trade for France, as well as developing the maritime and shipbuilding industries and the activity of French ports.
At its foundation, the company benefited from a large-scale commitment of state financial resources. The King subscribed for two million French livres to its initial capital, against only 1.3 million from private-sector subscribers. Moreover, the state committed to finance the company's losses during its first four years of activity and granted it subsidies indexed on its trade volume.
The company's operational base on the French mainland was initially in Le Havre. Using the large initial capital of the company, in less than six months 45 vessels were equipped and sailed to the various places in the company's grant.
French Canada
In 1665 the company obtained the Regiment Carignan-Salières to provide security against Iroquois attacks, and contributed to the settlement of the colony with the arrival of 1200 men from the Dauphiné, Liguria, Piedmont and Savoy. In 1666, Jean Talon organized the first census, counting 3215 inhabitants. The population of the colony grew to 6700 inhabitants in 1672, as a result of policies encouraging marriage and fertility. In 1667, several tribes of Iroquois, the Mohawks and Oneidas, agreed to make peace.
Charles Aubert de La Chesnaye, fur trader in Tadoussac between 1663 and 1666, was appointed general clerk of the company from 1666 to 1669, when he left the company for logging in Lac-Saint-Jean, a break and a long stay in La Rochelle, which allows him to establish business relations with several European countries and owning several vessels.
Upon his return to Canada Charles Aubert de La Chesnaye obtained shortly after the dissolution of the company, from 1675 and until 1681, the rights of the firm of the Company of the West and his friend Jean Oudiette, and holding the monopoly of beaver pelts, then Canada's main export. In 1672, Jean Talon granted him, with two other partners, the lordship of Percé to serve as a port for fishing boats. He received the seigniory of Riviere-du-Loup December 23, 1673. Chesnaye also bought half the fiefs of St. Francis and St. John (1677), the lordships of the park east of Rivière-du-Loup (1675), and Hare Island (1677).
French Caribbean
Tobacco plantations were highly developed in other French colonies. The company got a monopoly on the slave trade from Senegal, which since 1658 belonged to the Company of Cape Verde and Senegal. In 1666 the company created two counters in Dahomey (Benin), Savi and Ouidah, which bought other tropical products.
The company faced the interests of the French settlers in the Caribbean, who were engaged in smuggling with the Dutch. Its commercial monopoly led to the resale price of sugar becoming prohibitive compared to sugarcane produced and refined in Barbados and Jamaica.
French sugar planters complained and accused the company of not delivering enough slaves, while neighboring islands controlled by other European powers had imported slaves on a large scale from the early 1670s.
In 1665, the company acquired Saint Croix from the Knights of Malta (a vassal state of the Kingdom of Sicily) who had ruled the island in the name of Louis XIV since 1651. The colony was evacuated to San Domingo in 1695, when France battled the English and Dutch in the War of the Grand Alliance. The island then lay uninhabited and abandoned for another 38 years when it was sold to the Danish West India Company.
In 1669, Colbert and his entourage prepared a secret plan to seize Dutch fortified trading posts on the Gold Coast. Several reconnaissance missions were organized. From November 1670 to December 1671, for example, Colbert sent the ship Le Tourbillon, commanded by Captain Louis de Hally with engineer Louis Ancelin Gémozac. The plan was stillborn, however, and the attention of Colbert and the King soon turns to the Dutch War. Nevertheless, durable diplomatic relations were established with the African states of the Gold Coast.
By 1670, Colbert claimed that the company had succeeded in its developmental aim of stimulating private-sector commercial navigation to French America. During the Franco-Dutch War, the company came under financial hardship. It had to borrow large sums and to alienate its exclusive privilege for the coasts of Guinea. The company's liquidation started in January 1672, and its monopoly was revoked in December 1674, upon which the French state took direct control of its American possessions.
See also
Charles Bazire
Company of One Hundred Associates and Company of Habitants, predecessor ventures in Canada
Company of the American Islands, predecessor venture in the Caribbean
Compagnie de la France équinoxiale, predecessor venture in South America
Dutch West India Company
List of French colonial trading companies
List of chartered companies
|
W. Robert Blair
|
[
"1930 births",
"2014 deaths",
"Politicians from Clarksburg, West Virginia",
"People from Forest Park, Illinois",
"Military personnel from West Virginia",
"West Virginia University alumni",
"West Virginia University College of Law alumni",
"Illinois lawyers",
"Businesspeople from Illinois",
"Speakers of the Illinois House of Representatives",
"Republican Party members of the Illinois House of Representatives",
"20th-century American businesspeople",
"20th-century American lawyers",
"Lawyers from Clarksburg, West Virginia",
"Businesspeople from Clarksburg, West Virginia",
"20th-century members of the Illinois General Assembly"
] | 988 | 10,031 |
William Robert Blair II (October 22, 1930 – January 18, 2014) was an American politician, lawyer, and businessman.
Early life
William Robert Blair II was born in Clarksburg, West Virginia, on October 22, 1930. He was graduated from West Virginia University in 1954, with A.B. and LL.B. degrees. He then served in the United States Air Force Judge Advocate General's Corps for two years at Chanute Air Force Base. He moved to Park Forest, Illinois in 1957. He became active in local Will County politics as a member of the Will County Public Building Commission and a precinct committeeman the Will County Republican Central Committee. During his early legal career, he served as house counsel for Swift & Company and as a partner of Wood & Blair, while also serving as President of Fairfax Realty Company.
Illinois House of Representatives
The 1960 reapportionment process was stalled by partisan gridlock. Subsequently, the Illinois Supreme Court ordered an at large election for all 177 members of the Illinois House in 1964. Voters were given ballots three feet long. Blair was one of fifty-nine Republicans elected to 177 seats. Blair was a and served in the Illinois House of Representatives from 1965 to 1975.
After a 1965 Illinois Supreme Court Case to resolve the redistricting issue, Blair's home was drawn into the 41st district which consisted of Wheatland, DuPage, Plainfield, Lockport, Homer, Troy, Joliet, New Lenox, Frankfort, Manhattan, Green Garden, Monee, Crete, Wilton, Peotone, Will, Washington, townships in Will County. Blair was elected as one of the district's three representatives alongside William G. Barr and John J. Houlihan.
He served as speaker during the 77th and 78th Illinois General Assemblies. He was not reelected in the 1974 general election. After his time in the legislature, he served as a public member of the Illinois Transportation Study Commission.
Post-legislative career
In 1978, he was a candidate for the Republican nomination for Illinois Comptroller. Blair ran against John W. Castle, director of the Department of Local Government Affairs for Governor James R. Thompson. Thompson, who had convinced Castle to run for Comptroller instead of Treasurer, endorsed Castle leading Blair to criticize Castle for an inability to do the job independently. With more than 52% of the vote, Castle defeated Blair in the Republican primary. In 1982, he ran for the Republican nomination for Illinois Treasurer. He lost the primary to Peoria businessman John Dailey.
Blair died January 18, 2014.
|
Bank of Communications (Hong Kong)
|
[
"Banks of Hong Kong",
"Insurance companies of Hong Kong",
"Banks established in 1934",
"1934 establishments in Hong Kong",
"Bank of Communications"
] | 330 | 2,560 |
The Bank of Communications (Hong Kong) Limited (Traditional Chinese: 交通銀行(香港)有限公司) is a licensed bank in Hong Kong. It was opened in 1934 and incorporated in 2018.
The Bank's Hong Kong Branch was consolidated as part of "Joint Office of Joint Public-Private Banks" in 1952, and later part of the Bank of China Group. On 14 April 1998, the Hong Kong Branch seceded from the Bank of China Group, and its Head Office resumed its full management. In December 1998, the Bank purchased the new Bank of Communications Tower and has since commenced centralized operations in Hong Kong. Bank of Communications Trustee Limited was also approved by the Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes Authority as one of the 21 authorized MPF trustees. In November 1999, it was selected by the financial consultants of the HKSAR government, amongst HSBC, Bank of China (Hong Kong), Standard Chartered, Hang Seng Bank, as one of the 5 receiving banks of the Tracker Fund of Hong Kong. On 23 June 2005, Bank of Communications was listed in Hong Kong, the first China based commercial bank of its kind to get listed outside mainland China. It now has securities, insurance and trustee businesses.
Bank of Communications founded Bank of Communications (Hong Kong) in 2017. The personal banking and private banking services of the Bank's Hong Kong Branch transferred to the Bank of Communications (Hong Kong).
Subsidiaries
China Communications Insurance Co., Ltd.
BCOM Securities Company Limited
See also
List of banks in Hong Kong
|
Roberto Hernández Ramírez
|
[
"1942 births",
"Living people",
"20th-century Mexican businesspeople",
"Mexican billionaires",
"Mexican company founders",
"People from Tuxpan, Veracruz",
"Universidad Iberoamericana alumni",
"21st-century Mexican businesspeople"
] | 663 | 5,079 |
Roberto Hernández Ramírez (born 24 march 1942 in Tuxpan, Veracruz) is a Mexican businessman. He is a former CEO of Banco Nacional de México (Banamex), Mexico's second largest bank, just after BBVA Bancomer, from Spain. He was a member of the board of Citigroup. Chairman of the Board, Banco Nacional de Mexico, S.A. - 1991 to present and is currently the Honorary Chairman. He cofounded with Alfredo Harp, Acciones y Valores de México, S.A. DE C.V. The brokerage house that later acquired Banamex. He was: Chairman of the Board, Bolsa Mexicana de Valores, S.A. de C.V. (Mexican Stock Exchange) - 1974 to 1979, Director - 1972 to 2003; Member of the International Advisory Committee of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Chairman, Asociacion Mexicana de Bancos (Mexican Bankers Association) - 1993 to 1994; Member, Bolsa Mexicana de Valores, S.A. de C.V. - 1967 to 1986; Director of Citigroup from 2001 to 2009; Other Directorships , Grupo Televisa, S.A., (until 2021).
Biography
Hernández Ramirez born 24 march 1942 in Tuxpan, Veracruz received a bachelor's degree in business administration from the Ibero-American University (1964), co-founded with Alfredo Harp Helú Acciones y Valores de México (Accival) Bolsa Mexicana de Valores in 1971, later in 1974 he became the youngest president ever of the Mexican stock exchange. IN 1989 he became the president of FICSAC, an organization created to raise funds to build a new Universidad Iberoamericana. Later in '91 Accival acquired Banamex, and formed the Grupo Financiero Banamex-Accival and was part of the Board of Directors. A year later Roberto founded Fomento Social Banamex of which he became co-president. In 1993 he became president of FUNED ( fundacion Mexicana para la educacion, la tecnologia y la ciencia). Four years later in 1997 Hernandez became the CEO of Banamex. The following year he headed the MUNAL 2000 to create a national art museum, as well as assuming the presidency of the Pro-Universidad Veracruzana patronage. In 2000 he formed the Fomento Ecologico Banamex of which he became co-president. In 2001 a major transaction takes place between the US and Mexico when Banamex-Accival is sold to Citigroup, after this he became a member of the Board of Directors. In '02 he became a member of the International Advisory Committee of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. During that year he also founded two foundations; Pedro y Elena Hernandez, A.C. and Fundacion Haciendas del Mundo Maya, A.C. The following year he became the Vice Chair of The Nature Conservancy (TNC). In 2005 he was awarded the Sorolla Medal by the Hispanic Society in New York for his contribution and promotion of the arts in Mexico. A year later he assumed the presidency of the patronage of the Hospital Infantil de Mexico "Federico Gomez".
Member Of
Chairman: Banco Nacional de Mexico. Chairman of the Board of Trustees: Nacional Museum of Arts. Honorary Chairman: Museum of the Arts of Veracruz. Board Member: Citigroup Inc., Grupo Financiero Banamex, Grupo Televisa, Ingenieros Civiles Asociados (ICA), Grupo Modelo, Müenchener de México, World Monuments Fund, Grupo Maseca, Universidad de las Americas. Member: Mexican Businessmen Council, Council of the Universidad de Veracruz, Council for Mexico City's Historic Downtown (Patronato del Centro Histórico, A.C.) International Advisory Committee of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Former Chairman: Mexican Stock Exchange, Mexican Banking Association, Universidad Iberoamericana. Former Member: Government Board of the Central Bank and Bancomext the Mexican Eximbank, Mexican Investment Board, Entrepreneurial Coordination Council (C.C.E.), Co-chair Latin America Conservation Council (LACC).
|
Abe Garver
|
[
"Year of birth missing (living people)",
"Living people",
"American investment bankers",
"American magazine people",
"American financial analysts",
"Marshall School of Business alumni",
"University of Alabama alumni"
] | 694 | 6,717 |
Abe Garver is an American M&A investment banker, magazine contributor, television commentator, and conference speaker.
Education
Abe Garver holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Southern California Marshall School of Business, Master’s Degree in Finance from the Manderson Graduate School and is registered with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) as a General Securities Representative (Series 7 and 63) and a Limited Representative – Investment Banking (Series 79).
Career
Garver is the Managing Director of Focus Investment Banking. Previous to his position with Focus, he worked for BG Strategic Advisors, Merrill Lynch’s M&A Technology Group and Ernst & Young’s Business Valuation Group. In 2012 Garver was a featured speaker at the eighth Annual Internet Retailer Conference. His speaking topic was, Selling your Company: Preparing for the Pre- and Post-sale World.
Media Contributor
Abe Garver is also a business and financial contributor to Yahoo Finance, Seeking Alpha, MarketWatch, and Forbes.com. In Forbes Garver has written about e-commerce, m-commerce, M&A trends, valuation, Internet taxation, entrepreneurship, IPOs, and other topics. In Seeking Alpha, Garver has written about participant motivations in M&A transactions, repercussions of changes to long-term capital gains rates, and the importance of gross margin expansion to valuation. As an on-air contributor to Bloomberg Television, Garver has given advice on e-commerce industries, in addition to discussing his work helping to raise capital for or sell e-commerce companies. He has also discussed the concept of Showrooming and its effect on the health of both brick and mortar as well as online retailers. As an on-air contributor to Fox Business Network he has discussed strategies relating to selling technology companies as well as trends in electronic commerce, including TV-commerce, same day delivery by online stores, shoppable windows, and user specialization.
Personal life
In addition to his professional pursuits, he is a member of The University Club of New York, Governor Emeritus of the University of Southern California Alumni Association and President Emeritus of the New York City Chapter.
|
VRV (streaming service)
|
[
"2018 mergers and acquisitions",
"2021 mergers and acquisitions",
"Advertising video on demand",
"American companies disestablished in 2023",
"American companies established in 2016",
"Android (operating system) software",
"Companies based in San Francisco",
"Crunchyroll",
"Defunct subscription services",
"Defunct video on demand services",
"Former Sony subsidiaries",
"Internet properties disestablished in 2023",
"Internet properties established in 2016",
"Internet television streaming services",
"IOS software",
"Mass media companies disestablished in 2023",
"Mass media companies established in 2016",
"PlayStation 4 software",
"Streaming television in the United States",
"Subscription video on demand services",
"Video game culture",
"Xbox One software",
"Xbox Series X and Series S software"
] | 2,030 | 23,182 |
VRV (officially pronounced "verve", though it is also referred to by its letters) was an American over-the-top streaming service launched in November 2016 by AT&T and the Chernin Group. The service bundled together anime, speculative fiction, educational, and gaming-related channels aimed at fans of such content.
Some of VRV's content could be streamed for free, while other content required a subscription. The subscriptions to its channels were available for purchase individually, or in a premium bundle. VRV was available only in the United States, despite some of its partnered content being available for viewing worldwide outside the platform.
In April 2023, it was announced VRV would merge with Crunchyroll, which was completed later that month.
History
Ellation, owners of Crunchyroll, formally announced the launch of VRV on June 14, 2016. Its initial partners included Rooster Teeth, Seeso, Nerdist, Geek & Sundry, and Frederator's Cartoon Hangover. On September 29, 2016, Funimation, Adam Savage's Tested, RiffTrax, CollegeHumor, Machinima, Ginx TV, Shudder, and Mondo Media were announced as new partners. VRV would officially launch on November 14, 2016.
On August 9, 2017, the VRV Select channel was launched, featuring content from other sources. It was also announced that Machinima, Ginx, and Rifftrax were being dropped from the service. On the same day as VRV Select's announcement, Seeso announced via its Facebook page that it would be shutting down by the end of 2017. Though RiffTrax, Machinima and Seeso's channels were dropped, some of their content, including Seeso's The Cyanide & Happiness Show, HarmonQuest, Hidden America with Jonah Ray, and My Brother, My Brother and Me would migrate to VRV Select.
On November 21, 2017, CuriosityStream and Mubi joined VRV.
On December 12, 2017, DramaFever joined VRV.
On May 3, 2018, it was announced that Tested was being dropped, with its content moving to VRV Select.
On August 28, 2018, VRV launched NickSplat, named after the TeenNick programming block, featuring classic Nickelodeon series from the 1990s and early 2000s.
On October 12, 2018, Shout! Factory's content, such as Mystery Science Theater 3000 and ReBoot, were made available to watch on VRV Select.
On October 18, 2018, Funimation announced that they would be leaving VRV, as their partnership with Crunchyroll ended, and all of their titles would disappear on November 9, 2018. On that same day, VRV announced that Hidive would be joining the service to replace Funimation.
On November 1, 2018, Hidive was launched on VRV and it was announced that Boomerang would be joining the service on November 13, 2018.
On November 7, 2018, season 1 of TBS's Final Space was made available to watch on VRV Select.
On the same day, Otter Media announced Mike Tyson Mysteries and Jabberjaw were also going to be added to VRV in 2018.
On August 9, 2021, Crunchyroll was acquired by Sony-owned Funimation, making Sony the new owner of VRV.
On September 8, 2021, Hidive announced that it would be leaving VRV on September 30, 2021. On December 13, 2021, Rooster Teeth left VRV. Cartoon Hangover was also removed at the same time.
On March 1, 2022, it was announced that VRV would be merged into Crunchyroll itself, alongside Funimation and Wakanim. VRV ceased operations on April 29, 2023.
Channels
Boomerang–Cartoons from Warner Bros. (left December 1, 2020)
Cartoon Hangover—Web-original cartoons from Frederator Studios (left December 13, 2021)
Crunchyroll—Anime and simulcasts (left April 29, 2023)
CuriosityStream—Non-fiction documentaries relating to science, technology, nature, and world history (left November 19, 2019)
DramaFever—Korean dramas (shut down on October 16, 2018, subsequently left VRV days after)
Funimation—Japanese anime dubbed into English (left November 9, 2018)
Geek & Sundry—Geek culture and lifestyle programming (left April 1, 2019)
Ginx TV—Esports-related content
Hidive—Dubbed and subtitled anime (left September 30, 2021)
Machinima—gaming-related content (some content was still available via VRV Select)
Mondo Media—Adult animation (left May 8, 2023)
Mubi—Curates classic and arthouse films (left October 2018)
Nerdist—Fandom-related news, podcasts, and comedy programming (left April 1, 2019)
NickRewind—Television series from Nickelodeon that aired in the 1990s and early 2000s (left August 29, 2020)
RiffTrax—MST3K-style movie commentaries (some content was still available via VRV Select)
Rooster Teeth—Web animation and gaming-related content (left December 13, 2021)
Seeso—original and licensed comedy programming (shut down on November 8, 2017, some original programming were migrated to VRV Select)
Shudder—Horror films (left August 1, 2019)
Tested (left May 3, 2018, some content was still available via VRV Select)
VRV Select—A curated selection of movies and shows for premium subscribers (left April 29, 2023)
Original programming
Series
Title Genre Premiere Seasons/episodes Status Shadowstone Park Animation December 15, 2017 1 season, 3 episodes Ended Slug Riot Animation January 5, 2018 1 season, 5 episodes Ended (not) Hero Animated comedy/Adventure February 9, 2018 1 season, 3 episodes Ended Paradigms: How We Know What We Know Science documentaryMarch 2, 2018 1 season, 1 episodes Ended Chris P. Duck Animated comedy/Slice of life 1 season, 6 episodes Ended Gary and His Demons Adult animation/Comedy April 15, 2018 1 season, 16 episodes Moved to Prime Video (internationally) and Freevee (United States) Daddy and the Big Boy Adult animation/ComedyOctober 16, 2018 1 season, 13 episodes Ended Allen's Pole Adult animation/adventure 1 season, 4 episodes Ended Brogan: Master of Castles Adult animation/Comedy March 26, 2019 1 season, 6 episodes Ended Live From WZRD Talk show March 31, 2019 1 season, 8 episodes Ended Bigfoot Adult animation/Comedy September 29, 2019 1 season, 8 episodes EndedEpithet Erased Animated comedy/adventure November 8, 2019 1 season, 7 episodes Ended
Continuations
Title Genre Previous network Premiere Seasons/episodes Status HarmonQuest (seasons 2–3) Adult animation/Live improvisation Seeso September 15, 2017 2 seasons, 20 episodes Ended Deep Space 69 (season 4) Adult animation/Comedy YouTube December 22, 2017 1 season, 8 episodes Ended Bravest Warriors (seasons 3–4) Animated comedy/Science fiction YouTube December 25, 2017 2 seasons, 58 episodes Ended Turbo Fantasy (season 2) Adult animation/Comedy YouTube August 27, 2018 1 season, 3 episodes Ended The Cyanide & Happiness Show (season 4) Adult animation/Comedy Seeso September 18, 2019 1 season, 10 episodes Ended
See also
Anime on Demand
Crunchyroll
Wakanim
List of streaming media services
|
Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr.
|
[
"1998 non-fiction books",
"English-language non-fiction books",
"Gilded Age",
"Rockefeller family",
"Standard Oil",
"Books about economic history",
"Books by Ron Chernow",
"Random House books"
] | 2,369 | 19,076 |
Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. is a 1998 non-fiction book by American author Ron Chernow. The book covers the life of the American business magnate John D. Rockefeller from his early days as the son of an itinerant snake-oil salesman, into his founding of Standard Oil and its massive success and eventual dissolution, and through the large-scale philanthropy that consumed much of his later life. At the time of its writing, the book was unique in its attempt at a balanced view of Rockefeller's career, bucking the trend of his biographers portraying him and his business practices as either good or evil. The book's release came while the federal government was considering pursuing an antitrust lawsuit against the Microsoft Corporation, and parallels were drawn by critics between that ongoing investigation and the one into Standard Oil's business practices.
The book was generally well received by critics, who mostly praised Chernow's meticulous research and neutral approach to describing the life of a polarizing figure, though some reviewers considered the account less neutral than others. It was called "a triumph of the art of biography" by The New York Times Book Review and became a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award for Biography.
Background
John D. Rockefeller, former head of Standard Oil, passed away in 1937 at the age of 97. Shortly thereafter, in 1940, Allan Nevins released a two-volume study on the man's life and career that would be revised and published in 1953 as the single-volume Study in Power: John D. Rockefeller, Industrialist and Philanthropist. Nevins, who sought to burnish Rockefeller's reputation after its battering by Progressive and New Deal-era critics, painted the magnate's business ethics in a favorable light. Despite the Rockefeller family's release in the 1970s of his personal papers, by the beginning of the 1990s no significant biography of John Sr. had been attempted since Nevins.
After Chernow published his second book, The Warburgs, his publisher Random House suggested he pursue an in-depth profile of Rockefeller. Chernow was initially resistant, saying that Rockefeller's notorious secrecy around his private life would make it difficult for a biographer to learn about the man's inner thoughts and feelings. Chernow said this inability to "hear the music of his mind" made the prospect of multiple years of research unpalatable.
On a suggestion by his editor at Random House, Chernow visited the Rockefeller Archive Center in New York, home of the papers and records of Rockefeller University and the Rockefeller family. He discovered a 1,700-page transcript of private interviews conducted over three years late in the tycoon's life. The interviews, which showed an articulate, funny, and analytic side of Rockefeller, had yet to be used in a biography of the man, and Chernow decided to pursue the project. The book ultimately took five years to complete and according to Chernow took "the psychology and stamina of a marathon runner".
Titan begins during Rockefeller's childhood and describes his formative years living with two very different parents: a devout Baptist mother and a traveling salesman father. William Avery Rockefeller was a grifter and peddler of snake oil health cures. A neighbor of the family once remarked, "They had a big jug full of medicine, and they treated all diseases from the same jug." William practiced bigamy as well. He abandoned the family for long stretches of time, much of it spent with an entirely separate family in Philadelphia. He also moved a mistress into the Rockefeller household and fathered children with both her and John's mother. Chernow traces John's longstanding Christian faith as well as his frugal nature to the influence, both positive and negative, of his parents.
Chernow continues tracking Rockefeller through the formation of what became Standard Oil, and describes how a Cleveland merchant with no great education or contacts came to control nearly all of the nation's oil refining industry. Chernow argues that Rockefeller recognized the "anarchy of production" that plagued unfettered capitalism, and that, "At times, when he railed against cutthroat competition and the vagaries of the business cycle, Rockefeller sounded more like Karl Marx than our classical image of the capitalist." His fellow oil refiners waged vicious price wars and refused to taper production even when new oil discoveries glutted the market with product. Chernow reveals that Rockefeller profited by buying out other refiners and thus curtailing competition, as well as by convincing railroads to give his company secret discounts on the shipment of his product.
These business practices incurred scrutiny, Chernow writes. Muckrakers in the press—notably, Ida Tarbell—published scathing, multi-part exposés about the oil trust's underhanded tactics. These pieces vilified Rockefeller, who by that time had largely, though not publicly, retired from his company's operations. He opted not to respond to Tarbell's widely popular series, which ultimately harmed his reputation even further. Tarbell's series and subsequent book raised public awareness of the oil trust; less than a decade later, it was broken up by the U.S. government.
After he retired, Rockefeller's public image shifted from that of the money-hungry tycoon to one of a charming old man who became equally obsessed with both golf and philanthropy. He became fixated on charity, and his innovation and ingenuity in distributing his rapidly accumulating wealth rivaled his ability to earn it. Chernow argues that while this charity was not entirely altruistic—a public relations firm was hired; gifts were made primarily to uncontroversial recipients—the donations were still made with Rockefeller's unwavering belief that he had received the money from God and God expected him to give it back. By the early 1920s, Rockefeller who even in his youth had earmarked a portion of his earnings for charity had donated $475 million (equivalent to $ in ) to various causes, including towards the founding of the University of Chicago and the establishment of the Rockefeller Foundation. The latter institution became the standard by which other philanthropic enterprises sought to conduct their efforts, similar to how Standard Oil had shaped future practice in the business world.
Maury Klein of The Wall Street Journal was impressed with Chernow's well-rounded approach to a complex figure, saying, "Rockefeller's career is a minefield of controversies and complexities through which Mr. Chernow makes his way with admirable balance and judgment." In the Columbia Journalism Review, Lance Morrow approached the text with a critical eye towards Rockefeller's relationship with the press. He noted that Tarbell, whose father had been driven out of business by Standard Oil's tactics, was hardly a neutral party in her journalism, and that her hatred of Rockefeller both honed and skewed her reporting on the man and his company.
The economist Richard Parker wrote in the Los Angeles Times of Chernow's talent for providing "an immense, almost baroque detailing of a complex human life", but believed Chernow did not devote enough scrutiny to why Rockefeller was considered such a villain in his time, and that Chernow wrote "passingly" about the many corrupt and illegal acts practiced by Standard Oil while Rockefeller was at the helm. In The New Republic, critic Jackson Lears praised Chernow's ability to blend the book's biographical aspects with an overarching history of the eras spanned by the successive generations of Rockefellers. However, he believed that in striving for a neutral approach to his subject he ended up overly lenient, with a tendency even to "slide into sycophancy". Steve Weinberg of the Chicago Tribune called the book a "flawed gem", citing Chernow's "unforgettable portraits" of various members of Rockefeller's family and inner circle, while conceding that the author occasionally "cannot refrain from telling readers what to think."
The writing and publication of Titan, a book largely about the creation of one of the largest and most powerful monopolies in America's history, coincided with the Justice Department's investigation of Microsoft and its competition-swallowing business practices. A month before Titan release, Chernow wrote a column in The New York Times comparing and contrasting the two business giants and their respective situations. He also stated in an interview that he wished for the book to result in a nationwide conversation about both the high rate of corporate consolidation in America and the obligations of the wealthy to dispense their fortunes charitably. Brent Staples of Slate acknowledged the many reviews of the book that drew connections between Rockefeller and Microsoft's Bill Gates; however, he felt that aside from a shared failing to accurately judge the public's attitude, the men's relative situations were not overly similar.
Reception
Titan was met with mostly positive reviews. Jack Beatty of The New York Times called it "unflaggingly interesting" and praised Chernow's depiction of Rockefeller's familial connections. Time Magazine Lance Morrow said the book was "one of the great American biographies". A syndicated review from the Knight Ridder News Service named it "one of the outstanding books of the year".
In discussing the book's supplementary features, the Business History Review Kenneth Warren was impressed with the wealth of accompanying photographs and Chernow's considerable amount of notes, but would have liked a map depicting the operations of Standard Oil's distribution. Writing for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, David Walton especially praised the title's abridged audiobook edition and called the use of George Plimpton as narrator "an inspired choice".
Titan was listed on [[The New York Times Best Seller list|The New York Times Best Seller list]] for 16 weeks, and its paperback version was a Publishers Weekly'' best seller in 1999 with over 75,000 copies sold. It was a finalist for the 1998 National Book Critics Circle Award for Biography.
|
Psagot Investment House
|
[
"Financial services companies established in 2003",
"Financial services companies of Israel",
"Investment companies of Israel",
"Insurance companies of Israel",
"Companies based in Tel Aviv"
] | 1,092 | 10,936 |
Psagot Investment House () is an Israeli investment firm. Controlled by Rani Zim since 2021, the firm manages assets and capital totalling $24 billion. Psagot is located on Ahad Ha'am Street in Tel Aviv, in close proximity to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.
History
Psagot Investment House was established in 2003 through the merger of Psagot Mutual Funds and Psagot Ofek, a portfolio management company founded by Gabriella Ravid in 1990. In 2005, subsequent to the Bachar Reform, Bank Leumi finalized the sale of Psagot to York Capital Management, a New York-based investment firm. York Capital sold its stake in the company (76%) to Apax Partners in 2010. At $576 million, the Apax takeover of Psagot was Israel's largest private equity deal in 2010.
Under the direction of Roy Vermus as CEO beginning in 2006, Psagot grew to become Israel's largest investment firm through a series of strategic fund acquisitions. It acquired a provident fund managing NIS20 billion in assets from Prisma Investment House Ltd. in 2009 and made its first major pension fund acquisition in 2010 after outbidding a competitor for control of the Histadrut Leumit fund, which managed NIS6 billion in assets. In addition, Vermus shut down Psagot's underwriting unit. Forbes Israel ranked Vermus the fourth most influential young Israeli in 2008.
Altshuler Shaham sold the company to Value Capital controlled by Rani Zim in 2021 for 405m shekels.
Yaniv Bender – Chief Business Officer
Daniel Levental – CEO Psagot Properties
Eyal Goren – CEO Psagot Mutual Funds
Yohan Kadoche – CEO Psagot Securities
ISA investigations
In 2003, when Psagot was still owned by Bank Leumi, the Israel Securities Authority launched an investigation into the firm's dealings for suspected violations of the Regulation of Investment Advice and Investment Portfolio Management Law (1995). The investigation went on for a year and culminated in a raid of Psagot's offices and the taking in of the firm's executives for questioning in late 2004. The impetus for the investigation was a Psagot fund having raised NIS1.7 billion in a single day. Psagot founder and general manager Gabriella Ravid resigned along with her deputy in late 2006. In 2008 Bank Leumi agreed to pay a fine of NIS25 million as part of a plea bargain agreement.
In 2010 police arrested three senior Psagot employees on charges that they were involved in manipulating the prices of government and corporate bonds in order to redound greater profits to the firm and inflate their bonuses in the years 2007–2009. An investigation conducted by the ISA concluded with Psagot agreeing to pay a fine of NIS150 million as part of a plea bargain. Psagot CEO at the time, Roy Vermus, was subsequently compelled to resign from the firm after the Supreme Court rejected an appeal he filed against his forced ouster from the company.
See also
Economy of Israel
Venture capital in Israel
|
Narendra Chandra Dutta
|
[
"1878 births",
"1962 deaths",
"Indian bankers",
"Businesspeople from Kolkata",
"Surendranath College alumni",
"University of Calcutta alumni",
"Bengali Hindus",
"Bankers from British India"
] | 576 | 4,384 |
Narendra Chandra Dutta (; 25 November 1878 – 15 April 1962) was an Indian banker, founder of Comilla Banking Corporation and later the prime mover behind the incorporation of the United Bank of India.
Early life
Dutta was born to Mahesh Chandra Dutta in Kalikachchha, in the district of Tipperah. His father died when he was only nine months old. His mother struggled to bring him up and then had a live a life of penury. He graduated in law from the Ripon College in Calcutta in 1905. He began his practice in the civil court at Comilla and soon build up a lucrative practice.
In 1914, Dutta founded the Comilla Banking Corporation at the suggestion of community leader Akhil Chandra Dutta with support from Mahesh Chandra Bhattacharya (1848–1944). He started the bank with a declared capital of 4,000 rupees and raised another 2,500 rupees. In order to raise the capital he sold his own house for 1,500 rupees. Initially he drew a monthly remuneration of eight rupees from the bank.
Dutta did an economic survey of eastern India, and began investments in the tea industry. Through the Comilla Banking Corporation he began to issue loans to prospective investors in the tea industry for buying tea plantations and related properties.
After completing his studies, Dutta's eldest son Bata Krishna Dutta returned to Comilla and joined the Comilla Banking Corporation as a trainee. After a few weeks Dutta suggested that Bata Krishna himself could run a bank himself and young Bata Krishna took up the challenge. In 1930, Bata Krishna Dutta took charge of the defunct Comilla Rice and Oil Mills Limited and established the New Standard Bank of India with an initial paid-up capital of thirty thousand rupees.
In 1946, at the suggestion of Chintaman Dwarakanath Deshmukh, the then Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, the New Standard Bank of India merged with the Comilla Banking Corporation, transferring all its assets to the latter. In 1950, Narendra Chandra Dutta along with Jyotish Chandra Das completed the merger of Comilla Banking Corporation and Bengal Central Bank and founded the United Bank of India.
See also
United Bank of India
|
Hithink RoyalFlush Information Network
|
[
"Companies based in Hangzhou",
"Companies listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange",
"Financial data vendors",
"Financial services companies established in 2001",
"Software companies of China"
] | 798 | 7,444 |
Hithink RoyalFlush Information Network (Hithink; ) is a Chinese financial data and software company headquartered in Hangzhou.
The company has developed the Tonghuashun mobile app used for stock trading and the iFinD Financial Data Terminal.
In 1994, Zhejiang University graduate Yi Zheng co-founded his own company, Hangzhou Hexin. Yi acquired the initial capital by writing security analysis software for a securities brokerage he was still an electrical engineering student. In 2001 he founded Shanghai Hexin which was the predecessor to Hithink.
In 2007 Shanghai Hexin acquired Hangzhou Hexin and in July it moved to Hangzhou were it was rebranded to Hithink.
In 2009, Hithink held its initial public offering becoming a listed company on the ChiNext section of the Shenzhen Stock Exchange.
In 2012, Wind Information sued Hithink stating the iFinD Data Terminal infringed on its intellectual property rights. In 2016, the Shanghai No. 1 Intermediate Court ruled in favour of Wind Information stating Hithink had to cease operating the iFinD terminal and pay 3.35 million yuan to Wind in compensation. In 2017, the Shanghai High People's Court upheld the ruling but did not say whether Hithink could continue operating the iFinD Data Terminal (which according to Hithink has been modified significantly since the lawsuit started).
In 2015, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) fined Hithink for developing systems that enabled investors to trade stocks without giving their real identities which allowed it to profit by "knowingly" providing the software to unqualified clients. In 2017, the CSRC fined Hithink 200,000 yuan for sharing a piece of outdated news that stated Fosun International’s founder Guo Guangchang was missing which caused panic among its shareholders.
In October 2021, Hithink's Tinghuashun app went down for one hour. The temporary disruption caused investors losses and leading them to seek compensation. The regulators issued a warning to Hithink. In June 2022, the Tinghuashun app went down for a short period due to Huawei Cloud crashing.
In November 2024, the CSRC ordered Hithink to suspend its investment advisory service unit from adding new clients for three months as its live streaming business failed to comply with the securities rules. It also criticized its compliance control when collaborating with securities companies to provide investment consulting services.
In December 2024, Bloomberg News reported that Hithink significantly benefited from China's stimulus blitz program in September that year. Hithink shares had more than doubled in price during 2024. One of the reasons speculated was the stimulus resulted in higher stock trading volume that could boost demand for better financial information from retail investors.
See also
Financial data vendor
Wind Information
|
Frank H. Buhl
|
[
"1848 births",
"1918 deaths",
"Businesspeople from Detroit",
"People from Sharon, Pennsylvania",
"Yale University alumni",
"American industrialists",
"American steel industry businesspeople",
"19th-century American businesspeople",
"20th-century American businesspeople",
"20th-century American philanthropists"
] | 934 | 8,355 |
Frank Henry Buhl (August 3, 1848 – June 7, 1918) was an American businessman and philanthropist from Sharon, Pennsylvania. He is the namesake of Buhl, Minnesota, and Buhl, Idaho.
Early life
Frank Henry Buhl was born on August 3, 1848, in Detroit, Michigan, to Christian H. Buhl. His father was the first Republican mayor of Detroit and later the founder of Sharon Iron Works in Sharon, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Yale University.
Career
Buhl worked as a clerk in the offices of Sharon Iron Works. He then became a manager and later bought a controlling interest. In 1896, Buhl Steel Company was organized in Sharon and he was elected the first president. The following year, the open hearth department opened and then the blooming mill followed. In March 1898, it was absorbed by National Steel Corporation and later was a division of Carnegie Steel Company. In 1899, alongside John Stevenson Jr., Buhl built the Sharon Steel Works and in February 1900, the Sharon Steel Company began operation in South Sharon (now Farrell). In 1902, the company was sold to National Steel and Buhl retired. The South Sharon operation would later become the Farrell division of Carnegie Steel. Along with Dan Eagan, Buhl is credited with being one of the first to manufacture steel casting. He did this at the American Steel Castings Company (later the American Steel Foundries) in Sharon.
After retiring, Buhl and Peter L. Kimberly formed the Buhl-Kimberly Corporation and served as its president. The company promoted an irrigation project in Twin Falls, Idaho. The effort helped develop of land. The corporation also engaged in gold, silver and copper mining and building streetcar lines in Manila. He was also president of the Twin Falls (Ida) Land and Water Company.
Philanthropy
After gaining substantial fortune after the sale of his businesses at the turn of the century, Buhl invested in the social fabric of the Shenango Valley. Due to his philanthropy, several sites in the twin communities of Sharon and South Sharon bore his name. Prior to 1916, he donated at least to the city of Sharon. In 1916, he donated his farm for a park and playground that was named Buhl Park. He built the Buhl Club for about and assisted in the erection of an addition to the Buhl Hospital. He was considered Sharon's "first citizen" and the city honored him with an annual "Buhl Day" in the fall months. He donated to churches and society despite not being affiliated with any church. He donated a three-story building to the Sunshine Society and built the Buhl Armory for the Independent Buhl Rifles.
By his will he gave to assist the injured in northern France and Belgium and to accident victims in Sharon.
Personal life
Buhl married Julia Anna Forker on February 8, 1888. They had no children. He lived at the Buhl Mansion on East State Street in Sharon. He visited California in the winters.
In 1909, Buhl's nephew, William Whitla was kidnapped. He reportedly offered a $10,000 reward for the boy's safe return and $20,000 each for his abductors.
Buhl died on June 7, 1918, at his home in Sharon. He was buried in a mausoleum in Oakwood Cemetery.
Legacy
The mining town of Buhl, Minnesota, and the town of Buhl, Idaho, were named after him.
|
Cheng Siwei
|
[
"1935 births",
"2015 deaths",
"20th-century Chinese economists",
"People's Republic of China politicians from Hunan",
"Vice chairpersons of the National People's Congress",
"Members of the China National Democratic Construction Association",
"UCLA Anderson School of Management alumni",
"South China University of Technology alumni",
"East China University of Science and Technology alumni",
"Politicians from Xiangtan",
"Educators from Hunan",
"Economists from Hunan",
"Chinese chemical engineers",
"Chemists from Hunan",
"Engineers from Hunan",
"Members of the 7th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference",
"Members of the Standing Committee of the 8th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference"
] | 1,108 | 10,169 |
Cheng Siwei (June 1935 – 12 July 2015) was a Chinese economist, chemical engineer and politician. He was the Chairman of China Soft Science Research Association; President of the Chinese Society for Management Modernization; Director of the Research Center on Fictitious Economy and Data Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Dean of the School of Management of the Graduate University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Honorary President of East China University of Science and Technology.
He was also an adjunct professor and doctoral supervisor of institutions including the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Guanghua School of Management of Peking University, and Nankai University.
Early life and education
Cheng Siwei was born June 1935, in Xiangxiang, Hunan Province, China. He attended Heung To Middle School in Hong Kong from 1948–1951; he then moved to Mainland China. During 1951–1952 he attended the Workers' College of Guangzhou South University, China. He then attended the South China Institute of Technology and East China Institute of Chemical Technology from 1952–1956, majoring in inorganic chemical technology, and in 1958–1973 he worked in various units of both the Ministry of Chemical Industry and the Ministry of Petroleum and Chemical Industries.
He was the Chief Engineer of the Science & Technology Bureau of the Ministry of Chemical Industry (China) in 1973–1981. In 1981 he attended the University of California, Los Angeles, and graduated in 1984 with a Master of Business Administration (MBA). He then returned to his former position as Chief Engineer of the Science & Technology Bureau of the Ministry of Chemical Industry until 1988, when he was promoted to the Vice-President and Chief Engineer of the Scientific and Technical Research Institute of the Ministry of Chemical Industry. He became the Deputy Chief Engineer of the Ministry of Chemical Industry in 1993 and Vice-Minister of Chemical Industry in 1994–1997. During the same period, he held the position of the Chairman of the China National Democratic Construction Association (CNDCA) Central Committee, from 1996-1997. He continued to hold dual positions for nearly ten years, as the Chairman of the 7th and 8th Central Committees of the CNDCA from 1997–2007, and as the Vice-Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Ninth and Tenth National People’s Congresses in 1998–2008. During this time, he was also awarded an Honorary Doctor of Business Administration from Hong Kong Polytechnic University.
His research mainly covers complexity science, fictitious economy, venture capital, chemical systems engineering, soft science and management science.
He has published several books, including Chromic Salts Technology, Rejuvenating Chemical Industry through Science and Technology, Soft Science and Reform, Large Linear Target Programming and Application, Research in China's Economic Development and Reform and Economic Reform and Development in China. In 2010, he began having his works translated into English and published through Enrich Professional Publishing in Hong Kong, for a worldwide readership. The books Selected Works of Cheng Siwei, Economic Reforms and Development in China: Three-Volume Set are some of his most recent works. He has nearly 300 publications under his name at home and abroad.
In recent years, he has devoted himself to the use of complexity science to study issues relating to the development and reform of China, made enormous efforts to explore and explain the characteristics and law of development of the fictitious economy, and actively studied and promoted the development of venture capital in China. The Brookings Institution has hosted him as a in an effort to find out more about China's 12th 5-year-plan, including its top-level policy objectives.
Death
Cheng Siwei died in Beijing on the morning of 12 July 2015 at the age of 80.
Published works
Chromic Salts Technology
Rejuvenating Chemical Industry through Science and Technology
Soft Science and Reform
Large Linear Target Programming and Application Reform
The U.S. Financial Crisis: Analysis and Interpretation. San Francisco: Long River Press, 2012.
Selected Works of Cheng Siwei, Economic Reforms and Development in China: Three-Volume Set
|
Folwark
|
[
"History of agriculture in Poland",
"Economic history of Poland",
"History of Poland during the Jagiellonian dynasty",
"Social history of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth",
"Economic history of Belarus",
"Economic history of Ukraine",
"Serfdom"
] | 1,071 | 8,395 |
Folwark is a Polish word derived from the German Vorwerk. A Folwark or Vorwerk is an agricultural estate or a separate branch operation of such an estate, historically a serfdom-based farm and agricultural enterprise (a type of latifundium), often very large. The term has changed its meaning several times throughout history and can therefore be used in various ways.
Originally, the associated agricultural estates were usually located outside fortifications or castles and directly in front of them, and were therefore often referred to as Folwark or, in German-speaking regions, Vorwerk, meaning advanced work or outwork, a kind of outlying defensive outpost. In place names and field names, the word can still be present in this meaning.
Later, the term was used for outposts of manor farms with estate operations or individual tenant farms. On larger estates with extensive land areas, there were often smaller and more remote branch operations in addition to the main operation. From around the end of the 18th century, these were also frequently referred to as Folwark or, in German-speaking regions, Vorwerk. In this sense, Folwark or Vorwerk appears as a name or part of a name for a variety of settlements, especially in the northern and eastern parts of Germany.
A term occasionally used in official documents for a Folwark or Vorwerk is "pertinentia" (accessory).
History
Folwarks () were operated in the Crown of Poland from the 14th century, in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania from the 15th century and in the joint Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth from the second half of the 16th century. Folwarks also developed in the Commonwealth-controlled Ukrainian lands. The institution survived after the 18th-century Partitions of Poland until the early-20th century.
Folwarks aimed to produce surplus produce for export. The first folwarks were created on Church- and monastery-owned lands. Later, the folwark system was adopted both by the nobility (szlachta) and by rich peasants (singular: sołtys), but the sołtys positions were eventually taken over by the szlachta.
The term folwark came into the Polish language in the 14th century from the German Vorwerk, originally the fortified advanced work of a castle and later an outlying manor house that managed a farm estate. The English translation would be "grange", the historical meaning of which is "an outlying farm with tithe barns belonging to a monastery or feudal lord".
The development of folwarks was boosted by growing demand for grain and by the profitability of its export, both to Western Europe and within the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. That led to the exploitation of serfdom since landowners discovered that instead of collecting money-based rent and taxes, it was more profitable to force the peasantry to work on folwarks. Folwark-based grain export became an important part of the economy of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.
Folwarks were primarily an early modern postfeudal rural formation. They originated as land belonging to a feudal lord (early on a knight) and were not rented out to peasants but worked by the owner's own hired labor or servants. The peasants toiled on the lots that they rented from the lord and were obliged to provide complimentary labour for the lord on his folwark, originally a few days per year. From the 16th century, the amount of this mandatory free labor was radically increased, and szlachta-sponsored legislation imposed rigid conditions on the peasants, such as the prohibition on worker's right to leave a village and seek a new lord. The originally-free peasants became serfs and then fell into a condition of extreme dependency and exploitation, known in Poland as wtórne poddaństwo [secondary serfdom]. Their lords, in turn, had become dependent on such free labour, which kept the folwark economy going and competitive on the European grain markets.
In Poland, serfdom was regulated and increased by the Statutes of Piotrków (1496) and by the Privilege of Toruń (1520), statutory privileges granted by kings to szlachta. With the fall of prices of agricultural goods at the end of the 17th century, the folwark economy went into crisis, and attempts by the szlachta to increase production by increasing the size of their folwarks (usually by appropriating peasant lands) and by demanding more labour (usually by increasing the peasant workload) only compounded the economic crisis and further worsened the fate of the peasants, who had been no poorer than their average counterparts in Western Europe.
In Lithuania, serfdom was fully established during the Volok Reform in the mid-16th century.
Until the late 18th century folwarks remained the basis of szlachta economic and political power. After the abolition of serfdom in Poland from the late 18th century onwards, folwarks used paid labour.
Folwarks were abolished by the People's Republic of Poland with the Polish Committee of National Liberation decree of 6 September 1944, concerned with agricultural reform. After the end of the Second World War, folwarks were nationalised at the behest of the Polish Workers' Party, resulting in PGRs, state-owned collective rural enterprises (Państwowe Gospodarstwo Rolne, 1949 onwards) or partitioned, usually with little or no compensation to their owners.
In modern-day Latvia, the terms folverks, folvarks and folverķis were mostly used in Latgale and Augšzeme (eastern Selonia) until the 20th century. In other regions, the German-origin word pusmuiža (; from HalbGutshof) was more common.
See also
Hacienda
Ranch
Manorialism
Serfdom
|
Equity (film)
|
[
"2016 films",
"American business films",
"American drama films",
"Stock trading films",
"Wall Street films",
"Sony Pictures Classics films",
"Films set in New York City",
"Films shot in New York City",
"Films shot in Philadelphia",
"Films directed by Meera Menon",
"Financial thrillers",
"2016 independent films",
"2010s English-language films",
"2010s American films",
"English-language independent films"
] | 1,197 | 9,339 |
Equity is a 2016 American financial thriller film directed by Meera Menon, written by Amy Fox and starring Anna Gunn, James Purefoy, Sarah Megan Thomas and Alysia Reiner.
The film premiered In Competition at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival on January 25, 2016. Shortly before its premiere, it was acquired for theatrical distribution by Sony Pictures Classics and was released in the United States on July 29, 2016, to positive critical reviews.
Plot
Naomi Bishop is a senior investment banker who deals with IPOs. After her latest project is undervalued she faces professional setbacks including clients losing confidence in her work. To bounce back she is hired to handle the IPO for Cachet, a privacy company with a social networking platform.
Around the same time Naomi bumps into Samantha Ryan, an old college classmate who now works as a federal prosecutor investigating white collar crime. Unbeknownst to Naomi, Samantha is investigating Naomi's on-again, off-again boyfriend Michael Connor, a broker at the same firm as Naomi who Samantha suspects is involved in insider trading. Michael tries to get information from Naomi about Cachet but fails.
While doing due diligence, Naomi learns from Marin, one of the coders, that Cachet is hackable. Despite having a nagging feeling that something is wrong, the numbers check out and Naomi continues to try to sell the shares of the company to investors. Michael, who has had no new insider trading tips to pass on to his friends at investment firm Titanite, tries unsuccessfully to hack into Naomi's phone.
Erin Manning, Naomi's assistant on the IPO, learns that Marin has been fired. To warn Naomi of this, she goes to Michael's home after not being able to reach Naomi and ends up leaking the information to him in the hope that he will be able to get her a promotion, something Naomi has been unable to do for her. Michael leaks the tips to his friends at Titanite and then sends the story to an old college roommate who is a tech journalist.
Naomi figures out that it was Erin who betrayed her, based on her having a green pen, the same type of pen that Michael uses. When the shares open, confidence is lost and the company loses a third of its value on the first day of trading.
Michael changes jobs to Titanite, neglecting to take Erin with him. Naomi is fired, while Erin assumes her position. Unable to crack the case from the outside, Samantha interviews for a high-paying corporate position, saying that she is in it for the money using words from a speech she heard Naomi give at an alumni event.
Cast
Anna Gunn as Naomi Bishop
James Purefoy as Michael Connor
Sarah Megan Thomas as Erin Manning
Alysia Reiner as Samantha Ryan
Craig Bierko as Benjamin "Benji" Akers
Margaret Colin as Attorney Cahn
Nate Corddry as Cory
Samuel Roukin as Ed
Lee Tergesen as Randall
Sophie von Haselberg as Marin
James Naughton as John
Tracie Thoms as Melanie
Carolyn McCormick as Naomi's Doctor (Uncredited)
Production
Meera Menon was brought on board to direct in March 2015. Anna Gunn signed on to star in June 2015 with James Purefoy joining shortly after.
Release
Box office
Equity grossed $1.6 million in the United States and Canada and $65,116 in other territories for a worldwide total of $1.7 million. Its widest release was in 255 theaters.
Critical reception
Equity received positive reviews from critics. On review aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 82%, based on 97 reviews, with an average rating of 6.4/10. The site's critical consensus reads, Equity brings a welcome change of perspective to the financial thriller genre, along with a nuanced story and a terrific cast led by a powerful effort from Anna Gunn." Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average rating to reviews from mainstream critics, gives the film a score of 68 out of 100, based on 29 reviews, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.
Ignatiy Vishnevetsky of The A.V. Club wrote: "Equity may not be the fanciest or flashiest of financial thrillers—more like off-brand David Fincher or Steven Soderbergh—but it gets the job done. Its major players are all women trying to make careers in boys’ club professions [...]; that's all the motivation the movie offers and perhaps all that it really needs. It skips past the usual handwringing over the temptations of capitalist wealth and just gets right to the risk-taking and double-crossing, assuming (rightly) that viewers don't need a character to have a backstory, a tragic secret, and a dead spouse, best friend, or parent to understand why they'd do anything to hold on to a career."
|
Permodalan Nasional Berhad
|
[
"1978 establishments in Malaysia",
"Permodalan Nasional Berhad",
"Economy of Malaysia",
"Government-owned companies of Malaysia",
"Privately held companies of Malaysia",
"Companies based in Kuala Lumpur",
"Malaysian companies established in 1978"
] | 624 | 6,273 |
Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) is a state-owned Malaysian investment management company. One of the largest fund management companies in Malaysia, it was established on 17 March 1978 as one of the instruments of the government's New Economic Policy.
PNB's two notable projects are located in Kuala Lumpur. They are the megatall skyscraper Merdeka 118 on Jalan Hang Jebat, and the PNB 1194 Hotel (formerly MAS Building) on Jalan Sultan Ismail.
In June 2023, PNB announced that it planned to move its corporate headquarters from PNB Tower, Jalan Tun Razak, where it had operated since 1985, to Merdeka 118 by the year-end.
Chairpersons
Ismail Mohd Ali (1978–1996)
Ahmad Sarji Abdul Hamid (1996–2016)
Abdul Wahid Omar (2016–2018)
Zeti Akhtar Aziz (2018–2021)
Arifin Zakaria (2021–2023)
YM Raja Arshad Raja Uda (2023–present)
Chief Executive Officers (CEOs)
Desa Pachi (1978–1979)
Khalid Ibrahim (1979–1994)
Hilmey Taib (1995–1997)
Hamad Kama Piah Che Othman (1998–2016)
Abdul Rahman Ahmad (2016–2019)
Abdul Jalil Abdul Rasheed (2019–2020)
Ahmad Zulqarnain Onn (2020–present)
Subsidiaries
Amanah Saham Nasional Berhad (ASNB)
Pelaburan Hartanah Nasional Berhad (PHNB)
Property Management Services Sdn Bhd (PMSSB)
PNB Commercial Sdn Berhad (PNBC)
PNB Development Sdn Bhd (PNBD)
PNB Merdeka Ventures Sdn Bhd (PNBMV)
PNB Research Institute Sdn Bhd (PNBRi)
|
MK Group
|
[
"Agriculture companies of Serbia",
"Companies based in Belgrade",
"Conglomerate companies of Serbia",
"D.o.o. companies in Serbia",
"Holding companies established in 1995",
"Holding companies of Serbia",
"Serbian companies established in 1995"
] | 1,371 | 14,419 |
MK (Serbian Cyrillic: МК Група) is a Serbian holding company which operates in the agriculture, banking, and tourism sector. The company was established in 1991, and has since expanded its business operations across South East Europe with a special focus on 4 countries in the region: Serbia, Slovenia, Croatia and Montenegro.
In 1983, Serbian economist and businessman Miodrag Kostić began a private business, initially as an owner of a private company for trade, import-export and manufacturing activities. MK Group now operates in several countries: Serbia, Slovenia, Croatia and Montenegro.
Agribusiness
Since 2000, MK Group has managed sugar industry factories (factories Pećinci, Vrbas, Kovačica), more than 10 agribusiness enterprises, trade and warehouse complexes ("Granex-port", "Žito Bačka").
Sunoko, a subsidiary of MK Group, is one of the leading companies in sugar production both in Serbia and the region. In 2011, MK Group took over "Carnex" company (established in 1958), which produces meat and meat products. In December 2015, MK Group took over PIK-Bečej for a sum of 45.5 million euros.
Some of the most notable subsidiary companies are Carnex Vrbas (meat industry), Sunoko (sugar industry), Agroglobe (fertilizing and wholesale of agriculture products), PIK-Bečej (agribusiness) and others. Most of its agribusiness is concentrated on the production and wholesale of the cereals – corn, wheat, sunflower and soybeans. As of January 2016, MK Group manages around 29,000 hectares of agriculture land (around 290 square kilometers) in Serbia, of which it owns around 19,000 hectares.
From 2006 to 2017, it operated in Ukraine through Agro-Invest Ukraine, agribusiness company specialized in sunflower production and wholesale. As of January 2016, Agro-Invest Ukraine managed nearly 30,000 hectares of agriculture land (around 300 square kilometers) in Ukraine. In May 2017, Kernel Holding bought majority of its shares.
In June 2020, MK Group completed the process of acquisition of 67% of the shares of Victoria Group. With the integration of Victoria Group member companies, Sojaprotein, Victoria Oil, Victoria Logistic, Luka Bačka Palanka and VZS Stočna hrana, MK Group has acquired the status of majority owner, while the previous shareholders Milija Babović and Apsara Limited have remained minority owners. The company was sold in November 2021 to ADM Europe.
Banking
MK Group, through its subsidiary company MK Commerce, founded BDD M&V Investments brokerage firm which operates on the Belgrade Stock Exchange. However, BDD M&V Investments with its subsidiaries is not a part of the holding. M&V Investments controls a large ownership share of AIK Banka (since 2014), which later acquired and integrated another Serbian bank Jubanka in 2017. As of 31 December 2017, AIK banka has total assets of 1.767 billion euros.
Also, as of December 2017, AIK Banka is a majority shareholder with 75.99% of the Slovenian bank Gorenjska Banka. As of December 2017, Gorenjska banka controls 4.7% of Slovenian banking market share. In June 2019, AIK Banka fully took over the ownership of Gorenjska banka and thus successfully completed the takeover process in Slovenia.
Energy
Apart from real estate, MK Group has invested in developing renewable energy sources, whereby MK Fintel Wind, established in 2007, is one of the first companies in Serbia that have started green energy production using the wind-powered generators and solar panels.
Real estate
MK Group also manages several real estate properties through its subsidiaries like "MK Mountain Resort".
In December 2008, MK Group bought from "Internacional CG" the Kopaonik-based hotels "Grand" and "Sunčani vrhovi" and other real estate properties for a sum of 23 million euros.
Under auspices of "MK Mountain Resort" are the hotels "Grand" and "Angella" as well as the apartment complex "Konaci" and "Sunčani vrhovi" (all located on the Mountain Kopaonik). Hotel "Grand" is a home venue for the Serbian annual business conference Kopaonik Business Forum. Also, "Kempinski Palace" hotel in Portorož is operated by the MK Group. MK Group cooperates with world's famous hotel group Kempinski, and has invested in several real estate properties in Serbia and region. It also cooperates with another hotel group Sheraton Hotels and Resorts, and has invested in hotel located in Novi Sad.
In November 2017, "Istrian hotels", a subsidiary of MK Group, took over "Skiper Resort" hotel complex located in Istria. In February 2018, MK Group increased its ownership stake in the third largest Slovenian civil airport Portorož and is today the majority stake holder.
In June 2020, MK Group acquired the Slovenian branch of Heta Asset Resolution. At the end of 2019, MK Group was selected as the best bidder in the tender, and with the official approval of the Public Agency of the Republic of Slovenia for Protection of Competition and the approvals of the Competition Protection Commissions of Serbia and Montenegro, formal requests for payment and purchase were met.
See also
Agriculture in Serbia
|
Wang Yungui
|
[
"1992 births",
"Living people",
"Yao people",
"21st-century Chinese businesswomen",
"Businesspeople from Guangxi",
"People from Laibin",
"Guangxi Normal University alumni",
"21st-century Chinese businesspeople"
] | 660 | 6,506 |
Wang Yungui (; born 1992) is a Chinese businesswoman. A member of the Yao ethnic minority, she runs an e-commerce business where she promotes local specialty foods while wearing traditional Yao costume. To help combat poverty in her home village of Liuduan, Wang has worked with local authorities to promote tourism, for which she has won several awards.
Biography
Born in 1992, Wang is a member of the Yao ethnic minority. She graduated from Guangxi Normal University in 2013 with a degree in e-commerce and subsequently worked at Nanjing Lukou International Airport. In 2014, she returned to her home village of Liuduan and established her business there. Her business model included using social media to share streamed content about local food specialties, with either Wang or her sister appearing in traditional Yao costume.
As an entrepreneur, Wang established a food brandLiuduan Yao Villagewhich promotes the culture and foodways of its eponymous village, as well as the surrounding of Guangxi. Her company buys traditionally made food and other goods from local people. Working with her sister Yunyu, they sell regional tea, bamboo shoots and processed meats. Initially, locals did not trust Wang and she found it difficult to find suppliers, prompting her to inquire by knocking from door-to-door. By 2016, Wang had been able to lift her family out of poverty; this inspired her to attempt to do the same for her village. That year, she established a tea processing plant, based on her mother's tea preparation techniques. In 2018, the sisters began working with the local government in Liuduan to develop tourism, promoting local folk festivals as tourist events and boosting the local economy. Local authorities credited her initiatives with helping to lift 151 households and 578 people in Liuduan out of poverty. In 2019, Wang established a bottled water factory, which by 2021 had an annual turnover of 8 million yuan. This diversification was inspired by a complaint from a buyer that the specialty tea they purchased tasted different outside the region. The water is branded as Yaomai Mountain Spring. The same year she promoted local tea terraces as locations for traditional marriage ceremonies, which further advanced the local economy.
Recognition
In 2020, Wang was one of 99 people in China to be awarded the National Poverty Alleviation – Endeavor Award. In 2021, she was the recipient of multiple honorary titles: National Advanced Individual in Poverty Alleviation, National Model of Women's Contributions, National Youth Pioneer in Rural Revitalization. In 2022, she was named one of Laibin City's Top Ten Outstanding Youths.
|
Carlos Nicholas Fernandes
|
[
"Living people",
"1976 births",
"Businesspeople from Mumbai",
"Indian people of Portuguese descent",
"Singaporean people of Portuguese descent",
"Singaporean people of Indian descent",
"Singaporean inventors",
"University of Mumbai alumni",
"University of Chicago Booth School of Business alumni",
"21st-century Singaporean businesspeople"
] | 882 | 10,925 |
Carlos Nicholas Fernandes (born 1976) is an inventor, founder and CEO of InstantTV, a service that offers Cloud DVR.
Early life
Fernandes was born in Mumbai. Fernandes started his first business when he was 12, selling water purifiers door-to-door. He went on to study Electrical Engineering from Bombay University, and completed an MBA from Chicago University.
Career
Initial years
Fernandes moved to Singapore in 1998 and joined the Information Technology Institute (ITI) (later known as Kent Ridge Digital Labs and currently known as the Institute of Infocomm Research), which is a government research institute run by Singapore's Agency for Science Technology and Research. In 1999, he joined a startup called Ecquaria Technologies, where he developed and marketed software. Ecquaria had been founded by people who had previously been associated with Kent Ridge Digital Labs.
PerceptiveI
Fernandes founded PerceptiveI, a company that offered enterprise software solutions, in 2000. The technology used in this company won many awards, both for Fernandes and the company. For his work, Fernandes was recognized by David Lim, the then Singaporean Minister for Information, Communications, and the Arts in 2003.
Fernandes purchased the assets of RecordTV.com, and added in technology that he had invented and patented in 2006 (along with Varsha Jagdale), in a way that would not violate the rights of copyright owners. This allowed RecordTV users to legally record TV shows, something which the original company had been sued for by the MPAA. Later, the service was renamed to InstantTV and launched its own app.
Current pursuits
Blaze
In 2017, Fernandes launched Blaze, an AI-based conversational news bot (chatbot) that was enhanced through human curation, in India. It is accessible through Facebook Messenger. As of 2018, he was working on the fake news problem.
RecordTV vs MediaCorp litigation
Fernandes got into legal trouble in 2008 after MediaCorp alleged that RecordTV was using technology that violated copyright laws. Fernandes refused to shut down his company, and instead preemptively sued MediaCorp for groundless threats. He then claimed millions in damages and continued to operate its website. He even won the appeal, after MediaCorp decided to take the case further.
See also
InstantTV
World Economic Forum
Young Global Leaders
|
Hilary Rosen
|
[
"1958 births",
"Living people",
"American telecommunications industry businesspeople",
"American lobbyists",
"20th-century American Jews",
"American activists",
"American political consultants",
"American political writers",
"American television reporters and correspondents",
"American women chief executives",
"Businesspeople from Essex County, New Jersey",
"Businesspeople from Washington, D.C.",
"CNBC people",
"CNN people",
"Communications consultants",
"George Washington University School of Business alumni",
"American lesbian writers",
"Lesbian Jews",
"Lesbian businesswomen",
"LGBTQ people from New Jersey",
"LGBTQ people from Washington, D.C.",
"American LGBTQ rights activists",
"MSNBC people",
"New Jersey Democrats",
"Writers from West Orange, New Jersey",
"Recording Industry Association of America people",
"HuffPost writers and columnists",
"The Washington Post columnists",
"Writers from Washington, D.C.",
"American chief operating officers",
"American women columnists",
"American LGBTQ businesspeople",
"21st-century American women",
"21st-century American Jews",
"LGBTQ mass media people",
"Brunswick Group people"
] | 3,797 | 36,564 |
Hilary Rosen (born 1958) is the former head of the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). She was a columnist for The Washington Post and the first Washington editor-at-large and political director of The Huffington Post. She has also provided political commentary for CNN, CNBC, and MSNBC.
She worked for the RIAA for 16 years, including as CEO from 1998 to 2003. From 2010 to 2023 she was a partner and managing director at the public relations firm SKDKnickerbocker. She has been a registered lobbyist during her career, both at the RIAA and for the Human Rights Campaign (HRC). Rosen has been an advocate for LGBT rights since the early 1980s. She is now an independent communications consultant, board advisor and a television commentator on US and British TV.
Early life and education
Rosen was born in West Orange, New Jersey in 1958. Her father worked as an insurance agent and her mother was the city's first councilwoman. In high school, Rosen served as student council president. She earned her bachelor's degree in international business from George Washington University in 1981. Her parents divorced while Rosen was at college.
Career
In 1979, Rosen began working as a legislative assistant in the Washington, D.C. office of Governor Brendan Byrne (D-NJ), who was a friend of Rosen's mother. She also worked for Senator Bill Bradley (D-NJ) early in her career. Rosen worked for the lobbying firm Liz Robbins Associates in the 1980s.
Recording Industry Association of America
In 1987, Rosen joined the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), the trade organization representing the American recording industry, as its first government relations director. In 1989, she and her colleague Jay Berman updated the Parental Advisory label and launched its public awareness campaign. In 1992, she took a brief leave from the RIAA to serve as Senator Dianne Feinstein's transition director and set up the California Democratic Party's office in Washington, D.C.
As a registered lobbyist from 1999 to 2003, Rosen influenced the decisions made by Congress on behalf of nearly 350 companies and thousands of artists represented by the RIAA. In 1995, Rosen supported artists' rights when Bob Dole, then Senate Majority Leader, criticized Time Warner and said that rap lyrics promoted violence and were degrading to women. She became the organization's president and chief operating officer in May 1996. Rosen was a strong supporter of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), which became law in 1998, to prohibit the creation of technologies used to get around copyright protections. Rosen was promoted to the role of chief executive officer in 1998. In 1999, the RIAA Diamond certification was awarded for the first time, recognizing albums that have shipped more than 10 million copies. Rosen said the award, which was named as such because "diamonds are valuable [and] no two are alike", represented "a quantum leap" for the music industry and an expansion of the national music market.
In 2000, the American musical recording company A&M Records along with several others, through the RIAA, sued Napster on grounds of copyright infringement under the DMCA, which led to the shutting down of the pioneering peer-to-peer file sharing service. As the face of the RIAA, Rosen was vilified by proponents of free file sharing, and even traveled with security at one point because she was receiving death threats. Nonetheless, Rosen encouraged partnerships between the recording industry and online music businesses, and consulted on the launch of digital music services such as Apple Inc.'s iTunes Store. Rosen was recognized for advancing the industry's political efforts and appeared on lists of influential leaders, including Entertainment Weekly "Annual Power List" and National Journal "Washington's Powerful Insiders". She was included in The Hollywood Reporter list of the most powerful women in entertainment in 1998, 2000 (number 10), 2002 (number 17), and 2003 (number 10).
Rosen resigned from the RIAA in June 2003 to spend more time with her family. Following her resignation, she reportedly "questioned the value of lawsuits against individual downloaders" said she had attempted to "push the industry to evolve". In 2007, she said, "I won't be a George Tenet here, but it's pretty well known that I was impatient with the pace of the industry's embrace of online distribution of music. There's no substitute for speed when times are dire. The record companies had valid reasons for their caution, but that caution let the situation get out of hand."
Media roles
Rosen is a Democratic strategist and political pundit. She was a regular political columnist for The Washington Post, has authored articles for many national publications, and provided political commentary for CNBC and MSNBC. In 2008, she became a CNN contributor, appearing on regular programming as well as special political coverage. Also, in 2008, Rosen became the first Washington editor-at-large and political director of The Huffington Post. In 2010, she and The Huffington Post, which was editorially critical of BP following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, reached a mutual decision to part ways when Rosen's firm, Brunswick Group, began consulting for the British oil and gas company. In April 2012, Rosen was criticized for saying that Ann Romney had "never worked a day in her life" when discussing Mitt Romney's reliance on his wife as an adviser on women's issues during a CNN appearance. Rosen apologized the next day. In 2013, Rosen began writing for The Washington Post as an opinion contributor.
Communications consultant
In 2006, Rosen and Jay Berman, who formerly worked at RIAA, briefly ran the firm Berman Rosen Global Strategies, consulting for tech companies such as Facebook, Viacom, and XM. In 2008, she joined the public relations firm Brunswick Group to head its Washington, D.C. office. In 2010, Rosen became a partner and managing director at the political communications and public relations firm SKDKnickerbocker, leading the company alongside Anita Dunn. The firm is known for its work on progressive issues and focuses on Democrats in its political work. The firm also is employed by TransCanada Corporation to improve their public relations. As a communications consultant, Rosen attended the White House on multiple occasions during Barack Obama's presidency. At least five meetings were with the president to discuss messaging around his health care reform plans. Rosen worked for clients Starbucks, Microsoft, American Airlines, Planned Parenthood, AT&T, at SKDK and led numerous national public affairs campaigns. Following her 2012 comments regarding Ann Romney, Rosen was the subject of critical coverage by some media outlets, which noted White House visitor logs and speculated whether Rosen or SKDKnickerbocker employees were operating as "unofficial" or "unregistered" lobbyists. Rosen has advised many national candidates, and in 2012 The Wall Street Journal reported that she was consulting with Debbie Wasserman Schultz during her time as chair of the Democratic National Committee. SKDKnickerbocker was selected by Edie Windsor's legal team to lead the public relations efforts behind the challenge to the Defense of Marriage Act (United States v. Windsor, 2013). In 2014, Rosen and Dunn served as senior advisors to the LGBT rights group Americans for Marriage Equality. Planned Parenthood hired Rosen to help manage the 2015 undercover videos controversy. Rosen and SKDKnickerbocker were assisting Susan G. Komen for the Cure with a public relations campaign for an environmental research initiative when the Planned Parenthood controversy arose. Rosen and Dunn sold SKDK to Stagwell in October 2015 and Rosen stayed on to manage the firm while Dunn went to work for the Biden Campaign and into the Biden White House. Rosen left SKDK in 2023.
Controversies
During the campaigning leading up to the 2012 United States presidential election, Rosen criticized Ann Romney, wife of then-presidential candidate Mitt Romney, claiming that, as a stay-at-home mother, Romney "never worked a day in her life." Rosen was pressured to apologize when her remarks were condemned by the Democratic National Committee and President Obama, who stated he had "little patience for commentary about the spouses of political candidates." Michelle Obama also distanced herself from Rosen, expressing on Twitter that "every mother works hard, and every woman deserves to be respected."
Rosen was criticized in December 2017 for making two tweets calling several Georgetown Hoyas fans "anti-Semitic," singling one out as a "bigot" after she noticed a photograph of a fan wearing a bacon costume. After Rosen was told that the fan in question was known as "bacon man" and wore the costume because of his last name (Bakan, pronounced "bacon"), she apologized.
In January 2018, Rosen admitted she bought more than 500,000 fake Twitter followers as "an experiment," to see whether to recommend the practice to her PR clients.
LGBT advocacy
Rosen became an LGBT activist starting in 1982 when she and others demanded federal intervention to combat HIV/AIDS in the United States. She outed herself to members of Congress in an attempt to win HIV/AIDS funding.
In 2004, she managed the successful campaign to defeat George W. Bush's proposed amendment to the U.S. Constitution banning same-sex marriage. Her work on this campaign is profiled in John Harwood and Gerald Seib's book Pennsylvania Avenue: Profiles in Backroom Power (2008).
Between 2004 and 2008, Rosen was a registered lobbyist for the Human Rights Campaign, the largest LGBT civil rights advocacy group and political lobbying organization in the United States. In 2008, she served as interim director for the organization. She also served on the Human Rights Campaign Foundation board. The Advocate included Rosen in their "People of the Year" list in 2008.
Rosen consulted on the Hollingsworth v. Perry (originally Perry v. Schwarzenegger) series of federal court cases that legalized same-sex marriage in California. Rosen was included in The Advocate "Out100" list for her work on the "Respect for Marriage Coalition" media campaign during the Defense of Marriage Act challenge and United States v. Windsor civil rights case. She was also named one of the 25 "most powerful LGBT players" in Washington, D.C., by National Journal and ranked number 62 in Out 2012 "Power List". National Journal included Rosen in their list of the "30 Most Influential Out Washingtonians" in 2014.
Inspired by Showtime's LGBT television series The L Word, Rosen collaborated with the show's creator to establish OurChart.com, a social networking site for lesbians. Its name refers to "the chart", which was used on the show to illustrate the relationships between characters. The site was defunct by 2012, having been acquired by Showtime.
In 1992, she helped found Rock the Vote, a non-profit organization that encourages voter turnout among young voters.
Rosen and Tammy Haddad co-host the annual Garden Brunch prior to the White House Correspondents' Association's dinner.
Personal life
Rosen met Elizabeth Birch in 1994. Birch was a lawyer for Apple and later became the executive director of the Human Rights Campaign. The couple adopted twins from Texas in 1999. They received some criticism from conservative groups who opposed LGBT adoption. The two separated in 2006. Rosen married her partner Megan Murphy in November 2024.
Rosen has lived in Washington, D.C. since her studies at George Washington University. She is well-connected and has been called a "Washington insider". Al Gore and Greta van Susteren and Anderson Cooper were among guests who attended her fiftieth birthday celebration.
In addition to being a Democratic strategist, Rosen has described herself as a "strong, progressive Democrat". She has been a longtime supporter of the Democratic Party and has hosted fundraisers for candidates, including Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA). She has also been a longtime supporter of Hillary Clinton and supported President Joe Biden in the 2020 Democratic presidential primary race. Her stout advocacy for Biden led her to misquote and lecture former Ohio state senator Nina Turner about the meaning of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s warning as to White moderates. She later apologized for her misstep. She has made many personal financial contributions to politicians and groups such as the LPACGay & Lesbian Victory Fund and Kennedy for Senate 2000.
|
Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in India
|
[
"Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in India",
"2020 in India",
"Economy of India",
"2020 in Indian economy",
"Economic history of India",
"Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic by country"
] | 16,687 | 184,486 |
The economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in India has been largely disruptive. India's growth in the fourth quarter of the fiscal year 2020 went down to 3.1% according to the Ministry of Statistics. The Chief Economic Adviser to the Government of India said that this drop is mainly due to the coronavirus pandemic effect on the Indian economy. Notably, (World Bank Data), the current pandemic has "magnified pre-existing risks to India's economic outlook".
The World Bank and rating agencies had initially revised India's growth for FY2021 with the lowest figures India has seen in three decades since India's economic liberalization in the 1990s. However, after the announcement of the economic package in mid-May, India's GDP estimates were downgraded even more to negative figures, signaling a deep recession. (The ratings of over 30 countries have been downgraded during this period.) On 26 May, CRISIL announced that this will perhaps be India's worst recession since independence. State Bank of India research estimates a contraction of over 40% in the GDP in Q1. The contraction will not be uniform, rather it will differ according to various parameters such as state and sector. On 1 September 2020, the Ministry of Statistics released the GDP figures for Q1 (April to June) FY21, which showed a contraction of 24% as compared to the same period the year before.
According to Nomura India Business Resumption Index economic activity fell from 82.9 on 22 March to 44.7 on 26 April. By 13 September 2020 economic activity was nearly back to pre-lockdown. Unemployment rose from 6.7% on 15 March to 26% on 19 April and then back down to pre-lockdown levels by mid-June. During the lockdown, an estimated 140 million (140 million) people lost employment while salaries were cut for many others. More than 45% of households across the nation have reported an income drop as compared to the previous year. The Indian economy was expected to lose over every day during the first 21-days of complete lockdown, which was declared following the coronavirus outbreak. Under complete lockdown, less than a quarter of India's $2.8 trillion economic movement was functional. Up to 53% of businesses in the country were projected to be significantly affected. Supply chains have been put under stress with the lockdown restrictions in place; initially, there was a lack of clarity in streamlining what an "essential" is and what is not. Those in the informal sectors and daily wage groups have been at the most risk. A large number of farmers around the country who grow perishables also faced uncertainty.
Major companies in India such as Larsen & Toubro, Bharat Forge, UltraTech Cement, Grasim Industries, Aditya Birla Group, BHEL and Tata Motors temporarily suspended or significantly reduced operations. Young startups have been impacted as funding has fallen. Fast-moving consumer goods companies in the country have significantly reduced operations and are focusing on essentials. Stock markets in India posted their worst losses in history on 23 March 2020. However, on 25 March, one day after a complete 21-day lockdown was announced by the Prime Minister, SENSEX and NIFTY posted their biggest gains in 11 years.
The Government of India announced a variety of measures to tackle the situation, from food security and extra funds for healthcare and for the states, to sector related incentives and tax deadline extensions. On 26 March a number of economic relief measures for the poor were announced totaling over . The next day the Reserve Bank of India also announced a number of measures which would make available to the country's financial system. The World Bank and Asian Development Bank approved support to India to tackle the coronavirus pandemic.
The different phases of India's lockdown up to the "first unlock" on 1 June had varying degrees of the opening of the economy. On 17 April, the RBI Governor announced more measures to counter the economic impact of the pandemic including special finance to NABARD, SIDBI, and NHB. On 18 April, to protect Indian companies during the pandemic, the government changed India's foreign direct investment policy. The Department of Military Affairs put on hold all capital acquisitions for the beginning of the financial year. The Chief of Defence Staff has announced that India should minimize costly defense imports and give a chance to domestic production; also making sure not to "misrepresent operational requirements".
On 12 May, the Prime Minister announced an overall economic stimulus package worth . Two days later the Cabinet cleared a number of proposals in the economic package including a free food grains package. In December 2020, a Right to Information petition revealed that less than 10% of this stimulus had been actually disbursed. By July 2020, a number of economic indicators showed signs of rebound and recovery. On 12 October and 12 November, the government announced two more economic stimulus package, bringing the total economic stimulus to . By December 2021, India was back to pre-COVID-19 growth.
Government actions
Globally in a poll by the 'Edelman Trust Barometer', out of the 13,200+ people polled, 67% agreed that "The government's highest priority should be saving as many lives as possible even if it means the economy will recover more slowly"; that is, life should come before livelihood. For India, the poll showed a ratio of 64% to 36%, where 64% of the people agreed that saving as many lives as possible was a priority, and 36% agreed that saving jobs and restarting the economy was the priority.
In India the life versus livelihood debate also played out, with the government first announcing that life would be prioritized over livelihood, which later changed to an equal importance being given to life and livelihood. By mid-May the center was keen to resume economic activities, while the Chief Ministers had mixed reactions.
Prime Minister Modi announced the first 21 days of India's lockdown on 24 March. During this address to the nation he said, "Jaan hai toh jahaan hai" (). On 11 April, in a meeting with the Chief Minister's of India, the Prime Minister said "Our mantra earlier was jaan hai toh jahaan hai but now it is jaan bhi jahaan bhi ()." On 14 April, another address to the nation was made by Modi in which he extended the lockdown, with adjustments, to 3 May. In the Prime Minister's fifth meeting with the Chief Ministers on 11 May, the Prime Minister said that Indians must prepare for the post coronavirus pandemic world, just as the world changed after the world wars. During the meeting Modi said "Jan se lekar jag tak" () would be the new principle and way of life. On 12 May, the Prime Minister addressed the nation saying that the coronavirus pandemic was an opportunity for India to increase self-reliance. He proposed the Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan (Self-reliant India Mission) economic package.
2020
On 19 March the formation of the COVID-19 Economic Response Task Force was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his live address to the nation. The task force was led by the finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman. Though not formally constituted or no official date for relief packages being made, the consultation process with concerned parties had begun immediately. The Ministry of Finance immediately started consultations with the RBI and ministries to take stock of most affected sectors like aviation, hospitality, and MSMEs.
On 21 March 2020, the Union cabinet approved incentives worth for electronic manufacturing.
Various state governments announced financial assistance for the poor in the unorganised sector. On 21 March the Uttar Pradesh government under Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath decided to give a direct money transfer of to all daily wage laborers in the state and the following day Punjab announced each for all registered construction workers in the state. On 23 March it was announced that Haryana labourers, street vendors and rickshaw pullers will be provided an assistance of ₹1,000 per week directly deposited into their bank accounts. Below Poverty Line families would be provided rations (including rice, wheat, mustard oil, sugar) free of cost for the month of April.
On 24 March in his address to the nation, the Prime Minister announced a fund for the healthcare sector.
On 24 March the Finance Minister made a number of announcements related to the economy such as extending last dates for filing GST returns and income tax returns. The due dates for the Sabka Vishwas (Legacy Dispute Resolution) Scheme 2019, customs clearances and for compliance matters under the Customs Act and associated laws was extended to June 2020.
Lockdown Phase 1 (25 March – 14 April)
On 25 March the Modi government announced the world's largest food security scheme for 800 million people across the country. Cabinet Minister Prakash Javadekar made the announcement in a press conference that the ration would be 7 kg every month (which would include wheat at a cost of per kg and rice at per kg.)
On 25 March the Uttar Pradesh government banned people from doing the manufacture and sale of pan masala, stating in the order that "spitting pan masala can help in spreading Covid-19". Following this, other states such as Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat also banned spitting in public places.
On 26 March the Finance Minister announced a number of economic relief measures for the poor. hungry amidst the lockdown. Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana beneficiaries will get free cylinders for at least three months. This will benefit over 80 million Below Poverty Line families. The government would expedite payment of the first installment (₹2,000) due in 2020–21 in April itself under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN). For the organised sector worker, the government will pay the Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) contributions of both sides for 8 million employees of small companies who earn up to ₹15,000 a month. The raise in the threshold from ₹100,000 to ₹10 million for triggering insolvency proceedings under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) was done to help MSMEs. State governments were given various instructions and guidelines such as diverting district mineral funds for health needs relating to the pandemic.
On 26 March India participated in the virtual 'Extraordinary G20 Leaders' Summit'. The G20 nations decided to inject over $5 trillion into the global economy to counteract the pandemic's impacts. They agreed to work together, to strengthen the World Health Organisation, develop a vaccine and make it available. They decided to share timely and transparent information, materials for research and development and data. Besides expanding manufacturing capacity for medical supplies, they agreed to ensure smooth flows of critical supplies.
On 27 March the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das made a number of announcements including EMIs being put on hold for three months and reducing Repo Rates. Other measures introduced will make available a total to the country's financial system. Delhi government announced that from the 28th they will be providing free food to 400,000 every day. Over 500 hunger relief centres have been set by the Delhi government.
On 27 March the Rajasthan government decided to deduct the salaries of all its officers and employees from one to five days, with the money going into the Chief Ministers Fund.
On 28 March the Prime Minister launched a new fund called PM CARES fund for combating coronavirus-like situations.
On 30 March it was announced that the UP government would transfer to 2,715,000 workers under MNREGA scheme.
On 1 April the RBI announced more measures to deal with the economic fallout of COVID-19. WMA and short-term liquidity was increased to provide relief to state governments; exporters have also been granted some relief in the form of relaxed repatriation limits.
On 2 April the World Bank approved US$1 billion emergency financing for India to tackle coronavirus labelled 'India COVID-19 Emergency Response and Health Systems Preparedness Project'.
On 3 April the central government released to different states to help combat coronavirus. The Ministry of Home Affairs approved for states as relief under the State Disaster Risk Management Fund.
On 6 April a 30% salary cut for one year was announced for the President, Vice President, Prime Minister, Governors, Members of Parliament and Ministers. It was also decided to suspend the MPLADS for two years and transfer the money, about , into the Consolidated Fund of India.
On 8 April the Department of Expenditure, Finance Ministry, allowed states net market borrowings of between April and December. of funds under the PM Garib Kalyan Yojana were given to over 20 million workers engaged in construction work by the various states and UTs. To provide relief to tax payers amid the COVID-19 crisis, the government decided to release .
On 10 April the Asian Development Bank (ADB) assured India of assistance in the COVID-19 pandemic fight.
On 14 April at 10 am the Prime Minister made a public speech in which he announced the extension of the nationwide lockdown, as well as a calibrated reopening. "From the economy's point of view, the lockdown undoubtedly looks costly right now, but compared to the lives of Indian citizens, it is nothing" (translation, original in Hindi). A new set of guidelines for the calibrated opening of the economy and relaxation of the lockdown were also set in place which would take effect from 20 April.
Lockdown Phase 2 (15 April – 3 May)
On 15 April as part of the new lockdown 2.0 guidelines, the Ministry of Home Affairs announced, among other things, that all agricultural and horticultural activities will remain fully functional. Information technology companies can function with 50% staff. The partial lift of restrictions would take place from 20 April.
On 17 April, RBI announced more measures to counter the economic impact of the pandemic including special finance to NABARD, SIDBI, and NHB. Providing more relief to state governments, WMA limits have been increased by 60 per cent.
On 18 April, India changed its FDI policy to protect Indian companies from "opportunistic acquisitions" during the COVID-19 pandemic.
On 20 April limited economic activity is expected to resume outside of the COVID-19 containment zones. During this selective relaxation of restrictions, numerous activities will remain prohibited such as educational institutions, passenger movement by trains, cinema halls, malls, shopping complexes and gymnasiums. Telangana was the first state to extend the lockdown to 7 May, beyond the national lockdown date of 3 May.
On 21 April it was announced that a team from "The Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council" (TIFAC)" under the Department of Science and Technology are preparing a white paper on the revival of the India economy. TIFAC has a "mandate to think for the future".
On 23 April The Kerala government has decided to defer one month's salaries of employees. The government will reduce the salaries of all categories of government employees including teachers, university officers and employees in all PSUs, equivalent to a six days' worth salaries every month.
On 23–24 April banks from the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) agreed upon a "joint roadmap for economic recovery".
On 25 April the Ministry of Home Affairs allowed the re-opening of some shops under certain restrictions. As per the "national directives for COVID-19 management", liquor and other shops would remain closed. These relaxations do not apply to hotspots.
On 28 April the ADB approved a loan to India to combat the pandemic. The Punjab government formed a group of experts for reviving the economy following the pandemic led by Montek Singh Ahluwalia and with former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh to provide guidance.
On 4 May India went into its third stage of lockdown. The country was divided into various zones (green, orange, red, containment) and as per the zone the economy has been opened up.
Lockdown Phase 3 (4–17 May)
On 5 May Maharashtra put a hold on capital works till March next year and imposed a 67% cut in development spend for 2020–21. This is the largest cut in expenditure since the state was formed.
On 7 May in a telephonic conversation with Indian External Affairs Minister, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Japan "requested cooperation for the resumption of activities by Japanese companies in India." Japan has around 1440 companies in India.
On 11 May the Prime Minister, in a meeting with the Chief Ministers, asked the Minister's to each come up with a plan for resuming activity following the third extension of the lockdown on 17 May. The Prime Minister emphasized the need to start reopening the economy, while some of the Chief Ministers had their doubts related to the nature of relaxations.
Economic package 1.0 announcements (12–17 May)
On 12 May the Prime Minister announced an overall economic package worth , adding that the fourth phase of the lock down will be different with new rules. This Rs 20 trillion (short scale) includes the previous government packages (Rs 1.7 trillion (short scale)) as well as the RBI decisions (Rs 5–6 trillion (short scale)). They make up about 40% of the package.
On 13 May the Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, and the Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs, Anurag Thakur, elaborated on the financial package that was announced by the Prime Minister the day before. The definition of MSMEs was revised, which allows more companies to avail the benefits of MSME schemes. The announcements on the first day also included collateral free loans and bank guarantees that would allow resumption of work for many MSMEs. For non-bank lenders a liquidity scheme and partial credit guarantee scheme. Tax deadlines were extended.
On 14 May the Finance Minister, for the second day, continued announcing the details of the economic package. Migrants, farmers, street vendors among others were covered in the package and the "One Nation One Ration Card" scheme was emphasized.
On 15 May the Finance Minister, for the third day, continued the announcement of the economic package. Operation Greens was extended from tomatoes, onion and potatoes (TOP) to all fruits and vegetables. Cereals, edible oils, oil seeds, potato and onion were deregulated (except in exceptional circumstances) and no stock limit shall apply for storage as was proposed Amendment in Essential Commodities Act (1958). Matsya Sampada Yojana was announced for fisheries and animal husbandry infrastructure fund was announced. Agri-infrastructure fund, agricultural marketing reforms for farmers and fair price legal framework support for farmers were among other things covered.
On 16 May the Finance Minister, for the fourth day, continued the announcement of the economic package. A fund for farm-gate infrastructure was announced, amendments to the Essential Commodities Act, as well as the opening up of the defence sector, power sector and space sector for privatization. While not all the measures in the package provided immediate relief, the Finance Minister said that the immediate needs of the country had also been addressed.
On 17 May the Finance Minister concluded the announcement of the economic package.
Lockdown Phase 4 (18–31 May)
On 20 May the Cabinet of India cleared some proposals of the economic package, including a free food grain package and collateral free credit for MSMEs.
On 22 May the RBI Governor held an unannounced press conference in which he extended the moratorium on loans and cut repo and reverse repo rates among other things. The RBI Governor said that food inflation will be a stressor, but added that the forecast for normal monsoons and positive growth in the next quarter would be a positive, and that "the combination of fiscal, monetary and administrative measures will create conditions that will enable a gradual economic revival going forward." RBI also allocated funds for Exim Banks and an extension to SIDBI. The measures were a result of the meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee on 22 May.
On 25 May domestic flights resumed with limited operations.
On 30 May new lockdown guidelines were announced by the Ministry of Home Affairs which would come into effect in a phased manner from 1 June onwards. Many of the new guidelines "have an economic focus".
Unlock 1
On 1 June Delhi allowed all industries and markets to reopen including barber shops and salons; curfew time changed to 9 pm to 5 am while educational institutes were to remain closed. Numerous public utilities, businesses and activities such as gymnasiums, cinema halls and the Delhi Metro to remain closed.
On 2 June mobile manufacturing incentives were offered by the government to mobile manufacturers. This included a production-linked incentive on goods made locally in India. Five Indian firms would also be selected for the scheme.
On 8 June religious places, malls and restaurants were permitted to open all over India, except in the containment zones.
On 20 June the Garib Kalyan Rojgar Abhiyaan was launched to tackle the impact of COVID-19 on migrant workers in India. It is a rural public works scheme with an initial funding of ₹500 billion (US$7.0 billion) covering 116 districts in 6 states.
Unlock 2
On 1 July new guidelines came into place related to the lockdown. While there were certain relaxations; schools, colleges, gyms, movie halls, metros etc. will remain closed.
On 29 July, the Cabinet of India passed the National Educational Policy 2020 aimed at strengthening India's education sector and in turn the economy.
Unlock 3
From 5 August onwards gym and yoga centres could begin opening.
On 11 August, in a video-conference between the Prime Minister and states, the states asked for more funding to fight COVID-19.
On 23 August, the government announced economic measures to tackle effect of COVID-19.
On 30 August, the government announced more economic measures.
Unlock 4
On 1 September new guidelines were announced by the centre as well as the states in the graded re-opening of the economy and society.
On 11 September Delhi Metro resumed normal operations with pre-COVID-19 timings.
Unlock 5
In October, unlock 5 began seeing more of society and the economy open up.
In October, cinemas reopen as a part of Unlock 5 as India bends the COVID-19 pandemic curve.
On 12 October, the government announced a worth economic stimulus package, labelled as Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan 2.0.
November
On 12 November, the government announced a worth economic stimulus package, labelled as Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan 3.0.
Second wave
On 22 February, the district administration of Amravati imposed curfew restrictions until 1 March. This was extended to 8 March.
On 15 March, the district administration of Nagpur imposed a week long lockdown. These restrictions were extended to 31 March and lifted on 1 April. Following a surge in cases in Maharashtra, a number of cities in the state imposed restrictions again including Nagpur from 9 April.
On 2 April, the district administration of Pune imposed restrictions for at least a week following a rise in the number of cases.
On 4 April, Maharashtra imposes a weekend lockdown and night curfew among other restrictions.
On 9 April, PM Modi made a statement that there is no need of a strict national lockdown.
On 23 April, measures for free food grains was announced once again under the PM Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana, similar to those in 2020.
On 2 May, tax compliance measures were once again eased.
By 9 May, nearly all states and union territories in India had some form of restriction or the other.
On 29 May, Delhi partially eased restrictions for construction and manufacturing businesses and allowed partial resumption of work with precautions.
On 7 June, the PM extended free foodgrains until November.
Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan (Economic package)
On 12 May the Prime Minister, in an address to the nation, said that the coronavirus crisis should be seen as an opportunity, laying emphasis on domestic products and "economic self-reliance", an Atmanirbhar Bharat () through a Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan (). The following day the Finance Minister started laying out the details of the Prime Minister's vision which would continue into the next few days. The Finance Minister stated that the aim was to "spur growth" and "self-reliance", adding that, "self-reliant India does not mean cutting off from rest of the world". The law and IT minister, Ravi Shankar Prasad, also said that self-reliance does "not mean isolating away from the world. Foreign direct investment is welcome, technology is welcome [...] self-reliant India... translates to being a bigger and more important part of the global economy." Shashi Tharoor called the 'Self-reliant India Mission' a repackaged version of Make in India.
Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan 1.0
India's overall economic package was announced as , 10% of India's GDP. The package, though announced on 12 May by the Prime Minister, included previous government actions, including the RBI announcements. The previous RBI announcements included around liquidity.The economic package also included the Finance Minister announcement of a package totaling on 26 March. The strategy of combining fiscal and monetary, liquidity measures was defended by the government. Sitharaman explained that other countries had also done the same. Estimates of the size of India's fiscal stimulus as a percentage of GDP varied between 0.75% and 1.3%. The Finance Minister, for five days, between 13 and 17 May, held press conferences in which the details of the economic package was explained.
The economic package consisted of a mix of reforms, infrastructure building, support to stressed businesses and a certain amount of direct cash support. The "collateral-free loans" that the package provided aimed to "resume business activity and safeguard jobs". Changes in FDI policy, privatization of the power sector, provident fund contribution and ease of doing business measures were also announced. Land reforms at the state level which were not mentioned in the economic package are also part of the overall changes.
Reports though stated the economic package did not address short term demand concerns, which may in turn pull down the economy even more; with most of the announcements being related to supply. It was also reported by economists such as Sonal Varma, Nomura Global Market Research, that "long pending politically sensitive reforms" have been pushed through during this time and with this package. While the economic package was criticised on various fronts, it was also given neutral to positive responses on other fronts such as for the necessary caution the government showed in its spending.
Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan 2.0
On 12 October 2020, the finance minister announced another economic stimulus package which aimed at boosting demand. This package has been launched keeping in mind the upcoming festive season. The package includes perks for central government employees to spend more on consumer durables during the festive season and a much higher capital expenditure for both the centre and states. Interest free loans for states to boost capital expenditure has been made available.
Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan 3.0
On 12 November 2020, the government announced worth of economic stimulus. Sectors such as housing and infrastructure were targeted in the third package. Stimulus for provided for domestic defence manufacturing and green energy.
Economic package use
By 7 September 2020, PM Garib Kalyan Yojana provided support to the tune of . In December 2020, a Right to Information petition revealed that less than 10% of the package had been actually disbursed, chiefly in the form of emergency credit.
Change in FDI policy
On 18 April 2020, India changed its foreign direct investment (FDI) policy to curb "'opportunistic takeovers/acquisitions' of Indian companies due to the current pandemic", according to the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade. With the fall in global shares prices, there is concern that China could take advantage of the situation, leading to hostile takeovers. While the new FDI policy does not restrict markets, the policy ensures that all FDI from countries that share a land border with India will now be under scrutiny of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
Economic situation
In India up to 53% of businesses have specified a certain amount of impact of shutdowns caused due to coronavirus on operations, as per a FICCI survey in March. By 24 April the unemployment rate had increased nearly 19% within a month, reaching 26% unemployment across India, according to the 'Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy'. Around 140,000,000 (140 million) Indians lost employment during the lockdown. More than 45% households across the nation reported an income drop as compared to the previous year. Various business such as hotels and airlines cut salaries and laid off employees. Revenue of transport companies such as Ola Cabs went down nearly 95% in March–April resulting in 1400 layoffs. It was estimated that the loss to the tourism industry will be for March and April alone. CII, ASSOCHAM and FAITH estimate that a huge chunk of the workforce involved with tourism in the country faces unemployment. Live events industry saw an estimated loss of .
A number of young startups have been impacted as funding has fallen. A DataLabs report shows a 45% decrease in the total growth-stage funding (Series A round) as compared to Q4 2019. According to a KPMG report venture capital in Indian startups has fallen over 50% in Q1 2020 from Q4 2019.
Government revenue has been severely affected with tax collection going down, and as a result the government has been trying to find ways of reducing its own costs. On 10 May 2020, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said that some states didn't have enough money to pay salaries in the near future. In April, former Reserve Bank of India chief Raghuram Rajan said that the coronavirus pandemic in India may just be the "greatest emergency since Independence", while the former Chief Economic Advisor to the Government of India said in April that India should prepare for a negative growth rate in FY21.
The Indian economy was expected to lose over every day during the first 21 days of the lockdown, according to Acuité Ratings. Barclays said the cost of the first 21 days of shutdown as well as the previous two shorter ones will total to around . Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) had sought an economic fiscal stimulus package of 1% of India's GDP amounting to . The fiscal package and fiscal policies approach is being compared to what has happened in other countries such as Germany, Brazil and Japan. Jefferies Group said that the government can spend to fight the impact of coronavirus. Bloomberg's economists say at least needs to be spent. Former CEA Arvind Subramanian said that India would need a stimulus to overcome the contraction.
Pre-pandemic slowdown
India had also been witnessing a pre-pandemic slowdown. Even before the pandemic, since FY 2018–19, India's growth was falling, 8% in Q4 FY18 to 4.5% in Q2 FY20. In January 2020 itself, well before India's lockdown or reactions to the pandemic, the International Monetary Fund reduced India's GDP estimates for 2019 and also reduced the 2020 GDP forecast. The 2016 Indian banknote demonetisation and goods and services tax enactment in 2017 led to severe back to back disruptions in the economy. On top of this there had been numerous banking crises such as the Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services crisis and government scheme failures such as that of 'Make in India'. There was also a significant "income crunch" for both rural and urban sectors in the year prior to the lockdown.
Ratings and GDP estimates
On 27 March, Moody's Investors Service (Moody's) revised its estimate of India's GDP growth for 2020 from 5.3% to 2.5%. Fitch Ratings revised its estimate for India's growth to 2%. 'India Ratings & Research' also downgraded the FY21 estimate to 3.6%. In April 2020, the World Bank and rating agencies downgraded India's growth for fiscal year 2021 with the lowest figures India has seen in three decades since India's economic liberalization in the 1990s. On 12 April 2020, a World Bank report focusing on South Asia said that India's economy is expected to grow 1.5% to 2.8% for FY21. The World Bank report said that the pandemic has "magnified pre-existing risks to India's economic outlook". In mid-April the International Monetary Fund projection for India for the FY21 of 1.9% GDP growth was still the highest among G-20 nations. Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) estimated that India's GDP for FY21 will be between 0.9% and 1.5%.
+GDP predictions for FY21 post announcement of economic package (May 2020)SNAgencyEstimateRef1Bernstein −7%2ICRA −5%3Goldman Sachs −5%4Nomura −5%5Fitch −5%6SBI −4.70%7CARE Rating −1.5%–1.6%
On 28 April the former Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) to the Government of India has said that India should prepare for a negative growth rate in FY21. On 22 May the RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das also said India's GDP growth will remain negative in FY21. Following the announcement of India's economic package numerous agencies downgraded their GDP predictions for FY21. Ratings agency ICRA downgraded estimates to −5%, Goldman Sachs also predicted the same estimate of −5%. These revised GDP estimates signalled a deep recession. On 26 May, CRISIL made the following statement:
State Bank of India research predicts a contraction of over 40% in the GDP in Q1 FY21. For the states, the total loss due to COVID-19 is estimated at 13.5% of the total Gross state domestic product. The Ministry of Statistics released India's GDP estimates for Q4 FY20 at 3.1% while the overall GDP for FY20 is 4.2%. Krishnamurthy Subramanian, the current CEA, said the GDP growth slowdown to 3.1% in Q4 FY20 is mainly due to the coronavirus pandemic effect on the Indian economy. The CEA pointed out that the ratings of over 30 countries have also been downgraded.
On 1 June, Moody's downgraded India's sovereign ratings to its lowest grade. Moody's clarified that while the rating downgrade was happening amid the coronavirus pandemic, "it was not driven by the impact of the pandemic", rather because of reasons such as "weak implementation of economic reforms since 2017" and "a significant deterioration in the fiscal position of governments (central and state)". Moody's rating is now the same as ratings given by S&P Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings, which also rate India with the lowest investment grade. In July, Jefferies' reaffirmed a 5% real GDP contraction. Nomura gave the following estimates: -5.6% in Q3CY20, −2.8% in Q4CY20 and −1.4% in Q1-2021.
The contraction that India is expected to see in the FY21 will not be uniform, rather it will differ according to various parameters such as state and sector. Agriculture and government sectors are likely not to see any contraction. On 1 September 2020, the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation released the GDP figures for Q1 FY2021, which showed a contraction of 24%.
Exports and imports
India's exports in April 2020 fell by −36.65% year-on-year, while imports in April 2020 fell by −47.36% as compared to April 2019.
Energy
Night lights and economic activity are connected. In Delhi, night light radiance fell 37.2% compared to 1–31 March 2019. This was the biggest fall for any metro in India. Bangalore fell 32% while Mumbai dropped by 29%. India's fuel demand in April 2020 as compared to the previous year fell nearly 46%. Consumption of fuel was the lowest since 2007. Cooking gas (LPG) sales rose ~12%. An International Energy Agency report in April estimated India's annual fuel consumption will decline 5.6% in 2020. Diesel demand will drop ~6%. By the first half of June 2020, India's fuel demand was 80–85% of what it was before the lockdown. However the Indian oil minister said that it would take a much longer time for the growth in demand to be restored to pre-COVID-19 levels.
Oil prices dropped sharply in 2020 following the COVID-19 pandemic. Demand also fell sharply. By mid-May India had already filled its strategic storage including storing oil on ships across the world. India is now looking at storing oil in other nations including America. India also plans to increase its local strategic storage capacity for oil.
Agriculture
A study during the first two weeks of May month by the Public Health Foundation of India, Harvard T H Chan School of Public Health and the Centre for Sustainable Agriculture found that "10% of farmers could not harvest their crop in the past month and 60% of those who did harvest reported a yield loss" and that a majority of farmers are facing difficulty for the next season. Due to logistical problems following the lockdown tea estates were unable to harvest the first flush. The impact of this on the second flush is not known. The entire Darjeeling tea based tea industry will see significant fall in revenue. Tea exports could see a yearly drop up to 8% as a result. In March 2020, tea exports from India fell 33% in March as compared to March 2019. During the lockdown, food wastage increased due to affected supply chains, affecting small farmers.
From 20 April, under new lockdown guidelines to reopen the economy and relax the lockdown, agricultural businesses such as dairy, tea, coffee, and rubber plantations, as well as associated shops and industries, reopened. By the end of April, had been transferred to farmers under the PM-KISAN scheme. Odisha passed new laws promoting contract farming.
Manufacturing
Major companies in India such as Larsen and Toubro, Bharat Forge, UltraTech Cement, Grasim Industries, the fashion and retail wing of Aditya Birla Group, Tata Motors and Thermax momentarily suspended or significantly reduced operations in a number of manufacturing facilities and factories across the country. iPhone producing companies in India also suspended a majority of operations. Nearly all two-wheeler and four-wheeler companies put a stop to production till further notice. Many companies have decided to remain closed till at least 31 March such as Cummins which has temporarily shut its offices across Maharashtra. Hindustan Unilever, ITC and Dabur India shut manufacturing facilities except for factories producing essentials. Foxconn and Wistron Corp, iPhone producers, suspended production following the 21-day lockdown orders.
Stock markets
On 23 March 2020, stock markets in India post worst losses in history. SENSEX fell 4000 points (13.15%) and NSE NIFTY fell 1150 points (12.98%). However, on 25 March, one day after a complete 21-day lock-down was announced by the Prime Minister, SENSEX posted its biggest gains in 11 years, adding a value of for investors. On 8 April, following positive indication from the Wall Street that the pandemic may have reached its peak in the US, the stock markets in India rose steeply once again. By 29 April, Nifty held the 9500 mark.
E-commerce
In the third week of March, Amazon announced that it would stop sale of non-essential items in India so that it could focus on essential needs. Amazon followed the same strategy in Italy and France. On 25 March, Walmart-owned Flipkart temporarily suspended some of its services on its e-commerce platform and would only be selling and distributing essentials. BigBasket and Grofers also ran restricted services, facing disruptions due to the lockdown. Delhi Police began issuing delivery agents curfew passes to make it easier for them to keep the supply chain open. E-commerce companies also sought legal clarity related to defining "essentials".
Defence
The Department of Military Affairs led by the Chief of Defence Staff postponed all capital acquisitions until the coronavirus pandemic recedes. No new major defense deals would be made in the beginning of the financial year 2020–21. While the delivery of S-400 missile systems won't be affected, the delivery of Rafale fighter jets was reported to maybe being affected. However, on 24 March, France confirmed that there will be no delay in the delivery of the 36 Rafale jets.
In May, the Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat again emphasized the need for India to minimize costly defense imports and boost domestic production.
During the announcement of the economic package, the Finance Minister announced a change in the FDI cap from 49% to 74% for defense, the corporatization of India's ordnance production and a list for the ban of select defense imports.
State income and expenditure
State governments incurred huge losses to the extent of having to cut capital expenses as well as government plans in the near future and finding alternate ways to pay salaries. The Delhi government has fallen 90% short in tax collection as compared to 2019 and is planning to take loans and raise taxes in certain sectors. Maharashtra put a hold on all new capital works till March next year; spending under government development schemes has been reduced by 67% for the current fiscal. The income of the Madhya Pradesh government has fallen by 85% in April and borrowing has increased.
The Delhi government as well as the Andhra Pradesh government imposed a 70%–75% "corona" extra tax on liquor. Excise duty on liquor is the third largest source of income for a number of states, nearly 10–15% of total tax collection for some states. The ban during the lockdown affected alcohol sales, in turn having a major effect on the state revenue.
Concerns and commentary
There were concerns as to where would the government find the funds to fight coronavirus and keep the economy alive. Experts suggested measures such as looking into NPA norms, tax payments and income support to those in the unorganised sectors. A direct cash transfer scheme for the most vulnerable is also being considered, as has happened in other countries.
On 8 April 2020, the managing director of Bajaj Auto, Rajiv Bajaj, wrote in an opinion piece in the Economic Times that the "lockdown makes India weak rather than stronger in combating the epidemic," and that the current "arbitrary" lockdown was totally unsustainable and a "recalibration" is needed. Rajiv Bajaj writes that "India may have to sell itself out of the coronavirus crisis". Post the economic package, Barbara Harriss-White criticised the "shock tactics" of the Modi government during the COVID-19 pandemic, the same "shock tactics" that were seen during demonetization.
The Press Information Bureau brought out a fact check that stories about a financial emergency being imposed in India are fake. A financial emergency has never been imposed in the history of India as yet. Numerous companies are carrying out measures within their companies to ensure that staff anxiety is kept at a minimum. Hero MotoCorp has been conducting video townhall meetings, Tata Group has set up a task force to make remote work more effective and the task force at Siemens also reports on the worldwide situation of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Economic danger versus health risk
In March, Adar Poonawalla, CEO of Serum Institute of India said that "the economic danger of the outbreak was exponentially greater than its health risks". On 29 April, Indian billionaire NR Narayana Murthy said that if the lockdown continues, India may see more deaths due to hunger than from the pandemic.
Supply chains and logistics
Following the lockdown, certain essential supply chains broke down. Britannia Industries, supporting the lockdown, urged the government to ensure inter-state movement of the raw material for the food processing industry was not hampered. The managing director of Britannia stated that "if even one link in the supply chain is broken, the country could run out of stocks of packaged food in the next 7–10 days." Although inter-state travel has been banned, it doesn't apply to essentials, and in places like Maharashtra the state police are yet to streamline the process, disrupting supply chains. Vidya Krishnan writes in The Atlantic that due to the lockdown even movement of medical goods were affected.
The cashew export market was devastated, leading to bankruptcy, and in one case, suicide of a business owner in Nallila, Kerala.
On 29 March the government allowed the movement of all essential as well as non-essential goods across the country during the lockdown. The milk and newspaper supply chains are also allowed to function.
Salaries
The Prime Minister on 19 March urged businesses and high income segments of society to take care of the economic needs of all those who provide them services. During the live telecast, he also appealed to families to not cut the pay of domestic help. Following the lockdown, the government circulated advisories and directives ordering companies to keep paying employees among other things. The Ministry of Finance issued an Office Memorandum on 23 March 2020:
A few days later worries grew as to how wages could continue being paid and if the directive was legal or not. There were also concerns raised by migrant workers regarding the implementation of the orders as many daily-wagers have no records of being sacked or salaries being paid or deducted; the concerns also expand to uncertainty in the government's ability to enforce minimum wages under lockdown when it couldn't even do so during normal times.
On 15 May, the Supreme Court announced that the government should not take "coercive action" against employers for not paying wages during the lockdown. The court was commenting on 29 March government order.
Migrant workers and labour force
Due to the lockdown, daily-wage workers (the urban poor and migrant laborers) were left with no work. At the same time, the lockdown restrictions put a stop on the movement of buses and trains. Large numbers of migrant workers ended up walking back to their villages.
Soon after a central government directive in late March, state governments set up 21,000 camps to house over 660,000 migrants and stop the exodus. Over 500 hunger relief centres were set up by the Delhi government by the last week of March. By 5 April 75lakh people were being provided food across the country in food camps run by the government and NGOs. As of 12 April, 37,978 relief camps and 26,225 food camps had been set up. Migrants in such camps in Kerala were provided with medical essentials such as masks, sanitizers, and medicines.
Soon after the nationwide lockdown was announced in late March, FM Sitharaman announced a spending plan for the poor. This consisted of cash transfers and steps to ensure food security. To help provide jobs and wages to workers, the average daily wages under the MGNREGA were increased to from the earlier , as of 1 April. On 14 May, FM Sitharaman further announced free food grains for the migrant workers, targeting 80 million migrant workers by spending .
Railways transported 48,00,000 migrants back to their homes in the special trains allocated for them between 1 and 27 May. While this service was not initially free, with additional charges over the normal fares, the central government later made the Railways offer an 85% subsidy on the train fares, and the state governments funded the remaining 15%. In the same time period, a total of 91 lakh migrants traveled on both trains and buses.
The governments of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat sought to temporarily revise their labour laws in early May with the purpose of attracting industries and investments. Labour unions criticized this as being harmful to the migrant workers while giving more authority to the employers.
On 20 June 2020 the government launched the Garib Kalyan Rojgar Abhiyaan for the welfare of migrants. In July, Livemint reported that companies were having difficulties in bringing back the workforce. Even after incentives, many laborers are reluctant to travel back to urban areas.
Centre and state collaboration
Numerous center versus state tussles have taken place during the COVID-19 pandemic, having a socio-economic impact other that the immediate political impact. Some tussles are not directly related to the pandemic such as the Telangana Chief Minister over the Electricity (Amendment) Bill. Other tussles are directly related to the impacts of the pandemic such as the exodus of migrants. Liquor became another source of dispute. Some states have had disputes with the centre related to how the lockdown should be implemented.
The Modi government, in view of the coronavirus pandemic, suspended Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS) for two years. This action has been called problematic in many ways, including causing a centralisation of power, being anti-federal in nature, and having an effect on local level development and MP influence at micro levels of the society to handle distress. There have been calls for halting the redevelopment of the central vista project in Delhi instead.
During the exit of the lockdown there has been a lack of centre and state collaboration as well as with local authorities. This has been visible in the handling of migrant labour; now that companies are restarting, there is a labour shortage.
Economic recovery
Recovery shapes
In the beginning of May, Duvvuri Subbarao, a former RBI governor, said that India could look forward to a V-shaped recovery. A V-shaped recovery is the best outcome. Arthur D. Little, an international consulting firm, has suggested that India will most probably see a W-shaped recovery. Mythili Bhusnurmath writes in The Economic Times that U-shaped recovery is the most likely followed by an L-shaped recovery. CRISIL chief economist says if things go well, that if the virus is contained, we can expect a V- recovery, otherwise it will end up as a U-recovery. On 24 July 2020 Ajay Bhushan Pandey, the Finance Secretary of India, said that the "Indian economy could revive sooner than we expect" while Tarun Bajaj, the Economic Affairs Secretary said that he expects a V-shaped recovery. On 24 September 2020, Economic Times reported that while speaking at the ET Global Summit, Kevin Sneader, global managing partner of McKinsey and Co. said that, "many economists have been talking about 'V', 'U' and 'K' shape recoveries ever since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Yet, in all likelihood, there could be an X-shaped recovery for global economies, including India."
V-shaped recovery
In the second week of May, companies started preparations for restarting operations. Some companies opened offices with the maximum permitted strength of 33% while others took a more cautious approach of as low as five per cent. The beginning of June saw companies further reopen and making plans to reopen. A study by Elara Securities Inc. found that five Indian states, Kerala, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Haryana and Karnataka, are contributing 27% to India's GDP as India emerges from a total lockdown. By mid-June, unemployment levels were back to pre-lockdown levels. Online sales reached pre-COVID-19 level sales by June end. Hindustan Unilever registered pre-COVID-19 levels in sales in late June. On 2 July 2020, The Times of India reported that a number of economic indicators such as the manufacturers Purchasing Managers' Index, goods movement, GST collections, electricity usage and rail freight transport showed significant improvement as compared to previous months. Localised intermittent shutdowns in July were seen to negatively affect aspects of the country's economic recovery. On 29 July 2020, the Cabinet of India passed the National Educational Policy 2020 aimed at strengthening the economy. By 13 September 2020, Nomura India's Business Resumption Index showed that economic activity was nearly back to pre-lockdown levels.
By mid-January 2021 only agriculture, forestry and fishing saw positive growth. Sectors such as manufacturing, real estate, professional services, constructuion, tourism, public utility and defence were still in recession. The economic survey of India for 2021, tabled during the Budget Session of the Parliament on 31 January 2020, stated that "starting July (2020), a resilient V-shaped recovery is underway". This conclusion was based on indicators such as E-Way Bills, GST revenue statistics, commercial paper, steel demand and recovery in GDP growth. On 26 February 2021, India's GDP was back to pre-lockdown levels. Due to low base effect a number of infrastructure sectors such as natural gas and cement saw high double digit growth in March 2021; a number of related sector such as coal were still in recession. In April the output of the core infrastructure sectors again saw high growth, again a consequence of the low base effect.
Pre-COVID 19 growth
By December 2021, India was back to pre-COVID-19 growth.
In August 2022, Sanjiv Bajaj, the current chairman of Confederation of Indian Industry has advocated for a reduction in personal income tax rates as the government's next initiative in tax changes, believing that this will put more money in the hands of the people and revitalise consumption and demand, in turn, boost the recovery.
Further reading
News
Pallavi Nahata (13 April 2020). In Charts: The Emerging Economic Impact Of A Nationwide Lockdown. BloombergQuint
Shivani Sharma, Mohsin Shaikh (17 April 2020). Infographic: How coronavirus has hurt Indian economy. Business Today
Muhammad Yunus (5 May 2020) Muhammad Yunus: Don't plan for economic 'recovery' post-Covid. Redesign it from scratch. ThePrint.
Karan Thapar (11 June 2020). Watch | Economy to Shrink 12.5%, 50 Million to Lose Jobs: Former Chief Statistician. The Wire.
Reports/ Think-tank reports
Yamini Aiyar, Avani Kapur et al. (21 April 2020) Redesigning India's Social Protection Financing Architecture to meet the Challenge of COVID-19. Centre for Policy Research
Ashwin Parulkar and Mukta Naik (27 March 2020) A Crisis of Hunger: a ground report on the repercussions of COVID-19 related lockdown on Delhi's vulnerable populations. Centre for Policy Research
Deloitte (2020) Impact of COVID-19 on consumer business in India. An analysis of the consumer retail sector (including food and beverage, apparel and footwear, beauty), automotive, travel, and hospitality services. Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu India LLP. Archived from the original on 4 June 2020.
Barnik Maitra, Thomas Kuruvilla et al. (May 2020) INDIA: Surmounting the economic challenges of COVID-19. A 10-point programme to revive and power India's post COVID-19 economy. Arthur D. Little. Archived from the original on 6 June 2020.
CII Research (22 April 2020) A Plan for Economic Recovery. Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
Atmanirbhar Bharat package
|
Swing producer
|
[
"Commodity markets",
"Imperfect competition",
"Market structure",
"Oligopoly",
"Petroleum economics"
] | 414 | 3,951 |
A swing producer or swing supplier is a supplier or a close oligopolistic group of suppliers of any commodity, controlling its global deposits and possessing large spare production capacity. A swing producer is able to increase or decrease commodity supply at minimal additional internal cost, and thus able to influence prices and balance the markets, providing downside protection in the short to middle term. Examples of swing producers include Saudi Arabia in oil, Russia in potash fertilizers, and, historically, the De Beers Company in diamonds.
Modes
By modeling the swing producer behavior, John Morecroft describes two modes: normal swing mode and punitive mode. Usually in the normal mode, the swing producer responds to market price fluctuations by marginally increasing or decreasing its output in order to maintain stable prices for all producers. However, independent participants can take unjust advantage of the reduced supply and increase their output in order to win a larger market share. In such cases, the swing producer switches to the punitive mode and greatly increases its product output in order to reduce prices, causing losses for other producers and making them cooperate. Swing consumers to nullify the exorbitant pricing power of the swing producers, regulate their consumption or utilize their reserve production capacity or depend on the stocks available to reduce imports till the prices reduce to comfortable level.
See also
Elasticity (economics)
Peak oil
Price of petroleum
|
Gabriel R. G. Benito
|
[
"Living people",
"Norwegian economists",
"Norwegian business theorists",
"Academic staff of Copenhagen Business School",
"1960 births"
] | 619 | 5,278 |
Gabriel Robertstad Garcia Benito (born 1960) is a Norwegian economist, Professor of Strategy and International Business and a previous Dean of Doctoral Studies at BI Norwegian Business School, in Oslo, Norway. He is known for his work on foreign direct investments.
Biography
Benito graduated from BI Norwegian Business School in 1984, and did his postgraduate studies at Norwegian School of Economics, where he obtained his MA in 1992 and PhD in 1995.
Benito has been affiliated with several academic institutions including: Copenhagen Business School, Norwegian School of Economics, Østfold University College, and University of Agder.
Benito has held visiting positions at Copenhagen Business School, Henley Business School at University of Reading, University of Melbourne, and University of Valencia, and taught inter alia at Helsinki School of Economics (now Aalto University), Technical University of Lisbon (ISEG), University of Oslo, and University of Valencia. In 2005, he was President of the European International Business Academy (EIBA).
He was elected a Fellow of Academy of International Business in 2015, and Fellow of European International Business Academy in 2017.
Benito's research has focused on foreign direct investment, the structure and behavior of multinational enterprises and their foreign subsidiaries, and foreign operation methods.
Selected publications
Benito is the author of numerous publications. Books:
Benito, Gabriel R.G., L.S. Welch and B. Petersen (2018) Foreign Operation Methods: Theory, Analysis, Strategy, 2nd edition. Edward Elgar.
Benito, Gabriel R.G. with R. Narula, eds. (2007) Multinationals on the Periphery Palgrave.
Benito, Gabriel R.G. and H.R. Greve, eds. (2007) Progress in International Business Research, Vol. 1 Elsevier.
Articles, a selection:
Iurkov, Viacheslav and Benito, Gabriel R.G., "Domestic Alliance Networks and Regional Strategies of MNEs: A Structural Embeddedness Perspective”, Journal of International Business Studies, 49(8), 2018, 1033–1059.
Benito, Gabriel R.G., Rygh, Asmund and Lunnan, Randi, "The Benefits of Internationalization for State Owned Enterprises", Global Strategy Journal, 6(4), 2016, 269–288.
Benito, Gabriel R.G., Lunnan, Randi and Tomassen, Sverre, "Distant Encounters of the Third Kind: Multinational Companies Locating Divisional Headquarters Abroad", Journal of Management Studies, 48(2), 2011, 373–394.
Benito, Gabriel R.G., Petersen, Bent and Welch, Lawrence S., "Towards more Realistic Conceptualisations of Foreign Operation Modes", Journal of International Business Studies, 40(9), 2009, 1455–1470.
Goldeng, Eskil, Grünfeld, Leo A. and Benito, Gabriel R.G., "The Performance Differential between Private and State Owned Enterprises: The Roles of Ownership, Management, and Market Structure", Journal of Management Studies, 45(7), 2008, 1244–1273.
Benito, Gabriel R.G., "Divestment and International Business Strategy", Journal of Economic Geography, 5(2), 2005, 235–251.
Benito, Gabriel R.G., Pedersen, Torben and Petersen, Bent, "Export Channel Dynamics: An Empirical Examination", Managerial and Decision Economics, 26(3), 2005, 159–173.
Benito, Gabriel R.G., Grøgaard, Birgitte and Narula, Rajneesh, "Environmental Influences on MNE Subsidiary Roles: Economic Integration and the Nordic Countries", Journal of International Business Studies, 34(5), 2003, 443–456.
Benito, Gabriel R.G., "Divestment of Foreign Production Operations", Applied Economics, 29(10), 1997, 1365–1377.
Benito, Gabriel R.G., and Welch, Lawrence S., "De-internationalization", Management International Review, 37(SI 2), 1997: 7-25.
Benito, Gabriel R.G. and Gripsrud, Geir, "The Expansion of Foreign Direct Investments: Discrete Rational Location Choices or a Cultural Learning Process?", Journal of International Business Studies, 23(3), 1992, 461–476.
|
William Fraser, 1st Baron Strathalmond
|
[
"1888 births",
"1970 deaths",
"Businesspeople from Glasgow",
"Nobility from Glasgow",
"Anglo-Persian Oil Company",
"Burials at Putney Vale Cemetery",
"British businesspeople in the oil industry",
"Scottish chairpersons of corporations",
"Chairmen of BP",
"Commanders of the Order of the British Empire",
"20th-century Scottish businesspeople",
"Hereditary barons created by Elizabeth II"
] | 672 | 5,187 |
William Milligan Fraser, 1st Baron Strathalmond (3 November 1888 – 1 April 1970) was a Scottish oilman. Fraser served from 1941 to 1954 as the fourth and final chairman of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company, and from 1954 to 1956 as the first chairman of British Petroleum.
Biography
Fraser was the second son of William Fraser, of Glasgow, the founder of the Pumpherston Oil Company, and his wife Janet Loch. He joined his father's firm in 1909 and became a director in 1913 and joint managing director in 1915. He was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1918 for his work in increasing oil supply during the First World War. Fraser joined the board of the Anglo-Persian Oil Company in 1923. He became deputy chairman (to John Cadman) in 1928, and played a great role in expanding the oil production in Iran, Iraq and Kuwait, becoming known as a leading expert on Middle East oil. In 1941 he succeeded Cadman as chairman, a post he retained until 1956 (the firm was renamed the British Petroleum Company in 1954). Fraser was also an adviser on oil affairs to the British government for many years, notably as petroleum adviser to the War Office and as chairman of the Oil Advisory Committee.
Honours
After being appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1918, Fraser was knighted in 1939 and in 1955 he was raised to the peerage as Baron Strathalmond, of Pumpherston in the County of Midlothian.
Marriage & Children
Lord Strathalmond married Mary Roberton McLintock (born 11 April 1892, died 17 October 1963), daughter of Thomas McLintock, in 1913. They had one son and one daughter:
William Fraser, 2nd Baron Strathalmond (born 8 May 1916, died 27 October 1976)
Hon Mary Joan Fraser (born 29 Oct 1922, died 6 March 2004)
Lord Strathalmond died in April 1970, aged 81. He was succeeded in the barony by his only son, William.
He is buried at Putney Vale Cemetery in South West London.
William, E. T., Nicholls, C. S (editors). The Dictionary of National Biography, 1961-1970. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1981.
Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990,
|
Nicolás Dujovne
|
[
"1967 births",
"Living people",
"Jewish economists",
"Argentine economists",
"Ministers of economy of Argentina",
"Argentine people of Ukrainian-Jewish descent",
"Jewish Argentine politicians",
"University of Buenos Aires alumni",
"Torcuato di Tella University alumni",
"Academic staff of the University of Buenos Aires",
"Macri administration cabinet members"
] | 2,731 | 28,141 |
Nicolás Dujovne (; born May 18, 1967) is an Argentine economist and former Minister of the Treasury between 2017 and 2019 under the administration of Mauricio Macri.
The Dujovne family, of Ashkenazi Jewish origin, has been present in Argentina since the early 20th century. His great-grandfather, Isaac Dujovne, emigrated to Argentina in 1899 from Kurilovich, a village near the city of Mohyliv-Podilskyi, which at the time was part of the Russian Empire.The family settled in the Basavilbaso Colony, in the province of Entre Ríos,a town that welcomed many Jewish settlers as part of the Jewish Colonization Association (JCA) project, founded by Baron Maurice de Hirsch.
Among Isaac’s children, two stand out: the philosopher León Dujovne (great-uncle of Nicolás)and the engineer Israel Dujovne (his grandfather). Israel worked in construction and founded his own firm in Buenos Aires in 1930.Berardo Dujovne, son of Israel and father of Nicolás, is a prominent architect and former dean of the Faculty of Architecture, Design and Urbanism at the University of Buenos Aires, where he also served as vice-rector.Since 1964, Berardo has led the Dujovne-Hirsch studio alongside his wife, architect Silvia Hirsch, mother of Nicolás.
Nicolás Dujovne was born in Buenos Aires in 1967.He was raised in the city of Vicente López and completed his primary education at Nueva Escuela Argentina 2000.He completed his secondary education at the Colegio Nacional y Comercial de Vicente López.During his teenage years, he developed an interest in photography. In 1987, he took photographs for the band Los Pericos, thanks to his friendship with the keyboardist Martín Gutman.
He is married to Carolina Yellati, with whom he has three children. They live in the Bajo Belgrano neighborhood of Buenos Aires.He is a fan of River Plate.
Education
He studied at the Faculty of Economic Sciences of the University of Buenos Aires, where he graduated with a degree in Economics in 1990.
He pursued postgraduate studies at the Di Tella Institute and later worked as a professor of “Banking Management Topics” in the Master’s program in Finance at the Torcuato di Tella University.
Professional Activity
Between 1991 and 1992, he worked as an economist at Citibank Argentina, where he began his professional career in the financial sector. From 1993 to 1994, he worked as a senior economist at the firm Alpha. Later, between 1994 and 1997, he held the same position at the consulting firm Macroeconómica S.A.
Between 2001 and 2011, he was the chief economist at Banco Galicia. In 2011, he founded his own consultancy, Dujovne y Asociados, which he led until 2016. He has also worked as a consultant for the World Bank.
Dujovne gained prominence in the media as a columnist for the newspaper La Nación starting in 2011,and from 2015, as a co-host alongside journalist Carlos Pagni on the television program Odisea Argentina, broadcast on the Todo Noticias channel.
Between April and December 2016, he served as an Independent Board Director at Banco Patagonia.
Political Activity
Although he has never held party membership,he maintained a long-standing relationship with the Radical Civic Union (UCR).During his secondary school years, he briefly participated in the youth wing of the Intransigent Party.
Between 1997 and 1998, during the presidency of Carlos Menem, he served as chief advisor to the Deputy Minister of Economy, Pablo Guidotti.During Fernando de la Rúa’s presidency, he served as the Ministry of Economy’s representative on the Board of Directors of the Central Bank of Argentina and was a member of the board of Papel Prensa, representing the National Government.
In 2011, he was economic advisor for the presidential campaign of Ricardo Alfonsín, the son of former President Raúl Alfonsín.Between 2012 and 2016, he served as an advisor to Radical senator Luis Naidenoff.
Close to Mauricio Macri, Dujovne has been coordinator of the economic cabinet of his government, along with Mario Quintana, working in the technical teams of the Pensar Foundation, and contributing during his presidential campaign on fiscal issues.
On December 26, 2016, after the dismissal of Alfonso Prat-Gay by President Macri, the splitting into two of the Ministry of Finance and Public Finance was announced, with Dujovne being appointed Minister of Finance from January 2017. Prior to assuming office, he resigned from the Senate and closed his consultancy.
Minister of the Treasury
Dujovne faced a deep fiscal adjustment promoted by Macri and deepened by the International Monetary Fund.
In 2017, he faced the tax reform, which he managed to pass in Congress after some conflicts with industrial sectors due to internal tax increases or rebalancing of employer contributions.The fiscal pressure ended in 2019 almost two points less than in 2015.
He signed a pact with the provinces to fiscally order their accounts and begin to lower the gross income and the stamp tax. Once the elections were won, a new index was launched to update inflation with the intention of lowering the deficit further.
Its first year ended with a 2.9% increase in gross domestic product, after a 2016 dulled by high inflation and the fall of the economy. That performance was key for the Macri government to win the midterm legislative elections and revalidate its leadership.
After the crisis that began in April 2018, the year that ended with stagflation, everything changed. Dujovne looked for ways to restore confidence by taking fiscal balance as an anchor, but nothing worked until the arrival of the International Monetary Fund, an idea attributed to Luis Caputo.
The reestablishment of withholdings in mid-July was a serious blow to the economic team, which maintained that the improvement in the fiscal balance should be due to a drop in spending (something that it eventually achieved) and not due to the rise in income (which it ended up promoting). He then sealed a 2019 Budget with the opposition. That budget impaired some improvements in the tax reform.
Key to this leap was the strong link with Washington, particularly with Steven Mnuchin, US Secretary of the Treasury and Donald Trump's man of confidence, with the IMF's technical teams and with the 2018 G20 Ministers of Economy (Dujovne acted as coordinator, when Argentina was the first host country).
In 2018, President Macri assigned economic leadership to Nicolás Dujovne, with the aim of centralizing decision-making. Thus, Guido Sandleris, who was the number two at the Ministry of Economy, took over as president of the Central Bank, replacing Luis Caputo.
Under the new leadership, Argentina reformulated its program with the IMF in September 2018, achieving an increase in available disbursements from the IMF from USD 50 billion to USD 57 billion.
Within that program, a new monetary scheme was established whereby the peso floated freely between bands, and a very strict monetary base control target was set, stipulating a freeze on the monetary base in nominal terms. The government also set a primary fiscal balance target for 2019, which resulted in a correction of about five percentage points in the primary fiscal result during President Macri's administration. Until the August 2019 primary elections, the exchange rate remained stable, with retail inflation falling to 2.2% in July 2019, and wholesale inflation to 0.1% in the same month.
After his resignation in August 2019, he said that: "he contributed to the construction of a different country, modern, integrated into the world, plural and with the necessary macroeconomic balances for sustainable development"; and noted the achievements in reducing the fiscal deficit and public spending and in reducing distorting taxes in the provinces.
Other activities
Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), Ex-Officio Member of the Board of Governors (2016-2019)
Inter-American Investment Corporation (IIC), Ex-Officio Member of the Board of Governors (2016-2019)
International Monetary Fund (IMF), Ex-Officio Member of the Board of Governors (2016-2019)
Joint World Bank-IMF Development Committee, Member (2018)
World Bank, Ex-Officio Member of the Board of Governors (2016-2019)
Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), World Bank Group, Ex-Officio Member of the Board of Governors (2016-2019)
Current Activities
In 2020, Dujovne co-founded Tenac Global Fund alongside economists José Antonio González Anaya, former Finance Minister of Mexico, and Fernando Jasnis, former Undersecretary of Administration and Asset Normalization of Argentina.In 2022, Pablo Guidotti, former Secretary of the Treasury of Argentina in the 1990s, joined the team.
Publications
, Financial Times, 2018.
Seeking international capital, El Inversor Energético y Minero, February 2017, 11(111), p. 4. CDIArgentina Portal. (In Spanish)
Argentina and its sovereign spread: looking beyond the turbulence, Indicadores de Coyuntura, November 2007, (482), pp. 6–10. CDI Portal. (In Spanish)
, World Bank, February 2003. Co-authored with M. Kiguel.
, in The renegotiation of external debt, National Academy of Economic Sciences, Buenos Aires, 2003, pp. 22–62. Co-authored with P. Guidotti. (In Spanish)
, Torcuato Di Tella University, October 2002. Co-authored with P. Guidotti. (In Spanish)
, Banco Galicia and School of Government, Torcuato di Tella University, July 2002. Co-authored with P. Guidotti. (In Spanish)
, in M. Cohen & M. Gurman (Eds.), Argentina in Collapse?, IIED-Latin America, Buenos Aires, 2002, pp. 51–58. (In Spanish)
Evaluating growth in Argentina, Buenos Aires: s.n., March 2001. CDI Portal. (In Spanish)
, in FIEL (Ed.), Growth and equity in Argentina: Foundations of economic policy for the decade, October 2001, pp. 131–211. Co-authored with P. Guidotti. (In Spanish)
, World Bank, June 2000. Co-authored with P. Guidotti. (In Spanish)
Credit in Argentina: Factors of overcost, Argentine Banks Association (ADEBA), 1997. Co-authored with M. Vicens and R. Onofri. (In Spanish)
Illiquidity and insolvency in the Argentine financial system, World Bank, February 1995. Co-authored with M. Vicens. (In Spanish)
|
Mark Parker
|
[
"Living people",
"Businesspeople from Poughkeepsie, New York",
"Pennsylvania State University alumni",
"Nike, Inc. people",
"American chairpersons of corporations",
"American chief executives of fashion industry companies",
"American retail chief executives",
"American chief executives of manufacturing companies",
"Shoe designers",
"Directors of The Walt Disney Company",
"1955 births",
"Chairmen of The Walt Disney Company"
] | 1,277 | 12,983 |
Mark Parker (born October 21, 1955) is an American businessman. He is the executive chairman of Nike, Inc. He was named the third CEO of the company in 2006 and was president and CEO until January 13, 2020. From 2023 to 2025, he was the chairman of the Walt Disney Company.
Early life and education
Parker was born in Poughkeepsie, New York, the son of Meg and Bruce Parker. He graduated from Westhill High School in Stamford, Connecticut and later earned his bachelor's degree in Political Science at Penn State University in 1977. He ran on the Penn State track and cross country teams.
Career
Parker joined Nike in 1979 as a footwear designer based in its R&D facility in Exeter, New Hampshire. He became Division Vice President in charge of development in 1987, Corporate Vice President in 1989, General Manager in 1993, and Vice President of Global Footwear in 1998. Prior to becoming vice president of Nike, he was co-president (with Charlie Denson) of the Nike brand beginning in March 2001. He still participates in shoe design, most notably on the Nike HTM project, creating limited edition footwear alongside Nike designer Tinker Hatfield and creative consultant Hiroshi Fujiwara. He has committed to ensuring that Nike remain environmentally conscious. After 10 years of work, Parker and his team launched the first "Green Shoe" that adheres to the principles of sustainability.
While CEO of Nike in 2012, Parker earned a total compensation of $15,425,608, which included a base salary of $1,609,615, a cash bonus of $594,190, stocks granted of $3,500,087, options granted of $4,199,250, and non-equity incentive plan compensation listed at $5,522,466. After being promoted to Chairman in 2016, Parker's compensation tripled to over $47.6 million - $33.5 million of which came from stock rewards.
In 2015, Parker was named Fortune's Businessperson of the year. It was announced in June 2015 that Mark Parker is replacing Phil Knight as company chairman of Nike in 2016.
In 2016, he ranked 14th in the New York Times' list of highest paid CEOs with an annual paycheck of 47.6 million. Parker was elected onto Walt Disney's board of directors early 2016. For the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, Parker collaborated with Christopher Marley to create an iridescent shoe.
In 2017, Parker took a 71% pay cut due to a year of poor sales at Nike and the layoff of 1,000 employees. Subsequently, his earnings were $13.9 million from stock and options.
In 2019, Parker was criticized by certain right wing media commentators for his embrace of Nike endorser Colin Kaepernick. Additionally, Parker was criticized for discontinuing a special edition of their Air Max 1 Quick Strike "Betsy Ross flag"-themed sneakers.
In October 2019, Parker announced he would step down as Nike's CEO and become executive chairman of the company effective January 13, 2020. In January 2023, he was named chairman of the Walt Disney Company, succeeding Susan Arnold.
Personal life
Parker is married to Kathy Mills, a former world record holding track and field athlete whom he met at Penn State. They have three grown children.
Art collection
Parker is an avid arts supporter with an extensive ongoing collection of modern, low brow and underground contemporary art, along with many other one-of-a-kind collectibles, including a cursed monkey. Notable artists from Parker's collection include Andy Warhol, Adonna Khare, Mark Ryden, Todd Schorr, Natalia Fabia, Tim Biskup, Eric White, Sebastian Kruger, Charles Krafft, Glennray Tutor, Robert Crumb, Chris Mars, Sarina Brewer, and Michael Leavitt. Parker keeps a pair of bat-boots Nike designed for Michael Keaton to wear in the 1989 Batman movie. Other notable items include rare movie ephemera such as original props such as Star Wars C-3PO and models from Mars Attacks! (1996), The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) and Back to the Future (1985).
|
Pay 'n Pak
|
[
"Retail companies established in 1962",
"Defunct retail companies of the United States",
"Defunct companies based in Washington (state)",
"Companies based in Kent, Washington",
"Hardware stores of the United States",
"Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1991",
"Retail companies disestablished in 2003",
"Home improvement retailers of the United States",
"1962 establishments in Washington (state)"
] | 568 | 4,031 |
Pay 'n Pak was a home improvement chain that was based out of Kent, Washington. Pay 'n Pak began in 1962 and was founded by Stan Thurman, an electric and plumbing supply retailer from Longview, Washington. In 1969, Pay 'n Pak merged with Eagle Electric & Plumbing, a company run by Thurman protégé David Heerensperger. Shortly thereafter, Stan Thurman was voted out and Heerensperger became the chairman of the company until 1989 when he left to form Eagle Hardware & Garden. At the time of a hostile corporate raid attempt in 1987, Pay 'n Pak had 112 stores in the Western United States.
The original flagship store in Kent was called Pay 'n Pak Mall. It featured a departmentalized hardware store broken up into separate stores (an electrical store, plumbing, and lumber). It also contained a coffee shop as well. By the 1980s a larger store was built next to the mall which carried the same format as the other stores had and the mall was sold.
After bankruptcy in 1991, Thurman Industries bought four Pay 'n Pak stores: those located in Butte, Montana, Billings, Montana, Moses Lake, Washington, and Wenatchee, Washington. They were operated as Thurman Pay 'N Pak home centers until March 2003 when Thurman Industries liquidated the stores and closed them down. Ernst took over the Kent store and the distribution center.
Pay 'n Pak was also a sponsor of an unlimited hydroplane racing team from the late 1960s to the early 1980s and won the points championship from 1973-1975. They also sponsored the first winning turbine powered hydroplane from 1980 to 1983. The boat crashed in 1980. It would be the last boat that would carry the Pay 'n Pak name.
History
1962 Stan Thurman establishes Pay 'n Pak
1969 Pay 'n Pak merges with Eagle Electric & Plumbing and goes public
1969 Stan Thurman voted out and David Heerensperger voted in as chairman
1988 Pay 'n Pak goes private for $226 million after a corporate raid attempt
1989 David Heerensperger leaves as chairman
1991 Pay 'n Pak files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
1992 Pay 'n Pak liquidates its remaining stores and four of the former Pay 'n Pak stores were bought by Thurman Industries and operated under the name Thurman Pay 'n Pak
2003 Thurman Industries liquidates and closes the remaining four Thurman Pay 'n Paks
|
World Hindu Economic Forum
|
[
"20th century in economic history",
"21st century in economic history",
"Global economic conferences",
"Business organisations based in India"
] | 1,862 | 14,884 |
The World Hindu Economic Forum (WHEF) is a nonprofit based in Delhi, India. It describes itself as an independent international organization committed to the prosperity of Hindu society through the creation and sharing of surplus wealth. The forum brings together eminent Hindu intellectuals and businesses for the purposes of collaboration. The organization holds an annual international conference and several regional conferences in different parts of the world.
Dr. Sriprakash Kothari was named as the chairperson of the second World Hindu Congress
The WHEF seeks to bring together financially successful individuals from the Hindu Society, such as traders, bankers, technocrats, investors, industrialists, businessmen, professionals, economists, and thinkers under one roof so that each group can share their business knowledge, experience, and expertise with their fellow brethren to make them understand the principles of surplus wealth generation to make society prosperous.
The forum was founded by Shri Swami Vigyananand, an Alumnus of the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur. He says "We are now living in the 21st century, equipped with all the advanced technologies like airplane, internet, mobiles, and other modern facilities. When we go back in time to recollect the age of torture, destruction, suppression, and humiliation that our forefathers underwent, we should derive inspiration from the fact that when our ancestors worked and survived in such difficult times and conditions, so what stops us from excelling in these technologically advanced times?"
International Events
New Delhi, Bharat 2014
Third Annual conference of World Hindu Economic Forum was held in New Delhi with the theme "Thriving Economy, Prospering Economy". WHEF 2014 was one of the 7 parallel conferences of the first-ever World Hindu Congress being organized in New Delhi from 21–23 November 2014. Around 1800 delegates from 53 countries joined the 3-day event. As per newspapers, top government officials including ministers addressed the event showing full support for this event
Prominent speakers expected are the Dalai Lama, Swami Dayananda Saraswati, Dr. Mohanrao Bhagwat, Sarsanghchalak, Hon’ble Ministers: Shri Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Road Transport and Highways, Smt. Smriti Irani, Minister of Human Resources Development, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry, Dr. Ashni Singh, Minister of Finance, Republic of Guyana; Eminent Scientists: G.Madhavan Nair, Dr. Vijay Bhatkar, leading educationists: Prof. S.B. Majumdar, Dr. G. Visvanthan, Prof. Kapil Kapoor, filmmakers Priyadarshan and Major Ravi, Popular film actress from South Smt. Sukanya Ramesh also joined and spoke at the event.
Bangkok 2013
The conference was inaugurated by Shri D. Devadas, Member Organising Committee WHEF Bangkok, 2013; Shri Susheel Saraff, Chairman, Organising Committee WHEF 2013, Bangkok; Shri Arun Kumar Bajaj, Convener, WHEF Steering Committee; Dr. Gautam Sen, Member, WHEF Steering Committee, Retired Lecturer of London School of Economics & Political Science; H. E. Shri Anil Wadhwa, Ambassador of Bharat of Thailand; H. E. Dr. Olarn Chaipravat, President of the Thailand Trade Representative & Former Deputy Prime Minister of Thailand.
H. E. Dr. Olarn Chaipravat welcomed all the delegates on behalf of the Prime Minister of Thailand and the Royal Thai Government. 7 different sessions were conducted. The sessions included discussions on topics like Emerging opportunities & challenges from free trade agreements, regional economic communities & new geographical areas, Keynote Speeches from Businesses and industries, Enormous opportunities of business in alternative energy, and so on. The sessions were chaired by genius minds like Prof. (Dr.) R. Vaidyanathan, Shri Suresh Prabhu, Prof. (Dr.) Guna Magesan. One session was chaired by young and vibrant Kritika Bajaj. This underlined the greater involvement of youth in WHEF and many of its activities. Another such session was conducted by Liza Bhansali, Pritika Sharma & Nitika Sharma which focused on entrepreneurship among today's youth. Amit Srivastava presented the report at the World Hindu and Student Conference organized in Bali in 2012. Shri S.V. Anand handed over the first copy of the book 'Global Handbook on Flooring' to Shri L. Gopakumar and Shri Vinod Kumar to mark the book's release. The conference united most of the influential personalities in the field of economy and business and led to a lot of knowledge exchange. This catalyzed the efforts to strengthen the economy.
Hong Kong 2012
The World Hindu Economic Forum for South East Asia was conducted in Hong Kong, in the year 2012. Over 250 prominent businesspersons, industrialists, economists, bankers, international traders, and business association leaders attended the meeting from different countries in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Pacific region. Four panels, namely: successful models: Making small & medium-sized enterprise successful in Global Marketplace, Developing Hindu Economy, Mega trends in global economy and Prospects of Bharat's economy and Mantra for Successful Business Enterprise, were designed to discuss nuances of economy & business. The conference was inaugurated by Hon. Shri Anil Kumar Bachoo, Dr Subramanian Swamy, Dr. Gautam Sen, Dr. G. Madhavan Nair, Prof. (Dr.) R. Vaidyanathan, Dr. Vijay P. Bhatkar, Shri Subhash Thakrar, Dr. Dilip N. Kulkarni. All that is crucial for a progressive economy ranging from Infrastructure, Transport, and Natural Resources, Global Challenges and opportunities, Development of Aerospace Technology & Economic Opportunity, research & development in the field of science & technology, and social entrepreneurship were discussed. The Discussion covered the welfare of a farmer as well as that of an industrialist. There was a unanimous agreement on the urgent need of importance to give back to the roots of the traditional economy.
Regional Events
Regional Forum for Europe – 2012
The World Hindu Economic Forum – Regional Forum for Europe took place at the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry on 4 November 2012. It was conducted at the heart of the European Business Center. Along with scores of bright young Hindu professionals and businessmen, many prominent Hindu professionals and businessmen also attended the forum. Shri Subhash Thakrar (Member of WHYC Steering Committee), and Shri Anil Puri (Member of Steering Committee), Prof. (Dr.) R. Vaidyanathan, Dr. Gautam Sen, S. V. Anand, Shri Arun Bajaj, and Shri Anil Puri shared their thoughts at the conference.
Regional Forum for South-East and East Asia – 2013
The World Hindu Economic Forum – Regional Forum for South-East and East Asia was organized in Malaysia from 6–7 January 2013 at the Berjaya Times Square Hotel. Delegates from the ASEAN Countries, Bharat, UK, and Fiji graced the conference.
Speakers included Shri Dato J. Jegathesan, Dr. Gautam Sen, Shri S.V. Anand, Shri Arun Bajaj, Prof. (Dr.) R. Vaidyanathan, Prof. (Dr.) Mahendhiran Nair, Shri Shubash Thakrar, Shri Datuk Ramesh Kodammal, Shri Datuk V. Nadarajan, Ms. Suseela Menon, Shri M.S. Subramaniam. A special session was held on strengthening the Hindu economy in Sri Lanka. The session was organized by Shri Datuk B. Sahadevan, Shri V.K. Regu, and other volunteers.
Regional Forum – North America – 2013
The World Hindu Economic Forum for North America took place on 28 April 2013 in Dallas, Texas, known as the financial hub of Southern USA. It was the first forum of its kind in North America where Hindu entrepreneurs from across various business domains came together on one platform. Many prominent Hindu businessmen and venture capitalists from Texas and other parts of The USA were at the forum.
Shri S.V. Anand, Shri Sashi Kejriwal, Shri Nitin Anand, Shri Dayakar Pushkar, Dr. Prakasarao Velagapudi, and Shri Rahul Chandra shared their views on this occasion.
The Dallas-based World Hindu Foundation team joined via virtual meeting and provided key inputs on integrating Canadian-based businessmen with the World Hindu Economic Forum. WHEF looks forward to expanding and integrating more and more Hindu entrepreneurs in the North American Regional chapter into its global fold and plans to conduct more conferences within the US and Canada in the near future.
Regional Forum – Pacific – 2013
The World Hindu Economic Forum for Pacific (Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, and Oceania) was organized in Fiji on 4 May 2013 at The Sheraton Hotel Nadi, with the theme "Making the South Pacific Community Prosperous". The forum was attended by a good number of prominent Hindu Businessmen from Fiji, Australia, and New Zealand. The forum was inaugurated by Dr. Neil Sharma, Minister for Health, Government of Fiji.
Shri Vinod Kumar, Bharat's High Commissioner to Fiji, emphasized on the potential to increase trade between Bharat and Fiji and lauded the effort of WHEF. Shr Jay Dayall emphasized making the Pacific Hindu Community prosperous in all respects.
Other key people who presented papers at this Forum included the Vice-chancellor of Fiji National University, Dr. Ganesh Chand, Chairperson of Fiji Commerce Commission, Dr. Mahendra Reddy, Chair of the Oceania Development Network and Professor of Economics at the University of South Pacific, Prof. Biman Prasad.
Workshops on the following topics were organized at the forum:
Young Hindu Business Leaders
Developing Entrepreneurship among Women.
Shri Noel Lal and Prof Guna Magesan chaired these sessions.
Regional Forum – South Africa – 2014
The World Hindu Economic Forum for South Africa was hosted by the Lotus Chamber of Commerce. The theme of the conference was Making Africa Prosperous. The event was attended by several reputed businessmen and intellectuals from South Africa and neighboring countries.
Speakers for the events were Shri S.V. Anand, Cllr. James Nxumalo, MEC Michael Mabuyakhulu, Mr. Akash Singh, Shri. Ashok Chowgule, Shri. Sujit S Nair, FRSA, Shri. Arvinda Rao, Shri MK Angajan, Ms. Prasheen Singh, Ms. Fawzia Peer, Dr. Suren Pillay, Ms. Sulosh Pillay, and Dr. Anil Sooklal.
Members discussed Trading opportunities in Africa and how it can be used to make overall Africa prosperous.
|
Mahmoud Reza Khavari
|
[
"1952 births",
"Canadian bankers",
"Canadian people of Iranian descent",
"Escapees from Iranian detention",
"Fugitives wanted by Iran",
"Fugitives wanted on bribery charges",
"Fugitives wanted on fraud charges",
"Iranian bankers",
"Iranian escapees",
"Iranian jurists",
"Iranian white-collar criminals",
"Living people",
"People from Khorramabad",
"People from Toronto",
"Shahid Beheshti University alumni",
"University of Tehran alumni"
] | 2,292 | 26,935 |
Mahmoud Reza Khavari (; born May 26, 1952) is an Iranian former banker, businessman, and fugitive alleged embezzler who was involved in the 2011 Iranian embezzlement scandal. He is a fugitive from the judicial authorities of Islamic Republic of Iran, and as of October 2016, he was the subject of an Interpol red notice issued on behalf of Iran.
He was the chairman of Bank Melli Iran until September 2011 and was chairman of Bank Sepah’s board of directors from December 2003 until March 2005.
He became a Canadian citizen in 2005, and he fled to Canada in 2011 to escape prosecution in Iran. Since then, he has been living in Canada, where he has not been charged with any crimes.
Early life and education
Mahmoud Reza Khavari was born in the city of Khorramabad in western Iran. He obtained a bachelor of law degree from the University of Tehran and a master's degree from Shahid Beheshti University. Mahmoud Khavari has two sons named Ardavan Khavari and Khashayar Khavari. Ardavan Khavari is also known as Ardy Khavari. Khashayar Khavari also is known as Khash Khavari. Khavari also has one daughter named Parandis Khavari.
Career
After graduation Khavari was hired by the Bank of Industry and Mine (Sanat-o-Madan) as the head of its complaints department. He was then selected to the board of directors of Sepah Bank in Rafsanjani's government and became the head of Sepah Bank during Khatami's presidency. In 2010, he was appointed by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's government as the chairman of the board and managing director of Bank Melli Iran, the largest bank in Iran.
During his inauguration, Shamseddin Hosseini, minister of economic affairs and finance in Ahmadinejad's government, described Khavari as a "wise and pious man" and told the reporters that the highest level of scrutiny was employed in his appointment.
Khavari had not obtained a PhD but has often referred to himself as Dr. Khavari in official Bank Melli Iran communications.
2011 Iranian embezzlement scandal
In 2011, Khavari resigned from his position at Bank Melli amid allegations of being involved in the $2.6 billion Iranian embezzlement scandal. The scandal involved using forged documents to fraudulently buy privatized state assets that included major state-owned companies; Bank Melli, which Khavari led as its chairman of the board and managing director, was accused of facilitating the fraudulent payments. Khavari shortly after flew to the United Kingdom in order to attend a meeting at Lloyds Bank and announced his resignation via a fax to Iranian officials.
In his resignation letter, Khavari implicated another bank as the source of the fraud and claimed that he was resigning in order "to respect public opinion", according to Bloomberg.
At the end of September 2011, he fled to Canada, where he has held dual-citizenship since 2005. Toronto property records under Khavari’s name date to 2001, when he took out a mortgage for a $615,000 property in North York. At one time, Khavari owned a Toronto-based company called Soaring Properties. In an attempt to protect his assets from being seized, Khavari invested in Toronto real estate by loaning money to his sons, Khashayar and Ardavan. He also signed his $3 million house in Bridle Path, Toronto, over to his daughter, Parandis Khavari, and transferred his other two houses to Mrs. Khavari. Despite numerous requests from Iranian police, Canadian authorities did not extradite Khavari. He may face the death penalty if convicted by the judicial system of Iran.
On October 31, 2011, Canadian MP Irwin Cotler called for an investigation on how Khavari acquired his Canadian citizenship.
In 2016, Bloomberg reported that Khavari and his sons have been active in the Toronto real estate market even after the scandal, and from 2012 to 2016, the family has purchased at least $12.1 million worth of properties under various names and legal entities. Additionally, they are also responsible for roughly $11 million from 10 different mortgages.
Many of the companies and institutions that Khavari has been associated with, such as Bank Sepah and Bank Melli have been sanctioned by the UN Security Council and the international community since 2007. The Security Council blacklisted Bank Sepah under Resolution 1747 and placed restrictions on Bank Melli under Resolution 1803. Avi Jorisch, a former U.S. Treasury official, expressed his opinion in the Jerusalem Post that Khavari was likely to be in violation of the Special Economic Measures (Iran) Regulations for having worked and provided financial services on behalf of a designated Canadian entity. Jorisch also said that Khavari may be in violation of Canada's Anti-Terrorism Act, along with Part II.1 of the Criminal Code (Section 83.05), and that under Section 83.05, Canadian authorities might have the right to freeze Khavari's assets. However, as of 2016, Khavari had not been subjected to any asset freeze or investigation by the Canadian authorities.
Whereabouts
The New York Times reported in July 2012 that Canada had chosen not to extradite him to Iran, since the two countries do not have a bilateral extradition agreement in place.
In February 2014, Iran's Fars News Agency reported that the head of the Interpol Office of the Iranian Police said "a few days ago, the Canadian Interpol Office claimed in a phone contact that he has escaped to a Latin American or Caribbean country but that they couldn't verify the escape yet, and this is the latest piece of information provided by the Canadian Police to us". The Iranian police dismissed the report of his departure from Canada. In March 2015, Iran's Tasnim News Agency reported that the same official said that Khavari's location in Canada had been identified and that Canadian authorities were referring his case to the Canadian judiciary.
Published works
The Book of Banking Law Consisting of Legal and Legitimate Analysis of Banking Operations and Transactions (book) published by the Banking Training Center (Iran).
"Committed Crimes on Aircraft and Hijacking" (essay)
"Press Crimes" (article)
Investigation into the Cause of Suspension of Punishment in Iran and EU Countries Laws (whitepaper)
See also
Mahafarid Amir Khosravi, a businessman executed in Iran for involvement in the embezzlement scandal
|
First Abu Dhabi Bank
|
[
"Banks established in 2017",
"Emirati companies established in 2017",
"Banks of the United Arab Emirates",
"Companies based in Abu Dhabi"
] | 878 | 8,502 |
First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) () is the largest bank in the United Arab Emirates. It was formed following a merger between First Gulf Bank (FGB) and National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD).
FAB offers financial solutions, products and services through its Corporate and Investment Banking and Personal Banking franchises.
Headquartered in Abu Dhabi in Khalifa Business Park, the bank has a presence in five continents: Asia Pacific (APAC), Europe, Americas, Middle East and Africa (EAMEA).
History
First Abu Dhabi Bank was formed as a result of a merger between FGB and NBAD. On 3 July 2016, the two UAE banks announced that their boards of directors had voted unanimously on the recommendation to shareholders for the merger of the two entities. The transaction was approved by the respective shareholders on 7 December 2016. The transaction was executed through a share swap, with FGB shareholders receiving 1.254 NBAD shares for each FGB share they held. The merger led to the creation of the UAE’s largest bank, First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) in April 2017.
The launch of FAB’s new brand identity combined the ‘Abu Dhabi’ and ‘First’ identities from NBAD and FGB, the First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) name reflects the two banks’ roots in the region. The bank adopted the acronym F.A.B in its logo, which also features the “Awwal” (First) brand mark, enlarged to represent growth and leadership.
In 2019, the bank began international expansion with the start of operations in Saudi Arabia.
In 2019, Qatar filed a lawsuit against three banks that were involved in the 2017 plans to devalue the Qatari riyal. Suit against two banks, First Abu Dhabi Bank and Saudi Arabia’s Samba Bank were filed in New York, while the lawsuit against the private bank, Banque Havilland, was filed in London. In 2023, the Financial Conduct Authority fined Banque Havilland £10 million for its involvement in the plans, which were also forwarded to an Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund official.
The Bank's net profit declined from AED 12.5 billion in 2019 to AED 10.6 billion in 2020.
In January 2021, Hana Al Rostamani has been appointed as group chief executive officer. Company said its net profits were US$3.4 billion at the end of 2021, 19 percent up from than previous year.
Recognitions
FAB has been ranked by Global Finance as the safest bank in the UAE and the Middle East and the best bank in the UAE.
The Banker’s Top 1000 World Banks 2020 list, measured by Tier 1 capital, ranked FAB as number one in the UAE, second in the Middle East and 85th across the globe – in addition to ranking the bank #109 by assets in the same list.
FAB was also ranked first in the UAE, 4th in the Arab world and 303rd globally in Forbes annual ranking of the world’s 2000 largest public companies.
Financial performance
For the year 2022, First Abu Dhabi Bank has posted a net profit of AED 13.4 billion.
|
Opus Global
|
[
"Companies based in Budapest",
"Companies listed on the Budapest Stock Exchange",
"Hungarian brands",
"Economy of Hungary",
"1912 establishments in Hungary",
"Multinational companies headquartered in Hungary",
"Asset management companies"
] | 761 | 6,390 |
Opus Global is a Hungarian industrial conglomerate and asset management company, headquartered in Budapest, Hungary. Opus Global's subsidiaries play a significant role in Hungary's strategically important industries.
Opus Global has a primary listing on the Budapest Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the BUX Index. Since 2018, Opus Global has been a continuous member of the MSCI Emerging Markets Small Cap, and MSCI ACWI Small Cap indexes, and also member of the Vienna Stock Exchange's CECE index.
History
Foundation
Since its foundation in 1912, Opus Global has gone through many turning points until it took its current form. Among these, it should be mentioned that when the Opus Global became a member of the issuer circle of the Budapest Stock Exchange, its shares were listed on the BSE from 1998. From 1999 to 2009, a major reorganization program was carried out, as a result of which a holding primarily dealing with the management and asset management of companies of various profiles was created.
The last 10 years
2017 was a milestone in the life of Opus Global, when major transformations took place in both the ownership and management structure. In the first half of 2017, Lőrinc Mészáros became the majority owner of the company. As a result of the transformation, Opus Global's numbers fundamentally strengthened and entered the Budapest Stock Exchange's premium category, and have been a member of BSE's prominent index baskets.
Opus Global borrowed 130 million euros to buy the gas and electricity distribution firm Titász from MKB Bank.
In order to create market embeddedness and investor confidence, Opus Global merged with Konzum Nyrt. in 2019, a merger of two public issuers was unprecedented in the history of the Hungarian stock market. As a result of the capital increases, Opus Global became the Budapest Stock Exchange's 5th largest company, with several industrial and manufacturing companies from the main sectors of the Hungarian economy in its portfolio.
In 2023's first quarter Opus Global reported considerable improvement on bottom line on a consolidated level for the first quarter. Although it is not a surprise that the company faced a major increase in (especially material related) costs, operating income could eventually outperform this large increase, which could therefore translate into a meaningful improvement on EBIT. Important to mention is that the company has reported that no significant acquisitions took place that would blur data comparability.
Shareholder structure
As of June 2023, Opus Global's shareholder structure is:
48.94% - Free Float
22.86% - Lőrinc Mészáros
21.68% - KONZUM PE Private Equity Fund
6.52% - Own Shares
Awards
Budapest Stock Exchange's Capital increase of the Year (2018, 2019)
Construction Industry Excellence Award (2019)
Hungarian Product Grand Prix (2001, 2004, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2013)
Agricultural Investment of the Year (2019)
Hungarian Agricultural Quality Award (2020)
See also
Economy of Hungary
Industry of Hungary
List of companies of Hungary
List of companies based in Budapest
|
Mortgage Assumption Value
|
[
"Mortgage industry of the United States",
"Mortgage",
"Loans"
] | 558 | 3,915 |
The mortgage assumption value (MAV) is the cash equivalent, at the current point in time, of all future savings that could be achieved by assuming an existing low-interest-rate home mortgage loan rather than taking out a new higher interest rate loan and accounting for the time value of money.
This value is associated with a specific mortgage and fluctuates as currently, available interest rates vary relative to the subject mortgage. Value is created and grows whenever the prevailing interest rate for a new mortgage loan is greater than and increasing when compared to the interest rate of the assumable mortgage. Similarly, the mortgage assumption value shrinks as market rates fall and hits zero if the market rate is less than or equal to the rate on the assumable mortgage.
VA loans can be assumed by anyone and are not required to be passed on to another veteran.
The mortgage assumption value can be calculated as the net present value of the sum of the future monthly payment savings due to the assumable loan rate being lower than the prevailing new loan interest rate. The calculation may take different forms, below are two examples:
Calculate the monthly payment for a new hypothetical loan using the prevailing rate, current unpaid principal balance of the assumable loan, and remaining term in months on original assumable loan. Take the difference between this higher payment and the original assumable payment yielding the monthly savings amount. Last, discount using the prevailing rate the series of monthly savings to current value at prevailing rates.
Discount the remaining series of payments from the assumable loan using the prevailing rate as the discount rate. Then take the difference between this net present value and the actual unpaid principal balance. This also yields the mortgage assumption value and is computationally simpler than the first approach.
An illustrative example using the 30-year fixed rate mortgage (historically the most common mortgage type in the United States) for comparison:
A $100,000 assumable mortgage loan with a 4.00% rate has a corresponding monthly loan payment of $477.42. In this example let’s say the loan is assumed after 3 years (36 months) and that the unpaid principal balance will have reduced to $94,499. Now calculate the payment at a prevailing rate of 6.00%, principal of $94,499 and term of 27 years (original 30 years less 3 years until assumption) and the hypothetical payment is would be $589.66. Take the difference between this hypothetical payment and the actual assumable payment to calculate a monthly savings of $112.24. Now discount using a prevailing rate of 6.00% the 324-month (27 years) series of $112.24 hypothetical cash flows to yield a [net present value] of $17,988.
See also
Mortgage note
Mortgage assumption
|
Debt restructuring
|
[
"Bankruptcy",
"Debt",
"Insolvency"
] | 2,906 | 24,384 |
Debt restructuring is a process that allows a private or public company or a sovereign entity facing cash flow problems and financial distress to reduce and renegotiate its delinquent debts to improve or restore liquidity so that it can continue its operations.
Replacement of old debt by new debt when not under financial distress is called "refinancing". Out-of-court restructurings, also known as s, are increasingly becoming a global reality.
Motivation
Debt restructuring involves reduction of debt and an extension of payment terms and is usually less expensive than bankruptcy. The main costs associated with debt restructuring are the time and effort spent negotiating with bankers, creditors, vendors, and tax authorities.
In the United States, small business bankruptcy filings cost at least $50,000 in legal and court fees, and filing costs in excess of $100,000 are common. By some measures, only 20% of firms survive Chapter 11 bankruptcy filings.
Historically, debt restructuring has been the province of large corporations with financial wherewithal. In the Great Recession that began with the 2008 financial crisis, a component of debt restructuring called debt mediation emerged for small businesses (with revenues under $5 million). Like debt restructuring, debt mediation is a business-to-business activity and should not be considered the same as individual debt reduction involving credit cards, unpaid taxes, and defaulted mortgages.
In 2010 debt mediation has become a primary way for small businesses to refinance in light of reduced lines of credit and direct borrowing. Debt mediation can be cost-effective for small businesses, help end or avoid litigation, and is preferable to filing for bankruptcy. While there are numerous companies providing restructuring for large corporations, there are few legitimate firms working for small businesses. Legitimate debt restructuring firms only work for the debtor client (not as a debt collection agency) and should charge fees based on success.
Among the debt situations that can be worked out in business-to-business debt mediation are: lawsuits and judgments, delinquent property, machinery, equipment rentals/leases, business loans or mortgage on business property, capital payments due for improvements/construction, invoices and statements, disputed bills and problem debts.
Methods
Debt-for-equity swap
In a debt-for-equity swap, a company's creditors generally agree to cancel some or all of the debt in exchange for equity in the company.
Debt for equity deals often occur when large companies run into serious financial trouble, and often result in these companies being taken over by their principal creditors. This is because both the debt and the remaining assets in these companies are so large that there is no advantage for the creditors to drive the company into bankruptcy. Instead the creditors prefer to take control of the business as a going concern. As a consequence, the original shareholders' stake in the company is generally significantly diluted in these deals and may be entirely eliminated, as is typical in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
Agreements to swap debt for equity also often occur because companies are obliged to comply, per the terms of a contract with certain lending institutions, with specified debt to equity ratios.
Debt-for-equity swaps are one way of dealing with sub-prime mortgages. A householder unable to service his debt on a $180,000 mortgage for example, may by agreement with his bank have the value of the mortgage reduced (say to $135,000 or 75% of the house's current value), in return for which the bank will receive 50% of the amount by which any resale value, when the house is resold, exceeds $135,000.
Bondholder haircuts
A debt-for-equity swap may also be called a "bondholder haircut". Bondholder haircuts at large banks were advocated as a potential solution for the subprime mortgage crisis by prominent economists:
Economist Joseph Stiglitz testified that bank bailouts "are really bailouts not of the enterprises but of the shareholders and especially bondholders. There is no reason that American taxpayers should be doing this". He wrote that reducing bank debt levels by converting debt into equity will increase confidence in the financial system. He believes that addressing bank solvency in this way would help address credit market liquidity issues.
Economist Jeffrey Sachs has also argued in favor of such haircuts: "The cheaper and more equitable way would be to make shareholders and bank bondholders take the hit rather than the taxpayer. The Fed and other bank regulators would insist that bad loans be written down on the books. Bondholders would take haircuts, but these losses are already priced into deeply discounted bond prices."
If the key issue is bank solvency, converting debt to equity via bondholder haircuts presents an elegant solution to the problem. Not only is debt reduced along with interest payments, but equity is simultaneously increased. Investors can then have more confidence that the bank (and financial system more broadly) is solvent, helping unfreeze credit markets. Taxpayers do not have to contribute dollars and the government may be able to just provide guarantees in the short term to buttress confidence in the recapitalized institution. For example, Wells Fargo owed its bondholders $267 billion, according to its 2008 annual report. A 20% haircut would reduce this debt by about $54 billion, creating an equal amount of equity in the process, thereby recapitalizing the bank significantly.
Exit consent
Exit consent is a formal agreement that allows a majority group of creditors holding sovereign bonds to change the non-financial terms of the bonds in a way that makes the bonds effectively worthless for the minority holdouts, motivating them to accept a restructuring offer. Thus creditors willing to restructure can outmaneuver holdouts by using the supermajority voting features of existing bonds to secure changes, which reduce their value as they are tendered in exchange for restructured debt. Government bond issued by sovereign nations are often perceived as safe investments. But over time, countries in difficult economic situations have needed to restructure their debt structure, or see their national economy collapse. During that process, the country must restructure the outstanding debt by offering its old bonds holders new instruments that reflect new financial terms. It is a process that sees the emergence of holdout creditors who refuse the proposed restructuring, posing a problem to the reorganization process the holdout problem. Therefore, the threat of an exit consent is used to encourage (or coerce) minority creditors to accept the exchange offer so they are not left with diminished bonds.
Other debt repayment agreements
Most defendants who cannot pay the enforcement officer in full at once enter into negotiations with the officer to pay by installments. This process is informal but cheaper and quicker than an application to the court.
Payment by this method relies on the cooperation of the creditor and the enforcement officer. It is therefore important not to offer more than you can afford or to fall behind with the payments you agree. If you do fall behind with the payments and the enforcement officer has seized goods, they may remove them to the sale room for auction.
Subchapter V in the US was created in 2019 by the Small Business Reorganization Act (SBRA). It offers accelerated deadlines and the speed with which the plan is confirmed reduces cost. Congress temporarily increased the ceiling of maximum funded debt eligibility to $7.5mm during COVID-19, and extended it in 2022.
In various jurisdictions
Canada
Two common avenues for restructuring debt exist in Canada: a Division 1 Proposal and a CCAA filing. The former is available to both corporations and individuals who owe $250,000 or more to creditors. The latter is available only to larger companies owing more than $5 million to their creditors.
A Division 1 Proposal is a last resort. Created by the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act of 1985, the option to file Division 1 is not an option to be taken lightly as, in the event that the stipulations within the proposal get voted down by creditors or not signed off by the court, one falls into bankruptcy. Division 1 proposals allow companies to be briefly relieved of lawsuits by creditors, as well as they allow companies to stop paying money to their unsecured creditors while the proposal is being reviewed. A Division 1 Proposal to restructure debts must secure 66% of the creditors' votes set in proportion to how much they are owed, and 50% plus one of all creditors votes in terms of number of creditors. On top of such democratic approval, the court itself has to approve how the debts get restructured. Withstanding all such approval, a business or individual can continue operating as normal; otherwise, a business or individual is obliged to proceed into bankruptcy filing.
CCAA filings were created by the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act, a piece of legislation first put forward and passed in 1933 and updated later in 1985. A CCAA filing allows a Canadian company to have a window in time (typically between 30 and 90 days) in which they can renegotiate and reorganize their debt payment plans with creditors. During this brief period, creditors cannot seize any money that is owed to them. These windows of time may be renewed multiple times over. Once a CCAA application gets finally rejected, the company in question can be forced into receivership or bankruptcy. This could happen for a number of reasons, chief among them being a failure to come to an agreement with creditors as to how to restructure the debt.
Under Swiss law, debt restructuring may occur out of court, or through a court-mediated debt restructuring agreement that may provide for a partial waiver of debts, or for a liquidation of the debtor's assets by the creditors.
United Kingdom
The majority of debt restructuring within the United Kingdom is undertaken on a collaborative basis between the borrower and the creditors (a company voluntary arrangement or individual voluntary arrangement). Historically, such a contract was called a composition with creditors. Should this be unsatisfactory in the first instance, the court may be asked to mediate and appoint administrators.
United States
Among the most common forms of in-court debt restructuring for firms in the United States are Chapter 11 and Chapter 12 bankruptcy.
Under Chapter 11, firms form a plan to reorganize their credit obligations, such that they are able to continue operating while they are going through with their debt repayment plans and after they become solvent. Creditors are given promises to be paid back with firms' future earnings. The nature of these promises can be shaped in a number of ways. In situations where every single impaired creditor of a firm agrees to a settled schedule of repayment, the plan formed is known as a "consensual plan." When a certain class a firm owes does not accept a restructuring plan, said plan may still be approved pursuant to the United States Bankruptcy Code. Such plans are colloquially referred to as "cramdown plans." Chapter 11 is considered to be one of the most expensive and complicated forms of bankruptcy to file. The vast majority of Chapter 11 bankruptcy cases filed end up allowing company management to go forward running the business as usual; however, in certain exceptional cases (fraud, gross incompetence, etc.) the courts do not allow the business the privilege of simply maintaining a "debtor in possession" status. In said cases, a trustee is appointed by the court to run the business until all bankruptcy proceedings are completed.
Chapter 12 Bankruptcy is a form of debt restructuring in the United States available to farms and fisheries exclusively; said businesses could be family-owned or owned by corporations. The special debt restructuring rights accorded to farmers and fisheries consequent line 12 of the United States Bankruptcy Code were first granted by Congress in 1986 amid an agricultural debt crisis. Food commodity prices were caught in a downward spiral in the years leading up to 1986, pushing U.S. farmers' debts to levels above $200 billion. This 12th line of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code was initially added only as a temporary measure and remained as a temporary measure until 2005, when it became permanent. Chapter 12 was of great benefit to farmers, because Chapter 11 was often too expensive for family farms and generally only useful for sizeable corporations, while Chapter 13 was mainly of use to individuals attempting to restructure very small debts. Farms and fisheries, being midsize and seasonal in nature, were thus in need of a more flexible legal framework through which they could restructure their debts.
Firms in the United States are not limited to only using the legal system to manage debts they are incapable of repaying. Out-of-court restructuring, or workouts, constitute consensual agreements between firms and their creditors to adjust debt obligations, mainly for the purpose of evading the costly legal fees associated with Chapter 11. The decision as to whether to enter a workout or take the issue into court is, in large a part, a function of the creditors' and debtors' respective perceptions of how much can be gained or lost through a Chapter 11 proceeding. Creditors know that once Chapter 11 has commenced, a degree of negotiating leverage is lost, as judicial authorities may impose alterations of claims without regard to creditors' consent. On numerous occasions, merely throwing out the threat of filing bankruptcy has initiated the process of coming to a private agreement.
Italy
Debt restructuring within Italy may occur either out of court (ex article 167 of the Italian Bankruptcy Law) when a waiver or simple debt rescheduling is required, or through a court-mediated debt restructuring agreement (ex article 182/bis of the Italian Bankruptcy Law) and may provide for a partial waiver of debts, mandatory recapitalization of the debtor, or for a liquidation of certain debtor's assets to repay privileged creditors.
Germany
While being famous for its efficiency in other matter, this is not true for debt restructuring. Many German companies prefer to restructure their debts using the English scheme of arrangement proceedings because they believe that the German restructuring law is not very helpful. The main reason for this is that binding a dissenting minority is only possible under formal insolvency proceedings in Germany.
Corporate restructuring
As the incidence of corporate failures has increased in part due to current economic climate, so a more "standard" approach to restructuring has developed. Although every case has unique characteristics, the process of restructuring follows a number of important phases. Initially, declining financial performance will cause key financial covenants - for example, leverage ratios - along with the company's underlying cash position to become tight and the prospect of the company needing to restructure will become more obvious to creditors and the debtor alike. This triggers a gathering of creditors and other stakeholders, in anticipation of a breach of financial covenants, a crisis of liquidity, or impending debt instruments coming due that will not be able to be refinanced, all of which could be the impetus for a bankruptcy taking place if not rectified.
The lending group (typically comprising corporate finance divisions of banks) will normally commission a corporate advisory group to review the business and its financial position. This will form the basis of any restructuring of facilities. The lending group will typically appoint a Corporate Restructuring Officer (CRO) to assist management in the turnaround of the business, and embracing the recommendations presented by the banking group and the corporate advisory report.
See also
Debt relief
Debt settlement
Troubled debt restructuring
Restructuring
|
Ihor Palytsia
|
[
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"Living people",
"People from Lutsk",
"Independent politicians in Ukraine",
"Sixth convocation members of the Verkhovna Rada",
"Seventh convocation members of the Verkhovna Rada",
"Ninth convocation members of the Verkhovna Rada",
"Governors of Odesa Oblast",
"Ukrainian businesspeople in the oil industry",
"Ukrainian billionaires",
"Petro Poroshenko Bloc politicians",
"FC Volyn Lutsk",
"Ukrainian football chairmen and investors",
"Ukrnafta people"
] | 1,155 | 11,864 |
Ihor Petrovych Palytsia (; born 10 December 1972) is a Ukrainian businessman and politician. From May 2014 until May 2015 he worked as Governor of Odesa Oblast. In November 2015 Palytsia was elected chairman of the Volyn Oblast regional parliament. In the July 2019 Ukrainian parliamentary election Palytsia won a seat as an independent candidate. In parliament he joined the For the Future faction.
Biography
Palytsia was born 10 December 1972 in Lutsk. In 1994, he graduated from the Lesya Ukrainka Volyn National University in his place of birth. Since 1993 he has been a businessman and he was a board member of (the national oil and gas company of Ukraine) Naftogaz from 2003 till 2007. Palytsia unsuccessfully took part in the 2006 Ukrainian parliamentary election for the Peasant Party of Ukraine. The party won 0,31% of the votes.
In the 2007 Ukrainian parliamentary election Palytsia was elected MP (as #68 on the party list) of Our Ukraine–People's Self-Defense Bloc. In the 2012 Ukrainian parliamentary election he was elected with 40.27% of the votes in simple-majority constituency #22 (situated in Lutsk) as a non-party affiliate. He did not enter any faction in the Verkhovna Rada (parliament).
Palytsia was appointed by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko Governor of Odesa Oblast on 6 May 2014, 4 days after the 2 May 2014 Odesa clashes that killed more than 40 people.
In the 2014 Ukrainian parliamentary election Palytsia was again re-elected into parliament; this time after placing 34th on the electoral list of Petro Poroshenko Bloc. He stayed on as Governor till 30 May 2015 when President Poroshenko appointed Mikheil Saakashvili Governor of Odesa Oblast.
In July 2015 Palytsia became a member of the political council of the party UKROP. On 26 November 2015 he was elected chairman of the Volyn Oblast regional parliament.
In the July 2019 Ukrainian parliamentary election Palytsia won a seat as an independent candidate. In parliament he joined the For the Future faction. May 2020 Palytsia was elected chairman of the For the Future party. According to Palytsia For the Future is de facto a continuation of UKROP.
Political image
In the spring of 2014, the Ukrainian press mentioned Palytsia as being close to Ukrainian oligarch (and then fellow Governor of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast) Ihor Kolomoyskyi. He was a key figure in providing financial backing for the establishment of 18th Marine Bataillon providing equipment to it on a personal expense. In August 2021 Ukrainska Pravda reported that Palytsia and Kolomoyskyi no longer shared business assets.
Honored Economist of Ukraine (September 2004)
Order of Merit, 3rd class (January 2009)
Recipient of the Yevhen Chykalenko Prize (October 2013)
|
Barry Zubrow
|
[
"1953 births",
"Living people",
"Jewish American bankers",
"American investment bankers",
"21st-century American Jews",
"Goldman Sachs people",
"JPMorgan Chase people",
"University of Chicago Booth School of Business alumni",
"University of Chicago Law School alumni"
] | 765 | 6,745 |
Barry L. Zubrow (born February 19, 1953) is an American business executive and investment banker. Spending most of his career at Goldman Sachs, including in key leadership roles, he subsequently served as the Chief Risk Officer of JPMorgan Chase during the 2008 financial crisis. He was later appointed the Head of Corporate and Regulatory Affairs at that company between January and November 2012.
Early life and education
Born to a Jewish family, Zubrow earned a B.A. from Haverford College and both his J.D. and M.B.A from the University of Chicago.
Career
Zubrow started his career in investment banking with Goldman Sachs in 1979 and becoming a partner in 1988. Between 1997 and 2003 he was Chief Administrative Officer and Head of the Operations and Administration division. He also was elected as the Chief Credit Officer.
Zubrow was Chief Risk Officer of JPMorgan Chase & Co until January 13, 2012, including during the 2008 financial meltdown when the company lost $2 billion and later when the company's investment practices were under Federal investigation after a multi-billion dollar trading loss. Later that year he was appointed as the company's head of corporate regulatory affairs.
In November, 2012, Zubrow left JP Morgan.
Zubrow is CEO and President of ITB LLC, a private investment firm, and served as a Director of Nuvelo Inc. since February 2, 2004 and its Lead Independent Director since September 2005. He was a Director of GSC Capital Corp, and served as the Vice Chairman of Nuvelo. He serves on the Board of Directors of CIBC, a major Canadian investment bank, as well as of Promontory Financial Group, a financial services-related consulting firm. He also sits on the board of Arc Logistics Partners LP, a public midstream oil and gas company.
Zubrow is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations as well the Committee on Capital Markets Regulation.
Personal life
In 1986, he married Jan Rock in a Jewish ceremony in Cedarhurst, New York.
|
St. Joe Company
|
[
"Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange",
"Real estate companies established in 1936",
"Companies based in Panama City, Florida",
"Pulp and paper companies of the United States",
"Alfred I. du Pont",
"1936 establishments in Florida",
"Manufacturing companies established in 1936",
"Real estate companies of the United States"
] | 4,656 | 35,903 |
The St. Joe Company is a land development company headquartered in Panama City Beach, Florida. Founded in 1936 and until 1966 known as St. Joe Paper Company, the company still operates a forestry division but is primarily engaged in real estate development and asset management. The company's land holdings are concentrated in Northwest Florida with the vast majority located in Bay and Walton counties. Of the 110,500 acres The St. Joe Company owns that fall within the Bay-Walton Sector Plan, 53,000 acres were placed into conservation by the company. The company develops its land for a variety of uses including residential neighborhoods, hotels, apartment communities, leasable commercial space, office buildings and medical facilities among others.
Company History & Overview
The St. Joe Company (then St. Joe Paper Company) was founded in 1936, and at one point was the second largest private landholder in the state of Florida, owning more than a million acres of property in the state. Over time, properties in other parts of the state were sold as the Company began to focus on strategic land holdings in Northwest Florida.
The St. Joe Company transitioned from a paper/industrial focus to land development, and in 2010 moved its corporate offices from Jacksonville, FL to the Walton County/Bay County area to be closer to the majority of their future development holdings.
In 2010, Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport (ECP) opened on 4,000 acres of land donated by The St. Joe Company. At the time, the old airport being replaced handled about 300,000 passengers per year. In 2022, approximately 1.5 million passengers flew through ECP.
In 2014 The St. Joe Company sold more than 380,000 acres – to AgReserves for $562 million, retaining strategic land holdings concentrated in Northwest Florida.
Eventually – in 2020 – the company HQ moved into the newly constructed corporate offices in the Beckrich Office Park on R. Jackson Blvd. in Panama City Beach.
Today, the majority of The St. Joe Company's land holdings are in the Bay/Walton County area, 110,500 acres of which are being developed under a 50-year plan, with 53,000 acres being placed into conservation.
The St. Joe Company’s current total land holdings in Northwest Florida (including areas outside of the Bay-Walton Sector Plan) is about 171,000 acres.
The 50-year gives legal rights for The St. Joe Company to develop more than 170,000 residential dwelling units, more than 22 million square feet of retail, commercial and industrial space and more than 3,000 hotel rooms on lands it owns within Bay and Walton Counties.
Development Activity
The St. Joe Company's primary activity is development of its land holdings in Northwest Florida. While doing so it also places tens of thousand of acres of land into permanent conservation. The Company divides its development projects into three main segments: residential, commercial and hospitality. In addition to its development activities, the Company operates many assets in its commercial and hospitality segments.
Residential Real Estate
The St. Joe Company's residential development activities consist primarily of single family home neighborhoods, active adult communities and workforce housing.
Development of the waterfront community of WaterColor was completed in 2022. The WaterColor community features more than 1,000 residences, a 67-room hotel, shops and restaurants and numerous parks spread over 499 acres.
Following the WaterColor community, St. Joe developed the resort communities of Watersound Beach and neighboring Watersound West Beach. Residential communities that the company continues to develop with new phases include Watersound Origins in Walton County Florida, Breakfast Point in Panama City Beach, Ward Creek in Bay County Florida and WindMark Beach - a master-planned community near Port St. Joe, Florida, among others.
With joint venture partner Minto Communities USA, St. Joe broke ground on Latitude Margaritaville Watersound, a Jimmy Buffet-Buffett themed 55 and older community, in 2020. In 2022, the community celebrated its 1,000th home sale. The first phase of the Latitude Margaritaville Watersound community is planned for 3,500 homes with additional phases to follow.
In response to the housing shortage created by the destruction from Hurricane Michael in 2018, The St. Joe Company began the development of three new communities in eastern Bay County, Florida: College Station, Park Place and Titus Park. Since that time, each of these communities has seen development of additional phases making way for more homesites.
Hospitality Operations
The St. Joe Company owns several hospitality assets in Northwest Florida. The popular beach vacation towns of Panama City Beach and South Walton County, Florida are home to several St. Joe hotels including WaterColor Inn, Watersound Inn, The Pearl Hotel, The Lodge 30A, Home2 Suites by Hilton, Camp Creek Inn, Hilton Garden Inn Panama City Airport, Homewood Suites Panama City Beach, Hotel Indigo Panama City Marina and Embassy Suites by Hilton Panama City Beach Resort. As of December 31, 2023, the company had an additional hotel that it plans to open in 2024. The company currently has 1,177 hotel rooms in its portfolio. Once the hotel under construction is complete, that total will increase to 1,298.
In February 2023, the Company opened The Lodge 30A, an 85-room boutique hotel in Seagrove Beach, Florida. In April 2023, The St. Joe Company opened Embassy Suites by Hilton Panama City Beach Resort featuring 255 guest suites, multiple restaurants, meeting and convention space and an outdoor 5th floor reception venue with views of the Gulf of Mexico. A 107-room Home2 Suites by Hilton in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida opened in May 2023. June 2023 saw the opening of Hotel Indigo Panama City Marina with a top floor sky bar and full-service restaurant taking advantage of the hotel's unobstructed views of St. Andrews Bay. The hotel's location in downtown Panama City, Florida is undergoing a rebuilding process after sustaining significant damage during Hurricane Michael in 2018. Camp Creek Inn opened in June 2023. This 75-room boutique inn sits on the grounds of Watersound Club, St. Joe's private membership club. Camp Creek Inn is located adjacent to Camp Creek Golf Course and a new Club amenity project that opened in April 2023 and includes pools, tennis and pickleball courts, a wellness center, dining venues, a playground, sports courts and other amenities available to club member and guests of Camp Creek Inn. In 2023, St. Joe hotels welcomed guests from all 50 states.
Additionally Watersound Club members get access to golf at the club's two golf courses: Shark's Tooth Golf Course and Camp Creek Golf Course. Also available to members is a sprawling Beach Club featuring multiple pools, tennis courts and dining venues as well as more than 1,000 feet of private Gulf of Mexico beachfront. As of December 2023, Watersound Club had members from 40 states.
St. Joe's two marinas were destroyed during Hurricane Michael in 2018. In 2022, the company completed the rebuilding of the two marina and reopened them under the name Point South Marina - Port St. Joe and Point South Marina - Bay Point. Combined, the marinas feature 427 boat slips.
Commercial Real Estate
The St. Joe Company owns and leases a diverse portfolio of commercial space - much of it located adjacent to the company's residential real estate developments and hospitality assets. The company's leasable commercial space includes shopping centers, light industrial space, warehouses and retail space totaling approximately 1 million square feet of space primarily located in Bay and Walton Counties.
The Company's VentureCrossings Enterprise Centre, an industrial park near Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport consists of more than 300,000 square feet of space. The Company has developed several commerce parks in Northwest Florida and has historically sold lots to third parties. In some cases, St. Joe builds light industrial and warehouse buildings in its commerce parks and leases the space.
Lifestyle shopping centers make up a significant portion of St. Joe's leasable space portfolio. Pier Park North in Panama City Beach has more than 320,00 square feet of leasable square feet that was 100% leased as of December 31, 2023. The company is actively developing two additional lifestyle centers. Watersound Town Center, located at the entrance to the Watersound Origins community featured approximately 89,000 square feet of leasable space with an additional 50,000 square feet under construction. Development work is underway at Watersound West Bay Center, a planned lifestyle center located at the entrance of the Latitude Margaritaville Watersound community. Watersound West Bay Center is planned for up to 500,000 square feet of leasable space at build out.
The Company's first apartment community was Pier Park Crossings, a 360-unit community within walking distance of Panama City Beach's Pier Park shopping and lifestyle center. Additional apartment communities have followed including Watersound Origins Crossings, Sea Sound Apartments and North Bay Landing. As of June 30, 2023, the Company had 1,024 multi-family units complete with an additional 359 under construction. St. Joe also owns a 107-unit assisted living community and has a 148-unit independent living community under construction that is scheduled to open in fall 2023.
In 2022, St. Joe, along with Tallahassee Memorial Health Care and the Florida State University College of Medicine broke ground on a medical campus in Panama City Beach, Florida. The first phase of the project includes an 80,000 square foot medical office building. Future plans include a 100-bed hospital and additional medical office space.
Conservation
The St. Joe Company's development activities include a long-term, large-scale framework for conservation. The Company's Bay-Walton Sector Plan, an approved framework for land use designations, includes more than 50,000 acres of conservation within the 110,500 acre plan. Much of these conversation efforts focus on protecting the quality of local waterways. Under the Bay-Walton Sector Plan, St. Joe protected nearly the entire shoreline of West Bay as well as the creeks and tributaries that flow into it. Other efforts to protect regionally significant natural resources include responsible land management and timber management on its land holdings. The Company regularly conducts prescribed burns on land to reduce the threat of wildfires and promote a healthier forest. The Company has worked with agencies including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to protect sensitive species including the red cockaded woodpecker, flatwoods salamander and gopher tortoise.
Donated Land in Bay County and Walton County
The St. Joe Company donated land for two sports parks (Frank Brown Park and the Panama City Beach Sports Complex), and two schools (Arnold High School and the A. Gary Walsingham Academy) in Panama City Beach. Land previously owned by The St. Joe Company was sold to the city of Panama City Beach to create the 2,900-acre Panama City Beach Conservation Park. In Walton County the St. Joe Company donated the land at 7800 US Hwy 98 in Miramar Beach where Ascension Sacred Heart Hospital Emerald Coast was built, and helped create a STEAM School named “The Magnet Innovation Center” on land and with facilities previously used as the company’s corporate offices at 133 S. Watersound Parkway.
Beginning
The company was founded by Edward Ball in 1936 as part of the Alfred I. du Pont Testamentary Trust. The staunchly segregationist Ball was du Pont's brother-in-law and also affiliated with the Florida Democrat political group known as "The Pork Chop Gang". Prior to the company's formal establishment, the trust had already begun land purchases in 1923. During the land booms in South Florida, the company acquired still-cheap land in the Florida Panhandle. In 1933, du Pont purchased the Apalachicola Northern Railroad.
The Apalachicola Northern Railroad had extended its network from Chattahoochee to Port St. Joe, Florida, in 1910, hoping to take advantage of increased shipping trade through the Panama Canal. However, when the Great Depression hit, business dropped off significantly. Du Pont purchased the struggling railroad, and made plans to use the infrastructure to build a paper mill, leading to the foundation of the St. Joe Company.
Du Pont drew up elaborate plans for the development of his mill town as "The Model City of the South", but died before it could be completed. His brother-in-law, Ed Ball, took control of the St. Joe Company in 1935, but never acted on the master city plan.
Construction began in 1936, and from 1938 to 1996, the company operated a paper mill at Port St. Joe, as St. Joe Paper Company. From 1938 to 1974 St. Joe Paper Company discharged mill wastewater into an unlined impoundment in the Highland View Neighborhood and St. Joe Bay. Land purchases continued throughout the 1940s and 1950s, often for "mere dollars an acre," and St. Joe eventually owned more than one million acres (4,000 km2). The company invigorated the local economy following the Depression, employing thousands at its paper mill, but wreaked havoc on the environment. The mill released sulfurous exhaust from sulfate pulping and dioxins, an unintended toxin generated by the chlorine bleaching process used to make white pulp.
By the 1950s, the company was drawing 35 million gallons of water a day from the Floridan Aquifer, seriously depleting the water table. St Joe Paper also clear-cut millions of acres of old growth forest, engaging in silviculture to replant the areas with slash pine. The practice decimated the native longleaf pine stands, reducing the species to "2 percent of its former range." Because of this, the United States Department of the Interior designated parts of the region a Critically Endangered Ecosystem.
The paper mill was most profitable in the 1960s, with products being directly marketed to company-owned box plants. However, an extended period of down time (9-months) due to market conditions in 1996 signaled the beginning of the end for the mill. After nearly sixty years, St. Joe decided to get out of the paper business. The mill was sold in 1996 to Florida Coast Paper for $390 million, and that company was able to operate and produce paper until the decline of the container board market. Florida Coast Paper closed the mill on August 16, 1998, and did not reopen. The mill was gone by 2003.
After the dismantling of the paper mill, the St. Joe Company was back in town in 2008 to unveil a $344 million plan for the former mill site that was similar to Alfred du Pont's idealized Southern town – an integrated city with upscale residential districts, entertainment venues, a thriving port, and a diverse economy. The State of Florida re-routed US 98 inland to permit development of beachfront property that would become the Windmark Beach community.
Talisman Sugar Corporation
St. Joe acquired the Talisman Sugar Company in 1972, which included almost in Palm Beach and Hendry counties in the Everglades. St. Joe received negative publicity for their south Florida sugar cane business from labor unions and environmental groups, including by Cesar Chavez of the United Farm Workers.
Additionally, pressures over environmental damage led the company to strike a deal with the federal government and state of Florida to sell its sugar business as part of an Everglades restoration project; Florida paid $133.5 million in 1999 to St. Joe Co. for the Talisman Sugar Plantation. As part of the deal, the company continued using the land for an additional five years, during which it contracted the land to Florida Crystals and other sugar growers. In order to utilize some portions of the Talisman property which were not contiguous, land swaps with other sugar growers were necessary.
Some of St. Joe's most profitable deals came from selling conservation land to the state. A total of some 90,000 acres (360 km2) were purchased by the state for $182 million. That works out to an average of over $2,000 per acre.
Post-Ball era
Following Ball's death in 1981, the company began to sell off its industrial operations and focus on land development. As a developer, St. Joe has distinguished itself as catering to more "well-heeled" clientele. Pete Rummell, formerly chairman of Walt Disney Imagineering, was hired in 1997 to lead their real estate business and became chairman and CEO. Also in 1997, St. Joe acquired Arvida Corporation.
St. Joe built a corporate headquarters on the St. Johns River in downtown Jacksonville in 2003. At the groundbreaking, Rummell said, "This is an important milestone for us. We don't get a lot of revenue from the city of Jacksonville, but it's important to who we are and what we are." The company headquarters remained in Jacksonville until 2010, when it moved its headquarters to Watersound, Florida.
The company operates through four segments:
Residential Real Estate develops large-scale, mixed-use resort, seasonal and primary residential communities, as well as sells housing units and home sites to retail customers and builders.
Commercial Real Estate develops and sells commercial properties, including retail properties, multifamily parcels, office parks and commerce parks.
Rural Land Sales markets parcels for various rural residential and recreational uses in northwest Florida. It sells parcels of undeveloped land and developed home sites within rural settings.
Forestry grows, harvests and sells timber and wood fiber. Its products primarily include pine pulpwood, timber and cypress products.
During the national downturn in the real estate market in the mid-2000s as part of the Great Recession, the company's sales suffered, with earnings dropping off by 60 percent in 2006. As a result, the company cut its workforce, exited the homebuilding market and sold its office holdings which included the corporate headquarters built in 2003.
In the late 1900s, St. Joe began to sell timber land in rural areas after deciding to focus on community and commercial development. Rummell departed in August, 2008 and was replaced by Hugh Durden as chairman of the board. Durden was also chairman of the Alfred I. duPont Testamentary Trust since 2005.
In December 2009, the company acknowledged selling two large developments at a loss, which they characterized as "non-strategic". The transactions were intended to take advantage of federal tax rules on losses from the sale of assets.
On March 18, 2010, the company announced plans to relocate their corporate headquarters to a site near the Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport when their lease expired in 2011. Most of the company's land is located in the panhandle and their success depends on development there.
At the end of February, 2011, St. Joe announced that Britt Greene had resigned as CEO and president of the company. The company's largest shareholder, Fairholme, disagreed with management's asset development plans and sought to replace certain board members. Greene and three other members resigned, and were replaced by two Fairholme employees and former Florida governor Charlie Crist.
In 2013 St. Joe Company sold 382,834 acres to AgReserves in Bay, Calhoun, Franklin, Gadsden, Gulf, Jefferson, Leon, Liberty and Wakulla counties.
Bay County
The company began marketing the panhandle region as "Florida's Great Northwest," and was the major force behind plans to relocate and dramatically expand Panama City-Bay County International Airport in the hope that a larger airport would attract wealthier home buyers. In order to attract Southwest Airlines, St. Joe Company agreed to a $26 million guarantee to cover any of Southwest Airlines' losses for a full three years to get them to commit to service. Southwest later became so successful that they asked St. Joe to release the guarantee so they could remove restrictions on flight routes into the airport. St. Joe never had to pay on this guarantee. The idea of the airport received hostility from some local taxpayers (56% opposed it in a non-binding referendum) that funded the project and environmental groups that sued St. Joe six times. Residents pointed to the fact that St. Joe already had a 50-year, 100,000-acre development plan based on the airport and quotes such as "Silicon Valley was in the middle of nowhere ...We think we can do the same thing." from Britt Greene, the company's president, as evidence that the company was out for itself in the building of the $300+ million airport. St. Joe owns about of land in the area surrounding the new airport site, and has announced plans to build 5,800 homes and of commercial space.
The company had also offered to donate about 40,000 acres (160 km2) for preservation. The project attracted quite a bit of opposition, including taxpayer and environmental groups who pointed out that the current airport was operating at only half its capacity—with 12 outbound flights a day— and argues that the new facility would primarily benefit one developer, at taxpayer expense. The new airport was approved and construction began in 2009 on donated by St. Joe. During construction even light rainfalls created mudslides that washed sediment into the surrounding wetlands with a decline in water quality as a result. By May 2009 the project had already accumulated almost $400,000 in fines for 72 water quality violations and filling in wetlands without a permit. Separately, Phoenix Construction Services, which built the airport, had already been fined in the past for filling in wetlands or allowing unfiltered runoff to flow into waterways, in violation of environmental permits; the fines brought their total to almost $2 million in environmental fines. The Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport opened on May 23, 2010, northwest of Panama City.
Since completion, the new airport has seen much heavier use than the old one. For example, in the year ending June 26, 2012, the airport had 47,604 aircraft operations, average 130 per day: 47% general aviation, 23% military, 16% airline, and 15% air taxi. 110 aircraft were then based at this airport: 78% single-engine, 14% multi-engine, and 8% jet.
In 2021 ECP set a new record for passenger numbers, reporting 1,598,492 total passengers for the year. In its last full year of operation, the old Panama City airport (PFN) saw just 313,000 passengers.
Further reading
Published on H-Florida (May, 2004).
|
Peter Bronfman
|
[
"1928 births",
"1996 deaths",
"20th-century Canadian businesspeople",
"Bronfman family",
"Canadian Jews",
"Canadian philanthropists",
"Officers of the Order of Canada",
"Businesspeople from Montreal",
"Yale University alumni",
"Canadian company founders",
"Canadian people of Russian-Jewish descent",
"Canadian businesspeople in real estate",
"Labatt Brewing Company",
"Bishop's College School alumni",
"Deaths from cancer in Ontario",
"Selwyn House School alumni"
] | 546 | 5,151 |
Peter Frederick Bronfman OC (October 2, 1929 – December 1, 1996) was a Canadian businessman and entrepreneur, born in Montreal, and member of the Toronto branch of Canada's wealthy Bronfman family. He attended Selwyn House School in Montreal and the elite Lawrenceville School in New Jersey, one of the oldest prep schools in America, and received his bachelor's degree from Yale University in 1952.
Career
Peter Frederick Bronfman was born in Montreal in 1929, a son of Allan Bronfman and nephew of Samuel Bronfman, the founder of the Seagram Company. He attended the Lawrenceville School in Lawrenceville, N.J., and received a bachelor's degree from Yale University in 1952. Bronfman was the co-founder (with his brother, Edward Bronfman) of Edper Investments, their private holding company that at its peak was estimated to control $100 billion in assets, including some of the largest corporations in Canada. He and his brother also owned the Montreal Canadiens from 1971 to 1978, winning four Stanley Cups with the team in 1973, 1976, 1977, and 1978. Bronfman also owned Labatt Brewing Company which owned the Toronto Blue Jays when they won their World Series titles in 1992 and 1993.
Personal life and legacy
On November 14, 1996, Bronfman was made an Officer of the Order of Canada. It was presented posthumously in 1997.
Bronfman died of cancer on December 1, 1996. He was survived by his third wife, Lynda Hamilton Bronfman; and three children, Linda Bronfman, Brenda Bronfman, and Bruce Bronfman.
York University's Schulich School of Business in Toronto, Canada has its business library named after him.
The G. Raymond Chang School of Continuing Education at Toronto Metropolitan University houses the Peter Bronfman Learning Centre, which is located on the seventh floor of the Heaslip House.
Further reading
Peter C. Newman, "Peter Bronfman: The gentle, lonely tycoon", Maclean's magazine (December 16, 1996)
Susan Gittins, Behind Closed Doors: The Rise and Fall of Canada's Edper Bronfman and Reichman Empires (1995)
Patricia Best and Ann Shortell, The Brass Ring: Power, Influence and the Brascan Empire (1988)
|
Bank of Sierra Leone
|
[
"Banks of Sierra Leone",
"Government of Sierra Leone",
"Central banks",
"1963 establishments in Sierra Leone",
"Banks established in 1963",
"Companies based in Freetown",
"Tower Hill (Sierra Leone)"
] | 658 | 6,209 |
The Bank of Sierra Leone is the central bank of Sierra Leone. It issues the country's currency, known as the Leone. The bank formulates and implements monetary policy, including foreign exchange.
Organisation and activities
The current governor of the Bank of Sierra Leone is Ibrahim Stevens, who was appointed by president Julius Maada Bio, and took office on the 16th November 2023 after he was approved by Parliament. The governor of the bank is appointed by the President of Sierra Leone for a term of five years.
The Bank Headquarters is at Siaka Stevens Street in the Central business district in Downtown Freetown.
The Bank is engaged in policies to promote financial inclusion and is a member of the Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI). On 20 December 2012, the member institution announced specific commitments toward AFI's Maya Declaration to move further toward the eradication of financial exclusion in Sierra Leone.
Governors
Gordon E. Hall, 1963–1966
Silvanus Nicol-Cole, 1966–1970
Samuel Lansana Bangura, 1970–1979
Arthur Salaco Christopher Johnson, 1979-1980-?
Jim Fornah, 1981–1985
Victor Bruce, 1985–1986
Abdul Rahman Turay, 1987-1992-?
Stephen Mustapha Swaray, 1993–1997
Christian Kargbo, 1997–1998
James Sanpha Koroma, 1998–2003
G. Melvin Tucker, acting, 2003
James David Rogers, 2003–2007
Samura Kamara, 2007–2009
Sheku Sambadeen Sesay, 2009–2014
Momodu Kargbo, 2014–2016
Kaifala Marah, 2016–2017
Patrick Saidu Conteh, 2017–2018
Kelfala M. Kallon, 2018- 2023
Dr. Ibrahim L. Stevens, 2023-
Directors
Dr M.C.F. Easmon, medical doctor, historian, and a founder of the Sierra Leone National Museum, 1964-1968.
Dr Claude Nelson-Williams, medical doctor, politician, and social crusader, 1964-1967.
In order to create an independent economy for the new country, the government drafted legislation to create a central bank and a new currency. The enabling legislation was passed on 27 March 1963 and the bank began operations on 4 August 1964. At the same time, the Leone was introduced to replace the British West African pound, using a decimal system of currency.
See also
Sierra Leonean leone
Sierra Leone Ministry of Finance
Banking in Sierra Leone
Economy of Sierra Leone
List of banks in Sierra Leone
List of central banks of Africa
List of central banks
|
Catherine L. Mann
|
[
"Year of birth missing (living people)",
"Living people",
"American women economists",
"American economists",
"International economists",
"George H. W. Bush administration personnel",
"Federal Reserve economists",
"Harvard University alumni",
"MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences alumni",
"Brandeis University faculty",
"Fellows of the Royal Economic Society"
] | 541 | 5,709 |
Catherine L. Mann is an American economist and a member of the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England. Before her appointment, she was the global chief economist at Citi from 2018 until 2021. She was also the chief economist at the OECD.
Education
Mann has a BA in economics, magna cum laude, from Harvard University in 1977. She then proceeded to MIT where she received a Ph.D. in international economics in 1984.
Career
Mann has worked as an economist in the Bush administration's Council of Economic Advisers where she advised on the European Monetary Union, Latin American economies and the transition economies of the former USSR.
She worked as an economist at the Federal Reserve, mainly in the bank's International Finance division.
Starting in 2006, Mann was a lecturer at Brandeis University and, in 2010, she was appointed Barbara '54 and Richard M. Rosenberg Professor of International Economics and Finance there. She left for the OECD in 2014.
Between 2014 and 2017, she was the chief economist and head of the economics department at the OECD.
She was made a Fellow of the Royal Economic Society in May 2025.
Academic contribution
Mann's work has concentrated on U.S. trade deficit and exchange rate fluctuation of the U.S. dollar.
Publications
Books
Journal articles
|
George Barnes (BBC controller)
|
[
"1904 births",
"1960 deaths",
"20th-century English businesspeople",
"Alumni of King's College, Cambridge",
"BBC executives",
"British radio executives",
"Businesspeople awarded knighthoods",
"Businesspeople from Surrey",
"English television executives",
"Knights Bachelor",
"People associated with Keele University",
"People from Byfleet",
"Presidents of the Royal Television Society"
] | 644 | 4,752 |
Sir George Reginald Barnes (13 September 1904 – 22 September 1960) was a British broadcasting executive, who was a station Controller of both BBC Radio and later BBC Television in the 1940s and 1950s. He was Principal of the University College of North Staffordshire, now Keele University, from 1956 to 1960.
Early life
He was born in Byfleet, Surrey, England. After spells at the Royal Naval Colleges in Osborne and later Dartmouth, he attended King's College, Cambridge, from 1922 to 1927.
Career
After Cambridge he returned to Dartmouth as a Master at the school there till 1930. After a short spell at the Cambridge University Press he then joined the BBC in 1935 as a Producer in the Talks Department. He produced talks with several high-profile figures, including in 1937 producing what is now the only record of author Virginia Woolf's voice in the 'Craftsmanship' edition of Words Fail Me series, broadcast on 29 April 1937. The same year he produced four talks by William Butler Yeats.
In 1946 he was promoted to be the first ever Controller of the new BBC Radio station, the Third Programme, which still exists today in the form of BBC Radio 3, as it was renamed in 1967. He held this position for four years before in October 1950 becoming the Director of BBC Television. His appointment caused the resignation of the Controller of Programmes, Norman Collins, who disagreed with a man whose background was in sound broadcasting being appointed as his superior in the television service.
It was under his tenure as Director that interest in television exploded, particularly with the screening of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953. Drawing an audience of an estimated 20 million British and 300 million worldwide viewers – an unprecedented viewership – the Coronation broadcast, when viewed later by the Queen, caused her to knight Barnes on the spot at the BBC's Lime Grove Studios. Television coverage was now nationwide, although in 1955 the service was faced with the prospect of competition for the first time when the rival ITV network was launched.
Barnes retired from broadcasting in 1956, becoming Principal of the University College of North Staffordshire, now Keele University.
Personal life
In 1927 he married Dorothy Anne, daughter of Henry Bond, Master of Trinity Hall, Cambridge 1919–1929. He died at Keele in 1960, aged 56, leaving his wife, Anne, and their son Anthony.
Publications
A List of Books printed in Cambridge at the University Press, 1521–1800. Compiled by Francis J. H. Jenkinson, Sydney Castle. Roberts and George Reginald Barnes. Edited by G. R. Barnes (1935)
The Private Papers of John, Earl of Sandwich, First Lord of the Admiralty, 1771–1782 Edited by G. R. Barnes and J. H. Owen. Four volumes (1932–38)
Publications of the Navy Records Society, vol. 69 by John Montagu, George Reginald Barnes and John Hely Owen (1932)
|
Bank Maskan
|
[
"Banks established in 1979",
"Companies listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange",
"Iranian companies established in 1979",
"Iranian entities subject to U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctions",
"Government-owned banks of Iran",
"companies based in Tehran"
] | 479 | 4,892 |
Bank Maskan (, Bānk-e Maskan), also known as the Housing Bank, is a bank in Iran. In 2008, the Central Bank banned all banks and other financial institutions, except for Maskan Bank, from providing residential mortgages.
The main predecessor entity of Bank Maskan was Bank Rahni Iran (), a specialized credit institution that was spun off from Bank Melli Iran in 1938. In 1956-1959, Bank Rahni erected a prominent central branch building on Ferdowsi Street in central Tehran, designed by architects Mohsen Foroughi and Keyghobad Zafar.
In 1979 following the Iranian Revolution, Bank Maskan was formed by merging Bank Rahni with multiple other operations such as the Iranian Construction Investment Company, Cyrus Savings and Mortgage Companies, Ekbatan, Pasargad of Tehran, and Saving Companies of Mashhad, Tabriz, Shiraz, Isfahan, Ahvaz, Gilan, Hamedan, Kermanshah, Mazandaran, Gorgan, Semnan and Abadan.
Mahmood Shayan () was appointed chief executive officer of Bank Maskan in August 2020.
Structure
Their subsidiaries include:
Housing Investment Company (; Šerkat Sarmāye Gozāri Maskan), established 1991; they received the Iran National Quality Award (جايزه ملي كيفيت ايران) in 2004
See also
Banking and Insurance in Iran
Construction in Iran
Ministry of Housing and Urban Development (Iran)
|
William Baker (British politician)
|
[
"1705 births",
"1770 deaths",
"British MPs 1747–1754",
"British MPs 1754–1761",
"British MPs 1761–1768",
"Knights Bachelor",
"Members of the Parliament of Great Britain for Plympton Erle",
"People from Hertfordshire (before 1965)",
"Merchants from London",
"Governors of the Hudson's Bay Company",
"Politicians from London",
"18th-century English merchants"
] | 465 | 4,305 |
Sir William Baker (5 November 1705 – 23 January 1770) was an English merchant and politician, a Member of the Parliament of Great Britain and Governor of the Hudson's Bay Company.
He was the son of John Baker, a London draper. He became an Alderman of London in 1739 and a director of the East India Company in 1741–5, 1746–50 and 1751–53. He was also deputy chairman (1749, 1751–52), chairman (1749–50, 1752–53), Deputy Governor (1750-60) and the 11th Governor (1760–70) of the Hudson's Bay Company. He was knighted in 1760.
He was MP for Plympton Erle from 1747 to 1768. In 1759 he built a country house in an estate at Bayfordbury in Hertfordshire.
He died in 1770. He had married Mary, the daughter of Jacob Tonson, publisher, and with her had 6 sons and a daughter. His eldest son, also William Baker, who inherited and improved Bayfordbury, was also an MP.
The community Baker Lake in Nunavut, Canada was named after him.
|
Murray R. Ballou
|
[
"1840 births",
"1914 deaths",
"American financiers",
"Burials at Mount Auburn Cemetery",
"Businesspeople from Boston",
"Harvard College alumni",
"Presidents of the Boston Stock Exchange"
] | 459 | 3,604 |
Murray Roberts Ballou (July 21, 1840 – April 28, 1914) was an American financier who led the Boston Stock Exchange from 1870 to 1900.
Early life
Ballou was born on July 21, 1840, in Boston. He was the son of publisher Maturin Murray Ballou and grandson of clergyman Hosea Ballou. Ballou attended the school of Epes Sargent Dixwell from the ages of 12 to 14 then was tutored by Luther Farnham and Sidney Willard successively. Ballou graduated from Harvard College in 1862. On December 1, 1863, he married Lucretia B. Howland of New Bedford, Massachusetts. They had four children (Maturin Howland Ballou, Elise Murray Ballou, Franklin Burgess Ballou, and Mabel Ballou). Their eldest son, Maturin Howland Ballou, died on May 15, 1898. Lucretia Ballou died on July 27, 1899.
Career
In 1865, Ballou founded a stock brokerage with classmate Benjamin Crowninshield Mifflin. Ballou was elected vice president of the Boston Stock Exchange in 1869 and became its president the following year. The exchange underwent a number of changes under Ballou's leadership. In 1879 the membership cap was expanded to 150. In 1885 it adopted a continuous session. The BSE also began using a stock ticker during Ballou's tenure as president.
In 1888 the office of president was made an honorary position and Ballou was elected to the newly created position of chairman. He continued to preside over the exchange until his retirement in 1900.
Death
Ballou died on April 28, 1914, at his home in Boston. He was survived by three of his children. He was buried in Mount Auburn Cemetery.
|
Anarcho-capitalism
|
[
"Anarcho-capitalism",
"Austrian School",
"Capitalist systems",
"Economic ideologies",
"Free market",
"Ideologies of capitalism",
"Classical liberalism",
"Libertarianism by form",
"Political ideologies",
"Right-libertarianism",
"Syncretic political movements",
"Murray Rothbard"
] | 17,671 | 163,451 |
Anarcho-capitalism (colloquially: ancap or an-cap) is a political philosophy and economic theory that advocates for the abolition of centralized states in favor of stateless societies, where systems of private property are enforced by private agencies. Anarcho-capitalists argue that society can self-regulate and civilize through the voluntary exchange of goods and services. This would ideally result in a voluntary society based on concepts such as the non-aggression principle, free markets and self-ownership. In the absence of statute, private defence agencies and/or insurance companies would operate competitively in a market and fulfill the roles of courts and the police, similar to a state apparatus.
According to its proponents, various historical theorists have espoused philosophies similar to anarcho-capitalism. While the earliest extant attestation of "anarchocapitalism" is in Karl Hess's essay "The Death of Politics" published by Playboy in March 1969, American economist Murray Rothbard was credited with coining the terms anarcho-capitalist and anarcho-capitalism in 1971. A leading figure in the 20th-century American libertarian movement, Rothbard synthesized elements from the Austrian School, classical liberalism and 19th-century American individualist anarchists and mutualists Lysander Spooner and Benjamin Tucker, while rejecting the labor theory of value. Rothbard's anarcho-capitalist society would operate under a mutually agreed-upon "legal code which would be generally accepted, and which the courts would pledge themselves to follow". This legal code would recognize contracts between individuals, private property, self-ownership and tort law in keeping with the non-aggression principle. Unlike a state, enforcement measures would only apply to those who initiated force or fraud. Rothbard views the power of the state as unjustified, arguing that it violates individual rights and reduces prosperity, and creates social and economic problems.
Anarcho-capitalists and right-libertarians cite several historical precedents of what they believe to be examples of quasi-anarcho-capitalism, including the Republic of Cospaia, Acadia, Anglo-Saxon England, Medieval Iceland, the American Old West, Gaelic Ireland, and merchant law, admiralty law, and early common law.
Anarcho-capitalism is distinguished from minarchism, which advocates a minimal governing body (typically a night-watchman state limited to protecting individuals from aggression and enforcing private property) and from objectivism (which is a broader philosophy advocating a limited role, yet unlimited size, of said government). Anarcho-capitalists consider themselves to be anarchists despite supporting private property and private institutions.
Anarcho-capitalism developed from Austrian School-neoliberalism and individualist anarchism. Almost all anarchist movements do not consider anarcho-capitalism to be anarchist because it lacks the historically central anti-capitalist emphasis of anarchism. They also argue that anarchism is incompatible with capitalist structures. According to several scholars, Anarcho-capitalism lies outside the tradition of the vast majority of anarchist schools of thought and is more closely affiliated with capitalism, right-libertarianism and neoliberalism. Traditionally, anarchists oppose and reject capitalism, and consider "anarcho-capitalism" to be a contradiction in terms, although anarcho-capitalists and some right-libertarians consider anarcho-capitalism to be a form of anarchism.
According to the Encyclopædia Britannica:Anarcho-capitalism is occasionally seen as part of the New Right.
Author J Michael Oliver says that during the 1960s, a philosophical movement arose in the US that championed "reason, ethical egoism, and free-market capitalism". According to Oliver, anarcho-capitalism is a political theory which follows Objectivism, a philosophical system developed by Ayn Rand. However, he acknowledges that his advocacy of anarcho-capitalism is "quite at odds with Rand's ardent defense of 'limited government. Professor Lisa Duggan also says that Rand's anti-statist, pro–free market stances went on to shape the politics of anarcho-capitalism.
According to Patrik Schumacher, the political ideology and programme of anarcho-capitalism envisages the radicalization of the neoliberal "rollback of the state." It also calls for the extension of "entrepreneurial freedom" and "competitive market rationality" to the point where the scope for private enterprise is all-encompassing and "leaves no space for state action whatsoever".
On the state
Anarcho-capitalists oppose the state and seek to privatize any useful service the government presently provides, such as education, infrastructure, or the enforcement of law. They see capitalism and the free market as the basis for a free and prosperous society. Murray Rothbard stated that the difference between free-market capitalism and state capitalism is the difference between "peaceful, voluntary exchange" and a "collusive partnership" between business and government that "uses coercion to subvert the free market". Rothbard argued that all government services, including defense, are inefficient because they lack a market-based pricing mechanism regulated by "the voluntary decisions of consumers purchasing services that fulfill their highest-priority needs" and by investors seeking the most profitable enterprises to invest in.
Rothbard used the term anarcho-capitalism to distinguish his philosophy from anarchism that opposes private property as well as to distinguish it from individualist anarchism. Other terms sometimes used by proponents of the philosophy include:
Individualist anarchism
Natural order
Ordered anarchy
Private-law society
Private-property anarchy
Radical capitalism
Maverick Edwards of the Liberty University describes anarcho-capitalism as a political, social, and economic theory that places markets as the central "governing body" and where government no longer "grants" rights to its citizenry.
Non-aggression principle
Writer Stanisław Wójtowicz says that although anarcho-capitalists are against centralized states, they believe that all people would naturally share and agree to a specific moral theory based on the non-aggression principle. While the Friedmanian formulation of anarcho-capitalism is robust to the presence of violence and in fact, assumes some degree of violence will occur, anarcho-capitalism as formulated by Rothbard and others holds strongly to the central libertarian nonaggression axiom, sometimes non-aggression principle. Rothbard wrote:
Rothbard's defense of the self-ownership principle stems from what he believed to be his falsification of all other alternatives, namely that either a group of people can own another group of people, or that no single person has full ownership over one's self. Rothbard dismisses these two cases on the basis that they cannot result in a universal ethic, i.e. a just natural law that can govern all people, independent of place and time. The only alternative that remains to Rothbard is self-ownership which he believes is both axiomatic and universal.
In general, the non-aggression axiom is described by Rothbard as a prohibition against the initiation of force, or the threat of force, against persons (in which he includes direct violence, assault and murder) or property (in which he includes fraud, burglary, theft and taxation). The initiation of force is usually referred to as aggression or coercion. The difference between anarcho-capitalists and other libertarians is largely one of the degree to which they take this axiom. Minarchist libertarians such as libertarian political parties would retain the state in some smaller and less invasive form, retaining at the very least public police, courts, and military. However, others might give further allowance for other government programs. In contrast, Rothbard rejects any level of "state intervention", defining the state as a coercive monopoly and as the only entity in human society, excluding acknowledged criminals, that derives its income entirely from coercion, in the form of taxation, which Rothbard describes as "compulsory seizure of the property of the State's inhabitants, or subjects."
Some anarcho-capitalists such as Rothbard accept the non-aggression axiom on an intrinsic moral or natural law basis. It is in terms of the non-aggression principle that Rothbard defined his interpretation of anarchism, "a system which provides no legal sanction for such aggression ['against person and property']"; and wrote that "what anarchism proposes to do, then, is to abolish the State, i.e. to abolish the regularized institution of aggressive coercion". In an interview published in the American libertarian journal The New Banner, Rothbard stated that "capitalism is the fullest expression of anarchism, and anarchism is the fullest expression of capitalism".
Property
Private property
Anarcho-capitalists postulate the privatization of everything, including cities with all their infrastructures, public spaces, streets and urban management systems.
Central to Rothbardian anarcho-capitalism are the concepts of self-ownership and original appropriation that combines personal and private property. Hans-Hermann Hoppe wrote:
Rothbard however rejected the Lockean proviso, and followed the rule of "first come, first served", without any consideration of how much resources are left for other individuals.
Anarcho-capitalists advocate private ownership of the means of production and the allocation of the product of labor created by workers within the context of wage labour and the free market – that is through decisions made by property and capital owners, regardless of what an individual needs or does not need. Original appropriation allows an individual to claim any never-before-used resources, including land and by improving or otherwise using it, own it with the same "absolute right" as their own body, and retaining those rights forever, regardless of whether the resource is still being used by them. According to Rothbard, property can only come about through labor, therefore original appropriation of land is not legitimate by merely claiming it or building a fence around itit is only by using land and by mixing one's labor with it that original appropriation is legitimized: "Any attempt to claim a new resource that someone does not use would have to be considered invasive of the property right of whoever the first user will turn out to be". Rothbard argued that the resource need not continue to be used in order for it to be the person's property as "for once his labor is mixed with the natural resource, it remains his owned land. His labor has been irretrievably mixed with the land, and the land is therefore his or his assigns' in perpetuity".
Rothbard also spoke about a theory of justice in property rights:
In Justice and Property Rights, Rothbard wrote that "any identifiable owner (the original victim of theft or his heir) must be accorded his property". In the case of slavery, Rothbard claimed that in many cases "the old plantations and the heirs and descendants of the former slaves can be identified, and the reparations can become highly specific indeed". Rothbard believed slaves rightfully own any land they were forced to work on under the homestead principle. If property is held by the state, Rothbard advocated its confiscation and "return to the private sector", writing that "any property in the hands of the State is in the hands of thieves, and should be liberated as quickly as possible". Rothbard proposed that state universities be seized by the students and faculty under the homestead principle. Rothbard also supported the expropriation of nominally "private property" if it is the result of state-initiated force such as businesses that receive grants and subsidies. Rothbard further proposed that businesses who receive at least 50% of their funding from the state be confiscated by the workers, writing: "What we libertarians object to, then, is not government per se but crime, what we object to is unjust or criminal property titles; what we are for is not 'private' property per se but just, innocent, non-criminal private property".
Similarly, Karl Hess wrote that "libertarianism wants to advance principles of property but that it in no way wishes to defend, willy nilly, all property which now is called private ... Much of that property is stolen. Much is of dubious title. All of it is deeply intertwined with an immoral, coercive state system".
Anarchists view capitalism as an inherently authoritarian and hierarchical system and seek the abolishment of private property. There is disagreement between anarchists and anarcho-capitalists as the former generally rejects anarcho-capitalism as a form of anarchism and considers anarcho-capitalism a contradiction in terms, while the latter holds that the abolishment of private property would require expropriation which is "counterproductive to order" and would require a state.
Common property
As opposed to anarchists, most anarcho-capitalists reject the commons. However, some of them propose that non-state public or community property can also exist in an anarcho-capitalist society. For anarcho-capitalists, what is important is that it is "acquired" and transferred without help or hindrance from what they call the "compulsory state". Deontological anarcho-capitalists believe that the only just and most economically beneficial way to acquire property is through voluntary trade, gift, or labor-based original appropriation, rather than through aggression or fraud.
Anarcho-capitalists state that there could be cases where common property may develop in a Lockean natural rights framework. Anarcho-capitalists make the example of a number of private businesses which may arise in an area, each owning the land and buildings that they use, but they argue that the paths between them become clear through customer and commercial movement. These paths may become valuable to the community, but according to them ownership cannot be attributed to any single person and original appropriation does not apply because many contributed the labor necessary to create them. In order to prevent it from falling to the "tragedy of the commons", anarcho-capitalists suggest transitioning from common to private property, wherein an individual would make a homesteading claim based on disuse, acquire title by the assent of the community consensus, form a corporation with other involved parties, or other means.
American economist Randall G. Holcombe sees challenges stemming from the idea of common property under anarcho-capitalism, such as whether an individual might claim fishing rights in the area of a major shipping lane and thereby forbid passage through it. In contrast, Hoppe's work on anarcho-capitalist theory is based on the assumption that all property is privately held, "including all streets, rivers, airports, and harbors" which forms the foundation of his views on immigration.
Intellectual property
Most anarcho-capitalists strongly oppose intellectual property (i.e., trademarks, patents, copyrights). Intellectual property is typically opposed because ideas are seen as lacking scarcity; and implementing an idea does not prevent B from implementing the same idea. Further the arbitrary nature of intellectual property is commonly criticized. Stephan N. Kinsella argues that ownership only relates to tangible assets.
Contractual society
The society envisioned by anarcho-capitalists has been labelled by them as a "contractual society" which Rothbard described as "a society based purely on voluntary action, entirely unhampered by violence or threats of violence" The system relies on contracts between individuals as the legal framework which would be enforced by private police and security forces as well as private arbitrations.
Rothbard argues that limited liability for corporations could also exist through contract, arguing that "[c]orporations are not at all monopolistic privileges; they are free associations of individuals pooling their capital. On the purely free market, those men would simply announce to their creditors that their liability is limited to the capital specifically invested in the corporation".
There are limits to the right to contract under some interpretations of anarcho-capitalism. Rothbard believes that the right to contract is based in inalienable rights and because of this any contract that implicitly violates those rights can be voided at will, preventing a person from permanently selling himself or herself into unindentured slavery. That restriction aside, the right to contract under anarcho-capitalist order would be pretty broad. For example, Rothbard went as far as to justify stork markets, arguing that a market in guardianship rights would facilitate the transfer of guardianship from abusive or neglectful parents to those more interested or suited to raising children. Other anarcho-capitalists have also suggested the legalization of organ markets, as in Iran's renal market. Other interpretations conclude that banning such contracts would in itself be an unacceptably invasive interference in the right to contract. Some anarcho-capitalist philosophies understand control of private property as part of the self, and some permit voluntary slavery. The vast majority of anarcho‑capitalists deny this, and critics of capitalism argue that this minority opinion is not unique to anarcho-capitalists, but is an essential consequence of the capitalist contract theory (wage slavery).
Included in the right of contract is "the right to contract oneself out for employment by others". While anarchists criticize wage labour describing it as wage slavery, anarcho-capitalists view it as a consensual contract. Some anarcho-capitalists prefer to see self-employment prevail over wage labor. David D. Friedman has expressed a preference for a society where "almost everyone is self-employed" and "instead of corporations there are large groups of entrepreneurs related by trade, not authority. Each sells not his time, but what his time produces".
Law and order and the use of violence
Different anarcho-capitalists propose different forms of anarcho-capitalism and one area of disagreement is in the area of law. In The Market for Liberty, Morris and Linda Tannehill object to any statutory law whatsoever. They argue that all one has to do is ask if one is aggressing against another in order to decide if an act is right or wrong. However, while also supporting a natural prohibition on force and fraud, Rothbard supports the establishment of a mutually agreed-upon centralized libertarian legal code which private courts would pledge to follow, as he presumes a high degree of convergence amongst individuals about what constitutes natural justice.
Unlike both the Tannehills and Rothbard who see an ideological commonality of ethics and morality as a requirement, David D. Friedman proposes that "the systems of law will be produced for profit on the open market, just as books and bras are produced today. There could be competition among different brands of law, just as there is competition among different brands of cars". Friedman says whether this would lead to a libertarian society "remains to be proven". He says it is a possibility that very un-libertarian laws may result, such as laws against drugs, but he thinks this would be rare. He reasons that "if the value of a law to its supporters is less than its cost to its victims, that law ... will not survive in an anarcho-capitalist society".
Anarcho-capitalists only accept the collective defense of individual liberty (i.e. courts, military, or police forces) insofar as such groups are formed and paid for on an explicitly voluntary basis. However, their complaint is not just that the state's defensive services are funded by taxation, but that the state assumes it is the only legitimate practitioner of physical forcethat is, they believe it forcibly prevents the private sector from providing comprehensive security, such as a police, judicial and prison systems to protect individuals from aggressors. Anarcho-capitalists believe that there is nothing morally superior about the state which would grant it, but not private individuals, a right to use physical force to restrain aggressors. If competition in security provision were allowed to exist, prices would also be lower and services would be better according to anarcho-capitalists. According to Molinari: "Under a regime of liberty, the natural organization of the security industry would not be different from that of other industries". Proponents believe that private systems of justice and defense already exist, naturally forming where the market is allowed to "compensate for the failure of the state", namely private arbitration, security guards, neighborhood watch groups and so on. These private courts and police are sometimes referred to generically as private defense agencies. The defense of those unable to pay for such protection might be financed by charitable organizations relying on voluntary donation rather than by state institutions relying on taxation, or by cooperative self-help by groups of individuals. Edward Stringham argues that private adjudication of disputes could enable the market to internalize externalities and provide services that customers desire.
Rothbard stated that the American Revolutionary War and the American Civil War were the only two just wars in American military history. Some anarcho-capitalists such as Rothbard feel that violent revolution is counter-productive and prefer voluntary forms of economic secession to the extent possible. Retributive justice is often a component of the contracts imagined for an anarcho-capitalist society. According to Matthew O'Keefee, some anarcho-capitalists believe prisons or indentured servitude would be justifiable institutions to deal with those who violate anarcho-capitalist property relations while others believe exile or forced restitution are sufficient. Rothbard stressed the importance of restitution as the primary focus of a libertarian legal order and advocated for corporal punishment for petty vandals and the death penalty for murders.
American economist Bruce L. Benson argues that legal codes may impose punitive damages for intentional torts in the interest of deterring crime. Benson gives the example of a thief who breaks into a house by picking a lock. Even if caught before taking anything, Benson argues that the thief would still owe the victim for violating the sanctity of his property rights. Benson opines that despite the lack of objectively measurable losses in such cases, "standardized rules that are generally perceived to be fair by members of the community would, in all likelihood, be established through precedent, allowing judgments to specify payments that are reasonably appropriate for most criminal offenses".
Morris and Linda Tannehill raise a similar example, saying that a bank robber who had an attack of conscience and returned the money would still owe reparations for endangering the employees' and customers' lives and safety, in addition to the costs of the defense agency answering the teller's call for help. However, they believe that the robber's loss of reputation would be even more damaging. They suggest that specialized companies would list aggressors so that anyone wishing to do business with a man could first check his record, provided they trust the veracity of the companies' records. They further theorise that the bank robber would find insurance companies listing him as a very poor risk and other firms would be reluctant to enter into contracts with him.
Fraud and breach of contract
There is a debate among anarcho-capitalists about how to codify the concepts and standards for 'fraud' and 'breach of contract'.
For example, Mark D. Friedman has argued that most right-libertarian theories on this topic are unconvincing because 'he has been duped, he nevertheless elects to entrust his property'. For these reasons, there have been attempts to solve this problem in other ways.
Influences
Murray Rothbard has listed different ideologies of which his interpretations have influenced anarcho-capitalism. This includes his interpretation of anarchism, and more precisely individualist anarchism; classical liberalism and the Austrian School of economic thought. Scholars additionally associate anarcho-capitalism with neo-classical liberalism, radical neoliberalism and right-libertarianism.
In both its social and individualist forms, anarchism is usually considered an anti-capitalist and radical left-wing or far-left movement that promotes libertarian socialist economic theories such as collectivism, communism, individualism, mutualism and syndicalism. Because anarchism is usually described alongside libertarian Marxism as the libertarian wing of the socialist movement and as having a historical association with anti-capitalism and socialism, anarchists believe that capitalism is incompatible with social and economic equality and therefore do not recognize anarcho-capitalism as an anarchist school of thought. In particular, anarchists argue that capitalist transactions are not voluntary and that maintaining the class structure of a capitalist society requires coercion which is incompatible with an anarchist society. The usage of libertarian is also in dispute. While both anarchists and anarcho-capitalists have used it, libertarian was synonymous with anarchist until the mid-20th century, when anarcho-capitalist theory developed.
Anarcho-capitalists are distinguished from the dominant anarchist tradition by their relation to property and capital. While both anarchism and anarcho-capitalism share general antipathy towards government authority, anarcho-capitalism favors free-market capitalism. Anarchists, including egoists such as Max Stirner, have supported the protection of an individual's freedom from powers of both government and private property owners. In contrast, while condemning governmental encroachment on personal liberties, anarcho-capitalists support freedoms based on private property rights. Anarcho-capitalist theorist Murray Rothbard argued that protesters should rent a street for protest from its owners. The abolition of public amenities is a common theme in some anarcho-capitalist writings.
As anarcho-capitalism puts laissez-faire economics before economic equality, it is commonly viewed as incompatible with the anti-capitalist and egalitarian tradition of anarchism. Although anarcho-capitalist theory implies the abolition of the state in favour of a fully laissez-faire economy, it lies outside the tradition of anarchism. While using the language of anarchism, anarcho-capitalism only shares anarchism's antipathy towards the state and not anarchism's antipathy towards hierarchy as theorists expect from anarcho-capitalist economic power relations. It follows a different paradigm from anarchism and has a fundamentally different approach and goals. In spite of the anarcho- in its title, anarcho-capitalism is more closely affiliated with capitalism, right-libertarianism, and liberalism than with anarchism. Some within this laissez-faire tradition reject the designation of anarcho-capitalism, believing that capitalism may either refer to the laissez-faire market they support or the government-regulated system that they oppose.
Rothbard argued that anarcho-capitalism is the only true form of anarchismthe only form of anarchism that could possibly exist in reality as he maintained that any other form presupposes authoritarian enforcement of a political ideology such as "redistribution of private property", which he attributed to anarchism. According to this argument, the capitalist free market is "the natural situation" that would result from people being free from state authority and entails the establishment of all voluntary associations in society such as cooperatives, non-profit organizations, businesses and so on. Moreover, anarcho-capitalists, as well as classical liberal minarchists, argue that the application of anarchist ideals as advocated by what they term "left-wing anarchists" would require an authoritarian body of some sort to impose it. Based on their understanding and interpretation of anarchism, in order to forcefully prevent people from accumulating capital, which they believe is a goal of anarchists, there would necessarily be a redistributive organization of some sort which would have the authority to in essence exact a tax and re-allocate the resulting resources to a larger group of people. They conclude that this theoretical body would inherently have political power and would be nothing short of a state. The difference between such an arrangement and an anarcho-capitalist system is what anarcho-capitalists see as the voluntary nature of organization within anarcho-capitalism contrasted with a "centralized ideology" and a "paired enforcement mechanism" which they believe would be necessary under what they describe as a "coercively" egalitarian-anarchist system.
Rothbard also argued that the capitalist system of today is not properly anarchistic because it often colludes with the state. According to Rothbard, "what Marx and later writers have done is to lump together two extremely different and even contradictory concepts and actions under the same portmanteau term. These two contradictory concepts are what I would call 'free-market capitalism' on the one hand, and 'state capitalism' on the other". "The difference between free-market capitalism and state capitalism", writes Rothbard, "is precisely the difference between, on the one hand, peaceful, voluntary exchange, and on the other, violent expropriation". He continues: "State capitalism inevitably creates all sorts of problems which become insoluble".
Traditional anarchists reject the notion of capitalism, hierarchies and private property. Albert Meltzer argued that anarcho-capitalism simply cannot be anarchism because capitalism and the state are inextricably interlinked and because capitalism exhibits domineering hierarchical structures such as that between an employer and an employee. Anna Morgenstern approaches this topic from the opposite perspective, arguing that anarcho-capitalists are not really capitalists because "mass concentration of capital is impossible" without the state. According to Jeremy Jennings, "[i]t is hard not to conclude that these ideas," referring to anarcho-capitalism, have "roots deep in classical liberalism" and "are described as anarchist only on the basis of a misunderstanding of what anarchism is." For Jennings, "anarchism does not stand for the untrammelled freedom of the individual (as the 'anarcho-capitalists' appear to believe) but, as we have already seen, for the extension of individuality and community." Similarly, Barbara Goodwin, Emeritus Professor of Politics at the University of East Anglia, Norwich, argues that anarcho-capitalism's "true place is in the group of right-wing libertarians", not in anarchism.
Some right-libertarian scholars like Michael Huemer, who identify with the ideology, describe anarcho-capitalism as a "variety of anarchism". British author Andrew Heywood also believes that "individualist anarchism overlaps with libertarianism and is usually linked to a strong belief in the market as a self-regulating mechanism, most obviously manifest in the form of anarcho-capitalism". Frank H. Brooks, author of The Individualist Anarchists: An Anthology of Liberty (1881–1908), believes that "anarchism has always included a significant strain of radical individualism, from the hyperrationalism of Godwin, to the egoism of Stirner, to the libertarians and anarcho-capitalists of today".
While both anarchism and anarcho-capitalism are in opposition to the state, they nevertheless interpret state-rejection differently. Austrian school economist David Prychitko, in the context of anarcho-capitalism says that "while society without a state is necessary for full-fledged anarchy, it is nevertheless insufficient". According to Ruth Kinna, anarcho-capitalists are anti-statists who draw more on right-wing liberal theory and the Austrian School than anarchist traditions. Kinna writes that "[i]n order to highlight the clear distinction between the two positions", anarchists describe anarcho-capitalists as "propertarians". Anarcho-capitalism is usually seen as part of the New Right.
Some anarcho-capitalists understand anarchism to mean something other than "opposition to hierarchy" and therefore consider the two traditions to be philosophically distinct. Therefore, the anarchist critique that anarcho-capitalist societies would necessarily contain hierarchies is not concerning to these anarcho-capitalists. Additionally, Rothbard discusses the difference between "government" and "governance" thus, proponents of anarcho-capitalism think the philosophy's common name is indeed consistent, as it promotes private governance, but is vehemently anti-government.
Classical liberalism
Historian and libertarian Ralph Raico argued that what liberal philosophers "had come up with was a form of individualist anarchism, or, as it would be called today, anarcho-capitalism or market anarchism". He also said that Gustave de Molinari was proposing a doctrine of the private production of security, a position which was later taken up by Murray Rothbard. Some anarcho-capitalists consider Molinari to be the first proponent of anarcho-capitalism. In the preface to the 1977 English translation by Murray Rothbard called The Production of Security the "first presentation anywhere in human history of what is now called anarcho-capitalism", although admitting that "Molinari did not use the terminology, and probably would have balked at the name". Hans-Hermann Hoppe said that "the 1849 article 'The Production of Security' is probably the single most important contribution to the modern theory of anarcho-capitalism". According to Hans-Hermann Hoppe, one of the 19th century precursors of anarcho-capitalism were philosopher Herbert Spencer, classical liberal Auberon Herbert and liberal socialist Franz Oppenheimer.
Ruth Kinna credits Murray Rothbard with coining the term anarcho-capitalism, which is – Kinna proposes – to describe "a commitment to unregulated private property and laissez-faire economics, prioritizing the liberty-rights of individuals, unfettered by government regulation, to accumulate, consume and determine the patterns of their lives as they see fit". According to Kinna, anarcho-capitalists "will sometimes label themselves market anarchists because they recognize the negative connotations of 'capitalism'. But the literature of anarcho-capitalism draws on classical liberal theory, particularly the Austrian School – Friedrich von Hayek and Ludwig von Mises – rather than recognizable anarchist traditions. Ayn Rand's laissez-faire, anti-government, corporate philosophy – Objectivism – is sometimes associated with anarcho-capitalism". Other scholars similarly associate anarcho-capitalism with anti-state classical liberalism, neo-classical liberalism, radical neoliberalism and right-libertarianism.
Paul Dragos Aligica writes that there is a "foundational difference between the classical liberal and the anarcho-capitalist positions". Classical liberalism, while accepting critical arguments against collectivism, acknowledges a certain level of public ownership and collective governance as necessary to provide practical solutions to political problems. In contrast anarcho-capitalism, according to Aligica, denies any requirement for any form of public administration, and allows no meaningful role for the public sphere, which is seen as sub-optimal and illegitimate.
Individualist anarchism
Murray Rothbard, a student of Ludwig von Mises, stated that he was influenced by the work of the 19th-century American individualist anarchists. In the winter of 1949, Rothbard decided to reject minimal state laissez-faire and embrace his interpretation of individualist anarchism. In 1965, Rothbard wrote that "Lysander Spooner and Benjamin R. Tucker were unsurpassed as political philosophers and nothing is more needed today than a revival and development of the largely forgotten legacy they left to political philosophy". However, Rothbard thought that they had a faulty understanding of economics as the 19th-century individualist anarchists had a labor theory of value as influenced by the classical economists, while Rothbard was a student of Austrian School economics which does not agree with the labor theory of value. Rothbard sought to meld 19th-century American individualist anarchists' advocacy of economic individualism and free markets with the principles of Austrian School economics, arguing that "[t]here is, in the body of thought known as 'Austrian economics', a scientific explanation of the workings of the free market (and of the consequences of government intervention in that market) which individualist anarchists could easily incorporate into their political and social Weltanschauung". Rothbard held that the economic consequences of the political system they advocate would not result in an economy with people being paid in proportion to labor amounts, nor would profit and interest disappear as they expected. Tucker thought that unregulated banking and money issuance would cause increases in the money supply so that interest rates would drop to zero or near to it. Peter Marshall states that "anarcho-capitalism overlooks the egalitarian implications of traditional individualist anarchists like Spooner and Tucker". Stephanie Silberstein states that "While Spooner was no free-market capitalist, nor an anarcho-capitalist, he was not as opposed to capitalism as most socialists were."
In "The Spooner-Tucker Doctrine: An Economist's View", Rothbard explained his disagreements. Rothbard disagreed with Tucker that it would cause the money supply to increase because he believed that the money supply in a free market would be self-regulating. If it were not, then Rothbard argued inflation would occur so it is not necessarily desirable to increase the money supply in the first place. Rothbard claimed that Tucker was wrong to think that interest would disappear regardless because he believed people, in general, do not wish to lend their money to others without compensation, so there is no reason why this would change just because banking was unregulated. Tucker held a labor theory of value and thought that in a free market people would be paid in proportion to how much labor they exerted and that exploitation or usury was taking place if they were not. As Tucker explained in State Socialism and Anarchism, his theory was that unregulated banking would cause more money to be available and that this would allow the proliferation of new businesses which would, in turn, raise demand for labor. This led Tucker to believe that the labor theory of value would be vindicated and equal amounts of labor would receive equal pay. As an Austrian School economist, Rothbard did not agree with the labor theory and believed that prices of goods and services are proportional to marginal utility rather than to labor amounts in the free market. As opposed to Tucker he did not think that there was anything exploitative about people receiving an income according to how much "buyers of their services value their labor" or what that labor produces.
Without the labor theory of value, some argue that 19th-century individualist anarchists approximate the modern movement of anarcho-capitalism, although this has been contested or rejected. As economic theory changed, the popularity of the labor theory of classical economics was superseded by the subjective theory of value of neoclassical economics and Rothbard combined Mises' Austrian School of economics with the absolutist views of human rights and rejection of the state he had absorbed from studying the individualist American anarchists of the 19th century such as Tucker and Spooner. In the mid-1950s, Rothbard wrote an unpublished article named "Are Libertarians 'Anarchists'?" under the pseudonym "Aubrey Herbert", concerned with differentiating himself from communist and socialistic economic views of anarchists, including the individualist anarchists of the 19th century, concluding that "we are not anarchists and that those who call us anarchists are not on firm etymological ground and are being completely unhistorical. On the other hand, it is clear that we are not archists either: we do not believe in establishing a tyrannical central authority that will coerce the noninvasive as well as the invasive. Perhaps, then, we could call ourselves by a new name: nonarchist." Joe Peacott, an American individualist anarchist in the mutualist tradition, criticizes anarcho-capitalists for trying to hegemonize the individualist anarchism label and make appear as if all individualist anarchists are in favor of capitalism. Peacott states that "individualists, both past and present, agree with the communist anarchists that present-day capitalism is based on economic coercion, not on voluntary contract. Rent and interest are the mainstays of modern capitalism and are protected and enforced by the state. Without these two unjust institutions, capitalism could not exist".
Anarchist activists and scholars do not consider anarcho-capitalism as a part of the anarchist movement, arguing that anarchism has historically been an anti-capitalist movement and see it as incompatible with capitalist forms. Although some regard anarcho-capitalism as a form of individualist anarchism, many others disagree or contest the existence of an individualist–socialist divide. In coming to terms that anarchists mostly identified with socialism, Rothbard wrote that individualist anarchism is different from anarcho-capitalism and other capitalist theories due to the individualist anarchists retaining the labor theory of value and socialist doctrines. Similarly, many writers deny that anarcho-capitalism is a form of anarchism or that capitalism is compatible with anarchism.
The Palgrave Handbook of Anarchism writes that "[a]s Benjamin Franks rightly points out, individualisms that defend or reinforce hierarchical forms such as the economic-power relations of anarcho-capitalism are incompatible with practices of social anarchism based on developing immanent goods which contest such as inequalities". Laurence Davis cautiously asks "[I]s anarcho-capitalism really a form of anarchism or instead a wholly different ideological paradigm whose adherents have attempted to expropriate the language of anarchism for their own anti-anarchist ends?" Davis cites Iain McKay, "whom Franks cites as an authority to support his contention that 'academic analysis has followed activist currents in rejecting the view that anarcho-capitalism has anything to do with social anarchism, as arguing "quite emphatically on the very pages cited by Franks that anarcho-capitalism is by no means a type of anarchism". McKay writes that "[i]t is important to stress that anarchist opposition to the so-called capitalist 'anarchists' does not reflect some kind of debate within anarchism, as many of these types like to pretend, but a debate between anarchism and its old enemy capitalism. ... Equally, given that anarchists and 'anarcho'-capitalists have fundamentally different analyses and goals it is hardly 'sectarian' to point this out".
Davis writes that "Franks asserts without supporting evidence that most major forms of individualist anarchism have been largely anarcho-capitalist in content, and concludes from this premise that most forms of individualism are incompatible with anarchism". Davis argues that "the conclusion is unsustainable because the premise is false, depending as it does for any validity it might have on the further assumption that anarcho-capitalism is indeed a form of anarchism. If we reject this view, then we must also reject the individual anarchist versus the communal anarchist 'chasm' style of argument that follows from it". Davis maintains that "the ideological core of anarchism is the belief that society can and should be organised without hierarchy and domination. Historically, anarchists have struggles against a wide range of regimes of domination, from capitalism, the state system, patriarchy, heterosexism, and the domination of nature to colonialism, the war system, slavery, fascism, white supremacy, and certain forms of organised religion". According to Davis, "[w]hile these visions range from the predominantly individualistic to the predominantly communitarian, features common to virtually all include an emphasis on self-management and self-regulatory methods of organisation, voluntary association, decentralised society, based on the principle of free association, in which people will manage and govern themselves". Finally, Davis includes a footnote stating that "[i]ndividualist anarchism may plausibly be re regarded as a form of both socialism and anarchism. Whether the individualist anarchists were consistent anarchists (and socialists) is another question entirely. ... McKay comments as follows: 'any individualist anarchism which supports wage labour is inconsistent anarchism. It can easily be made consistent anarchism by applying its own principles consistently. In contrast 'anarcho'-capitalism rejects so many of the basic, underlying, principles of anarchism ... that it cannot be made consistent with the ideals of anarchism.
Historical precedents
Several anarcho-capitalists and right-libertarians have discussed historical precedents of what they believe were examples of anarcho-capitalism.
Free cities of medieval Europe
Economist and libertarian scholar Bryan Caplan considers the free cities of medieval Europe as examples of "anarchist" or "nearly anarchistic" societies, further arguing:
Medieval Iceland
According to the libertarian theorist David D. Friedman, "[m]edieval Icelandic institutions have several peculiar and interesting characteristics; they might almost have been invented by a mad economist to test the lengths to which market systems could supplant government in its most fundamental functions". While not directly labeling it anarcho-capitalist, Friedman argues that the legal system of the Icelandic Commonwealth comes close to being a real-world anarcho-capitalist legal system. Although noting that there was a single legal system, Friedman argues that enforcement of the law was entirely private and highly capitalist, providing some evidence of how such a society would function. Friedman further wrote that "[e]ven where the Icelandic legal system recognized an essentially 'public' offense, it dealt with it by giving some individual (in some cases chosen by lot from those affected) the right to pursue the case and collect the resulting fine, thus fitting it into an essentially private system".
Friedman and Bruce L. Benson argued that the Icelandic Commonwealth saw significant economic and social progress in the absence of systems of criminal law, an executive, or bureaucracy. This commonwealth was led by chieftains, whose position could be bought and sold like that of private property. Being a member of the chieftainship was also completely voluntary.
American Old West
According to Terry L. Anderson and P. J. Hill, the Old West in the United States in the period of 1830 to 1900 was similar to anarcho-capitalism in that "private agencies provided the necessary basis for an orderly society in which property was protected and conflicts were resolved" and that the common popular perception that the Old West was chaotic with little respect for property rights is incorrect. Since squatters had no claim to western lands under federal law, extra-legal organizations formed to fill the void. Benson explains:
According to Anderson, "[d]efining anarcho-capitalist to mean minimal government with property rights developed from the bottom up, the western frontier was anarcho-capitalistic. People on the frontier invented institutions that fit the resource constraints they faced".
Gaelic Ireland
In his work For a New Liberty, Murray Rothbard has claimed ancient Gaelic Ireland as an example of nearly anarcho-capitalist society. In his depiction, citing the work of Professor Joseph Peden, the basic political unit of ancient Ireland was the tuath, which is portrayed as "a body of persons voluntarily united for socially beneficial purposes" with its territorial claim being limited to "the sum total of the landed properties of its members". Civil disputes were settled by private arbiters called "brehons" and the compensation to be paid to the wronged party was insured through voluntary surety relationships. Commenting on the "kings" of tuaths, Rothbard stated:
Law merchant, admiralty law, and early common law
Some libertarians have cited law merchant, admiralty law and early common law as examples of anarcho-capitalism.
In his work Power and Market, Rothbard stated:
Somalia from 1991 to 2012
Economist Alex Tabarrok argued that Somalia in its stateless period provided a "unique test of the theory of anarchy", in some aspects near of that espoused by anarcho-capitalists David D. Friedman and Murray Rothbard. Nonetheless, both anarchists and some anarcho-capitalists argue that Somalia was not an anarchist society.
Analysis and criticism
State, justice and defense
Anarchists such as Brian Morris argue that anarcho-capitalism does not in fact get rid of the state. He says that anarcho-capitalists "simply replaced the state with private security firms, and can hardly be described as anarchists as the term is normally understood". In "Libertarianism: Bogus Anarchy", anarchist Peter Sabatini notes:
Similarly, Bob Black argues that an anarcho-capitalist wants to "abolish the state to his own satisfaction by calling it something else". He states that they do not denounce what the state does, they just "object to who's doing it".
Paul Birch argues that legal disputes involving several jurisdictions and different legal systems will be too complex and costly. He therefore argues that anarcho-capitalism is inherently unstable, and would evolve, entirely through the operation of free market forces, into either a single dominant private court with a natural monopoly of justice over the territory (a de facto state), a society of multiple city states, each with a territorial monopoly, or a 'pure anarchy' that would rapidly descend into chaos.
Randall G. Holcombe argues that anarcho-capitalism turns justice into a commodity as private defense and court firms would favour those who pay more for their services. He argues that defense agencies could form cartels and oppress people without fear of competition. Philosopher Albert Meltzer argued that since anarcho-capitalism promotes the idea of private armies, it actually supports a "limited State". He contends that it "is only possible to conceive of Anarchism which is free, communistic and offering no economic necessity for repression of countering it".
Libertarian Robert Nozick argues that a competitive legal system would evolve toward a monopoly governmenteven without violating individuals' rights in the process. In Anarchy, State, and Utopia, Nozick defends minarchism and argues that an anarcho-capitalist society would inevitably transform into a minarchist state through the eventual emergence of a monopolistic private defense and judicial agency that no longer faces competition. He argues that anarcho-capitalism results in an unstable system that would not endure in the real world. While anarcho-capitalists such as Roy Childs and Murray Rothbard have rejected Nozick's arguments, with Rothbard arguing that the process described by Nozick, with the dominant protection agency outlawing its competitors, in fact violates its own clients' rights, John Jefferson actually advocates Nozick's argument and states that such events would best operate in laissez-faire. Robert Ellickson presented a Hayekian case against anarcho-capitalism, calling it a "pipe-dream" and stating that anarcho-capitalists "by imagining a stable system of competing private associations, ignore both the inevitability of territorial monopolists in governance, and the importance of institutions to constrain those monopolists' abuses".
Some libertarians argue that anarcho-capitalism would result in different standards of justice and law due to relying too much on the market. Friedman responded to this criticism by arguing that it assumes the state is controlled by a majority group that has similar legal ideals. If the populace is diverse, different legal standards would therefore be appropriate.
Rights and freedom
Negative and positive rights are rights that oblige either action (positive rights) or inaction (negative rights). Anarcho-capitalists believe that negative rights should be recognized as legitimate, but positive rights should be rejected as an intrusion. Some critics reject the distinction between positive and negative rights. Peter Marshall also states that the anarcho-capitalist definition of freedom is entirely negative and that it cannot guarantee the positive freedom of individual autonomy and independence. Anarcho-syndicalist and anti-capitalist intellectual Noam Chomsky argues that anarcho-capitalism would highly oppressive rather than guaranteeing freedom:
American philosopher Jason Brennan sympathizes with their views, but argues that the basic philosophical premises they often put forward do not have clear implications for practical implementation.
Economics and property
Social anarchists argue that anarcho-capitalism allows individuals to accumulate significant power through free markets and private property. Friedman responded by arguing that the Icelandic Commonwealth was able to prevent the wealthy from abusing the poor by requiring individuals who engaged in acts of violence to compensate their victims financially.
Anarchists argue that certain capitalist transactions are not voluntary and that maintaining the class structure of a capitalist society requires coercion which violates anarchist principles.
Some critics argue that the anarcho-capitalist concept of voluntary choice ignores constraints due to both human and non-human factors such as the need for food and shelter as well as active restriction of both used and unused resources by those enforcing property claims. If a person requires employment in order to feed and house himself, the employer-employee relationship could be considered involuntary. Another criticism is that employment is involuntary because the economic system that makes it necessary for some individuals to serve others is supported by the enforcement of coercive private property relations. Some philosophies view any ownership claims on land and natural resources as immoral and illegitimate. Objectivist philosopher Harry Binswanger criticizes anarcho-capitalism by arguing that "capitalism requires government", questioning who or what would enforce treaties and contracts.
Some right-libertarian critics of anarcho-capitalism who support the full privatization of capital such as geolibertarians argue that land and the raw materials of nature remain a distinct factor of production and cannot be justly converted to private property because they are not products of human labor. Some socialists, including individualist anarchists and mutualist anarchists who advocate market anarchism, adamantly oppose absentee ownership. Anarcho-capitalists have strong abandonment criteria, namely that one maintains ownership until one agrees to trade or gift it. Anti-state critics of this view posit comparatively weak abandonment criteria, arguing that one loses ownership when one stops personally occupying and using it as well as the idea of perpetually binding original appropriation is anathema to traditional schools of anarchism.
Critics charge that the Propertarianist perspective prevents freedom from making sense as an independent value in anarcho-capitalist theory:
Matt Zwolinski has argued that scholars influenced by Rothbard could be called "propertarians" because the concept that really plays a central role in their research is property rather than liberty.
Literature
The following is a partial list of notable nonfiction works discussing anarcho-capitalism.
Bruce L. Benson, The Enterprise of Law: Justice Without The State
To Serve and Protect: Privatization and Community in Criminal Justice
David D. Friedman, The Machinery of Freedom
Edward P. Stringham, Anarchy and the Law: The Political Economy of Choice
George H. Smith, "Justice Entrepreneurship in a Free Market"
Gerard Casey, Libertarian Anarchy: Against the State
Hans-Hermann Hoppe, Anarcho-Capitalism: An Annotated Bibliography
A Theory of Socialism and Capitalism
Democracy: The God That Failed
The Economics and Ethics of Private Property
Linda and Morris Tannehill, The Market for Liberty
Michael Huemer, The Problem of Political Authority
Murray Rothbard, founder of anarcho-capitalism:
For a New Liberty
Man, Economy, and State
Power and Market
The Ethics of Liberty
See also
Agorism
Consequentialist libertarianism
Counter-economics
Creative disruption
Crypto-anarchism
Definition of anarchism and libertarianism
Market anarchism
Neo-feudalism
Natural-rights libertarianism
Privatization in criminal justice
Voluntaryism
Anarchist communism
Further reading
Brown, Susan Love (1997). . In Carrier, James G., ed. Meanings of the Market: The Free Market in Western Culture (illustrated ed.). Oxford: Berg Publishers. p. 99. .
|
David Brown (1734–1804)
|
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"People from Dalkeith",
"British emigrants",
"Scottish company founders",
"Ship owners",
"Immigrants to Denmark",
"Merchants from Denmark–Norway"
] | 567 | 5,153 |
David Brown (24 June 1734 – 13 May 1804) was a Scottish-Danish merchant and shipowner. His trading house, established in a partnership with his brother John Brown (1723–1808) was active in overseas trade. He served as Lord Governor of Tranquebar in Danish India from February 1774 to January 1779.
Early life
Brown was born in Dalkeith, Scotland, the son of William Brown and Margeret Brown. He came to Denmark in 1757 and was first employed as a clerk at the Nicolai Fenwich trading house in Helsingør. In 1750 he came to Copenhagen.
Career
Founded John & David Brown
David and John Brown founded John & David Brown in 1759. It owned its own fleet of merchant ships which traded on the Danish West Indies. The firm offered commission, speculation and exchange trading. Its vessels mainly had the Caribbean and the Mediterranean as their destinations, and the trading house eventually came to play a significant role in the maintenance of the West Indian trade. In 1781 he bought the Unrost shipyard. The name of the firm was changed to John & William Brown & Co. in 1782.
Danish India
On 14 February 1775, Brown succeeded Hermann Abbestée as Lord Governor of Tranquebar. His term ended on 17 January 1779.
Property
In 1788, David Brown bought Benzonseje Manor from his brother. He later sold it again to the estate administrator Lars Lassen in 1789.
Personal life
Brown married Anna Fenwick (1741–1776). She was a daughter of Nicolas Fenwick, merchant in Helsingør, and his wife Elisabeth Fenwick née Watson. She died in Tranquebar in 1776. He then married Mary Forbes (1751–1827).
His first wife bore him the following children: William Brown, Margrethe Elisabeth (Betzy) Brown, Nicolas Brown, Amelie Louise Brown, John Lewis Brown, Melior Anna (Nancy) Brown and David Brown. His second wife bore him one daughter, Mary Brown (1785–1793), who died as a child.
Brown died on 13 May 1804 at Maglegård in Gentofte. He was buried at Sankt Mariæ Kirke in Vor Frue Kloster in Helsingør.
|
John DeLorean
|
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"Packard people",
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"United States Army soldiers",
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] | 6,460 | 55,613 |
John Zachary DeLorean ( ; January 6, 1925 – March 19, 2005) was an American engineer, inventor, and executive in the U.S. automobile industry. He is widely known as founder of the DeLorean Motor Company, as well as for his work at General Motors.
DeLorean managed the development of several vehicles throughout his career, including the Pontiac GTO, Pontiac Firebird, Pontiac Grand Prix, Chevrolet Cosworth Vega, and DMC DeLorean, which was featured in the 1985 film Back to the Future. He was the youngest division chief in General Motors history and then left to start the DeLorean Motor Company (DMC) in 1973. Production delays meant that DMC's first car did not reach the consumer market until 1981, when a depressed buying market was compounded by lukewarm reviews from critics and the public. After a year, the DeLorean had failed to recover its $175 million investment costs, unsold cars accumulated, and the company was in financial trouble.
In October 1982, DeLorean was charged with cocaine trafficking after FBI informant James Hoffman solicited him as financier in a scheme to sell of cocaine worth approximately $24 million. DMC was insolvent at the time and $17 million in debt. Hoffman had approached DeLorean, a man he barely knew with no prior criminal record, and DeLorean was able to successfully defend himself at trial under the procedural defense of police entrapment. The trial ended in a not guilty verdict in August 1984, by which time DMC had filed for bankruptcy and ceased operations.
Early life
DeLorean was born in Detroit, Michigan, the eldest of four sons of Zachary and Kathryn () DeLorean. His father, a mill worker, was Romanian, born Zaharia Delorean () in the village of Sugág, Alsó-Fehér County, Austria-Hungary (currently Șugag, Alba County, Romania) and emigrated to the United States when he was 20. He spent time in Montana and Gary, Indiana, before moving to Michigan. By the time John was born, Zachary had found employment as a union organizer at the Ford Motor Company factory in nearby Highland Park. His poor English skills and lack of education prevented him from higher-paid work. When not required at Ford, he occasionally worked as a carpenter.
DeLorean's mother was a Hungarian citizen of Hungarian origin. She was employed at the Carboloy Products Division of General Electric throughout much of DeLorean's early life. She took work wherever she could to supplement the family's income. She generally tolerated Zachary's intermittent episodes of erratic behavior; but during several of his more violent periods, she took her sons to live with her sister in Los Angeles, California, where they stayed for a year or so at a time. DeLorean's parents divorced in 1942. John subsequently saw little of his father, who moved into a boarding house and became a solitary and estranged drug addict.
Education
After attending Detroit's public schools, DeLorean was accepted into Cass Technical High School, a school for Detroit honor students, where he signed up for the electrical curriculum. He found it exhilarating and excelled at his studies. His academic record and musical talents earned him a scholarship at Lawrence Institute of Technology in Highland Park (today Lawrence Technological University in Southfield). The small college was the alma mater of some of the automobile industry's best engineers.
World War II interrupted his studies. He was drafted for military service and served three years in the U.S. Army. He received an honorable discharge in 1946 and returned to Detroit to find his mother and siblings in economic difficulty. He worked as a draftsman for the Public Lighting Commission for a year and a half to improve his family's financial status then returned to Lawrence to finish his degree. While back in college, he worked part-time at Chrysler and at a local body shop. He graduated in 1948 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering.
Instead of immediately entering the engineering workforce, DeLorean sold life insurance. He developed an analytical system aimed at engineers and sold "about $850,000 worth of policies in ten months". However, he found the work boring and moved on to work for the Factory Equipment Corporation. DeLorean stated in his autobiography that he sold life insurance to improve his communication skills. Both endeavors were successful financially, but these areas held little interest for him. A foreman at Chrysler's engineering garage recommended he apply for work at Chrysler. Chrysler ran a post-graduate educational facility, the Chrysler Institute of Engineering, which allowed DeLorean to advance his education while gaining real-world experience in automotive engineering.
Delorean briefly attended the Detroit College of Law but did not graduate. In 1952, he graduated from the Chrysler Institute with a Master of Science degree in Automotive Engineering and joined Chrysler's engineering team. He graduated from the University of Michigan with an MBA in 1956.
Career
Packard Motor Company
DeLorean was at Chrysler for less than a year. In 1953, he was offered a salary of $14,000 () at Packard Motor Company under the supervision of engineer Forest McFarland. DeLorean quickly gained his new employer's attention with an improvement to the Ultramatic automatic transmission, giving it an improved torque converter and dual-drive ranges; it was relaunched as the Twin-Ultramatic.
When DeLorean joined Packard, it was experiencing financial difficulties because of the changing postwar automotive market. While Ford, General Motors, and Chrysler had begun producing affordable mainstream products designed to cater to the rising postwar middle class, Packard had retained its prewar notions of high-end, precisely engineered luxury cars. This had a positive effect on DeLorean's attention to engineering detail, and after three years at Packard he became McFarland's successor as head of research and development.
While still profitable, Packard suffered alongside other independents as it struggled to compete when Ford and General Motors engaged in a price war. James Nance, Packard's president, decided to merge the company with Studebaker Corporation in 1954. DeLorean was considering keeping his job and moving to Studebaker headquarters in South Bend, Indiana, when he received a call from Oliver K. Kelley, vice president of engineering at General Motors, whom DeLorean greatly admired. Kelley offered DeLorean his choice of a job in any of GM's five divisions.
General Motors
Pontiac
In 1956, DeLorean accepted a salary offer of $16,000 () with a bonus program, choosing to work at GM's Pontiac division as an assistant to chief engineer Pete Estes and general manager Semon "Bunkie" Knudsen. Knudsen was the son of the former president of GM, William Knudsen, who had been called away from his post to head the war mobilization production effort at the request of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Knudsen was an MIT engineering graduate and at 42 was the youngest man to head a GM division. DeLorean and Knudsen quickly became close friends; DeLorean later cited him as a major influence and mentor. DeLorean produced dozens of patented innovations for the company and in 1961 was promoted to division chief engineer.
DeLorean became widely known at Pontiac for the Pontiac GTO, a muscle car named after the Ferrari 250 GTO. The Pontiac brand reached third place in annual industry sales in the United States. To highlight the brand's performance emphasis, the GTO debuted as a Tempest/LeMans option package with a larger and more powerful engine in 1964. This marked the beginning of Pontiac's renaissance as GM's performance division instead of its previous position with no clear brand identity. The car and its popularity continued to grow in the following years. DeLorean received almost total credit for its success—its conception, engineering, and marketing—and was rewarded with a 1965 promotion to head of the Pontiac division.
At 40, DeLorean had broken the record for youngest division head at GM and was determined to continue his string of successes. Adapting to the frustrations he perceived in the executive offices was a difficult transition for him. He believed there was an undue amount of conflict between GM's division heads. Several of Pontiac's advertising campaign themes met with internal resistance, such as the "Tiger" campaign used to promote the GTO and other Pontiac models in 1965 and 1966. In addition, there was Ed Cole's decision to ban multiple carburetors, a method of enhancing engine performance used by Pontiac that had begun with two 4-barrel carburetors ("2x4 bbl") and Tri-Power (three 2-barrel carburetors ("3x2 bbl")) in 1957.
In response to the "pony car" market dominated by the Ford Mustang, DeLorean asked GM executives for permission to market a smaller version of the Pontiac Banshee show car for 1966. However, his idea was rejected because of GM's concern that it would divert sales from the Corvette, their flagship performance car. Their focus was on the new Chevrolet Camaro design. Pontiac developed its version, and the Firebird was introduced for the 1967 model year.
Shortly after the Firebird's introduction, DeLorean turned his attention to the development of an all-new Grand Prix, the division's personal luxury car based on the full-sized Pontiac line. Sales were lagging by this time, but the 1969 model would have its own distinct body shell with drivetrain and chassis components from the intermediate-sized Pontiac A-body (Tempest, LeMans, GTO). DeLorean knew the Pontiac division could not finance the new car alone, so he went to his former boss, Chevrolet division head Pete Estes, and asked him to share the cost of development with Pontiac, having a one-year exclusivity before Chevrolet released the 1970 Monte Carlo. The deal was done. The 1969 Pontiac Grand Prix featured sharp bodylines and a hood. The interior included a wraparound cockpit-style instrument panel, bucket seats and a center console. The new model offered a sportier, high performance, somewhat smaller, and lower-priced alternative to other personal luxury cars on the market, such as the Ford Thunderbird, GM’s Buick Riviera, Cadillac Eldorado, and Oldsmobile Toronado, and Ford’s newly debuted Lincoln Continental Mark III. The 1969 Grand Prix production ended up at over 112,000 units, far higher than 1968’s 32,000 full-sized Grand Prix.
During his time at Pontiac, DeLorean had begun to enjoy the freedom and celebrity that came with his position, and he spent a good deal of his time traveling to locations around the world to support promotional events. His frequent public appearances helped to solidify his image as a "rebel" corporate businessman, with his trendy dress style and casual banter.
Even as General Motors experienced revenue declines, Pontiac remained highly profitable under DeLorean, and despite his growing reputation as a corporate maverick, on February 15, 1969, he was promoted to head Chevrolet, General Motors' top-selling marque.
By this time, DeLorean earned an annual salary of $200,000 (), with yearly bonuses of up to $400,000 (). He was ubiquitous in popular culture. At a time when business executives were typically conservative, low-key individuals in three-piece suits, DeLorean wore long sideburns and unbuttoned shirts. He invited Ford president Lee Iacocca to serve as best man at his second wedding.
DeLorean was a limited partner in a pair of American professional sports franchises. The first was the San Diego Chargers, as part of a syndicate led by Gene Klein and Sam Schulman that bought a controlling interest for $10 million in August 1966. The other was the New York Yankees of which he was one of fifteen investors led by George Steinbrenner and Michael Burke who completed the purchase from CBS for $10 million on January 3, 1973.
DeLorean continued his jet-setting lifestyle and was often seen hanging out in business and entertainment celebrity circles. He became friends with James T. Aubrey, president of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, and was introduced to celebrities such as financier Kirk Kerkorian, Chris-Craft chairman Herb Siegel, entertainer Sammy Davis Jr., and The Tonight Show host Johnny Carson.
The executive offices of General Motors headquarters continued to clash with DeLorean's nonconformity . When he was appointed, Chevrolet was having financial and organizational troubles, and GM president Ed Cole needed a manager in that position to sort things out. The new model Camaro was due out for the 1970 model year, and it was rapidly falling behind schedule. Redesigns for the Corvette and Nova were also delayed, and unit sales had still not recovered from the past four years of turmoil, much of that because of the bad publicity surrounding the Corvair and well-publicized quality-control issues affecting other Chevy models, including defective motor mounts that led to an unprecedented recall of 6.7 million Chevrolets built between 1965 and 1969. DeLorean responded to the production problems by delaying the release of the Camaro and simplifying the modifications to the Corvette and Nova. He used the extra time to streamline Chevrolet's production overhead and reduce assembly costs. By 1971, Chevrolet was experiencing record sales in excess of 3 million vehicles, and his division alone was nearly matching that of the entire Ford Motor Company.
The Vega was assigned to Chevrolet by corporate management, specifically by Cole, just weeks before DeLorean's 1969 arrival as the Chevrolet division's general manager. In a Motor Trend interview in August 1970, DeLorean said, "Vega will be the highest quality product ever built by Chevrolet." By DeLorean's orders, dozens of extra inspectors were assigned to the Vega assembly line, and the first 2,000 cars were road-tested. He stated, "the first cars, from a manufacturing standpoint, were well built." But in 1972, General Motors Assembly Division took over the Chevrolet Lordstown assembly plant and the adjoining Fisher Body plant. Their main goal was to cut costs, and more than 800 workers were laid off, many of whom were the additional inspectors. This led to assembly-line vandalism, with workers intentionally slowing the line, leaving off parts and installing others improperly. Incomplete and often non-functioning cars soon filled the factory lot, which then had to be reprocessed and repaired by a team assigned to this task by DeLorean. A one-month strike followed, and dealers did not receive enough cars for the demand in 1972. DeLorean regrouped for the 1973 model year with Vega sales of 395,792. The one-millionth Vega was built in May 1973.
In 1972, DeLorean was appointed to the position of vice president of car and truck production for the entire General Motors line, and his eventual rise to president seemed inevitable. However, the idea of him assuming that position was almost intolerable to GM executives, and on April 2, 1973, he announced that he was leaving the company, telling the press, "I want to do things in the social area. I have to do them, and unfortunately the nature of our business just didn't permit me to do as much as I wanted." However, it had been rumored that he had been fired. GM gave him a Florida Cadillac franchise as a retirement gift, and DeLorean took over the presidency of The National Alliance of Businessmen, a charitable organization with the mission of employing Americans in need, founded by Lyndon Johnson and Henry Ford II.
DeLorean was sharply critical of the direction GM had taken by the start of the 1970s, as well as objecting to the idea of using rebates to sell cars: "There's no forward response at General Motors to what the public wants today. A car should make people's eyes light up when they step into the showroom. Rebates are merely a way of convincing customers to buy bland cars they're not interested in."After DeLorean left General Motors, Patrick Wright, author and former Business Week reporter, approached him with the idea of writing a book based on his experiences there. DeLorean agreed to dictate his recollections for Wright, who wrote the book. The final product, published in 1979, On a Clear Day You Can See General Motors, sold approximately 1.6 million copies, but disagreements over the content led to a conflict between the collaborators, with Wright eventually publishing the book on his own.
DeLorean Motor Company
DeLorean left General Motors in 1973 to form his own company, the DeLorean Motor Company. He raised $200 million to launch the company, including $4 million from his own pocket. A two-seat sports car prototype was shown in the mid-1970s called the DeLorean Safety Vehicle (DSV), with its bodyshell designed by Italdesign's Giorgetto Giugiaro. The car entered into production as the DMC DeLorean. The car's body distinctively used stainless steel and featured gull-wing doors. It was powered by the "Douvrin" V6 engine developed by Peugeot, Renault, and Volvo (known as the PRV).
The manufacturing plant to build the new car was built in Dunmurry, a suburb of Belfast in Northern Ireland, with substantial financial incentives from the Northern Ireland Development Agency of around £100 million. Renault was contracted to build the factory, which employed over 2,000 workers at its peak production. The engine was made by Renault, while Lotus designed the chassis and bodywork details. The Dunmurry factory eventually turned out around 9,000 cars. In 1980, an American Express catalog featured an ad for a DeLorean plated in 24-karat gold. According to the ad, only 100 were going to be manufactured and sold for $85,000. In total, only four were actually purchased.
Production delays meant the DeLorean did not reach the consumer market until January 1981 (nearly a decade after the company was founded), and in the interim, the new car market had slumped considerably during the 1980 US economic recession. This was compounded by unexpectedly lukewarm reviews from critics and the public, who generally felt the uniqueness of the DeLorean's styling did not compensate for the higher price and lower horsepower relative to other GT-influenced sports cars on the market. While interest in the DeLorean quickly dwindled, competing models with lower price tags and more powerful engines (such as the Chevrolet Corvette) sold in record numbers during 1980–81 in spite of the ongoing recession. By February 1982, more than half of the roughly 7,000 DeLoreans produced remained unsold, DMC was $175 million in debt, and the Dunmurry factory was placed in receivership.
In January 1982, the British government discovered that DeLorean had built just 8,500 cars and that the equivalent of £23 million, almost half the funds received in 1974, had been transferred to a Panamanian account under the name of General Product Development Services, the company intended to subsidize Lotus. But the money never made it to Lotus, which had collaborated in the development of the car; Lotus head Colin Chapman died at the start of the investigation into the missing money.
After going into receivership in February 1982, DMC produced another 2,000 cars until John DeLorean's arrest in late October, at which point liquidation proceedings were undertaken, and the factory was seized by the British government.
Arrest and trial
On October 19, 1982, DeLorean was charged by the US government with trafficking cocaine following a videotaped sting operation in which he was recorded by undercover federal agents agreeing to bankroll a cocaine smuggling operation. The FBI set him up with more than of cocaine (worth about $6.5 million) in a hotel near Los Angeles International Airport after arriving from New York, with the FBI stating DeLorean was the "financier" to help the financially declining company in a scheme to sell , with an estimated value of $24 million.
The government was tipped off to DeLorean by confidential informant James Timothy Hoffman, a former neighbor, who reported to his FBI superiors that DeLorean had approached him to ask about setting up a cocaine deal; in truth, Hoffman had called DeLorean and suggested the deal (which DeLorean then accepted) as part of Hoffman's efforts to receive a reduced sentence for a 1981 federal cocaine trafficking charge on which he was awaiting trial. Hoffman (whose name was redacted on the original indictment) also stated that he was aware of DeLorean's financial troubles before he contacted him, and had heard him admit that he needed $17 million "in a hurry" to prevent DMC's imminent insolvency.
Taken together, these two elements allowed DeLorean to successfully defend himself at trial with the procedural defense of police entrapment. DeLorean's lawyers successfully argued that the FBI and DEA had unfairly targeted and illegally entrapped DeLorean when they allowed Hoffman (an active FBI informant who only knew DeLorean casually) to solicit DeLorean into a criminal conspiracy simply because he was known to be financially vulnerable.
Another factor was DeLorean's lack of criminal history, whereas Hoffman was a career criminal who stood to directly benefit if he was able to convince DeLorean to incriminate himself on tape. The DeLorean defense team called one witness, Carol Winkler, DeLorean's secretary. Her call log proved that Hoffman made the initial call. DeLorean was found not guilty on August 16, 1984, but by then DMC had already collapsed into bankruptcy and DeLorean's reputation as a businessman was irrevocably tarnished. When asked after his acquittal if he planned to resume his career in the auto industry, DeLorean bitterly quipped, "Would you buy a used car from me?"
On September 21, 1985, DeLorean was indicted on charges he defrauded investors and committed tax evasion by diverting millions of dollars raised for the company to himself. He was acquitted of all charges.
Later enterprises
On November 1, 1994, DeLorean filed with the US Patent and Trademark Office for a raised monorail transport. The transport was never built. DeLorean had planned to resurrect his car company and gave interviews describing a new vehicle called the DMC2. According to his family, he spent a lot of time in his last years working on this new venture. In an effort to gather funds, he designed and sold high-end watches via the Internet under the name DeLorean Time.
The DeLorean Motor Company name was subsequently purchased by a Texas-based firm that provides parts and professional restoration to DeLorean owners. Although John DeLorean was not involved in the business, its vice president James Espey spoke with him on the phone once a month. According to Espey, in their final conversation, DeLorean expressed his dismay at the direction of General Motors, saying "They have too many bean counters and not enough engineers."
Published work
Personal life
DeLorean was married four times. He married Elizabeth Higgins on September 3, 1954; they divorced in 1969. He married Kelly Harmon on May 31, 1969, the sister of actor Mark Harmon and daughter of Heisman Trophy winner Tom Harmon and actress Elyse Knox; they divorced in 1972. DeLorean adopted a son whom he named Zachary Tavio, 14 months old at the time of his marriage to model Cristina Ferrare, who co-adopted Zachary. They had daughter Kathryn Ann, born November 15, 1977; they divorced in 1985. During his marriage to Ferrare, he and his family primarily resided in a 15-room, eighth- and ninth-floor duplex at 834 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan; this apartment was sold to businessman Reginald Lewis in 1992. He later lived with a partner, Sally Baldwin, on his Bedminster, New Jersey, estate; they moved to Morristown, New Jersey, in 2000. In 2002, the two married; they had a daughter, Sheila Baldwin DeLorean on February 19, 2002.
DeLorean appeared in a magazine advertisement for Cutty Sark whisky the year before his arrest and the collapse of his company. It was captioned: "One out of every 100 new businesses succeeds. Here's to those who take the odds." The film Back to the Future was released in 1985, featuring a DMC DeLorean. DeLorean wrote to writer and producer Bob Gale to thank him for immortalizing the car.
In 1999, DeLorean declared personal bankruptcy after fighting some 40 legal cases following the collapse of DeLorean Motor Company. He was forced to sell his estate in Bedminster in 2000. Donald Trump bought it and converted it to Trump National Golf Club Bedminster. It was reported that following the entrapment controversy, DeLorean and Ferrare became born-again Christians and that this religious experience was to be covered in his autobiography.
Death
DeLorean died at Overlook Hospital in Summit, New Jersey, from a stroke, on March 19, 2005, at age 80. His ashes are interred at the White Chapel Cemetery, in Troy, Michigan. Only a handful of people were in attendance, plus a US Army Military Funeral Honors Team from a Detroit unit of the Michigan Army National Guard, in recognition of his service during World War II. His tombstone shows a depiction of his DeLorean sports car with the gull-wing doors open.
Portrayals and coverage in media
Feature films
Driven (2018), Actor Lee Pace portrays John DeLorean in a film about the FBI sting operation to entrap the maverick car designer. The film was premiered at the 75th Venice International Film Festival in 2018 and had a wide release in August 2019.
Documentary films
DeLorean (1981), A documentary directed by Academy Award winning filmmakers D. A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus. The film chronicles John DeLorean throughout the launch of his DeLorean sports car in 1981.
DeLorean: Living the Dream (2014), Chronicles the history of the iconic DeLorean automobile from the rise and fall of legendary automaker John Z. DeLorean, to the international phenomenon of loyal owners and devoted fans who have kept the dream alive for over three decades.
Framing John DeLorean (2019), Actor Alec Baldwin portrays John DeLorean. "The extraordinary life and career of controversial automaker John DeLorean – from his meteoric rise at General Motors Co. to his obsessive quest to build the world's best sports car."
Television
Monkeys (1989), a BBC Northern Ireland TV movie based on the book The DeLorean Tapes. It was directed by Academy Award winning director Danny Boyle, and stars Manning Redwood as John DeLorean.
Scandal: The Fast Lane (1989) (John DeLorean / Roy Nesseth documentary), an un-aired British television documentary about the DeLorean Motor Company, John Z. DeLorean, Roy Nesseth
Car Crash: The DeLorean Story (2004), a BBC television documentary about the rise and fall of the DeLorean Motor Company
Anything to Win: The Crash of John DeLorean (2006), a TV series produced on Game Show Network
DeLorean: Back from the Future (2021), a BBC documentary about John DeLorean and his short lived car company
Myth & Mogul: John Delorean (2021), a Netflix documentary about the rise and fall of automaker John DeLorean
Music
Stainless Style (2007), a concept album about DeLorean by the synthpop group Neon Neon.
The DeLorean Museum
The DeLorean Museum, based in Humble, Texas, was established in 2006 to display, interpret, conserve, and preserve DeLorean vehicles, archives, and other objects.
Works cited
Further reading
Brownlow, Graham. "Back to the failure: an analytic narrative of the De Lorean debacle." Business History 57.1 (2015): 156–181 .
Wright, J. Patrick. On A Clear Day You Can See General Motors: John Z. DeLorean's Look Inside the Automotive Giant (1979)
|
Robert Van Straelen
|
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Robert Alphonse Paul (Bob) Van Straelen (born 3 December 1934) is a Belgian economist and organizational theorist, and Emeritus Professor at the Antwerp Management School, known for his work on large empirical macroeconomic models.
Biography
Robert Van Straelen was born in Borgerhout to Paul Verstraelen, Director of the Banque Belgolaise in Antwerp, and Leopoldina Vinsolest from Borgerhout. Van Straelen attended the St. Edmondus Institute in Antwerp, and the St. Jan Berchmanscollege. In 1952 he started to study at the Sint-Ignatius Handelshogeschool (later part of the University of Antwerp), where in 1957 he received his degree cum laude. In 1958 he received another degree and a Special Licence at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven. There in 1968 he was granted a colloquium doctum and in 1971 received his PhD in Economics with a thesis entitled "Prijsontwikkeling en produktiestructuur: proeve tot formulering van een stochastisch model voor produktiecoëfficiënten."
In 1959 Van Straelen started his career in industry as business economist at a chemical company in Antwerp. The same year Fernand Nédée (1930–1980), later the founder of the University Institution Antwerp, invited him to join the research center "Studiecentrum voor de Expansie van Antwerpen". In 1961 he started as director of the new department of econometrics at the Sint-Ignatius Handelshogeschool. In 1963 he also succeeded Vic van Rompuy as lecturer, and was appointed member of the Federal Planning Bureau in Brussels.
In 1968 Van Straelen became Associate Professor at the Faculty for Applied Economics at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven. Later he was appointed Professor at the Department of Applied Economics at the University of Antwerp and at the Antwerp Management School. There in 1996 he initiated a study of Real estate.
Van Straelen was elected fellow at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.
Selected publications
Books, a selection:
Van Straelen, Robert and Pierre-Henri Virenque. De input-output analyse : een methode voor het kwantitatief onderzoek der economische structuur. Leuven: Studiecentrum voor economisch en sociaal onderzoek Sint-Ignatius, S.C.I.S. Economische Schriften
Van Straelen, Robert Alphonse Paul. Prijsontwikkeling en produktiestructuur: proeve tot formulering van een stochastisch model voor produktiecoëfficiënten. Diss. Katholieke Universiteit, 1971.
Van Straelen, Robert. "Bouwactiviteit: verklaring en voorspelling." (1995).
Van Straelen, Robert. "Trendberekening door middel van Excel." (2001).
Articles, a selection:
De Grauwe, P., Kennes, W., Peeters, T., & Van Straelen, R. (1979). Trade expansion with the less developed countries and employment: A case study of Belgium. Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv, 115(1), 99-115.
van Straelen, Robert. "Econometrie: een terugblik op een turbulente ontwikkeling." (2001).
|
Nobuo Okishio
|
[
"1927 births",
"2003 deaths",
"People from Hyōgo, Kobe",
"Writers from Kobe",
"Japanese economists",
"Marxian economists",
"Academic staff of Kobe University",
"Kobe University alumni",
"Presidents of the Japanese Economic Association",
"Socialist economists"
] | 2,835 | 20,013 |
was a Japanese Marxian economist and emeritus professor of Kobe University. In 1979, he was elected President of the Japan Association of Economics and Econometrics, which is now called Japanese Economic Association.
Okishio studied mathematical economics under Kazuo Mizutani. In 1950 he graduated from Kobe University and later taught there. He soon began to doubt the premises and results of modern economics, and decided to search for alternatives by studying Marxian economics.
Okishio worked to clarify the logic of Karl Marx’s economic system, offering formal and mathematical proofs for many Marxian theorems. For example, in 1955, he gave the world's first proof of the “Marxian fundamental theorem”, as it was later named by Michio Morishima, which is the theory that the exploitation of surplus labor is the necessary condition for the existence of positive profit. Concerning Marx’s Falling Rate of Profit, Okishio considered that his famous theorem would not deny it.
Okishio wrote many papers covering various important fields in modern and Marxian economics, for example value and price, accumulation theory, critical analysis of Keynesian economics, trade cycle theory and on the long run tendency of capitalistic economy. They were published in over twenty books and two hundred papers, almost all in Japanese. About thirty of his published papers have been translated in English, and much of these materials are collected in the book (Nobuo Okishio, Michael Kruger and Peter Flaschel, 1993).
Value and exploitation theory
Formulation of labor embodied value
Okishio showed how Marxian value is determined quantitatively. The value equation presented by Okishio determines the amount of labor directly and indirectly needed to produce one unit of a commodity as follows:
where is the amount of -th goods and is the direct labor input needed to produce one unit of -th goods. He first got this idea when he was writing “On Exchange Theory” in 1954 in Japanese, and in 1955 published a revised version in English as “Monopoly and the Rates of Profits” in Kobe University Economic Review.
Fundamental Marxian theorem
Using this equation, Okishio proved Marx's fundamental proposition that the exploitation of surplus labor is the necessary condition for the existence of positive profit, later called the Fundamental Marxian Theorem by Michio Morishima. This proof is notable in that it does not rely on Marx's theory of value. Instead, the existence of surplus value can be deduced as a logical consequence of the existence of profit expressed in terms of price. This is the opposite of the approach taken by Marx, who started with a theory of value and used it to explain price and profit. After its publication, Okishio's proof persuaded many non-Marxian economists of the validity of Marx's theory of exploitation.
Measurement
The value equation given above can be used to make quantitative measurements using input–output tables, a technique developed after World War II. Okishio first performed these measurements in 1958, using data from the Japanese economy. Subsequent analyses have been performed on other countries as well. Measurements from 1955 to 1985 in the Japanese economy show that values and prices appear to have low correlation across short time scales, but are very highly correlated across longer time scales. Thus, Okishio argues that prices tend to gravitate toward values in the long run.
Some propositions of Marxian economics
Transformation problem
Okishio's work is related to clarifying the logic of Marx's theory. First, there is the transformation problem. Marx argued in Das Kapital Book Three about the transformation from values to prices. There he discussed that output prices also enter input prices in various sectors. And he warned us that we could make a mistake if we ignore this fact because there exists some discrepancy between prices and values. Here, of course, prices mean output prices and values mean input prices at the first stage. So Marx suggested the need to proceed this iterative transformation process to the end. Marx showed the transformation formula although he left others to do it. Okishio executed the iteration process to the end using mathematical tools and proved that it converges to production price equilibrium with positive profits, i.e. equal to Bortkiewicz equation. One important finding relating this work is that the equilibrium rate of profit and the production prices are determined depending on real wage rate and technologies in basic sectors only. This result was accepted with surprise, because many economists considered that non-basic sectors also have some relations with the equilibrium rate of profit. As far as Japan is concerned, some heated arguments are held between Okishio and some other Marxian economists.
Formal proof of the Marxian theorem
Next is the Marx's propositions of dynamic movement of capitalistic economy. In the paper “A Formal Proof of Marx’s Two Theorems” he tried to prove Marx's two theorems; first, the tendencial falling rate of profit and, second, the tendencial increase in unemployment. By “formal” Okishio meant whether we can deduct two propositions from Marx's presumptions of increasing organic composition of production. He showed that if new technologies with increasing organic composition of production are continuously introduced, then the rate of profit must fall and the unemployment must increase. Here the crucial assumption is the introduction of increasing organic composition technologies. Then he proceeds to examine the validity of this assumption from the viewpoint of capitalistic behavior of technical choice.
Technical change and the rate of profit
In the paper “Technical Change and the Rate of Profit” in 1961 he presented famous Okishio Theorem. There he showed that if we assume the viability condition, i.e. for the new technology to be introduced, it must be cost reducing, then new technologies never decrease the rate of profit; if it is introduced into basic sectors, the rate of profit will necessarily increase. His arguments depend on several assumptions: (1) the real wage rate is constant before and after the technical change, (2) the comparison is made about the equilibrium rate of profit, (3) the rate of profit is defined by the reproduction-cost principle. This theorem was later extended to the case of joint production in Morishima (1974), and later to the case of fixed capital by Nakatani (1978) and Roemer (1979). This work stimulated much discussion about its validity and implications for Marxist theory when it was first published, and has been a hotly debated subject to this day.
Okishio theorem and the falling rate of profit
Okishio does not believe his famous Okishio's theorem rules out entirely the possibility of the Falling Rate of Profit taking effect. A falling rate of profit might be realized in the long run due to competitive pressures among capitalists, bargaining power of labor, or other reasons. The crux of Okishio's theorem is that, given constant technological progress in the capitalist system of change, if the rate of profit falls in the long run, real wage rate must be increasing. The real wage rate will change in the process of technical change and it is very much doubtful whether this dynamic process converges to a stationary production price situation. Nevertheless, Okishio's theorem is relevant because it denies that the FRP is established automatically from technical change by itself.
Critical investigation of Keynes
Keynesian economics compared with classical economics
Okishio critically investigated non-Marxian economists with a lot of energy, especially Keynes and Harrod. Although Keynes is not sympathetic to Marx, Okishio thought that Keynes is an important criticizer of neoclassical economics inside modern economics, because Keynes denied the harmonic adjusting mechanism of market economy. Keynes also emphasized the independent and volatile role of investment demand in capitalistic economy. In these respects Keynes shared the similar viewpoint with Marx. Recent New Keynesians or Neo-Keynesians have been neglecting these fundamental characteristics of Keynes's original theory.
Aggregate supply function
Okishio's critique to Keynes is that he denied the possibility to change the capitalist's decision making. As is well known, Keynes devoted almost all his investigation to the demand-side and as far as the supply-side he only said that there remains almost no materials that is not known to us and Keynes left it as technically given. Okishio examined the capitalistic property of Keynes aggregate supply function Z(N) and showed an alternative way of raising employment by changing Aggregate Supply Function. His critical examination of Keynesian economics is the jointly published book “Keynesian Economics” in 1957.
Determination of wage rate
One of Keynes's criticisms of classical economics is the idea that a "market clearing wage" is determined in the labor market. On the contrary in Keynes, the real wage rate is determined in commodity markets. Many Marxian economists consider real wage rate is affected by labor market. However labor market can affect the nominal wage rate for the present and the commodity market can affect nominal prices. So in order to determine real wage rate. In classical economics the real wage rate is how real wage rate move, we have to both markets, namely the economy as a whole. Okishio investigated the movement of real wage rate in an accumulation process and considered investment demands as the most dominant determinant of real wage rate in the short run and the natural growth rate as determining the long run real wage rate.
Instability of capitalistic accumulation path
Instability
Okishio agreed with Roy F. Harrod that the market economy was not only from a static perspective but also from a dynamic perspectives. Harrod arguments are necessarily clear, however, about investment decision making. Okishio wrote many papers to clarify the Harrod instability logic and showed that instability is an inherent characteristic in the accumulation process of the capitalist economy. Problems examined are (A) to make clear capitalists’ investment decision of Harrod and (B) to investigate the instability postulate taking into consideration other possibilities like substitutive technical changes, changes in saving ratio, and movements in relative prices. He obtained the conclusion that instability is the robust property of capitalist accumulation.
Crisis theory
Capitalistic accumulation process displays instability. However, for one production system to survive for many years, some kind of equilibrium or near equilibrium conditions must be satisfied. In the short run the economy diverges from the equilibrium growth path due to Harrod instability, but in the long run it satisfies several conditions as shown in Reproduction Formula of Marx Book Two. Okishio proceeds to investigate the crisis theory by reconciling these two requirements and by introducing crisis theory as a regulating mechanism. His accumulation theory is published in his main publication CHIKUSEKIRON (“Accumulation Theory” in Japanese).
Profit and competition
Okishio scrutinized the relation between profits and competition. Okishio's theorem is the proposition obtained by comparing the equilibrium rate of profit before and after the introduction of new technology. Whether the economic disturbances due to technical change will smoothly converge to new stationary state is very problematic.
Relating production price
In other words, how can the Marxian production-price constellation be justified in real economy? Marx considered, of course, that in the long run the average positive rate of profit is realized in capitalistic market economy. Then what is the logic to guarantee it considering the change of real wage rate? Adam Smith considered that competition among capitals effects downward pressures on profits. But as is well known, Ricardo criticized Smith and claimed that competition can only equalize uneven rates of profits among capitals and never affect the level of the rate of profit itself, which is inherited by Marx. Walras and more clearly Schumpeter asserted that competition sweeps out profits completely.
Tentative results
Okishio's tentative conclusion on this problem is that competition can drive the economy to zero-profit equilibrium unless there exist no continuous technical innovations or an increase in labor supply or independent capitalist consumption. This investigation is still under way.
The long-run processes of a capitalist economy
Two Requirements
On this point Okishio's argument is composed of the following two propositions. First, in order for the capitalist economy to work effectively, the production power of humankind in that society should exceed some minimum level, but also should not exceed some maximum level. Second, the production power in the capitalistic economy necessarily advances due to the mechanisms of competition and commercial expansion inherent to the capitalistic mode of production.
Dialectical materialism
This viewpoint is exactly the same with Marx's historical dialectic. If this is correct, the necessity for a capitalistic society to be switched to another economic system can be proved by demonstrating the following two. First, we have to prove how production power advances in capitalistic society. Next, we have to show what is the upper bound of production power for a capitalistic economy to be able to work effectively.
Necessity of a new society
As for the first, the introduction of new technologies are most important as shown by many economists as Schumpeter and others. As for the latter upper bound, he stresses the controllability of the whole economy. We are living in the world where even a local economic activity can have effects of global and long lasting consequences in all over the world. In this sense the production activities are already socialized in their effects. The decision making, however, is still grasped exclusively by small part of members in the society and it is executed based on profit maximizing principle. So he considers that in order to guarantee the existence of humankind we have to change the capitalistic economy to an alternative much more socialized economic system, which is called socialistic economy.
Books
Nobuo Okishio ed. (1992), Business cycles : theories and numerical simulation (Dynamische Wirtschaftstheorie; Bd. 12), Peter Lang Publishing.
Nobuo Okishio, Michael Kruger and Peter Flaschel (1993), Nobuo Okishio-Essays on Political Economy : Collected Papers, Peter Lang Publishing ().
Articles
“Monopoly and the Rates of Profit”, 1955, Kobe University economic review 1,71–88.
“Durable Equipment and Equilibrium Growth”, 1958, Kobe University economic review 4,29–40.
“Technical Changes and the Rate of Profit”, 1961, Kobe University economic review 7,85–99.
“Instability of Harrod=Domar's Steady Growth”, 1964, Kobe University economic review 10,19–27.
“On Mr. N. Kaldor's Growth Model”, 1967, Kobe University economic review 13, 43–58.
“An Extension of a Discrete Version of Pontryagin's Maximum Principle and its Simple Application”, 1970, Kobe University economic review 16,37–48.
“A Formal Proof of Marx's Two Theorems”, 1972, Kobe University economic review 18,1–6.
“Value and Production-Price”, 1974, Kobe University economic review 20,1–19.
“Fixed Capital and Extended Reproduction”, 1975, Kobe University economic review 21,11–27.
“Marxian Fundamental Theorem : Joint-Production Case”, 1976, Kobe University economic review 22,1–11.
“Inflation as an Expression of Class Antagonisms”, 1977, Kobe University economic review 23,17–29.
“Theorems of Investment Truncation”, The annals of the School of Business Administration, Kobe University 21,73–90,1977.
"Notes on Technical Progress and Capitalist Society", 1977, Cambridge Journal of Economics 1(1), 93–100.
Three Topics on Marxian Fundamental Theorems", 1978, Kobe University economic review 24,1–18.
“Dimensional Analysis in Economics”, 1982, Kobe University economic review 28,31–44.
“The Decision of New Investment, Technique and Rate of Utilization”, 1984, Kobe University economic review 30,15–32.
“A Measurement of the Rate of Surplus Value in Japan : The 1980 Case”, 1985, Kobe University economic review 31,1–13.
“Stagflation : Causes and Policies”, 1986, Kobe economic & business review 32,33–54.
“Theoretical Foundations of International Macro-Economic Model”, 1987, Kobe University economic review 33,1–16.
“On Marx's Reproduction Scheme”, 1988, Kobe University economic review 34,1–24.
“Problems and Method of Economics”, 1989, Kobe economic & business review 34,101–108.
“On the Theories of Determination of the Real Wage Rate”, 1989, Kobe University economic review 35,1–13.
“The Permissible Range of Relative Prices in the Light of Lavor Values”, 1995, Kobe University economic review 41,1–14.
“Competition and Production Price”, 2000, Cambridge Journal of Economics 25(4), 493–501.
|
Fourth Financial Corporation
|
[
"Bank of America legacy banks",
"Defunct banks of the United States",
"Companies based in Wichita, Kansas",
"American companies established in 1887",
"Banks established in 1887",
"Banks disestablished in 1995",
"Defunct companies based in Kansas",
"1887 establishments in Kansas"
] | 650 | 4,979 |
Fourth Financial Corporation was a Wichita, Kansas bank holding company that was formed in 1968, the largest and one of the oldest banks in Kansas as well as a dominant bank in Oklahoma when it was bought by Boatmen's Bancshares in 1995.
History
Fourth National Bank of Wichita was founded by George C. Strong in 1887.
Since Kansas banking laws during the mid-twentieth century severely limited bank branching, a bank holding company was formed in 1968 called the Fourth Financial Corporation, which purchased other banks in a limited geographic region when it became permitted by state law. In 1982, the company began an aggressive expansion after state banking laws were relaxed allowing it to buy interest in other banks. It bought the maximum shares in five banks located in cities with more than 10,000 persons that also near colleges. With this strategy, the company became the biggest bank holding company in the state in 1986 when the company was allowed to fully take over its member banks. To show that the individual banks that the company owned shared common ownership, and to simplified marketing, the individual banks were named Bank IV followed by the location of the bank. As an example, Planters Bank & Trust Company in Salina became Bank IV Salina, N.A.
Between 1985 and 1990 the bank under Jordan L. Haines and Ron Baldwin bought 24 banks—one every 75 days topping off at one a month when it began acquiring troubled Savings and loan associations during the Savings and Loan Crisis in 1990. Among the S&L's purchased was Anchor Savings.
Just as the company was approaching the banking limits that it could control within the state of Kansas, state legislation was changed in 1990 that would permitted it to expand to other states so Fourth Financial began acquiring banks in Oklahoma under the Bank IV Oklahoma subsidiary.
In December 1991, Fourth Financial merged its 13 separate banks in the state of Kansas into one bank, Bank IV Kansas.
In August 1995, Boatmen's Bancshares announced plans to acquire Fourth Financial for $1.2 Billion in stock. The acquisition was completed in January 1986. At the time of acquisition, Fourth Financial had $7.4 billion in assets and 87 retail banking offices in Kansas, and 56 in Oklahoma, making it the largest banking company in Kansas and third largest in Oklahoma.
|
Bashundhara Group
|
[
"Real estate companies of Bangladesh",
"Conglomerate companies of Bangladesh",
"Manufacturing companies established in 1987",
"Conglomerate companies established in 1987",
"1987 establishments in Bangladesh",
"Food and drink companies of Bangladesh"
] | 2,119 | 19,647 |
Bashundhara Group LTD () is a Bangladeshi conglomerate based in Dhaka. It was incorporated in 1987 as a real estate company under the name East West Property Development Ltd (EWPD). It presently owns more than 50 major concerns throughout Bangladesh. The company's import-export turnover was $1.12 billion or BDT 111.38 billion in the 2022-23 fiscal year. In the 2018 fiscal year, the company's real estate holdings amounted to BDT 50,000 crores, or $4.6 billion.
History
Bashundhara Group, founded by Ahmed Akbar Sobhan, began in 1987 as a real estate venture. After its first project, Bashundhara invested in new fields, including manufacturing, industry and trading. More enterprises were established in the early 1990s; these included cement, paper, pulp, tissue paper and steel production, as well as LP Gas bottling and distribution. Bashundhara received permission from the Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority to set up two specialized economic zones in Keraniganj, Dhaka, Bangladesh.
In 2013, Bashundhara invested $181 million in the food sector, producing flour, wheat, red meat, etc.
In 2020, Bashundhara invested $143.7 million to build the largest bitumen plant in Bangladesh. In the same year, Bashundhara became involved in the coal trading market, with a notable example of supply 8 million tonnes of coal to the Rampal coal-fired power plant.
In 2021, Bashundhara invested $909 million to create an oil refinery on 220 acres of land in the Sitakunda upazila of the country's port city of Chattogram.
In 2022, Bashundhara invested $546 million into creating Bangladesh's first gold refinery on 470 acres of land near the Dhaka-Purbachal highway In the same year, Bashundhara Multi-Steel Industries invested $395 million for phase-1 of a steel manufacturing plant at Bashundhara Industrial Economic Zone at Bangabandhu Shilpa Nagar in Chattogram. The phase-2 investment of $727 million will be initiated in 2025, bringing the company's annual steel production to 3 million tonnes. Later, in 2022, ABG Limited, a concern of Bashundhara group signed an agreement with the Chittagong Stock Exchange to acquire 25% of its shares for BDT 240 crore in line with the country's demutualisation act.
In 2023, Bashundhara Telecommunications Limited submitted a proposal to the Post and Telecommunications division of the country to become a strategic investor of the struggling state owned carrier TeleTalk. The proposal outlines a plan to develop the network, enhance customer service and upgrade the systems of TeleTalk, which has made losses in all but the first two years of its 19-year-existence.
Enterprises
Bashundhara Group operates over 50 companies. Notable companies include:
East West Media Group
Bashundhara Kings
Rangpur Riders
Kebab Turki Baba Rafi (Bangladesh)
Bashundhara City
Bashundhara City () is a shopping mall in Dhaka. Construction began in 1998; Mohammad Foyes Ullah and Mustapha Khalid Palash of Vistara designed the building. Opened to the public on 6 August 2004, the mall is located at Panthapath, near Karwan Bazar, in Dhaka city and cost over $100 million to complete. Bashundhara City is 21 stories tall, of which 8 are used for the mall, which houses fashion houses and jewelry shops, as well as around 100 food outlets.
The mall has experienced two fires. The first fire occurred on March 13, 2009, resulting in the deaths of 7 people and injuries to 20 others. The second incident, which took place in 2016, did not result in any casualties.
Bashundhara Residential Area
Bashundhara Residential Area, or simply "Bashundhara", () is a residential and semi-business neighbourhood in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Described as a "city inside a city," the area is the largest private real estate project in Greater Dhaka. It is owned and operated by East West Property Development Pvt. Ltd., a subsidiary of Bashundhara Group.
Media ventures
In 2009, the group launched East West Media Group Ltd., which now operates several major media outlets in Bangladesh. These include two television channels, one FM radio station, an online newspaper, and three print media publications.
The Bengali-language national daily newspapers owned by East West Media Group are Kaler Kantho and Bangladesh Pratidin. The group also publishes the English-language newspaper Daily Sun. Additionally, the online news portal banglanews24.com provides content in both Bengali and English.
The television channels owned by the group include News24 and T-Sports, while Radio Capital is its FM radio station.
Legal issues
In October 2007, Ahmed Akbar Sobhan, his wife Afroza Begum, and their four sons were sentenced to eight years in prison on charges of tax evasion. During the 2006–08 political crisis in Bangladesh, while in London with his family, Sobhan handed over the power of attorney for Bashundhara Group to a nine-member committee. Under this committee’s management, the company paid over Tk 220 crore to the government as compensation for previously evaded taxes. This decision was made against Sobhan’s wishes, prompting him to later revoke the power of attorney for four members of the committee.
Sobhan and his family also faced allegations of amassing approximately Tk 107 crore beyond their known sources of income, illegally acquiring Tk 606.66 crore, and concealing wealth worth Tk 14.17 crore. The charge sheet noted that around Tk 500 crore was regularized under the government's money whitening scheme.
In 2025, A Dhaka court ordered the freezing of shares and bank accounelonging to Bashundhara Group Chairman Ahmed Akbar Sobhan and his family members, following a petition by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC). The court directive froze shares worth around Tk 14.59 billion across 22 listed companies, as well as Tk 198 million and USD 10,538 that remained in 70 bank accounts. These accounts, held under the names of Sobhan, his four sons—Sayem, Sadat, Sanvir, and Safwan Sobhan—and their wives, had previously received total deposits of Tk 20.75 billion and USD 192,034, which were largely withdrawn. The ACC was investigating allegations of wealth accumulation beyond known sources and suspected money laundering, both domestically and abroad. The freezing order was issued under the Money Laundering Prevention Act, 2012.
On 16 May 2025, a Chattogram court sent a Bashundhara Group official, Mohammad Foyez, to jail in a case involving an alleged attempt to evade over Tk 50 crore in port storage charges by submitting a forged letter from the Ministry of Shipping. According to the case statement, 109 containers (equivalent to 214 TEUs) imported by Bashundhara Multi Steel Company Limited were awaiting release at Chattogram Port, and Foyez, along with unidentified accomplices, tried to fraudulently secure a 60% waiver on charges payable to the Chattogram Port Authority (CPA). He allegedly used a mobile number registered to Enamul Karim, Director (Transport), and sent the fake letter with a forged signature of ministry official Nazrul Islam Azad. The Ministry later confirmed that no such letter had been issued. The court ordered police to produce Foyez again on 19 June 2025.
On 16 June 2025, Bangladesh's Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) sent a formal letter to the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency (NCA) requesting the seizure of assets belonging to Bashundhara Group's Vice Chairman Shafiat Sobhan (Sanvir) and Co-Chairman Sadat Sobhan.
On 19 June 2025, a Sylhet court issued arrest warrants against Bashundhara Group Chairman Ahmed Akbar Sobhan, Managing Director Sayem Sobhan Anvir, and four others in a cheque fraud case. The order was passed by Judge Mohammad Harun-or-Rashid of the Sylhet Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Court after the accused failed to appear in court despite earlier summons. The case was filed by Ahmed Noor, former Sylhet Bureau Chief of Kaler Kantho, a newspaper under Bashundhara Group's East West Media Group. The other accused include Kaler Kantho publisher Moynal Hossain Chowdhury, current editor Hasan Hafiz, former editor and cheque signatory Shahed Muhammad Ali, and Bangladesh Pratidin’s former editor Naem Nizam. The case alleges that although Ahmed Noor worked at the newspaper from its inception until September 2021, he was not paid his full service benefits as per the wage board. Eventually, the management issued ten postdated cheques in January as part of the agreed settlement. Of these, only two were honored, while eight cheques bounced, totaling Tk 601,824.
See also
List of companies of Bangladesh
Bashundhara Kings
Bashundhara Kings Women
Bashundhara Group Profile
Bashundhara Group PR
Bashundhara Group Overview Slide
|
Books-A-Million
|
[
"1917 establishments in Alabama",
"1992 initial public offerings",
"Chain bookstores of the United States",
"Book selling websites",
"Dot-com bubble",
"Companies based in Birmingham, Alabama",
"Florence, Alabama",
"Retail companies established in 1917",
"American companies established in 1917",
"2015 mergers and acquisitions"
] | 1,024 | 8,853 |
Books-A-Million, Inc., also known as BAM!, is a bookstore chain in the United States, operating 260 stores in 32 states. Stores range in size from 4,000 to 30,000 square feet and sell books, magazines, manga, collectibles, toys, technology, and gifts. Most Books-A-Million stores feature "Joe Muggs" cafés, a coffee and espresso bar.
Stores operate under the names Books-A-Million, Bookland, Books & Company, and 2nd & Charles.
The company owns Yogurt Mountain Holding, a frozen yogurt retailer and franchisor with 40 locations, as well as Preferred Growth Properties, which develops and manages commercial real estate investments. It owns and operates American Wholesale Book Company (AWBC), an e-commerce division operating as booksamillion.com; and an internet development and services company, NetCentral, in Nashville, Tennessee.
In December 2015, the company was acquired by its chairman, Clyde B. Anderson, and his family, for $21 million.
History
Books-A-Million was founded in 1917 in Florence, Alabama, as a newsstand by 14-year old Clyde W. Anderson, who dropped out of school to support his family after his father died. Anderson saw a business opportunity after workers on the nearby Wilson Dam complained that they could not get their hometown newspapers.
In 1950, Charles C. Anderson, the founder's son, inherited the store and expanded it into a chain. The company incorporated as Bookland in 1964.
By 1980, the company had 50 stores.
In 1988, Bookland acquired the Gateway Books retail chain based in Knoxville, Tennessee. The same year, the company opened its first superstore format store.
In 1992, the company changed its name to Books-A-Million, Inc. and became a public company via an initial public offering of 2.6 million shares at a price of $13 per share.
In 1998, the company launched its website, booksamillion.com.
On November 25, 1998, during the dot-com bubble, the stock price soared from $3 per share to $38.94 on November 27, 1998, and an intra-day high of $47.00 on November 30, 1998, after the company announced an updated website. Two weeks later, the share price was back down to $10. By 2000, the share price had returned to $3. Those days included suspenseful times for day traders, such as when the stock moved up 6 points in 13 minutes. During this time, insiders sold hundreds of thousands of shares.
In 1999, the company acquired NetCentral, the designer of its website, and began operating American Wholesale Book Company, a book wholesaler and distributor.
In April 2010, the company paid $3 million for a 40% stake in Yogurt Mountain, a frozen yogurt retailer and franchisor. Six months later, the company opened Yogurt Mountain locations in its bookstores.
In September 2010, the company launched 2nd & Charles, a trader of used media, with its first store in Hoover, Alabama across from Riverchase Galleria.
In December 2015, the company was acquired by its chairman, Clyde B. Anderson, and his family, for $21 million, taking the company private and delisting its shares from the Nasdaq.
In November 2016, the company began to sell self-published books.
See also
Barnes & Noble
Borders
|
Houlihan Smith & Company
|
[
"Defunct companies based in Chicago",
"American companies established in 1996",
"Financial services companies established in 1996",
"Financial services companies disestablished in 2011",
"Former investment banks of the United States",
"Defunct financial services companies of the United States"
] | 1,294 | 11,077 |
Houlihan Smith & Company was an investment banking firm that provided financial advisory and financing services to public and private businesses. Houlihan was founded in 1996 and reorganized as Houlihan Capital in 2011.
Houlihan was a provider of financial opinions, merger and acquisitions advisory, financing, and other corporate advisory services. Houlihan Smith was a broker-dealer and member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). The firm was not affiliated with any financial or investment institutions and did not have referral or financial arrangements with other brokers or dealers. It was authorized to do business in eight states: CA, FL, IL, IA, MN, NV, NY and WA. Houlihan employed approximately 125 professionals and had offices in Chicago, New York and Los Angeles. In 2006, the firm also implemented an Employee Stock Ownership Plan. Houlihan Smith & Company is now known as Houlihan Capital.
History
Houlihan Smith & Company was established in 1996 by Richard Alfred Houlihan (former chairman of Houlihan Lokey Howard & Zukin Inc.) and mergers and acquisitions advisor Andrew David Smith. The two met in the early 1990s while Mr. Smith was employed with Kemper Securities (now part of Wachovia Bank) and together they sold a software company where Mr. Houlihan was chairman. The two partners formed Houlihan Smith as a multi-service investment bank with strong underpinnings in the fields of complex business valuation and M&A deal-making.
The firm's largest financial opinion was a solvency opinion provided to Reliant Energy, with its $12 billion financial restructuring. Since then, Houlihan Smith has performed more than 400 valuations and financial opinions each year. Houlihan and Smith each own 25-50% of the firm, while Charles Botchway owns 10-25% of the firm.
The increased pressure and scrutiny placed on boards of directors, special committees and key executives led Houlihan to offer fiduciary guidance for its clients through the Houlihan Smith Compendia Series, a compilation of case law that highlights actions and judgments where fiduciaries breached their duty of care and duty of loyalty. The Fairness Compendium and the Solvency Compendium communicate the stringent guidelines that fiduciaries must follow, including the business judgment rule, and the more prevalent Entire Fairness Standard. Under the Entire Fairness Standard, where a transaction involves a conflict of interest and has been contested by minority shareholders, directors bear the burden of proving the entire fairness of the transaction. Many directors and fiduciaries must take considerable measures to ensure that actions and judgment shift the burden of proof to shareholders. A common measure taken is the formation of an independent and disinterested special committee to oversee and negotiate the transaction process.
During the mid-2000s, Houlihan Smith extended its services into portfolio valuation, complex derivatives valuation and investment advisory for hedge funds, private equity groups and other alternative investment groups. A recent accounting pronouncement, Financial Accounting Standard No. 157 (FAS 157): Fair Value Measurements, has mandated the quarterly and annual reporting of fair value for companies and investment firms. The three-tiered fair value hierarchy is composed of the following observable inputs: Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3. Level 3 Inputs are typically hard-to-value, illiquid securities that require the use of an independent valuation advisor to opine on the value of these securities.
Past operations
Between 2006 and 2008 Houlihan had valued billions of dollars worth of Level 3 securities, working closely with large public companies, hedge funds and private equity firms to comply with the financial reporting requirements. Houlihan was engaged in providing independent valuations of Auction-Rate Securities (ARS) for Fortune 1000 companies. (ARS are long-term securities that hold auctions every seven to 35 days, giving the security a risk profile similar to a shorter-term security with frequent liquidity events.) Compounded by the credit crisis and lack of liquidity in the credit markets, these auctions began failing in 3rd quarter 2007. Houlihan worked closely with its clients and the Big 4 audit firms to independently value these ARS and, in certain instances, locate a secondary market for clients to unwind their portfolio of these securities.
Houlihan also represented several hedge funds and private equity firms, providing portfolio and individual security valuation, M&A advisory, risk analysis, and traditional investment banking services. Houlihan provided advisory services regarding the alternative investment marketplace and underlying complex structured financial products as well as the confidential nature and protocol of its private investment vehicle clients.
Houlihan consolidated its investment banking activities under the Houlihan Smith Capital Markets umbrella. Operating as a division of Houlihan, the group worked in the middle market and specialized in transaction sizes of $10 million to $250 million. Houlihan was involved in more than 500 mergers and acquisitions, capital restructurings, ESOP advisory engagements, private placements and financial restructurings.
Houlihan's failed lawsuit and subsequent closure
In April 2010, attorneys representing Houlihan filed in Illinois state court an unopposed request for a temporary restraining order against the operator of the websites 800notes.com and Whocallsme.com. The sites contained user comments that were critical of Houlihan tactics. The temporary restraining order required all statements of a factual nature be removed from the sites and that the operator prevent users from posting comments on parts of the site connected to Houlihan's phone number. Houlihan's attorneys' uninformed claim of trademark infringement and right of publicity were cited as the reasons for the order.
In May 2010, after Public Citizen (which was representing the operator of those websites pro-bono) removed the case to federal court, the federal judge allowed the restraining order to expire, refusing to grant a preliminary injunction. In August 2010, Houlihan moved to dismiss the complaint. The company subsequently went out of business sometime during the attorney fee phase of the case, but the defendants filed for a motion for attorney fees amounting to $137,632.34 in February 2011. The case was ultimately settled for $35,000.
|
Formations House
|
[
"2019 in the United Kingdom",
"British companies established in 2001",
"Distributed Denial of Secrets",
"Financial scandals",
"Money laundering",
"News leaks",
"Registrars of companies",
"Tax avoidance in the United Kingdom"
] | 697 | 8,762 |
Formations House (now The London Office) is a "company mill" which registered and operated companies for clients included organized crime groups, state-owned oil companies, and fraudulent banks.
The company was founded in 2001 and registered at 29 Harley Street and promised to let clients run businesses "in Central London at a prestigious Harley Street business address". The company formed more than 450,000 corporate entities in Britain, Gambia, Hong Kong, the Seychelles, the British Virgin Islands, Ireland, the US state of Delaware, Panama, Gibraltar, Jersey, the Isle of Man, Belize and Mauritius.
#29 Leaks
In December 2019, Distributed Denial of Secrets (DDoSecrets) published "#29 Leaks" in partnership with the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project and more than 20 outlets in 18 countries.
The 450 gigabyte leak included emails, documents, faxes, and recordings of phone calls. Investigations revealed the firm ran a web of companies registered in Hong Kong, Cyprus, the British Virgin Islands and Pakistan, helped clients avoid anti-money laundering rules and had created banks in The Gambia in an attempt to create a tax haven. According to The Times, there was no evidence that Formations House did anything illegal but their investigation highlighted worrying vulnerabilities in the UK's defences against money laundering".
The release was compared to both the Panama Papers and the Paradise Papers. Belgian tax authorities initiated an investigation based on data from this leak and from the Cayman National Bank and Trust leak published by DDoSecrets the prior month. Politicians in Sweden and the UK, including anti-corruption chief John Penrose said the leak showed the need for reforms on company creation and registration.
See also
Cyprus Confidential
Mauritius Leaks
Panama Papers
Paradise Papers
Suisse Secrets
Swiss Leaks
|
Robert S. Kapito
|
[
"American financial company founders",
"American financiers",
"American investors",
"20th-century American Jews",
"American money managers",
"BlackRock people",
"Harvard Business School alumni",
"Jewish American bankers",
"American bankers",
"Living people",
"University of Pennsylvania alumni",
"1957 births",
"21st-century American Jews",
"People from Monticello, New York",
"Monticello High School (New York) alumni"
] | 1,085 | 10,998 |
Robert Steven Kapito (born February 8, 1957) is an American businessman and investor. He is a co-founder (with Larry Fink and Susan Wagner) and president of the New York City-based investment management firm BlackRock.
Early life
Kapito was born in Monticello, New York, into a working-class Jewish family. His father, aunt and two brothers ran a tire and car repair business in Monticello for 50 years, and according to Kapito, "I don't think I ever saw them [his parents] with clean hands". When Kapito was 13, his father had a serious stroke, but continued working in the office. His father died in 1986, and his mother in 1997.
Kapito graduated from Monticello High School in 1975. He attended the State University of New York at Buffalo for two years, before transferring to the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, where he graduated with a bachelor's degree in economics in 1979. He earned an MBA from Harvard Business School in Cambridge, Massachusetts (HBS) in 1983.
Career
Kapito joined First Boston in 1979 after graduating from Penn and started in the Public Finance Department. He was hired by Larry Fink to work at First Boston, where they were instrumental in pioneering the mortgage-backed security market in the United States.
Kapito left First Boston to complete his MBA degree and returned to the firm in 1983 in the Mortgage Products Group. In 1988, Kapito left First Boston along with Fink and founded BlackRock under the umbrella of the private equity firm Blackstone Group as partners. Kapito worked closely with Fink at BlackRock, where he developed a reputation as an aggressive and loyal supporter of Fink.
In 2012, he received the Gustave L. Levy Award from the United Jewish Appeal Federation of New York for his donations.
In 2022, he warned about product shortages and said that "a very entitled generation that has never had to sacrifice" was experiencing inflation for the first time. The comment received backlash from news opinion pieces, which pointed out his large salary and net worth.
Kapito was one of 200 global financial executives who attended the 2022 Global Financial Leaders' Investment Summit in Hong Kong. Two members of the U.S. Congress said the executives should reconsider their attendance, stating "Their presence only serves to legitimise the swift dismantling of Hong Kong's autonomy, free press and the rule of law by Hong Kong authorities acting along with the Chinese Communist Party."
Kapito serves as a member of the board of trustees of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and as a member of the Harvard Kennedy School Executive Education Faculty. He is also president of the board of directors for the Hope & Heroes Children's Cancer Fund, and president of the board of directors for Periwinkle Theatre for Youth, a national non-profit arts-in-education organization.
Personal life
Kapito met his wife Ellen R. Hershey when she was a student at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, and they married in 1980. Ellen R. Hershey is the daughter of Bernard and Roslyn Hershey of North Valley Stream, New York. Ellen Kapito is a member of the board of overseers at the University of Pennsylvania's School of Nursing. They have four children. Kapito's hobbies are golfing, skiing, and driving restored vintage cars.
|
Jigar Shah
|
[
"American climate activists",
"HuffPost writers and columnists",
"Living people",
"Environmental bloggers",
"1974 births",
"American bloggers",
"American chief executives",
"Energy economists",
"Appropriate technology advocates",
"Indian climate activists",
"People associated with solar power",
"Businesspeople from Washington, D.C.",
"American nonprofit executives",
"21st-century American businesspeople",
"Renewable energy commercialization",
"Environmental ethics",
"People associated with Greenpeace",
"People from Aravalli district",
"People from Sterling, Illinois",
"Indian emigrants to the United States"
] | 1,453 | 14,714 |
Jigar Shah (born August 30, 1974) was the director of the Loan Programs Office in the US Department of Energy from March 2021 to January 2025. Since the passing of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and Inflation Reduction Act through Congress in 2021 and 2022, the funds to the Loan Programs Office increased tenfold from $40 billion to $400 billion in order to commercialize emerging clean energy technologies. Shah led the office in administering loans to clean energy technologies majorly advancing the Biden Administration’s efforts to bring clean energy into the United States.
Prior to the Loan Programs Office, Shah gained prominence as an American clean energy entrepreneur, author and podcast host. Shah is known for work to create and advocate for market-driven solutions to climate change. He authored the book Creating Climate Wealth: Unlocking the Impact Economy, published in 2013.
Shah maintains that climate wealth is created when mainstream investors team up with entrepreneurs, corporations, mainstream capital, and governments at scale to solve the big problems of our time while generating compelling financial returns – not concessionary returns.
Early life
Born in India, Shah moved to the United States with his family when he was one year old. Shah moved to Sterling, Illinois, when he was eight years old.
Shah has attended public school from elementary school through his Masters. Shah holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, and an MBA from the University of Maryland.
Business initiatives
Shah is the co-founder and President of Generate Capital. Shah founded SunEdison in 2003, where he pioneered “no money down solar” and unlocked a multi-billion-dollar solar market, creating what was largest solar services company worldwide. The company simplified solar as a service through the implementation of the power purchase agreement (PPA) business model. That model changed the status quo, allowing organizations to purchase solar energy services under long-term predictably priced contracts and avoid the significant capital costs of ownership and operation of solar energy systems. Shah sold SunEdison in 2008.
Shah is author of Creating Climate Wealth: Unlocking the Impact Economy. The book talks about the prominent role of business model innovation, more than new technology, in attracting mainstream capital and unlocking transformational change. In the book, the author pictures reaching our 2020 climate change goals as means to create the next economy with the equivalent of 100,000 companies worldwide, each generating $100 million in sales. Shah argues that, while new technical innovation is valuable, deployment of existing technologies are the key to reaching our near-term climate targets.
He co-founded Carbon War Room with Richard Branson and Virgin United, an organization that worked to harness the power of entrepreneurship to deploy solution technologies at scale. He served as CEO from 2009 to 2012.
Shah previously worked in strategy for BP Solar and as a contractor for the Department of Energy on alternative vehicles and fuel cell programs.
Shah has also called to end all energy subsidies, including those for renewable energy, to "create a level playing field." He has donated repeatedly to the Climate Hawks Vote Political Action Super PAC since 2016 per FEC records.
The Energy Gang
Shah was a founding co-host of The Energy Gang, a podcast dedicated to exploring the technological, political and market forces driving energy and environmental issues. On a 2017 episode, Shah introduced the Jigar Shah Rule - "Countries should not have stupid policy". As noted by co-host Stephen Lacey, the new ruling is pulled directly from the Jigar Shah Playbook, which suggests you must have competitive options such as volumetric reductions and feed-in tariffs, and the way these were designed seven to eight years ago do not work.
Loan Programs Office
Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm appointed Shah to direct the United States Department of Energy's Loan Programs Office (LPO) in March 2021. The office initially provided $40 billion in loan authority to early-stage energy companies and climate technologies.
Under Shah, the LPO more than tripled its staff and reviewed more than 100 applications from climate tech companies seeking loans totaling more than $100 billion.
With the passing of both bills (IRA and BIL) from Congress under the Biden Administration, Shah managed $400 billion of loan authority to commercialize and bring emerging technologies to market, create more clean energy jobs, and boost local economies. The most recent conditional commitment announced from the Loan Programs Office was to "finance the development of a solar-plus long-duration energy storage micro grid on the Tribal lands of Viejas Band of the Kumeyaay Indians near Alpine, California." This loan provides funding specifically for Tribes to plan for and adapt to climate change.
|
Maine Centennial half dollar
|
[
"1920 establishments in the United States",
"Currencies introduced in 1920",
"Deer in art",
"Early United States commemorative coins",
"Fifty-cent coins of the United States",
"United States silver coins"
] | 2,874 | 19,940 |
The Maine Centennial half dollar is a commemorative coin struck in 1920 by the United States Bureau of the Mint, in honor of the anniversary of Maine's admission to the Union on March 15, 1820. It was sculpted by Anthony de Francisci, following sketches by artist Harry Cochrane, from Monmouth, Maine.
Officials in Maine wanted a commemorative half dollar to circulate as an advertisement for the centennial of the state's admission to the Union, and of the planned celebrations. A bill to allow such a coin passed Congress without opposition, but then the state's centennial commission decided to sell the coins for $1, double the face value. The Commission of Fine Arts disliked the proposed design, and urged changes, but Maine officials insisted, and de Francisci converted the sketches to plaster models, from which coinage dies could be made.
Fifty thousand pieces, half the authorized mintage, were struck for release to the public. They were issued too late to be sold at the centennial celebrations in Portland, but eventually the coins were all sold, though relatively few went to coin collectors. Today they list for hundreds to thousands of dollars, depending on condition.
Inception and legislation
Governor Carl Milliken and the council of Maine wanted a half dollar issued to commemorate the centennial of the state's 1820 admission to the Union. Initially, the idea was to have a circulating commemorative that could advertise the centennial celebrations in Maine. Later, after federal authorizing legislation for the coin was approved by Congress, the centennial commission decided to sell the coins for $1 each, rather than letting them pass from hand to hand in circulation.
That legislation for a Maine Centennial half dollar had been introduced in the House of Representatives by the state's John A. Peters on February 11, 1920, with the bill designated as H.R. 12460. It was referred to the Committee on Coinage, Weights, and Measures, of which Indiana Congressman Albert Vestal was the chairman. When the committee met, on February 23, 1920, Congressman Peters told members of the history of the state and citizens' desire to celebrate the centennial, including with a commemorative coin. He stated that he had spoken with the Director of the Mint, Raymond T. Baker, who had told Peters that he and Treasury Secretary David F. Houston planned to endorse the bill, the text of which had been borrowed from the bill authorizing the 1918 Illinois Centennial half dollar. Ohio's William A. Ashbrook recalled that he had been a member of the committee that had approved the Illinois bill; he had favored it and now favored the Maine bill. Minnesota's Oscar E. Keller asked Peters to confirm there would be no expense to the federal government, which Peters did. Clay Stone Briggs of Texas wanted to know if the Maine bill's provisions were identical to those of the Illinois act, and Peters confirmed it. On March 20, Vestal filed a report on behalf of his committee, recommending that the House pass the bill, and reproducing a letter from Houston stating that the Treasury had no objection.
Three coinage bills—Maine Centennial, Alabama Centennial, and Pilgrim Tercentenary—were considered in that order by the House of Representatives on April 21, 1920. After Peters addressed the House in favor of the Maine bill, Connecticut's John Q. Tilson inquired if the proposed coin would replace the existing design (the Walking Liberty half dollar) for the rest of the year; Peters explained that it would not, and that only 100,000 coins would bear the commemorative design. John Franklin Miller of Washington state asked who would bear the expenses of the coinage dies, and Peters responded that the state of Maine would. Virginia's Andrew Jackson Montague asked if the Treasury Department had endorsed the bill, and Peters informed him that both Houston and Baker had. Vestal asked that the bill be passed, but Ohio's Warren Gard had questions about what would happen to the coins once they entered circulation; Peters stated that they would, once issued, be treated as ordinary half dollars. In response to questions by Gard, Peters explained that although Maine would pay for the dies, they would become federal government property. Peters added that though there would be no statewide celebration in Maine for the centennial, there would be local observances. Gard had no further questions about the Maine bill (he would also quiz the sponsors of the Alabama and Pilgrim bills), and on Vestal's motion it passed without recorded dissent.
The following day, April 22, 1920, the House reported its passage of the Maine bill to the Senate. The bill was referred to the Senate Committee on Banking and Currency; on April 28, Connecticut's George P. McLean reported it back with a recommendation that it pass. On May 3, McLean asked that the three coin bills (Maine, Alabama and Pilgrim) be considered by the Senate immediately, fearing that though they were on the Senate's agenda for that day, they might not be reached, and believing urgent action was required. Utah Senator Reed Smoot objected: Smoot's attempt to bring up an anti-dumping trade bill out of turn had just been objected to by Charles S. Thomas of Colorado. Smoot, however, stated if the coin bills had not been reached by about 2:00 pm, there would probably not be any objection. When McLean tried again to advance the coin bills, Kansas' Charles Curtis asked if there was any urgency. McLean replied that as the three coin bills were to mark ongoing anniversaries, there was a need to have them authorized and get the production process started. All three bills passed the Senate without opposition and the Maine bill was enacted with the signature of President Woodrow Wilson on May 10, 1920.
Sketches for a design were prepared by artist Harry Cochrane of Monmouth, Maine. On May 14, 1920, four days after Wilson signed the bill, Director of the Mint Baker sent them to the chairman of the Commission of Fine Arts, Charles Moore, for an opinion as to their merits. The design had been given to Baker by Peters. Moore forwarded the sketches to the sculptor-member of the Commission, James Earle Fraser. Having received no reply, Moore on May 26 sent a telegram to Fraser telling him that the Maine authorities wanted the coins by June 28. Fraser immediately replied by telegram, that he disliked the design as it was "ordinary", and that it was an error to approve sketches; a plaster model should be made by a sculptor. Moore expanded on this in a letter to Houston the following day, "our new silver coinage has reached a high degree of perfection because it was designed by competent men. We should not return to the low standards which have formerly prevailed."
Moore in his letter urged a change of design, stating that the sketch, if translated into a coin, "would bring humiliation to the people of Maine". However, Maine officials refused and insisted on the submitted sketches. After discussions among Peters, Moore, and various officials, an agreement was reached whereby the sketches would be converted into plaster models, and Fraser engaged his onetime student, Anthony de Francisci, to do the work. The younger sculptor completed the work by early July, and the models were approved by the Commission on July 9. The Engraving Department at the Philadelphia Mint created the coin dies utilizing de Francisci's models. Either Chief Engraver George T. Morgan, or his assistant, future chief engraver John R. Sinnock, changed the moose and pine tree on the coin from being in relief (as in de Francisci's models), to be sunken into the coin. This was probably in an attempt to improve the striking quality of the coins, and if so, had limited success, as the full detail would not appear on many coins.
The obverse of the Maine Centennial half dollar depicts the arms of Maine, based on the state's seal. At its center is a shield with a pine tree, sunken incuse into the coin, and below the tree a moose, lying down. The shield is flanked by two male figures, one bearing a scythe and representing Agriculture; the other, supporting an anchor, represents Commerce. Above the shield is the legend Dirigo, Latin for "I direct", and above that a five-pointed star. Below the shield is a scroll with the state's name. Near the rim are UNITED STATES OF AMERICA and HALF DOLLAR. The reverse contains a wreath of pine needles and cones (Maine is known as the Pine Tree State) around MAINE CENTENNIAL 1820–1920 as well as the various mottoes required by law to be present on the coinage.
Numismatist Don Taxay, in his volume on the history of commemorative coins, speculated that "De Francisci did not altogether favor them". According to Taxay, the two human figures on the obverse "were too small to retain their beauty after reduction [from the plaster models to coin size] and seem trivial. The reverse, with its wreath of pine cones, is eminently uninspired." Arlie Slabaugh, in his volume on commemoratives, noted that the half dollar "does not resemble the work by the same sculptor for the Peace dollar the following year [1921]."
Art historian Cornelius Vermeule deprecated the Maine half dollar, but did not blame de Francisci, as the piece "was modeled by the sculptor according to required specifications and is therefore not considered typical of his art, or indeed of any art." Vermeule stated, "it looks just like a prize medal for a county fair or school athletic day." Nonetheless, feeling that de Francisci could have insisted on a more artistic design, Vermeule found "the Maine Centennial was not his shining moment".
Production, distribution, and collecting
Celebrations for the state's centennial were held in Maine's largest city, Portland, on July 4, 1920. Peters had hoped to have the half dollars available for distribution then, but because of the design controversy, they were not. He wrote to Assistant Director of the Mint Mary M. O'Reilly on July 14, expressing his frustration at the delay and stating that though the Portland festivities had passed, the state could still get some benefit from the coins if they received them during 1920. Otherwise, "we might as well wait for the next Centennial [in 2020] which I judge would be more convenient and in accordance with the speed at which we are going". He concluded by asking that the Mint let him know of the next obstacle ahead of time. Governor Milliken also wrote, on July 20, reminding Mint officials that the coin was authorized by a special act of Congress, and asking when the first consignment would be ready.
In the late summer of 1920, a total of 50,028 Maine Centennial half dollars were produced at the Philadelphia Mint, including 28 pieces reserved for inspection and testing at the 1921 meeting of the annual Assay Commission. No special care was taken in the minting; they were ejected into bins and many display bag marks. They were sent to Maine and placed on sale through the Office of the State Treasurer at a price of $1. Thirty thousand sold immediately and they remained on sale through the treasurer's office until all fifty thousand were vended, though this did not happen until at least 1929. Bowers speculated that had the full 100,000 authorized coins been struck, most of the additional quantity would have been returned to the Mint and melted for lack of buyers. Many pieces were spent in the years after 1920 and entered circulation.
Relatively few were sold to the coin collecting community, and the majority of surviving specimens display the effects of careless handling. The 2015 deluxe edition of Richard S. Yeoman's A Guide Book of United States Coins lists the coin at $140 to $685, depending on condition—an exceptional piece sold for $7,050 in 2014.
References
Citations
|
Kate Ker-Lane
|
[
"British businesspeople in retailing",
"1939 deaths",
"1861 births",
"English businesspeople in fashion",
"People from Bisley, Gloucestershire",
"English fashion designers",
"19th-century English businesswomen",
"19th-century English businesspeople",
"20th-century English businesswomen",
"20th-century English businesspeople",
"British women fashion designers"
] | 709 | 5,771 |
Catherine Ker-Lane (née Rowles; bapt. 31 March 1861 – 14 July 1939) was a successful society dressmaker and businesswoman of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries who traded as Madame Kate Ker-Lane's Court Dress Emporium in Kensington, London, but was noted for the poor conditions in which her staff worked.
Early life
Ker-Lane was born in Bisley, Gloucestershire, in 1861, to Henry Rowles, a miller, and his wife, Harriet, who were both also born in Bisley. At the time of the 1861 census, the family were living in France Lynch near Stroud, and in 1871 at Barton St Mary, Gloucestershire. By 1881 they were living in Bisley again and her father was a "farmer of 36 acres".
First marriage
In 1881 she married Thomas Samuel Lapington at St Michael's parish church in Gloucester and became Kate Lapington. In June 1886, according to Kate, her husband abandoned her and two months later she sued for divorce on the grounds of his cruelty, adultery, and desertion. The case was heard in 1889 after sufficient time had elapsed to prove the abandonment. The suit was undefended and the marriage dissolved.
Career
In 1905 she was visited by a factory inspector who recorded that she employed 43 needlewomen and machinists at her small premises at 3 Kensington High Street, all women, eleven on the top floor, sixteen on the third, twelve on the second, one on the first, two at ground level and one in the basement. The inspector reported "This is a very dangerous case, there is hardly any light on the stairs and in some places no handrails".
She later had a shop known as Madame Kate Ker-Lane's Court Dress Emporium at 29 Kensington High Street.
She was regularly written about in positive terms by London American News.
In 1921 she was operating from 46 Hogarth Road, Earls Court, London. SW5, which was also her address at the time of her death. In 1922, a dress made by Ker-Lane was worn by Lady (Robert) Balfour at court. The Times described it as "a black velvet gown, embroidered with a running design of thistles in cut jet and bugles: under-bodice of Brussels lace. jet train. lined with satin beauté; ornaments. diamonds and sapphires." Soon after, Mrs Crookshank wore a Ker-Lane dress to court which was described as "Brussels point lace over pale gold tissue: train of white satin, embroidered in hand-worked lattice design of flowers in gold thread. Ornaments: diamonds and pearls."
Death and legacy
Ker-Lane died, single, on 14 July 1939 at Thatched Cottage, Green Lane, Hardwicke, Gloucestershire. Her home address at the time of her death was 46 Hogarth Road, Earls Court. She left an estate of £2,071 and probate was granted in London to Thomas Marshall Sinclair, company secretary, and Reginald Victor Rowles, company director.
|
Gilbert Miller
|
[
"1884 births",
"1969 deaths",
"American entertainment industry businesspeople",
"American theatre managers and producers",
"Businesspeople from New York City",
"American people of English descent",
"Burials at Woodlawn Cemetery (Bronx, New York)",
"20th-century American businesspeople",
"Special Tony Award recipients",
"Tony Award winners"
] | 589 | 4,965 |
Gilbert Heron Miller (July 3, 1884 – January 3, 1969) was an American theatrical producer.
Born in New York City, he was the son of English-born theatrical producer Henry Miller and Bijou Heron, a former child actress. Raised and educated in Europe, he returned home to follow in his father's footsteps and became a highly successful Broadway producer. Miller served as director of the League of New York Theatres as well as an officer of the Actors Fund. He brought the successful German-language play By Candlelight to New York in 1929 with a translation by P. G. Wodehouse. He also managed the St James's Theatre in London.
Nominated three times, Gilbert Miller won the Tony Award for Best Play in 1950 for his production of The Cocktail Party. In 1965, he was given a Special Tony Award "for having produced 88 plays and musicals and for his perseverance which has helped to keep New York and theatre alive."
Gilbert Miller died in 1969 and was interred in the Woodlawn Cemetery in The Bronx, New York.
Private life
Miller's first wife was Jessie F. Glendinning, whom he divorced. She was an actress and the daughter of the actor John Glendinning, and the sister of Ernest Glendinning. They had one daughter, Dorothy.
His second wife was Mary Margaret Allen; they divorced.
His third wife was Kathryn (Kitty) Bache (1896–1979), a daughter of the Wall Street financier Jules Bache, a supporter of American theatre who in 1941 helped found the New York branch of the Escholier Club. They married in 1927 in Paris, France. Columbia University's Kathryn Bache Miller Theatre was named in her honor.
|
Olateju Oyeleye
|
[
"1924 births",
"2013 deaths",
"Alumni of the University of London",
"Chief operating officers",
"Nigerian businesspeople",
"Officers of the Order of the Niger",
"People from Osun State",
"Yoruba businesspeople",
"Nigerian expatriates in the United Kingdom"
] | 2,236 | 15,381 |
Olateju Oyeleye (7 April 1924 – July 2013) was born in Ilesha, Osun State, Nigeria. He was the son of a farmer, Pa Joseph Oyeleye Aare, whose main produce was cocoa, kolanut, and bitter kola. His mother, Madam Felicia Esan Oyeleye, was a "petty trader" who hawked beans and pap. His early childhood was the foundation of his religious life and core values, where his parents through example developed his faith in God, "respect for others, desire for service, and passion for excellence".
Teju Oyeleye attended Peter's Anglican Primary School, the equivalent to Elementary School in North America. He later attended Ilesha Grammar School, where he graduated in 1942.
He had several important role models growing up. His older brother, Daniel Babalola Oyeleye, got him his first job after high school at the Nigerian Post and Telegram, or P&T, organisation, where he worked for about 10 years. His older brother also encouraged him to follow his passion for science. While working at P&T, he developed a fascination for morse code and the science around how the telegraph key worked. Another mentor was the cousin of a good friend who was a teacher at Yaba Technical College. The cousin's explanation of how a telegraph key functioned and the relationship between electricity and magnetism was crucial in his selecting Electrical Engineering in college. A final role model for Teju was Mr. Joseph Onawumi, who encouraged him with his GCE Advanced level classes (the equivalent to AP classes) in Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics and assisted him with his application to the University of London.
College
In 1952, Teju Oyeleye attended the University of London. The scholarship he earned for his exceptional scores on the GCE "A” level examinations, from the Western Nigeria Production Board, aided him in his goal to study Engineering at the university. The field of engineering and science and technology as a whole was relatively new for Teju entering college. His high school, Ilesha Grammar School, did not offer any science classes which left him at a significant disadvantage compared to his peers at University of London. However, his unwavering interest in science and technology helped him overcome his shortcomings in the field. In 1957, he received an Electrical Engineering degree from the University of London.
During his time at the University of London, Teju was the president of African Students and was the publicity officer of the college students union.
Ferguson Radio Corporation
After college, Teju Oyeleye spent two years (1957–1959) getting practical experience at Ferguson Radio Corporation, Enfield, North London. After his experience at Fergusson Radio, Teju Oyeleye returned to Nigeria with his wife Mrs. Funke Oyeleye, a registered nurse.
WNTV-WNBS (Western Nigeria Television and Broadcasting Service)
Back in Nigeria, Teju Oyeleye jumped into a much bigger project. The Western Nigerian Television Station hired him in September 1959 as a Development Engineer. This was the first television station in Africa which meant a lot of things were required of the company. First, the company needed to provide television service to the general public. They would then have to broadcast channels for the consumers to watch. This required a lot of professionals, many of whom were being called back from their dwellings in England, to come over and establish this new television station in Nigeria. Teju Oyeleye was one of the engineers chosen to fulfill the demand.
The television station grew rapidly since Teju's arrival. The shows started in black and white with shows only airing from four o'clock in the afternoon to midnight. The shows that aired included live programs, recorded programs, movies, interviews, outside broadcasts and the radio broadcasting he was also in charge with included the morning news, jingles, and talk shows. Color television arrived in 1975, a few years after the time Teju Oyeleye moved to his next professional challenge Total Nigeria Limited.
As West Nigerian Television and Broadcasting Services (WNTV-WNBS) developed and expanded from one city to the entire continent around the time of Teju's arrival, so did Teju's role in the company become much more integral to the company's success. Teju experienced a series of promotions from his initial program as Development Manager to his position as Chief Engineer, and eventually general manager in 1966 which was the equivalent of chief executive officer in North American companies. He was the first Nigerian general manager of the first television station in Africa.
Teju's management style was "collaborative in nature and his direct reports were given significant responsibility as well as the accountability that went along with it". In other words, he encouraged his employees and himself to work with each other to get most tasks done and his workers were responsible for the work they were assigned. He would often set goals for his workers and use simple data analysis to measure how close they came to accomplishing these goals.
"We set up the scheme of service, the staff regulations and the financial regulations. We were having a monthly meeting at which we would review the previous month and set out what we were going to do in the ensuing month. We had a programme committee under the chairmanship of the controller of programs. We used participatory management techniques in which each of the 6 HOD's [heads of department] participated in the management. The departments were Administration under the secretary, Engineering under the Chief Engineer, Programs under the Controller of Programs, News and Current Affairs under the Head of News and Commercial under the Commercial Manager who was located in Lagos because of the strategic location as the commercial and administrative capital at that time".
During his time as general manager, he mentored a lot of second generation Television Station CEOs. A number of his pupils eventually went on to head the newer TV stations while they were being created all across Nigeria.
Total Nigeria PLC
Eventually Teju felt it was time to leave his executive position at WNTV-WNBS. He made note that "Anytime you don't feel you're contributing sufficiently to a job… it's time to leave".
When he joined Total in 1973, he started as an Assistant Operations Manager. However, in a span of six years and five promotions, he had risen to the rank of general manager, which in this scenario was the equivalent to chief operating officer. He held this position for another six years, until 1984. His experience as general manager at Western Nigeria Television was not a waste when it came to climbing the ranks. He explained during our interview, "No experience is lost if you value it well".
Prior to him, no other Nigerian had risen to that level in the organisation. At the time he joined Total they were ranked number three in Nigeria in terms of productivity amongst the petroleum companies. Eleven years later when he was promoted from his position as general manager (In this scenario he was the chief operating officer), the brand had risen to be number one in Nigeria.
For his next assignment, Engineer Oyeleye was asked to help set up several new ventures (similar to incubator companies) for Total. For the three years he spent in the role of Group Executive Director of Total Nigeria Subsidiaries, Engr. Oyeleye formed several successful subsidiaries that grew significantly in size. The Nigerian Gas Cylinder Manufacturing company was the first of its kind in Nigeria and manufactured gas cylinders that were used for cooking in almost every home. Another highly successful subsidiary supplied bitumen (road tar) and lubricants to the country. Teju Oyeleye retired from Total in 1991, but remained on the board of directors until 1994. He was succeeded as general manager by Sunny A. Olu Jegede.
Professional organizations
Nigerian Society of Engineers
In 1958, Olateju Oyeleye and Chief G.O. Aiwereoba formed the Nigerian Society of Engineers in London, England. After several meetings, the inaugural meeting on the Nigerian Society of Engineers was held at the Nigerian house in London in February that same year. Engr. Teju Oyeleye took on the position of Secretary-General during the earlier years of the organisation, starting from when Chief G.O. Aiwereoba was president. Aiwereoba stepped down the following year and a new president was elected every two years. Teju Oyeleye took over the organisation for two years, in 1976 to 1977.
Nigerian Society of Engineers was the largest body in Africa that recognised students and graduate engineers. It was founded to create a more unionised voice of Nigeria's engineers so they could discuss with government officials and unofficial authorities topics related to technology. It also served as a beacon of knowledge where so many experienced engineers gathered to share their experiences with the less experienced engineers and also other officials not directly involved in the engineering profession. However, the most important function of this society was to promote the ideas and interests of its members and to protect each member and their families with backup monetary support.
The Nigerian Society has over time split into several divisions. A few of these divisions include one for Chemical Engineers (NSCE), one for Civil Engineers (NICE), and one for female engineers, APWE.
Nigerian Institute of Management
Engr. Teju Oyeleye was elected in 1988 to be the eighth president of the Nigerian Institute of Management. The Nigerian Institute of Management was designed to educate any person interested in pursuing a management profession in Nigeria. It sets the standard of knowledge for all managers and ensures that these managers are aware of all the skills vital to successfully running a company. It also judges all potential managers on their qualifications and denies those who are not up to par a profession in the management field.
The Institute was founded in 1961 to educate managers and professionals interested in management with practical skills necessary to assertively and effectively manage a company. The organisation's goal was to educate positive managing traits; like the drive to find more economically efficient ways, being more transparent with all issues, and to avoid fraudulent and unethical practices taking place, in a manager's respective company.
Teju's main responsibility was to decide which standards should be necessary for a manager to run a company. In 1991, however, he stepped down from his position at this organisation.
Religious life
Olateju Oyeleye was baptised at age two and confirmed at age eighteen by Archbishop L.G. Vinnig.
He was a devout Christian, who read the bible from Genesis to Revelation at age fourteen. Throughout his life he devoted at least one hour to bible study and prayer each day ("A Life of…"). His religion strongly influenced his life and his success at work. He made it his objective to make his life so exemplary that people would follow suit.
Currently, he regularly attends the Cathedral Church of Christ and St Peters Church Isona Ilesa. He also attends Church of Pentecost, or the Anglican Communion where he was baptised, at Festac Town. In the Cathedral Church of Christ, he is a member of the Torch Bearers society while at Church of Pentecost, he is a grand patron of the Fountain of Hope Society.
During our interview, Teju explained, "Christianity is a way of life. It is a way of living. The power of positive thinking will succeed you in everything you are doing.”
Personal life
Teju Oyeleye married Anne Awujoola Oyeleye (née Smith) in London, England in 1956. Mrs. Oyeleye was a registered nurse who taught at the Jericho Nursing School in Ibadan after they moved to Nigeria. They had 3 children Dr. Layi Oyeleye, Dr. Gunju Oyeleye, and Dr. Biola Oyeleye who are engineers and an ophthalmologist by training, respectively. Mrs Oyeleye died in a car accident in March 1978.
After the death of his first wife, he married Comfort Olubunmi Oyeleye (née Awolowo), an accounting executive in 1979. They have 3 children; Tolu, Kike and Fola.
He died in July 2013 at the age of 89.
Awards and commendations
In December 2003, Teju received an Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON) from previous Nigerian president, Olusegun Obasanjo. This was one of the highest awards given by the president of Nigeria. This award acknowledges his National development, or all the renovations Engr. Olateju Oyeleye made to Nigeria, including his work at WNTV-WNBS, Total Nigeria PLC, NSE, NIM, NCC, and many others.
|
The Paper Store (retailer)
|
[
"1964 establishments in Massachusetts",
"Retail companies of the United States",
"Retail companies established in 1964",
"Acton, Massachusetts",
"Companies based in Middlesex County, Massachusetts",
"Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2020",
"Privately held companies based in Massachusetts"
] | 728 | 6,252 |
The Paper Store is an American retail company based in Acton, Massachusetts, that owns and operates over 100 specialty gift stores in the northeast, Florida, and Illinois. It operates under the brands The Paper Store, Gifts & More at The Paper Store, and Uncharted. The company offers "on-trend" products catering to a predominantly female demographic, with a selection that includes (but is not limited to) apparel, accessories, jewelry, bath and body products, stationery, baby and toddler gifts, kids' toys, jigsaw puzzles, books, and Hallmark Cards greeting cards. The Paper Store is currently the largest interdependently-owned group of Hallmark Gold Crown stores in the United States. Other highly recognizable brands featured in their stores include Alex and Ani, Vera Bradley, Lilly Pulitzer, Kate Spade, Life Is Good, Vineyard Vines, Pura Vida, Hydro Flask, and Ivory Ella.
Bob Anderson founded The Paper Store in 1964, when he purchased a 700 sq. ft. newsstand in Maynard, Massachusetts after having graduated from Babson College. Soon after founding The Paper Store, the Andersons expanded its reach in the community through distribution of its papers to local homes. They would soon carry and deliver The Shopper, a local publication, to homes in Maynard and surrounding towns. A second location eventually opened in Clinton, Massachusetts, at which time The Paper Store grew its inventory with office products, books, and greeting cards.
The business would continue to prosper, eventually splitting its successful distribution and retail components in 1972. In 1989, Bob's son John Anderson proposed significant growth in the company, which ultimately led to the opening of additional stores across multiple states.
In 2011, The Paper Store invested over $10 million to build "shop within a shop" areas featuring the jewelry brand Alex and Ani in many of their stores - a significant move for the company.
As of 2022, The Paper Store had expanded to include 100 brick and mortar locations throughout the Northeast and Florida. Bob's son Tom Anderson is CEO.
In July 2020, because of the COVID-19 related financial pressures The Paper Store filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection at the U.S. District Court in Worcester, Massachusetts.
In November 2021, it was announced that the retailer would be acquiring 14 Hallmark stores in Florida, further expanding its business.
In November 2024, The Paper Store opened its first store in the Chicago area, under the new brand Uncharted. It has since opened two more Uncharted store locations in the Chicago area, and one in Long Island.
As of 2022, The Paper Store raised over $2,000,000 for charities in its stores' communities. Every year, the company holds a "Gift of Giving" charity event in its brick and mortar locations and through its online retail storefront. The event supports local food pantries, shelters, and more. The Paper Store also directly supports various organizations local to their stores including local school districts and first responders.
|
Andreas Bjørn
|
[
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"1750 deaths",
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"18th-century Danish shipbuilders",
"Businesspeople from Copenhagen",
"People from Slagelse Municipality",
"Merchants from Denmark–Norway"
] | 1,203 | 8,749 |
Andreas Bjørn (28 October 1703 – 27 January 1750) was a Danish merchant, shipbuilder and ship owner.
Early life
Andreas Bjørn was born (as Anders Bjørn, name later changed to Andreas Bjørn) in Skælskør to Mads Andersen Bjørn and Karen Pedersdatter. His father was a peasant. He came to Copenhagen in an early age. In 1730, he took citizenship as a wholesaler. He initially worked in the lucrative timber trade. His lumberyard was located at the customs house (north of present-day Larsens Plads. From 1731 he supplied the Royal Danish Navy with provisions, cannons and large quantities of timber. From 1739, he also supplied the Royal Danish Army with cannons.
Ship building
In 1732, Bjørn bought Grønnegård Harbour at the southern tip of Christianshavn. He mainly used the area as a lumberyard. In the same year, he also bought Niels Alsing's lumberyard at the other end of Strandgade. The property reached all the way from Strandgade to Christianshavn Canal and was partly lined with a row of wooden warehouses along the street. He demolished most of the buildings and constructed a house for his own use (now known as the Andreas Bjørn House) at the corner of Strandgade and Bådsmandsstræde in 1734. He also constructed a number of warehouses and workshops on the land. In 1733, he was permission to establish a dockyard on reclaimed land to the north of his new property. Separated from the rest of Christianshavn by a branch of Christianshavn Canal (now Wilders Kanal), his dockyard became known as Bjørnsholm (Bjørn's Isle). Approximately 50 ships were built at the dockyard. Some of them were used by himself in oversea trade, while others were commissions from other trading houses or the government..
Ships built at Andreas Bjørn's Dockyard
The following ships were built by Andreas Bjørn. Most of them were built at Bjørnsholm but some of them were built in other locations.The place of construction of the individual ships is not known.
Year Name Type Sgipbuilder Comments 1741 Enigheden Frigate 1741 Københavns Slot Frigate Built for the navy. 1742 Dokken Frigate Commissioned by the navy bit shortly thereafter handed over to the Danish Asiatic Company. 1743 København Frigate Poul Brock Built for Andfreas Bjørn's own use. In 1744, he sold it to the Danish Asiatic Company. 1743 Fortuna Frigate Poul Brock Built for Andfreas Bjørn's own use. In 1748, he sold it to the General Trading Company.. 1743 Fortuna Galliot Built for the nacy (decommissioned in 1747). 1743 Neptunus Galliot Built for the nacy. (decommissioned in 1852). 1743 Læsø Galliot Built for the nacy. 1744 Jonfru Birgitte Galliot Jacob Rasmussen Lund Owned by Jens Gregersen Klitgaard. 1744 Christiansborg Frigate In 1844, Christiansborg was sold to the Danish East Asiatic Company and renamed Trankebar. 1744 Dortuna Sold to the king for 7m000 Danish rigsdaler. 1745 Københavns Slot Frigate Used in the Triangle Trade. In April 1769, it was sold in auction to Andreas Bodenhoff. 1745 Rigernes Ønske Frigate Sold to the General Trading Company in 1748. 1745 Postillonen Frigate 1745 Jægerspris Frigate Andreas Bjørn. 1747 Jægersborg Frigate Andreas Thuresen Danish West India Company. 1747 Prinsesse Sophia Magdelena Frigate Poul Brock Danish West India Company. 1747 Emanuel Galliot Jakob Rasmussen Lund Jens Larsen and Partners 1747 Svanholm Hækbåden Jens Sørensen Andreas Bjørn and Partners 1747 Sorgenfri Frigate Vest.-Guin. Komp. 1747 Frederiksborg Slot Brigantine Poul Brock 1748 Fredensborg 1748 Fredensborg Frigate Poul Brock Andreas Bjørn and Partners 1748 Landets Ønske Frigate The General Trading Company. 1748 Frydenlund Hæk 1749 Prinsesse Wilhelmine Caroline 1749 Mercurius Hukkert 1749 Hertuginden af Helburghausen 1749 Frederikshaab The General Trading Company. 1749 Frederiksberg Hukkert 1749 Jubelfesten Hukkert
Oversea trade
Bjørn participated widely in overseas trade, especially with the Danish West Indies. In 1747, together with Ulrik Frederik Suhm (1686-1758) and Frederik Holmsted (1683–1758), he founded the General Trading Company which mainly traded with Iceland, Finnmark and later Greenland. The company took over the northernmost part of Bjørnsholm.
Other pursuits
In 1747 the Royal Copenhagen Shooting Society moved their activities to a corner of Bjørnsholm. When Frederick V became a member later that same year, Bjørn arranged a large celebration at his own expense. The king, in return, appointed him as Royal Agent. In 1748, Bjørn was appointed as one of the directors of the new Royal Danish Theatre.
Legacy
Andreas Bjørn's site at Christianshavn is now known as Wilders Plads, Krøyers Plads and Grønlandske Handels Plads after later owners. The old main building and a half-timbered workshop of his shipyard is still found at Wilders Plads. The Andreas Bjørn House at Strandgade 46 is also a heritage listed building. Andreas Bjørns Gade, also in Christianshavn, is named after him.
See also
Andreas Bodenhoff
|
OrbiMed
|
[
"Financial services companies established in 1989",
"Hedge fund firms in New York City",
"Private equity firms of the United States",
"Venture capital firms of the United States"
] | 679 | 8,521 |
OrbiMed (OrbiMed Advisors) is an American investment firm based in New York City, United States. It is focused on making public and private investments in the Healthcare and Biotechnology industries. OrbiMed is considered one of the world's largest dedicated healthcare investment firms.
Background
In 1989, S.G Warburg pharmaceutical analysts Viren Mehta and Samuel Isaly founded Mehta & Isaly, a money-management and research firm. This was the predecessor firm to OrbiMed. The firm made its first venture capital investment in 1993.
In 1998, Mehta & Isaly split up into two entities, with Mehta forming Mehta Partners and Isaly forming OrbiMed Advisors.
In 2007, OrbiMed expanded into Asia, opening offices in Shanghai and Mumbai. In 2010, the firm expanded into the Middle East, opening an office in Herzliya, Israel.
In December 2017, Isaly stepped down from his role as managing partner of OrbiMed due to allegations of sexual harassment raised by former female employees.
Notable investments
AbCellera Biologics
Acceleron Pharma
Ambit Biosciences
California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences
Cynapsus Therapeutics
DFINE, Inc.
Gelesis
Intercept Pharmaceuticals
Natera
OmniGuide
TigerConnect
|
Anders Chydenius
|
[
"1729 births",
"1803 deaths",
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"18th-century Swedish politicians",
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"18th-century Finnish writers",
"19th-century Finnish economists",
"19th-century Finnish writers",
"19th-century Swedish writers",
"19th-century Swedish male writers",
"Age of Liberty people",
"Classical economists",
"18th-century Finnish Lutheran clergy",
"Finnish philosophers",
"Finnish politicians",
"Members of the Riksdag of the Estates",
"People from Sotkamo",
"Swedish-speaking Finns",
"Swedish liberal politicians",
"Free speech activists"
] | 2,970 | 24,438 |
Anders Chydenius (; 26 February 1729 – 1 February 1803) was a Swedish-Finnish Lutheran priest and a member of the Swedish Riksdag, and is known as the leading classical liberal of Nordic history. He carried out his life's work in the Kingdom of Sweden, advocating for free trade, freedom of speech, and social reforms.
Born in Sotkamo, Finland (then part of Sweden) and having studied under Pehr Kalm at the Royal Academy of Åbo (Turku), Chydenius became a priest and Enlightenment philosopher. He was elected as an ecclesiastic member of the Swedish Riksdag of the Estates in 1765–66, in which his Cap party seized the majority and government and championed Sweden's first Freedom of the Press Act, the most liberal in the world along with those of Great Britain and the Seven United Provinces (of the Netherlands). Vehemently opposed to the extreme interventionist policies of mercantilism preached by the previously predominant Hat party for decades, he was ultimately coerced into retirement for his criticism of the Cap administration's radical deregulation policies and their social and political consequences.
Following Gustav III's coup d'état in 1772, which meant the end of parliamentary rule for another century, Chydenius briefly returned to prominence and worked to increase civil liberties and economic freedom as part of Gustav's doctrine of enlightened despotism, and contributed to the abolishment of torture as means of interrogation, the limitation of capital punishment, and the legalisation of Jewish and Catholic immigration into Sweden. Ultimately, the king's increasingly autocratic position brought Chydenius out of favour again, and he retired to private life in Ostrobothnia, where he died at age 73.
An early pioneer—also by international standards—and proponent of economic liberalism, freedom of religion, freedom of speech and migration (writing a pamphlet on the invisible hand a decade before the publication of The Wealth of Nations) he was one of the first comprehensive philosophers of liberalism.
Early life
Anders Chydenius was born in 1729 in Sotkamo, Ostrobothnia (now part of Kainuu Region) where his father Jacob was a chaplain. The family moved to Kuusamo in 1734 where his father became a parish rector. Anders' childhood was spent in the barren area of northern Finland. He and his brother Samuel were taught privately by their father and then they went to Uleåborg (Oulu) grammar school (Uleåborg trivialskola). After the Russo-Swedish War (1741–1743), the boys studied privately in Tornio and entered The Royal Academy of Åbo in 1745. They also studied at Uppsala University. Anders studied mathematics, natural sciences, Latin and philosophy. In 1746 the father Jacob and family moved to Gamlakarleby (Kokkola).
Nedervetil
In 1753, after graduation, Anders was appointed preacher of the Chapel of the dependent parish of Nedervetil (today, part of Kronoby) in Ostrobothnia. He was married in 1755 to Beata Magdalena Mellberg, daughter of a merchant from Jakobstad. The couple was childless.
While in Nedervetil he was active in many projects such as the clearing of the marshes, experimenting with new breeds of animals and plants, and adopting new methods of cultivation of potatoes and tobacco. His aim was to enlighten the peasants by example. Chydenius practiced medicine and became known by inoculating ordinary people against smallpox. He also performed cataract operations and prepared medicines.
The 1765–1766 Riksdag of the Estates
Some of his first writings were about practical matters such as the moss overgrowing the meadows, and improvements in the design of horse carriages. Then he moved on to social questions and became known as a writer and speaker. He was sent to the Diet in 1765 to obtain free trading rights for the towns of Ostrobothnia. The cities of Gamlakarleby, Vasa (Vaasa), Björneborg (Pori) and Uleåborg received navigational rights which helped with their later development as well as helping all of Ostrobothnia. At that time, the tar which should have brought prosperity to his town and the coast had to be sold abroad through Stockholm, which made most of the profits. Largely due to Chydenius' efforts, Stockholm's monopoly was broken and from 1765, the towns gained freedom to sell and ship tar directly to foreign customers.
Chydenius participated actively in the Diet, and published several articles of criticism which caused a great stir. One of the results of his activities in the Diet was a stricter parliamentary control of the government budget. He considered that one of his greatest achievements was an extension of the freedom of the press. His radical activities caused him to be excluded from the Diet by his own political party in 1766.
Kokkola
In 1770 he was appointed rector of Gamlakarleby where he concentrated on parish work. He maintained his own orchestra, and rehearsed with them. They gave concerts in the rectory's reception hall. His father lived in the parsonage at Gamlakarleby from 1746 to 1766, and Anders lived there from 1770 to 1803.
Between 1778 and 1779 Anders Chydenius once again participated in the Diet, at which the position of hired hands was brought up. He championed the rights of the servant class. At the suggestion of King Gustavus III, he introduced a bill whereby foreigners were also granted limited rights to practice their own religion. He participated in the Diet again in 1793 and was active as a writer covering the development of agriculture, the burning of saltpeter, smallpox, and the settlement of Lapland. One of his main tasks during his latter years was the supervision of building an extension to the old parish church. In 1796 he became a member of the Swedish society Pro Fide et Christianismo, founded to promote Christian education, along with his nephew Jakob Tengström. He died in 1803.
Ideas
Chydenius focused his liberal writings on attacking the mercantilism, mercantilist conquest politics, conservatism, protectionism and privilege that were prevalent at the time. In his view, state offices should not be for sale and the state should not impose any restrictions or privileges on any act. He criticised the clergy, nobility, civil servants and other privileged people, saying that they lived off the work of peasants, seeking to turn the debate on the status of peasants into a debate on the status of the privileged. The prevailing view was that peasants and workers had to be kept poor to prevent them from idling. Chydenius showed that, on the contrary, workers were not idlers who should be forced to make the state rich, but vital individuals who, free to pursue their own happiness, would also benefit others.
Chydenius was in favour of peace, demanded full and inviolable land ownership, wanted to give refugees protection and peasants and artisans the right to sell their products whenever and wherever they wanted. He opposed price and wage regulation and the labour strike, and demanded the right of workers to choose their employers. To save sparsely populated Lapland, he proposed turning it into a night-watchman state.
Free trade
In 1765 Chydenius published a pamphlet called The National Gain (Den nationnale winsten), in which he proposes ideas of free trade and industry, explores the relationship between economy and society, and lays out the principles for liberalism, capitalism, and modern democracy. In the book Chydenius published theories closely corresponding to Adam Smith's invisible hand, eleven years before Smith published his book, The Wealth of Nations.
Chydenius also put his theories into practice by proposing to the Riksdag of the Estates a drastic trade liberalization of towns along the Gulf of Bothnia. However, most of his other propositions were not realized, such as turning Lapland to a nightwatchman state to make the poor province prosper economically:
– free state, private ownership and individual freedom. Inhabitants could choose whatever profession, freedom of trade would be complete, there would be no privileges, regulation or taxes. Bureaucracy would be nonexistent, and the only officer would be a judge who would oversee that no-one's rights would be suppressed.
Freedom of expression
Chydenius became a great proponent of freedom of the press. In a report published in 1776, he wrote:
No evidence should be needed that a certain freedom of writing and printing is one of the strongest bulwarks of a free organisation of the state, as without it, the estates would not have sufficient information for the drafting of good laws, and those dispensing justice would not be monitored, nor would the subjects know the requirements of the law, the limits of the rights of government, and their own responsibilities. Education and good conduct would be crushed; coarseness in thought, speech, and manners would prevail, and dimness would darken the entire sky of our freedom in a few years.
Natural equality
Chydenius was outspoken about universal rights and the abolition of privilege. He wanted to give the poor the same freedom as for everybody else and argued for the good of the poor, which was then rather exceptional among politicians. He promoted democracy and defended the freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of trade and industry, and the workers rights. He called for an oversight of the way the state funds were spent. In modern language we would say he advocated openness and good governance.
In a 1778 essay, Thoughts Upon the Natural Rights of Servants and Peasants, he wrote:
Nature shapes them exactly like us. Their posture in the crib is the same as ours, their souls have the same reason as other peoples', whereby it is plain to see that the Lord of creation also had intended them to have equal rights with other people.
Chydenius can be seen as a major influence on Nordic thinkers as well as real-life politics, strictly promoting classical liberalism. He has been labeled the father of Swedish liberalism. Both Sweden and Finland include him among their historical notables, and he is variably categorized either Swedish or Finnish by nationality.
Anders Chydenius is remembered as a man ahead of his time, expressing ideas that were radical in his day, but are now the backbone of the Nordic ideology. He can also be seen as an Enlightenment thinker, an advocate of science, arts, rational thinking and freedom. He was also a scientist and skilled eye-surgeon, the maker of several inventions, a pioneer of vaccination in Finland and the founder of an orchestra.
Chydenius was featured on the highest valued bank note (1000 marks) of the Finnish mark's last design series. There are also many place names referring to Chydenius in Kokkola, such as the Chydenia Shopping Center, which was completed in the town center in 2006.
Anders Chydenius was selected as the main motif in a recent Finnish commemorative coin, the €10 Anders Chydenius commemorative coin, minted in 2003. The obverse features an open book, referring to Chydenius's numerous publications and the Bible. On the reverse, a traditional village with a church and other buildings can be seen.
In the book Historiens 100 viktigaste svenskar ("100 Most Important Swedes in History"), written by Niklas Ekdal and Petter Karlsson, Chydenius was ranked as the seventeenth most important Swede in history. In Finland, Chydenius was ranked on the place #40 in the list of "Greatest Finns" in a voting contest organised by the national broadcasting company.
The Chydenius family is even today a well known cultural family in Finland. Composer Kaj Chydenius is Anders's distant relative.
Selected works
Americanska näfwerbåtar. Åbo 1753. (American Bark Boats.)
Svar På samma Fråga (Om bästa sättet at upodla Mosslupna Ängar). Stockholm 1762. (How to Cultivate Mossy Meadows.)
Svar på samma Fråga (Angående Kärrors Förbättring). Stockholm 1764. (The Improvement of Waggons.)
Wederläggning Af de Skäl, Hwarmed man söker bestrida Öster- och Wästerbottniska Samt Wäster-Norrländske Städerne Fri Seglation. Stockholm 1765. (Counter-arguments to Those Who Would Attempt to Oppose Free Navigation between the Towns of Ostrobothnia, Västerbotten and Norland.)
Swar På den af Kgl. Wetenskaps Academien förestälta Frågan: Hwad kan wara orsaken, at sådan myckenhet Swenskt folk årligen flytter utur Landet? Stockholm 1765. (For What Reason do so Many Swedes Emigrate Every Year?)
Källan Til Rikets Wan-Magt. Stockholm 1765. (The Source of the Weakness of the Kingdom.)
Den Nationnale Winsten. Wördsamast öfwerlemnad Til Riksens Höglofliga Ständer, Af En Deras Ledamot. Stockholm 1765. (The National Gain.)
Omständeligt Swar, På den genom Trycket utkomne Wederläggning af Skriften, Kallad: Källan til Rikets Wanmagt, Jämte Anmärkningar Öfwer De wid samma Källa anstälda Wattu-Prof. Stockholm 1765. (In Reply to Critiques Applying to The Source of the Weakness of the Kingdom.)
Berättelse Om Chinesiska Skrif-Friheten, Öfversatt af Danskan. Stockholm 1766. (A Report on the Freedom of the Press in China.)
Rikets Hjelp, Genom en Naturlig Finance-System. Stockholm 1766. (Assisting the Kingdom through a Natural Monetary System.)
Tal Hållet Vid Vår Allernådigste Konungs, Konung Gustaf III:s Höga Kröning, Den 29 Maji 1772. Stockholm 1772. (Speech on the Occasion of the Coronation of Gustavus III.)
Svar På Vetenskaps och Vitterhets Samhällets I Götheborg Förestälta Fråga: Huruvida Landthandel för ett Rike i gemen är nyttig eller skadelig, och hvad mon den bidrager til industriens uplifvande eller aftagande? Stockholm 1777. (Is Rural Trade Advantageous or Disadvantageous to the Kingdom, and to What Extent does it Affect the Progress or Decline in Means of Livelihood?)
Tankar Om Husbönders och Tienstehions Naturliga Rätt. Stockholm 1778. (Thoughts upon the Natural Rights of Servants and Peasants.)
Memorial, Angående Religions-Frihet. Stockholm 1779. (Memorandum on the Freedom of Religious Faith.)
Predikningar öfver Tio Guds Bud. Upsala 1781–82. (Sermons on the Ten Commandments.)
Predikningar öfver Andra Hufvudstycket i Catechesen. Homiletiska försök. Vol. VI. St. 2. Stockholm 1784. (Sermons on the Second Main Part of the Catechism.)
Om Saltpetter-Sjuderierna, särledes i Österbotten. Skrifter af Sällskapet för Allmänne Medborgerlige kunskaper II. Stockholm 1795. (Preparation of Saltpetre.)
Tankar om Koppympningen För Finlands Allmoge. K. Finska Hushållnings-Sällskapets Handlingar 1. Åbo 1803. (Thoughts on Inoculating against Smallpox for the Finnish People.)
See also
Contributions to liberal theory
History of economic thought
Further reading
Anders Chydenius: Anticipating The Wealth of Nations: The Selected Works of Anders Chydenius (1729–1803). Translated from the original by Peter C. Hogg. London: Routledge, 2012. . Editors Maren Jonasson and Pertti Hyttinen.
Hyttinen, Pertti. Anders Chydenius Defender of Freedom and Democracy. Kokkola: Chydenius Institute of the University of Jyväskylä, 1994.
Mustonen, Juha. The World's First Freedom of Information Act Anders Chydenius' Legacy Today. Anders Chydenius Foundation publications, 2. Kokkola: Anders Chydenius Foundation, 2006.
Uhr, Carl G. Anders Chydenius 1729–1803 A Finnish Predecessor to Adam Smith. Meddelanden från Nationalekonomiska institutionen vid Handelshögskolan vid Åbo akademi, 6. Åbo: Nationalekonomiska institutionen vid Handelshögskolan vid Åbo akademi, 1963.
|
Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited
|
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"Government-owned companies of India",
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"Energy in Karnataka",
"Oil and Natural Gas Corporation",
"Petrochemical companies of India",
"Non-renewable resource companies established in 1988",
"Indian companies established in 1988",
"Energy companies established in 1988",
"ONGC buildings and structures",
"1988 establishments in Karnataka",
"Companies listed on the National Stock Exchange of India",
"Companies listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange"
] | 858 | 7,704 |
Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL), is a division of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) which is under the ownership of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas of the Government of India. Established in 1988, the refinery is located at Katipalla, north from the centre of Mangalore. The refinery was established after displacing five villages, namely, Bala, Kalavar, Kuthetoor, Katipalla, and Adyapadi.
The refinery has a versatile design with high flexibility to process crudes of various API gravities with a high degree of automation. MRPL has a design capacity to process 15 million metric tonnes per annum and is the only refinery in India to have two hydrocrackers producing premium diesel (high cetane). It also has a polypropylene unit with a capacity of 0.44 million metric tonnes per year. It is one among the two refineries in India to have two CCRs producing high octane unleaded petrol. Currently, the refinery processes around 14.65 million tonnes of crude per year. The company's revenues stood at ₹60,062.02 crore (US$8.4 billion) in 2020.
MRPL, which was a joint sector company, became a public-sector undertaking after the acquisition of a majority of its shares by ONGC. As of June 2020, 71.63% shares were held by ONGC, 16.95% shares were held by Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL), and the remaining shares were held by financial institutions and the general public. MRPL has been declared a Miniratna (mini jewel), by the Government of India in 2007.
Before its acquisition by ONGC in March 2003, MRPL was a joint venture oil refinery promoted by HPCL, a public sector company and IRIL & associates (AV Birla Group). MRPL was set up in 1988 with an initial processing capacity of 3.0 million metric tonnes per annum which was later expanded to the present capacity of 15 million metric tonnes per annum.
The refinery was conceived to maximise middle distillates, with the capability to process light to heavy and sour to sweet crudes with 24 to 46 API gravity. On 28 March 2003, ONGC acquired A.V. Birla Group's stake and further infused equity capital of ₹600 crores, making MRPL a majority-held subsidiary of ONGC. The lenders also agreed to the debt restructuring package (DRP) proposed by ONGC, which included, inter alia, conversion of up to ₹3,65,54,884 of the company's loans into equity. Subsequently, ONGC acquired the equity allotted to the lenders under the DRP, raising ONGC's holding in MRPL to 71.63%.
On 30 August 2018, MRPL was approved a merger with HPCL by ONGC.
See also
Oil and Natural Gas Corporation
List of oil refineries in India
Economy of Mangalore
Mangalore Special Economic Zone (MSEZ)
|
John Templeton
|
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"British money managers",
"British stock traders",
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"British philanthropists",
"American philanthropists",
"Member of the Mont Pelerin Society"
] | 3,113 | 29,488 |
Sir John Marks Templeton (29 November 1912 – 8 July 2008) was an American-born British investor, banker, fund manager, and philanthropist. In 1954, he entered the mutual fund market and created the Templeton Growth Fund, which averaged growth over 15% per year for 38 years. A pioneer of emerging market investing in the 1960s, Money magazine named him "arguably the greatest global stock picker of the century" in 1999.
Early life and education
John Marks Templeton was born in the town of Winchester, Tennessee, and attended Yale University, where he was an assistant business manager for campus humor magazine Yale Record and was selected for membership in the Elihu society. He financed his tuition with a scholarship, odd jobs and winnings from playing poker, a game at which he excelled. He graduated in 1934 near the top of his class. He attended Balliol College, Oxford, as a Rhodes Scholar and earned an M.A. in law. He was a CFA charterholder and was a student of the "father of value investing", Benjamin Graham.
Investment career
In 1939, Templeton, during the Depression of the 1930s, had his broker purchase 100 shares of each NYSE-listed company which was then selling for less than $1 a share () (104 companies, 37 in bankruptcy, in 1939), later making many times the money back when US industry picked up as a result of World War II. According to Templeton, he called his broker the day World War II began and instructed him to make the purchases. This strategy helped make him a wealthy man.
Templeton became a billionaire by pioneering the use of globally diversified mutual funds. His Templeton Growth Fund, Ltd. (investment fund), established in 1954, was among the first American firms to invest in Japan starting in the mid-1960s. Templeton also created funds specifically in certain industries such as nuclear energy, chemicals, and electronics. By 1959, Templeton's company made their initial public offering, with five funds and more than 66 million dollars under management.
In 2006 he was listed in a seven-way tie for 129th place on The Sunday Timess "Rich List".
Investment philosophy
Money magazine in 1999 called him "arguably the greatest global stock picker of the century". Templeton attributed much of his success to his ability to maintain an elevated mood, avoid anxiety and stay disciplined. He rejected technical analysis for stock trading, preferring instead to use fundamental analysis. Thus he did not attempt to predict future stock movements, but paid close attention to valuation. From the late 1930s Templeton and his colleagues developed sophisticated quantitative finance methods that anticipated by decades common features such as the Shiller P/E, rebalancing and Tobin's q.
Despite the name of his flagship fund, Templeton Growth Fund, he was more a practitioner of value investing rather than growth investing. However, his stock-selection strategies could be eclectic and often defied easy categorization other than avoiding stocks he considered expensive, defined as an estimated five-year forward price to earnings ratio higher than about 12-14. Templeton focused on buying stocks he calculated were substantially undervalued, holding them until selling when their price rose to fair market value. His average holding period was about four years. He believed holding assets priced above fair market value in hopes they would further increase in price was speculation, not investing. However, Templeton did not buy stocks merely because they were undervalued but also took care investing in companies he determined were profitable, well-managed and with good long-term potential.
By emphasizing overlooked or unpopular stocks Templeton was in many ways a contrarian and became known for his "avoiding the herd" and "buy when there's blood in the streets" philosophy to take advantage of market turmoil. He also was known for taking profits when values and expectations were high. His time at Oxford started an interest in global investing, which was uncommon in the United States but more popular in the UK due to the widespread British Empire. Templeton was one of the earliest American investors to devote substantial focus to investment opportunities in then-overlooked foreign markets such as Asia and Eastern Europe. He was such an early investor in Japan during the 1950s that he had difficulty finding bi-lingual stockbrokers in either Japan or the United States to handle his firm's trades. Always on the lookout for bargain-priced stocks and hoping to avoid expensive stocks, he rotated out of Japanese stocks as they became more fashionable in the 1970s and turned to US stocks when they were at historic lows. Templeton's flagship fund outperformed a global stock index by an average of three percent a year for his entire career, and by over six percent a year for the period after his relocation to the Bahamas. Typical of value-oriented investors, Templeton often had disappointing results during bull markets due to his avoidance of hot stocks of the moment. His outperformance typically came during crashes and bear markets when his fund suffered smaller losses than average, or had modest gains relative to the broad market.
In 2005, he wrote a brief memorandum predicting that within five years there would be financial chaos in the world, anticipating a collapse of the housing market and decline in yields on government-issued bonds to near zero. Templeton also predicted within the next few decades a major decrease in traditional schooling due to internet-based learning options. Initially privately circulated to family and a small number of Franklin-Templeton management, the memo was eventually made public in 2010.
Templeton was a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) charter-holder. He received AIMR's first award for professional excellence in 1991.
Personal life
Templeton married Judith Folk in 1937, and the couple had three children: John, Anne, and Christopher. Judith Templeton died in February 1951 in a motorbike accident. He remarried, to Irene Reynolds Butler in 1958; she died in 1993. A Christian, he was a lifelong member of the Presbyterian Church. He served as an elder of the First Presbyterian Church of Englewood (Englewood, New Jersey). He was a trustee on the board of Princeton Theological Seminary, the largest Presbyterian seminary, for 42 years and served as its chair for 12 years.
In 1964, Templeton renounced his US citizenship, which some sources claim was a strategy to minimize taxes (the United States taxes citizens globally regardless of residency). However, in a 1997 interview with Charlie Rose, Templeton asserted the Bahamas had a higher tax rate than the United States and denied he renounced his citizenship to avoid paying taxes to the United States, stating he intended to live out his life in the Bahamas and felt obligated. He held dual naturalised Bahamian and British citizenship and lived in the Bahamas full-time from 1968. His neighbors included Joe Lewis, Sean Connery, Arthur Hailey, and Fahad Al Sabah.
Uninterested in consumerism, Templeton lived relatively frugally and never flew first-class. A friend jokingly described Templeton as Calvinist in his approach to wealth: "He believes it's okay to make money so long as you don't enjoy it."
On 8 July 2008, Templeton died at Doctors Hospital in Nassau, Bahamas, of pneumonia at 12:20. He was 95, and was survived by his children, Anne, Christopher and John Templeton Jr.
Wealth and philanthropy
Templeton was one of the most generous philanthropists in history, giving away over $1 billion to charitable causes.
In 2007, Templeton was named to the Time 100 list as one of the world's 100 Most Influential People by Time under the category of "Power Givers". Time cited his "pursuit of spiritual understanding, often through scientific research" through his establishment of the John Templeton Foundation.
As a philanthropist, Templeton established:
the Templeton Prize for Progress Toward Research or Discoveries about Spiritual Realities in 1972.
the Templeton Library in Sewanee, Tennessee, on a hillside 2 miles from and overlooking The University of the South, and which is 12 miles from his birthplace of Winchester, Tennessee. The building was intended to house his papers and "a collection of literature concerning science and religion, promoting scholarly research that combines the two fields".
Templeton College of the University of Oxford (by endowing the Oxford Centre for Management Studies in 1983 to become a full college of the university by royal charter in 1995).
Templeton College is closely associated with Oxford's Saïd Business School. In 2007, Templeton College transferred its executive education program to Saïd Business School. In 2008, Templeton College merged with Green College to form Green Templeton College. This is one of the exceptional mergers in recent history of the University of Oxford.
He was created a Knight Bachelor in 1987 for his philanthropic efforts. Templeton was inducted into the Junior Achievement US Business Hall of Fame in 1996, and in 2003 awarded the William E. Simon Prize for Philanthropic Leadership.
Templeton Religion Trust
Templeton Religion Trust (TRT) is a global charitable trust chartered by Sir John Templeton in 1984, with headquarters in Nassau, The Bahamas, where Sir John lived until his death in 2008. TRT has been active since 2012 and supports projects and the dissemination of results from projects seeking to enrich the conversation about religion via three broad initiatives:
Improving the methods of inquiry into the existence and nature of spiritual realities.
Bringing about and enhancing the “conditions of possibility” of cooperative, constructive engagement (aka “Covenantal Pluralism”) in the context of religion.
Establishing the fact and improving our understanding of the underlying dynamics of the often overlooked or unforeseen benefits of religious faith and practice at its best.
TRT's aim is to improve the well-being of individuals and societies through spiritual growth and an ever-improving understanding of spiritual realities and spiritual information.
TRT is the first of three charitable entities established by Sir John Templeton. The other entities are the John Templeton Foundation and the Templeton World Charity Foundation. While all three organizations have similar aims, they operate as separate charitable entities.
John Templeton Foundation
As a member of the Presbyterian Church, Templeton was dedicated to his faith. However, Templeton eschewed dogma and declared relatively little was known about the divine through scripture, espousing what he called a "humble approach" to theology and remaining open to the benefits and values of other faiths. Commenting on his commitment to what he called spiritual progress, "But why shouldn't I try to learn more? Why shouldn't I go to Hindu services? Why shouldn't I go to Muslim services? If you are not egotistical, you will welcome the opportunity to learn more." Similarly, one of the major goals of the John Templeton Foundation is to proliferate the monetary support of spiritual discoveries. The John Templeton Foundation encourages research into "big questions" by awarding philanthropic aid to institutions and people who pursue the answers to such questions through "explorations into the laws of nature and the universe, to questions on the nature of love, gratitude, forgiveness, and creativity."
In an interview published in the Financial Intelligence Report in 2005, Templeton asserts that the purpose of the John Templeton Foundation is as follows: "We are trying to persuade people that no human has yet grasped 1% of what can be known about spiritual realities. So we are encouraging people to start using the same methods of science that have been so productive in other areas, in order to discover spiritual realities." In 2004, Templeton donated an additional $550 million to the foundation.
Publications and works
The humble approach: Scientists discover God, 1981.
Templeton Plan: 21 Steps to Personal Success and Real Happiness, 1992.
Discovering the Laws of Life, 1994.
Is God the Only Reality? Science Points to a Deeper Meaning of the Universe, 1994.
Golden Nuggets from Sir John Templeton, 1997.
Worldwide Laws of Life: 200 Eternal Spiritual Principles, 1998. .
Riches for the Mind and Spirit: John Marks Templeton's Treasury of Words to Help, Inspire, and Live By, 2006.
Investing the Templeton Way: The Market-Beating Strategies of Value Investing's Legendary Bargain Hunter, 2007.
Buying at the Point of Maximum Pessimism: Six Value Investing Trends from China to Oil to Agriculture, 2010.
See also
John Templeton Foundation
Templeton Prize
John Templeton Jr.
Franklin Templeton Investments
Benjamin Graham, another famous value investor and teacher of Templeton
Warren Buffett, another famous value investor and student of Benjamin Graham
|
Attock Petroleum Limited
|
[
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"Companies based in Rawalpindi",
"Energy companies established in 1995",
"Non-renewable resource companies established in 1995",
"Pakistani companies established in 1995",
"2005 initial public offerings",
"Companies listed on the Pakistan Stock Exchange",
"Companies in the KSE 100 Index",
"Pakistani subsidiaries of foreign companies",
"Automotive fuel retailers"
] | 564 | 5,471 |
Attock Petroleum Limited ( ) is a Pakistani oil marketing company which is a subsidiary of the UK-domiciled company Attock Oil Company. Based in Rawalpindi, it is the third largest oil marketing company in Pakistan.
History
Attock Petroleum Limited was incorporated on 3 December 1995 as a public limited company and commenced commercial operations in 1998, one of only four oil-marketing companies to secure an Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority marketing licence that year.
In 2005, Attock was listed on the Karachi Stock Exchange, following an initial public offering at a strike price of PKR 57.75.
In 2012, Attock began regular supply of JP-8 and ground fuel to the Pakistan Air Force and Pakistan Army.
In 2017, Attock and Pakistan State Oil commissioned a 10,000-tonne hydrant-fed "Fuel Farm" at the New Islamabad International Airport, the first aircraft-refuelling system in Pakistan.
Operations
Attock operates more than 700 filling stations from Gilgit-Baltistan in the north to coastal Balochistan in the south. It also provides CNG at selected stations. Previously, it also operated two filling stations in Jalalabad and exported white oils and naphtha under the Afghan Transit Trade Agreement.
Products
Attock markets its mainstream petrol under the Premier and Supreme labels and diesel under DieselMax.
See also
Attock Refinery
|
Muthoot Microfin
|
[
"Microfinance companies of India",
"Financial services companies established in 2010",
"Indian companies established in 2010",
"Community development financial institutions",
"Companies listed on the National Stock Exchange of India",
"Companies listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange"
] | 831 | 10,998 |
Muthoot Microfin Limited is an Indian microfinance institution (MFI), headquartered in Kochi. It primarily provides unsecured microloans to women in rural areas. It is a part of Muthoot Pappachan Group.
History
The microfinance business was originally established as a division of Muthoot Fincorp Limited in 2010. In December 2011, the Muthoot Pappachan Group acquired Pancharatna Securities Ltd, a non-banking financial company (NBFC) based in Mumbai, and subsequently rebranded it as Muthoot Microfin Limited (MML).
In March 2015, Muthoot Microfin Limited (MML) obtained a microfinance institution (MFI) license as a non-banking financial company (NBFC-MFI) from the Reserve Bank of India.
In 2021, Muthoot Microfin Ltd launched Mahila Mitra app to help rural women beneficiaries with repayment.
Operations
Muthoot Microfin operates in 18 states with 1,172 branches and over 10,000 employees. As of March 31, 2023, Muthoot Microfin has a portfolio size of 9,200 crore with a borrower base of 2.7 million women entrepreneurs.
Ownership
Muthoot Microfin is predominantly owned by Muthoot Fincorp and the Muthoot family, who collectively possess a controlling stake of 71% in the company. In addition, London-based private equity firm GPC (Greater Pacific Capital) holds an ownership interest of 16.6%, while Chicago-based private equity fund Creation Investments Capital Management holds 9.3%.
|
David Ramadan
|
[
"1970 births",
"20th-century American businesspeople",
"21st-century American businesspeople",
"Alumni of the University of Oxford",
"American political commentators",
"American politicians of Lebanese descent",
"Businesspeople from Virginia",
"George Mason University alumni",
"Georgetown University alumni",
"Johns Hopkins University alumni",
"Lebanese emigrants to the United States",
"Living people",
"Republican Party members of the Virginia House of Delegates",
"Politicians from Beirut",
"People from Loudoun County, Virginia",
"21st-century members of the Virginia General Assembly"
] | 1,476 | 15,093 |
David-Imad Ramadan (born May 31, 1970) is a Lebanese-born American politician and businessman. He is a former Republican member of the Virginia House of Delegates, representing the 87th district in Loudoun and Prince William counties from 2012 to 2016. He opted not to seek re-election in 2015, and was succeeded by his 2013 opponent, Democrat John J. Bell.
Early life and education
Ramadan grew up in Lebanon and completed his high school studies at International College, Beirut. He emigrated to the United States in 1989 and has resided in Virginia since then. He is a graduate of George Mason University, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in government and politics and a Master of Arts degree in international trade and transactions. He completed graduate studies at Oxford University, the American Graduate School of Business (Geneva, Switzerland), Johns Hopkins University, and Georgetown University.
Career
Prior to entering politics, Ramadan worked at Curves International and in the government relations sector.
Ramadan is also a frequent commentator on TV and radio news networks such as ABC's Good Morning America, LBC, MSNBC, France 24, Al-Hurra, BBC, CNN, and NPR.
Ramadan served on the Board of Visitors of George Mason University, where he was appointed by Governor Bob McDonnell on July 1, 2010. The Washington Post on July 1, 2010, described the appointment by Governor McDonnell "as a thank you to longtime supporters and friends". He is also an adjunct professor at George Mason University, teaching "Global Affairs - Middle East Realities" and "Virginia Government and Politics" courses.
Ramadan is a political activist with active roles in the Republican Party of Virginia, the Loudoun County Republican Committee, and the Arab-American Republican community. He has served on presidential political campaigns as well as on gubernatorial and senatorial campaigns, and was appointed by RPV Chair in 2008 to ethnic outreach leadership.
In November 2018, when Republican Congresswoman Barbara Comstock was ousted by Democratic nominee Jennifer Wexton, Ramadan told The Washington Post that her loss is to be blamed on factors at the national level, not the district level. He has been outspoken about his belief that the Virginia Republican party needs to pay more attention to the needs and opinions of Northern Virginia, and not just to rural voters in the rest of the Commonwealth. In November 2024, Ramadan joined Comstock and Democratic officials state senator Suhas Subramanyam, Wexton, and state senator Russet Perry to help elect Democratic candidates including Kamala Harris.
Legislative history
Ramadan served on the several committees in the Virginia House of Delegates, specifically Privileges & Elections (P&E), Science & Technology (S&T), and the General Laws Committee. He served as the chairman of the P&E Constitutional Amendments Subcommittee.
Ramadan was the co-founder and co-chairman of the "Business Development Caucus," and the co-founded and co-chairman of the "Redskins Pride Caucus".
Ramadan authored several pieces of legislation which became law during his four years in the Virginia House:
Constitutional Amendment in support of military families
Online Voter Registration
High School to Work Partnerships
Diwali Day
Securing the State Corporation Commission electronic system
High School Biliteracy Diploma Seal
Sex Offenders and Crimes Against Minors Supplement to Registry
Electoral history
Date Election Candidate Party Votes % Virginia House of Delegates, 87th district August 23, 2011 Republican primary David I. Ramadan 1,368 55.76 Jo-Ann Chase 1,085 44.23 November 8, 2011 General David I. Ramadan Republican 5,435 49.92 Mike D. Kondratick Democratic 5,384 49.45 Write Ins 67 0.61 Paula Miller was redistricted out; seat changed from Democratic to Republican November 5, 2013 General David I. Ramadan Republican 10,274 50.26 John J. Bell Democratic 10,087 49.35 Write Ins 52 0.24
|
Restaurant Brands International
|
[
"Restaurant Brands International",
"2014 establishments in Ontario",
"Holding companies established in 2014",
"Canadian companies established in 2014",
"Restaurants established in 2014",
"Companies listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange",
"Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange",
"Multinational food companies",
"Holding companies of Canada",
"Restaurant chains in Canada",
"S&P/TSX 60",
"Tax inversions"
] | 1,990 | 19,510 |
Restaurant Brands International Inc. (RBI) is a Canadian multinational fast food holding company. It was formed in 2014 by the $12.5 billion merger between American fast food restaurant chain Burger King and Canadian coffee shop and restaurant chain Tim Hortons, and expanded by the purchases of Popeyes and Firehouse Subs in 2017 and 2021, respectively. The company is the fifth-largest operator of fast food restaurants in the world after Subway, McDonald's Corporation, Starbucks and Yum! Brands. They are based alongside Tim Hortons in Toronto (previously Oakville, Ontario). For multiple purposes, Burger King, Popeyes, and Firehouse Subs retain their existing operations and headquarters in Florida, with BK and Popeyes in Miami, and Firehouse in Jacksonville. The 2014 merger focused primarily on expanding the international reach of the Tim Hortons brand and providing financial efficiencies for both companies.
3G Restaurant Brands Holdings LP, an affiliate of the Brazilian investment company 3G Capital, owns a 32% stake in Restaurant Brands International. The company is publicly traded on the New York (NYSE) and the Toronto (TSX) stock exchanges. In March 2023, Joshua Kobza was named the CEO of Restaurant Brands International, replacing Jose Cil, who had held the role since 2019.
History
On August 24, 2014, American fast-food chain Burger King announced that it was in negotiations to merge with the Canadian coffee shop and restaurant chain Tim Hortons, who was owned by Wendy's from 1995 to 2006. The proposed merger would involve a tax inversion into Canada, with a new holding company majority-owned by Burger King's current majority-owner, 3G Capital, and the remaining shares in the company held by current Burger King and Tim Hortons shareholders. A Tim Hortons representative stated that the proposed merger would allow Tim Hortons to leverage Burger King's resources for international growth; the two chains would retain separate operations post-merger. News of the proposal caused Tim Hortons' shares to increase in value by 28 percent.
On August 25, 2014, Burger King officially confirmed its intent to acquire Tim Hortons Inc. in a deal totaling CDN$12.5 billion (US$11.4 billion). 3G Capital purchased the company at $65.50 per share, and existing shareholders received $65.50 in cash and 0.8025 shares in the new holding company: per-share—all-cash ($88.50) and all-shares (3.0879) options would also be available. Due to its iconic status in Canadian culture, CEO Marc Caira reassured the integrity of Tim Hortons following the purchase, stating that the acquisition would "enable us to move more quickly and efficiently to bring Tim Hortons' iconic Canadian brand to a new global customer base".
Although tax inversions, a process in which a company moves its headquarters to a country with a lower tax rate but maintains the majority of their operations in their previous location, had been a recent financial trend, it did not have as much of an impact on Burger King's reincorporation in Canada. The corporate tax rate in the United States was at the time 39.1% (since then lowered to 21%), while Canada's corporate tax rate is only 26%; however, Burger King had already used various sheltering techniques to reduce its tax rate to 27.5%. As a high-profile instance of tax inversion, news of the merger was criticized by U.S. politicians, who felt that the move would result in a loss of tax revenue to foreign interests, and could result in further government pressure against inversions (which had, until the Burger King merger, been primarily invoked by pharmaceutical firms). 3G Capital co-founder Alex Behring denied that the merger was tax-related, stating that it was "fundamentally about growth and creating value through accelerated expansion".
The deal was approved in Canada by the Competition Bureau on October 28, 2014, ruling that the deal was "unlikely to result in a substantial lessening or prevention of competition". The deal was approved by Minister of Industry James Moore on December 4, 2014; the two companies agreed to conditions, requiring that the Burger King and Tim Hortons chains retain separate operations, not combine locations in Canada and the United States, maintain "significant employment levels" at the Oakville headquarters, and ensure that Canadians make up at least 30% of Tim Hortons' board of directors. Tim Hortons shareholders approved the merger on December 9, 2014; the same day, it was announced that the new holding company would be known as Restaurant Brands International, and trade under the ticker symbol QSR. Vice-chairman Marc Caira felt that the merger was the "next chapter" for Tim Hortons, envisioning a "bolder, more assertive, and dynamic Tim Hortons in the future" alongside its prospects for international expansion.
In February 2024, RBI said it anticipates 40,000 restaurants worldwide by 2028, up from 31,070 across its various brands at the end of fiscal 2023.
Acquisitions
On February 21, 2017, RBI announced its intent to acquire for US$1.8 billion at US$79 per share. On March 27, 2017, the deal closed with RBI purchasing Popeyes at $79 per share via Orange, Inc, an indirect subsidiary of RBI.
On November 15, 2021, RBI announced its intent to acquire Firehouse Subs for US$1 billion. The acquisition was completed on December 15, 2021.
Corporate affairs
Business trends
The key trends for Restaurant Brands International are (as of the financial year ending December 31):
YearRevenue(US$ bn)Net income(US$ m)Total assets(US$ bn)EmployeesSystemwiderestaurants20141.1–27721.34,60019,04320154.037518.44,30019,41620164.161619.14,30020,35120174.562621.26,20024,40720185.361220.16,00025,74420195.664322.36,30027,08620204.948622.75,20027,02520215.783823.25,70029,45620226.51,00822.76,40020237.01,19023.39,000
Ownership and leadership
3G Capital (which held a 71% majority stake in Burger King) holds a 32% stake in Restaurant Brands International. As of December 2024, 3G Capital holds 26% voting power in Restaurant Brands International, down from 47% in 2014.
Berkshire Hathaway, which partially funded the merger, held a 4.8% stake in the mid to late 2010s. Previous Tim Hortons shareholders hold a sizeable share of the combined company. Until early 2019, Daniel Schwartz served as CEO of the company, with previous Tim Hortons CEO Marc Caira being vice-chairman and director. In January 2019, Jose Cil was named the CEO of Restaurant Brands International, and Schwartz was named the executive chairman of the company.
In August 2020, Berkshire Hathaway disclosed that they had completely sold their stake in RBI.
See also
List of Canadian restaurant chains
History of Burger King
|
Barthold Theodoor Willem van Hasselt
|
[
"1896 births",
"1960 deaths",
"Dutch bankers",
"Dutch chief executives in the oil industry",
"Chief Executive Officers of Shell plc",
"Commanders of the Order of Orange-Nassau",
"Knights of the Order of the Netherlands Lion",
"Leiden University alumni",
"Businesspeople from Leiden"
] | 537 | 3,907 |
Barthold Theodoor Willem van Hasselt (7 November 1896, Leiden - 5 August 1960, Wassenaar) was a Dutch business executive in the Dutch East Indies and the chief executive of Royal Dutch Shell from 1949 to 1951.
Family
Van Hasselt was the son of Marie Elise Prins (1875-1949) and the physician Sjoerd Folkert Willem van Hasselt (1868-1934). He married Elisabeth Henriette Versteegh (1898-1957) in 1920 and Marion Elizabeth Davidson (1892-1992) in 1938. From the first marriage two daughters were born: Anna Margaretha van Hasselt (1922-1931) and Elisabeth Henriette van Hasselt (1927-2014). The last married Albert Paul Friedrich Freiherr von Westenholz (1921-2011) in 1951, married the actor (1924-1982) in 1960, and finally the architect Rutger Dirk Bleeker (1920-2016) in 1988; she is the mother of art historian Caroline de Westenholz (born 1954).
Career
Van Hasselt studied law at Leiden and graduated in 1919. He then became head official of the Royal Dutch Society for the exploitation of petroleum resources in the Dutch East Indies. Then he became chief representative of the Bataafse Petroleum Maatschappij. As of January 1934, he was a banker and second deputy director at the Javasche Bank. On 28 December 1933 he was also appointed a member of the Volksraad (Dutch East Indies) and for years he was a member of the so-called Economic Group. In 1938 Van Hasselt became general director of the Mexican Eagle Petroleum Company, where the Royal Dutch Shell interests were accommodated. In 1944 he was appointed director of the Royal Dutch Society for the exploitation of petroleum resources in the Dutch East Indies and in 1949 as Director General of the "Royal" from Shell, as successor to the son of Shell-founder Guus Kessler (1888- 1972); at the end of 1951 he resigned as CEO of Shell. He then held various supervisory positions, like at Akzo and Hoogovens and was Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Billiton.
Distinctions
Bronze Medal for humanitarian hulpbetoon (1919)
Kings medal (1949)
Knight of the Order of the Dutch Lion (1950)
Commander in the Order of Orange-Nassau (1952)
Honorary member of the Society of Commerce and Industry (1960)
Bibliography
The literature on the draft law on the Nameless Companies critically summarized . Leiden, 1919 ( thesis ).
Sources
W. Wijnaendts of Resandt, history and genealogy of the Cleefsch Zutphen Serbian family Van Hasselt ± 1530-1934 . [Zp], 1934, p. 323.
W. Wijnaendts of Resandt, history and genealogy of the Cleefsch Zutphen Serbian family Van Hasselt ± 1530-1963 . [Zp], 1963², p. 329-330.
Inventory of the collections of the family association Van Hasselt, 2008
Netherlands's Patriciaat 94 (2015), p. 250-252.
|
Landsec
|
[
"Real estate investment trusts of the United Kingdom",
"Companies listed on the London Stock Exchange",
"Property companies based in London",
"British companies established in 1944",
"1944 establishments in England",
"Companies in the FTSE 100 Index"
] | 1,174 | 12,279 |
Land Securities Group plc, trading as Landsec, is the largest commercial property development and investment company in the United Kingdom. The firm became a real estate investment trust (REIT) when REITs were introduced in the United Kingdom in January 2007. It is headquartered in London, England, and traded on the London Stock Exchange, and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.
History
The company traces its origins to 1944, when its founder Harold Samuel purchased Land Securities Investment Trust Limited, which owned three houses in Kensington and some government stock. Further acquisitions followed shortly afterwards and from 1947 the company concentrated on commercial property. In the early days some non-UK investments were acquired, but in 1971 these were sold off and the company decided to focus solely on the UK market. The company name was changed to Land Securities plc in 1982.
After buying Trillium in 2000, in 2002 it formed a 50/50 joint venture company (Telereal Trillium) with William Pears Group (WPG) to buy the property portfolio of British Telecom: after selling its shares in Telereal to WPG in 2007, Land Securities sold Trillium to WPG in 2009.
On 31 March 2012, Francis Salway was succeeded as chief executive by Robert Noel. Noel was managing director of the company's London properties, having joined Land Securities in January 2010 from Great Portland Estates plc.
On 12 June 2017, Land Securities rebranded as Landsec, although the registered company name remained Land Securities Group PLC.
In 2019, Landsec launched a series of open plan offices under the brand "Myo". The first Myo office opened that year, at 123 Victoria Street, London, followed by the second Myo office, at Liverpool Street, in May 2021.
In November 2020, amid the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom, Landsec announced plans to sell £4 billion of assets in the next four to five years, including hotels, leisure properties and retail parks affected by pandemic.
In November 2021, Landsec announced it was to acquire urban regeneration specialist U+I for £190 million.
In December 2021, Landsec increased its 30% ownership in the Bluewater Shopping Centre by acquiring a further 25% share from Lendlease Retail Partnership for £172 million. At the same time Landsec confirmed the sale of 25% of the newly acquired shares to M&G, one of Bluewater’s co-owners. Landsec’s overall share increased to 48.75%.
Landsec owns and manages more than of commercial property, from London offices and high street shops to major shopping centres and out-of-town retail parks. On 31 March 2024 the company's property portfolio was valued at £9.8 billion. The company owns the Piccadilly Lights in Piccadilly Circus in London. It has also led Project Nova, the development of the area around London Victoria station.
In 2010, Landsec purchased a number of tenement blocks in Victoria, central London, which had previously been used as a homeless shelter, and subsequently received multiple planning permissions for the site. As of 2021, after the buildings had remained empty for over a decade, the company said it planned to convert the buildings into flats.
Public engagement
On 8 May 2021, for World Ovarian Cancer Day, Landsec participated in the Cure our Ovarian Cancer Foundation's international awareness campaign. Their spot "An ad you can't miss, for a cancer you do", which shows 30 women who had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer, was screened at Piccadilly Circus, London, and Time Square, New York City. The spot was a pro bono production by Topham Guerin with Landsec and JCDecaux sponsoring the screening space.
|
Centrus Energy
|
[
"Companies listed on NYSE American",
"Non-renewable resource companies established in 1992",
"Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2014",
"Nuclear technology in the United States",
"Companies based in Bethesda, Maryland",
"Nuclear fuel companies",
"Government-owned companies of the United States"
] | 1,288 | 13,000 |
Centrus Energy Corp. (formerly USEC Inc.) is an American company that supplies nuclear fuel for use in nuclear power plants and works to develop and deploy centrifuge technology to produce enriched uranium for commercial and government uses, including for national security.
In 2019, Centrus began work under a contract with the U.S. Department of Energy to build a cascade of 16 centrifuges in Piketon, Ohio to demonstrate production of High-Assay, Low-Enriched Uranium, or HALEU. HALEU is required for many next generation reactor designs, including nine of the ten reactor designs selected under the Energy Department's Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program.
In June 2021, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission approved a license amendment request for Centrus to enrich uranium up to a Uranium-235 concentration of 20 percent, making it the first U.S. facility licensed for HALEU production. This is higher than the 5 percent level found in Low-Enriched Uranium that is used in existing light-water reactors.
History
The Energy Policy Act of 1992 created the United States Enrichment Corporation out of the Department of Energy as a state owned enterprise to enrich uranium for civilian use, and in July 1993 USEC took over DOE facilities. USEC was fully privatized by the U.S. government on July 28, 1998, through an initial public offering. The U.S. government received about three billion dollars for USEC.
USEC had gaseous diffusion plants at Piketon, Ohio near Portsmouth and in McCracken County, Kentucky, near Paducah. The United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission assumed regulatory authority over the Portsmouth facility in March 1997 and on June 5, 1998, the agency made an investigation into alleged "failure to control components with uranium deposits, inadequate maintenance, testing and operation of safety valves on equipment, and exceeding the possession limit for uranium enriched greater than 20 percent." In May 2001, USEC ceased uranium enrichment operations in Piketon and consolidated operations in Paducah, Kentucky. The following year, transfer and shipping operations were also consolidated at Paducah.
A demonstration gas centrifuge plant was being built at Piketon for initial commercial operation in 2009, while a full-sized plant was planned for operation there in 2012. However, in July 2009 the DOE did not grant a $2 billion loan guarantee for the planned uranium-enrichment facility in Piketon, "causing the initiative to go into financial meltdown," the USEC spokesperson Elizabeth Stuckle said, adding "we are now forced to initiate steps to demobilize the project."
On July 28, 2009, the company said that it was suspending work on the project because of the Department of Energy's decision not to provide loan guarantees. The Energy Department said that the proposed plant was not ready for commercial production and therefore ineligible for the loan guarantees. The department said that if USEC withdraws its application, it will receive $45 million over the next 18 months to conduct further research.
Before its downsizing and final cessation of uranium enrichment on May 31, 2013, the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant consumed about 3,000 megawatts of electricity at peak operation. Power for the Paducah gaseous diffusion plant came from the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). In 2012 the majority of the TVA grid was generated by coal fired plants, with three nuclear power plants counting for about 30 percent of TVA's energy.
The Department of Energy remains responsible for clean-up of the sites of materials left there prior to 1993.
USEC was the executive agent in the U.S./Russia Highly Enriched Uranium Purchase Agreement, implemented under the Megatons to Megawatts Program.
On December 16, 2013, USEC announced that it had reached an agreement with a majority of its debt holders to file a prearranged and voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy restructuring in the first quarter of 2014. On September 30, 2014, executives announced that the company had emerged from bankruptcy proceedings with a new name, Centrus Energy Corp.
On March 5, 2015, the Centrus Board of Directors appointed Daniel B. Poneman as president and chief executive officer and as a director of the company, effective on or before April 1, 2015.
In October 2015, the U.S. Department of Energy issued a report to Congress which evaluated options to resume U.S.-technology enrichment operations to meet U.S. national security mission needs. The report concluded that Centrus' AC100 centrifuge technology was "the most technically advanced and lowest-risk option."
Subsequent to signing the contract with the Department of Energy in 2019, to build the HALEU demonstration plant, Centrus signed a series of agreements with advanced reactor developers including TerraPower, X-Energy, and Oklo, to support the availability of HALEU.
After several years of losses, on March 28, 2021, the company announced that it returned to profitability in 2020 as a result of declining supply costs and other factors. The company reported positive net income of $54 million in 2020 and $175 million in 2021.
|
SFIL
|
[
"Government-owned banks of France",
"Banks established in 2013",
"Banks under direct supervision of the European Central Bank",
"Local government finance"
] | 1,033 | 9,052 |
SFIL, known until 2015 as Société de Financement Local, is a French public credit institution spun off in February 2013 from the publicly rescued Dexia. SFIL operates in local public sector financing and large export credit contracts refinancing, in commercial partnership with publicly owned bank La Banque Postale (LBP). Since 2020 it has been fully owned by Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations (CDC), France's major public financial institution, but for a single share still held by the French state.
SFIL has been designated as a Significant Institution since the entry into force of European Banking Supervision in late 2014, and as a consequence is directly supervised by the European Central Bank.
History
2013-2018: creation and first years
The Société de financement local, or SFIL, was created in 2013 following the process of overhauling Dexia, a Franco-Belgian bank. It obtained an authorisation from the French Prudential Supervision and Resolution Authority, which allowed it to carry out banking activities.. Following the introduction of European Banking Supervision in late 2014, it was designated a Significant Institution and is therefore directly supervised by the European Central Bank.
It also mobilises long-term investors to offer local public entities, healthcare establishments and exporters favourable terms to finance investments deemed essential for France. For example, in 2014 it granted a new loan of twenty million euros to the government of French Polynesia to enable it to finance new investments and restructure its debt.
2018: buyout by the Group Caisse des dépôts
In November 2018, the Caisse des dépôts et consignations group (CDC) announced the buyout of SFIL from the Agence des participations de l'État (APE), while its shareholding was split between CDC itself, which helds 20%, the French State, which helds 75% via the APE, and La Banque postale, which helds the remaining 5%. The objective was to work closely with the newly created Banque des Territoires. It was also a subject of negotiations between CDC and APE, during the takeover of CNP Assurances by La Banque postale. CDC's stated aim was to create a large-scale public financial pole, integrating all these entities as well as Bpifrance. That year, SFIL declared a net banking income of €186 million and a net profit of €63 million. On 30 September 2020, CDC became SFIL's sole shareholder, with the exception of one ordinary share hold by the French State. This allowed it to sit on the board of directors as a non-voting member, given that SFIL carries out a public interest mission.
In 2023, SFIL declared a net profit of €65 million, boosted by a sharp increase in export financing. This became its leading activity, with €6 billion worth of projects financed that year. As of summer 2024, total lending to the local public sector had exceeded €50 billion, of which €45 billion was allocated to local authorities. Green loans, aimed at combating climate change, accounted for €1.15 billion, or around 20% of this total. Social loans, granted to local elected representatives to finance health, social and family action, reached the amount of €869 million, or around 14%.
Financing activities
In May 2015, the French government directed SFIL to expand its operations to refinancing of major export credit contracts (above 70 million euros) guaranteed by Bpifrance Assurance Export, the export guarantee arm of Bpifrance. The name change from Société de Financement Local to SFIL reflected that expansion of the bank's scope of activity. Also in 2015, the bank made profits for the first time. The transaction was completed in September 2020.
In 2017, SFIL became the leading liquidity provider for state-guaranteed export credit, with 50 percent market share. SFIL operates in partnership with all commercial banks active in French export credit.
In March 2018, the government extended SFIL's export system to strategic projects carried out by French companies abroad benefiting from a public guarantee.
In 2013–2017, SFIL and its fully owned subsidiary Caffil raised more than 31 billion euros in long-term financing. As such, Sfil/Caffil was the second-largest public bond issuer in France, behind the government itself. Caffil refinances medium-term and long-term loans made by LBP (in partnership with the Caisse des Dépôts) to local authorities and public hospitals.
See also
Kuntarahoitus
BNG Bank
Crédit Communal de Belgique
|
Jeremy Geffen
|
[
"1972 births",
"2018 deaths",
"Marshall School of Business alumni",
"20th-century American businesspeople",
"21st-century American businesspeople",
"Talent managers",
"American chief executives",
"Businesspeople from New York City"
] | 868 | 8,773 |
Jeremy Nathaniel Geffen (December 29, 1972 August 22, 2018) was an American entrepreneur, third generation entertainment executive, and the president and CEO of Creative Rights Group, which he founded in 2014 in Los Angeles. He was also the founder and president of Geffen Management Group, which manages music artists, actors, and celebrity estates.
Early life and career
Geffen was born in New York City on December 29, 1972, the son of Jo-Ann Geffen, a music executive, publicist and manager of such artists as Lionel Richie and the Commodores during the group's earlier days. He was not related to producer and studio executive David Geffen
Geffen attended Ojai Valley School in Ojai, California, and graduated from Birmingham High School in Van Nuys, California, in 1991. He had a bachelor's degree in Business from the University of Southern California.
While in college, studying to become an investment banker, Geffen took a summer job in the mail room at the William Morris Agency. That convinced him he wanted to be in the entertainment business. Later, he was with the Wright Entertainment Group, where he worked with musicians including Justin Timberlake and Britney Spears.
Geffen later became a talent manager for Lindsay Scott Management, well known for managing Janet Jackson and Cher. He worked with Metta World Peace (Ron Artest), Christina Milian, Sean Combs, Sisqó, and Dru Hill.
Geffen eventually founded Jeremy Geffen Entertainment, where he managed artists including Robin Gibb, Smokey Robinson, Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, and the rap group, D12. Geffen sold Jeremy Geffen Entertainment to Sanctuary Management.
Later ventures
Geffen Management Group
After leaving Sanctuary Management, Geffen presided over Geffen Management Group, representing talent including Smokey Robinson and Jacob Latimore and the Marvin Gaye estate.
Creative Rights Group
Geffen was the President and CEO of the Creative Rights Group, a company he founded in 2014 to monetize copyrights and assets on behalf of performing artists. The Creative Rights Group handled over $150 million for clients including Smokey Robinson and The Isley Brothers.
Sexual Assault Convictions
In March 2008, Geffen was arrested by the Los Angeles Police Department on suspicion of three sexual assaults. In 2008, Geffen pled guilty to two cases of statutory rape and received five years probation, which was eventually reduced to about 2.5 years.
Death
Geffen died on August 22, 2018, at age 45. The coroner ruled the death as accidental, due to "acute fentanyl-cocaine-ethanol-methamphetamine-methylenedioxymethamphetamine [MDMA] toxicity".
|
Britannia (coin)
|
[
"British gold coins",
"Britannia",
"Bullion coins of the United Kingdom",
"Gold bullion coins",
"Silver bullion coins",
"Platinum bullion coins"
] | 3,962 | 31,205 |
The Britannia is a bullion coin issued by the Royal Mint. It has been minted in gold since 1987, in silver since 1997, and in platinum since 2018. The reverse of the coin patterns feature various depictions of Britannia, a feminine personification of the United Kingdom, while the obverse features the effigy of the monarch of the United Kingdom with the legend around it.
Britannia gold coins contain one troy ounce of gold and have a face value of £100. Gold Britannias also are issued in fractional sizes of one-half, one-quarter, and one-tenth of a troy ounce and with face values of £50, £25, and £10 respectively. In 2013, two additional sizes were introduced, a five-ounce coin of face value £500, and a fractional size of one-twentieth of face value £5.
Britannia silver coins contain one troy ounce of silver and have a face value of £2. Silver Britannias also are issued in fractional sizes of one-half, one-quarter, and one-tenth of a troy ounce and with face values of £1, 50p, and 20p respectively. Like the gold coins in 2013, two additional sizes were introduced, a five-ounce coin of face value £10, and a fractional size of one-twentieth of face value 10p.
2023 marked the first year that King Charles III was depicted on the obverse. Queen Elizabeth II had featured on all previous ones.
Gold Britannia
From 2013 the gold coins have a millesimal fineness of 0.9999 (or 24 carat gold). Until 2012 the gold coins have a millesimal fineness of 0.917 (91.7% or 22 carat gold) with the non-gold component being copper until 1989 and silver from 1990.
2013– Gold Britannia specifications (gold content and approx. total weight)
Five ounces: diameter 65 mm (156.295 g)
One ounce (2013) : diameter 38.61 mm (31.104 g) 'larger thinner coin' just for 2013
One ounce (2014–) : diameter 32.69 mm (31.104 g)
Half ounce: diameter 27 mm (15.60 g)
One quarter ounce: diameter 22 mm (7.86 g)
One tenth ounce: diameter 16.50 mm (3.13 g)
One twentieth ounce: diameter 12 mm (1.58 g)
1987–2012 Gold Britannia specifications (gold content, not total weight)
One ounce: diameter 32.69 mm (31.104 g; total wt 34.050 g)
Half ounce: diameter 27 mm, (15.552 g)
Quarter ounce: diameter 22 mm (7.776 g)
Tenth ounce: diameter 16.5 mm, (3.11 g)
Gold Britannias are struck to an unlimited mintage every year.
Silver Britannia
Since 2013 the silver coins have been produced with a millesimal fineness of 0.999 (99.9% silver). They have a mass of 31.21 grams and diameter of 38.61 mm.
From 1997 to 2012 the silver coins had a millesimal fineness of 958 (95.8% or Britannia silver). Total mass 32.45 grams, diameter 40.00 mm.
Silver Britannias have been released each year beginning in 1997, when a silver proof set was offered. In 1998 and in all subsequent even-numbered years the reverse design has depicted a standing Britannia figure. Beginning in 1999 and continuing in odd-numbered years, a series of alternate, non-repeating depictions of Britannia have replaced the standing figure on the reverse. Starting in 2013, the proof versions of the coin will feature a different design each year, while the bullion version of the coin will always feature the classic standing Britannia. While mintage was limited prior to 2013, in 2013 and after mintage of the bullion version of the coin is unlimited based on demand.
Some 2014 silver Britannia coins were struck with the incorrect obverse as there was a mix up during the manufacturing process with the 'Lunar' Year of the Horse coins from The Royal Mint, as both coins were to the same fineness and specification, and similar but not identical obverse sides. It is thought that there are around 17,000 examples with the mis-strike, which have been dubbed the 'Mule Britannia'. These coins have fetched substantial premiums on online auction sites.
Silver Britannia mintages
The following table has the most recent numbers of coins minted by year.
YearUncirculated1 oz proof (orders / issue limit)Proof sets (orders / issue limit)5 oz proof1997 (.958 Ag)–16,00511,832 Not available1998 (.958 Ag)88,9093,0443,0441999 (.958 Ag)69,394 No proof coins released No proof coins released2000 (.958 Ag)81,3012001 (.958 Ag)44,8164,59610,0002002 (.958 Ag)48,816 No proof coins released No proof coins released2003 (.958 Ag)73,2712,016 / 5,0003,669 / 5,0002004(.958 Ag)100,0002,174 / 5,000 –2005(.958 Ag)1,539 / 2,5002,360 / 3,5002006(.958 Ag)2,529 / 2,7503,000 / 3,000 (The Silhouette Collection encompasses five styles, which are 1 oz .999 silver & gold gilt)2007(.958 Ag)5,157 / 7,5002,500 / 2,500 (Sold out)2008(.958 Ag)2,500 / 2,500 (Sold out)2009(.958 Ag)6,7842010(.958 Ag)126,3676,5393,4972011(.958 Ag)100,0004,9732,483 / 2,5002012 (.958 Ag)2,500–2013 (.999 Ag)Mint to order2,500 in limited edition presentation, maximum mintage 8,500 –1,150 in limited edition presentation, 3,500 in First Strike Presentation, maximum mintage 4,6502013 (.999 Ag) Snake privy rim300,0000–02014 (.999 Ag)Mint to order2,981 Individual mintage
2,285 Set mintage1,750 in limited edition presentation, 550 in First Strike Presentation 600 in limited edition presentation, 750 in First Strike Presentation, maximum mintage 1,3502014 (.999 Ag) Horse privy rim1,000,0000–02015 (.999 Ag) Mint to order4,240 Individual mintage
1,559 Set mintageunknown995 limit2015 (.999 Ag) Ram privy rim200,0000–02016 (.999 Ag) Mint to order4,137 Individual mintage
1,300 Set mintageunknown783 limit2016 (.999 Ag) Monkey privy rim176,300–02017 (.999 Ag)5,225 Individual mintage
1,351 Set mintage656 Limit2017 (.999 Ag) Rooster privy rim––––2017 (.999 Ag) Dog privy rim1 mintage error known–––2018 (.999 Ag) Dog privy rim––––2018 (.999 Ag)3,630 Individual mintage
937 Set mintage430 Limit2019 (.999 Ag)2,995 Individual mintage
999 Set mintage340 limit2019 (.999 Ag) Pig privy rim----2020 (.999 Ag)4,960 Individual limit
1,000 Set limit250 limit2020 (.999 Ag) Rat privy rim––––2021 (.999 Ag)2,900 Individual limit
1,000 Set limit250 limit2022 (.999 Ag)3,500 Individual limit
3,300 Set limit350 limit2023 (.999 Ag)3,450 Individual limit
1,470 Set limit420 limit2024 (.999 Ag)3,500 Individual limit
2,100 Set limit556 limit
Platinum Britannia
From 2018, platinum Britannias have been minted, with a millesimal fineness of 0.9995.
Coin designs
+YearMetalFinishArtistDescriptionComments1997Gold & SilverProofPhilip NathanBritannia riding horse-drawn chariot1998Brilliant Uncirculated
ProofClassic standing Britannia1999Brilliant UncirculatedPhilip NathanBritannia riding horse-drawn chariotIn 1999, the silver Britannia repeated the Boudicca in chariot design used in 1997, but was only issued in the uncirculated bullion (non-proof) version, as opposed to 1997 when it was only issued in the proof version.2000Bullion
ProofClassic standing Britannia2001Philip NathanWith lion, vertical textThis year features a new design, Britannia is shown standing, accompanied by a lion, similar to the Una and the Lion reverse used on the very rare 1839 £5 gold coins.2002Classic standing Britannia2003Philip NathanBritannia wearing a helmet with waves in the background2004Classic standing Britannia2005Philip NathanSeated Britanniafeatures a seated figure of Britannia, similar to that used on halfpennies and farthings from 1672, which in turn reflects the original personification of Britannia on Roman coins of Hadrian.2006Classic standing Britannia2007Christopher Le BrunSeated Britannia with lionfeatures a seated figure of Britannia, with large shield bearing the Union Flag (Union Jack), with a lion at her feet, and what looks like the white cliffs of Dover and a sailing yacht in the background.2008John BergdahlWith large wavesThis year's Britannia has a new design featuring Britannia on the beach, with giant waves and a lighthouse in the background.2009Philip NathanThe 2009 issue has reverted to the Chariot design last seen in 1999.2010Suzie ZamitIn Corinthian-style helmetDesigner Suzie Zamit says: "Britannia is a really important British icon and I wanted to create a design that represents her as a symbol of British liberties and democracy. I felt it was important to portray Britannia as strong - almost Amazonian - and courageous, but not overly warlike, more peaceful and protective".
Britannia wears a Corinthian-style helmet, emphasising her warlike spirit and is accompanied by a lion to symbolise courage. However, Britannia's serene gaze and the presence of an olive branch, also portrays the goddess as a protective defender of peace and modern British liberty and values. Her eastward looking gaze alludes to Britain's role in the EU and its presence in Afghanistan.2011David MachIn front of large flagDavid Mach talks about his challenge to make Britannia a contemporary image and not just appear nationalistic: 'I worked out a design with as much movement as I could for a small surface area; movement that would encourage people to turn the coin and watch the light shift over the surface like I had done with half-crowns as a boy. My design acts as a lenticular image. The flag and Britannia appear to move reflecting a contemporary Britain; a changing Britain; a Britain which is culturally on the move but still with plenty of reasons to wave the flag.'2012Philip NathanClassic standing BritanniaIt draws its inspiration from a strongly maritime approach, Britannia windswept on a cliff-top, the very essence of authority and elegance.2013ProofRobert HuntBritannia and the owlher head appears turned, symbolizing an interest in lands beyond her borders. She wears a Corinthian helmet and holds Neptune's trident to represent her claim as "ruler of the waves". An owl is present as a symbol of wisdom.2014Jody ClarkBritannia with lion in front of globeI wanted to include a lion in this Britannia portrayal too because I had decided upon a very feminine and elegant looking Britannia, and I needed the strong presence of the lion to balance the design out. I didn't want it to be overly soft and flowing. I don't think a lion had featured for a while either so I knew I wanted to include one in mine.
Why did you place the globe in the background – what is it – what does it represent?
In my research I found that Britannia often sat on the globe in an imperial fashion. I didn't think that was a very modern concept. Instead, I decided to place it alongside her. I wanted to make the design appear as if Britannia is moving with the globe, and portray a sense of movement, with flowing elements like her dress. I thought it would be nice to have the contrast of static graphic elements too, like the globe. I found it a real balancing act getting the traditional aspects in whilst giving them a modern twist.2015Anthony DufortCorinth helmet and shieldAnthony looked back to Greek and Roman coins and statues to ensure authenticity while modelling her trident and Corinthian helmet.2016Suzie ZamitWarrior Britannia with lionSusie has brought her own perspective to Britannia, 'the warrior queen'.
"I knew it was important to make Britannia immediately recognisable but I also tried to think about how she could represent Britain in the twenty-first century. Britannia represents British liberty and democracy, especially potent in times of national insecurity, so I wanted to portray her as a strong figure, almost Amazonian, proud, patriotic and courageous. She is reminiscent of the goddess 'Athena,’ a warrior but in a protective, peace-keeping way.
"The shield, a symbol of protection and security, incorporates the Union Jack and I included the lion as national symbol of courage. Visually it is very strong, beautiful and watchful and also a symbol of protection. The inclusion of wind and sea reflect the more modern, forward thinking themes of renewable and green energy".2017Louis TamlynBritish isles forming body
30th anniversary designLouis created the design as a first year student at Central Saint Martins college when the Royal Mint requested a 'contemporary interpretation' of Britannia. Louis states: Britannia used to be the name of Great Britain in Roman times and hasn't really been used enough as a visual feature. I think it is important to revive it as a visual feature of the Britannia design as it communicates notions of the history and identity of Britain; by showing Britannia and the island as one it changes our perception.2018David LawrenceIn helmet with sunburst behindWears traditional British flowers around her helmet.
Lawrence commented: "I wanted to create something with classical grace about it and a certain amount of gravitas: coins of the realm, especially when cast in valuable metals, are a serious business. I enrolled various family members to pose, bedecked with bedsheets and broomsticks for reference shots. It was then a matter of working through the compositions until some pleasing shapes could be resolved within the constriction of the coin's roundel".2019Proof
Brilliant UncirculatedWith lion, thrusting tridentDavid said of his of design: "My initial thoughts were influence by the great engravers of the past. Their work has a classical grace and gravitas I was keen to recreate. After all, coins of the realm are a serious business. The lion had to be there somewhere, as did the shield and trident... many of the components were already decided in a way. The result is an Anglicised version of ancient Rome".2020James TottleBritannia in front of flag with lion on shieldJames Tottle said of his design: "I felt that a strong pose with a striking silhouette of Britannia in the foreground alongside the Union flag in the background would produce a well-balanced image; I also wanted to feature the lion so I worked it onto the shield. The image needed some movement and drama so I used crashing wave and a billowing dress to achieve this".2021ProofP.J. LynchBritannia with lion2021SilverBrilliant UncirculatedContemporary Britannia in helmet looking out to seaOn Premium Exclusive only.
P.J. Lynch said of his design: “For the Exclusive editions in the range, I decided it would be a good idea to go in close for a profile portrait of Britannia. I wanted her to look strong, resolute and attractive, but I also felt that her features should reflect something of the diversity of the people of Britain in the twenty-first century.”2022ProofDan ThorneBritannia with trident and lion shieldDan Thorne said of his design: “My goal with this coin was to merge a classical feel with something that appeals to a wider, modern audience. I put the figure in a three-quarter view that we don't normally see her in but kept the iconic distant gaze and proud stance. I wanted to have a fully 3D modelled Britannia but with the background in a flatter, graphic style in order to make her really stand out. I have included all the iconic imagery associated with Britannia – the lion, waves and flag – but, in a more subtle way. All these elements are surrounded by the beading that is reminiscent of older coins.”2022GoldProof
1 kg silver proofSandra Deiana3 figures of Britannia at different agesCelebrating International Women's Day the design is inspired by Gustav Klimt's classic 1905 painting ‘The Three ages of Woman’
Ms Deiana said: “I particularly love the Britannia theme – it is the most difficult concept I have faced so far and I will always remain connected to it. No one had harmonised three female representations together.
"I had to find a way to represent the Britannia icon in three different eras, through the three ages of woman.”2023Gold & SilverProofJonathan OlliffeBritannia rides a chariot pulled by 2 horses with webbed feet for hooves.Jonathan Olliffe said of his design: “Britannia should, of course, take centre stage, so she is positioned amongst the ocean waves whilst riding a sled-like chariot. A warrior queen, she is standing tall at the helm and holding onto the reigns of the two rearing sea creatures and pointing her trident forwards towards distant lands.
“With a focus on Britannia as the female personification of the nation, it was important to capture a pose which expressed strength, power and beauty, but most importantly that conveyed her role as protector of the realm.”2024Marie-Alice HarelFeatures Britannia in profile wearing a helmet with a lion emblem, facing towards a wave.Marie-Alice Harel 'tried to imagine Britannia as a benevolent and peaceful protector, someone one could trust and turn to in challenging times.'
“I wanted to represent Britannia as quite young in some of the designs to address the younger generations who are the future of the country. They will need those ideas of strength, peace and resilience to solve the problems of health, society and environment that we experience today.
“Even though the idea of strength is central to the character, I did my best to show that this power is rooted in kindness, compassion and peace. For me, that's where true power lies and is what we need more of in the world.
“This is why I was especially inspired by the symbol of the sea (to me, a reminder of environmental protection and climate change) and the presence of animals around Britannia (the symbolic lion).”2025Gold & SilverProofBradley Morgan JohnsonFeatures Britannia with trident and shield against a sea with a large sunburst emanating from behind her headBradley Morgan Johnson said, "I love Art Nouveau sculpture and took inspiration from a sculpture of Britannia in this style."
“The figure of Britannia is strong; it’s clear what you’re looking at and who she is. The design is unfussy, and I’m really pleased that it’s streamlined and easy to read.”
“This is the first coin that I’ve designed and sculpted myself. This is a big deal; I’ve been sculpting for a long time and it was good to have The Royal Mint trust in my ability to realise the design.”
See also
American Gold Eagle
Australian Gold Nugget
British Sovereign coin
Canadian Gold Maple Leaf
Austrian Philharmonic
Krugerrand
Chinese lunar coins
Gold as an investment
Silver as an investment
Coins of England & The United Kingdom, 40th ed., Spink, 2005,
|
Giuseppe Nahmad
|
[
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] | 769 | 6,300 |
Giuseppe (“Joe”) Nahmad (1932 – 23 November 2012) was an art dealer who specialized in Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, and modern art. He amassed a multi-billion fortune in buying, selling, and collecting works of arts of 19th- and 20th-century artists.
Family
Giuseppe Nahmad was born in 1932 in Aleppo, Syria. His father Hillel Nahmad was a banker who founded Nahmad & Beyda in Syria. The Nahmads were Sephardic Jews who spoke French, Arabic and several other languages. Hillel Nahmad opened a branch of Nahmad & Beyda in Beirut, Lebanon, after he and his wife, Mathilde Nahmad, moved there in 1948. They had eight children: four boys (Albert, Giuseppe, Ezra, David) and four girls (Denise Nahmad Amon, Jacqueline Nahmad Harari, Nadia Nahmad Chowaiki, Evelyn Nahmad Matalan). In 1958, Albert, having expanded the family banking business to Rio de Janeiro, died in an airplane crash.
In 1957, Giuseppe Nahmad settled in Milan where he started his art dealership. Two years later his parents and his younger siblings resettled in Milan. Giuseppe's younger brothers, David and Ezra, joined the enterprise while still being teenagers in 1963. David and Ezra's own sons, both named Hillel, run galleries in New York and London currently.
Giuseppe Nahmad never married and had no children.
Career
Nahmad discovered Lucio Fontana and commissioned paintings by Wifredo Lam. When prices were especially low in Paris and, for Nahmad, resale margins in Milan ranged from 50% to 100%.
Nahmad and his brothers bought Picasso's 1955 portrait of his second wife Jacqueline in 1995 for $2.6 million. They held it for twelve years and sold it for $30.8 million. In the 1970s, Nahmad bought several Picassos at prices from $40,000 to $50,000 apiece. In the 1980s, Nahmad moved into the Japan market and continued buying art through 1989 downturn.
During this period Ezra and David Nahmad opened galleries in New York City and London.
Controversy and media coverage
In December 2007, an article in Forbes quoted allegations that the younger Nahmad brothers habitually changed the terms of their deals at the last minute. David Nahmad denied the allegations. The same Forbes article credited the Nahmads with stabilizing the auction business by buying art in bulk even during – or especially during – market downturns."They are like a major brokerage firm in the stock market; the market needs a force like this to function," said New York dealer Jeffrey Deitch.
In 2011, part of the Nahmad collection was first shown at the Kunsthaus Zürich. The exhibit generated some controversy as the museum was criticized for purportedly catering to the family's broader business interests.
Death
Giuseppe Nahmad died in Monte Carlo on 23 November 2012. He was buried on 26 November 2012 in Jerusalem, next to his parents and near his brother Albert. Most of his surviving siblings, and nearly all his nieces and nephews attended, though word of the patriarch's death was not released to the media.
Giuseppe
|
Cemex
|
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"Cement companies of Mexico",
"Manufacturing companies based in Monterrey",
"Manufacturing companies established in 1906",
"Mexican brands",
"Multinational companies headquartered in Mexico",
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"Companies listed on the Colombia Stock Exchange",
"Companies listed on the Philippine Stock Exchange",
"Companies in the Indice de Precios y Cotizaciones",
"Companies in the S&P Latin America 40"
] | 3,275 | 30,725 |
CEMEX S.A.B. de C.V., known as Cemex, is a Mexican multinational building materials company headquartered in San Pedro, near Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico. It manufactures and distributes cement, ready-mix concrete and aggregates in more than 50 countries. In 2020 it was ranked as the 5th largest cement company (by amount of cement produced annually) in the world, at 87.09 million tonnes.
Lorenzo Zambrano was the chairman and chief executive officer until his death on May 21, 2014. The Board of Directors named Rogelio Zambrano Lozano as chairman, and Fernando A. Gonzalez as CEO.
About a quarter of the company's sales come from its Mexico operations, a third from its plants in the U.S., 30% from its operations in Europe, North Africa, the Middle East and Asia, and the rest from its other plants around the world.
CEMEX currently operates on four continents, with 64 cement plants, 1,348 ready-mix-concrete facilities, 246 quarries, 269 distribution centers and 68 marine terminals.
In the 2021 Forbes Global 2000, Cemex was ranked as the 1178th -largest public company in the world with over US$13 billion in annual sales.
The company's world headquarters are in San Pedro Garza García, a city that is part of the Monterrey metropolitan area in the northeastern Mexican state of Nuevo León.
History
CEMEX was founded with the opening of Cementos Hidalgo, in 1906. Meanwhile, Cementos Portland Monterrey began operations in 1920, and in 1931, the two companies merged, becoming Cementos Mexicanos, now CEMEX. In the 1960s, CEMEX grew significantly when it acquired several more plants throughout Mexico. In 1976, the company went public on the Mexican stock exchange, and that same year, became the largest cement producer in Mexico with the purchase of three plants from Cementos Guadalajara. In 1982, the company made significant progress in overseas markets, doubling its exports. Further acquisitions of Mexican cement companies were made in 1987 and 1989, making CEMEX one of the ten largest cement companies in the world.
In 2004, CEMEX received the Wharton Infosys Business Transformation Award for their creative and efficient use of information technology.
In 2005, CEMEX acquired RMC Group, a ready mixed concrete, quarrying and concrete products company headquartered in Egham, United Kingdom.
Internationalization, 1990–2006
In 1992, CEMEX began its push into the international landscape with the purchase of Spain's two largest cement companies, Valenciana de Cementos (Valcem, currently head of CEMEX Spain) and Cementos SANSON. Venezuela's largest cement company, VENCEMOS, was acquired by CEMEX in 1994, and plants were purchased the same year in the United States and in Panama. In 1995 CEMEX acquired a cement company in the Dominican Republic, and with the purchase of a majority stake in a Colombian cement company in 1996, CEMEX became the third largest cement company in the world. In 1997–1999, the company expanded its scope to include Asia and Africa, making major purchases in the Philippines, Indonesia and Egypt, as well as Costa Rica. The acquisition of U.S. based Southdown made CEMEX the largest cement company in North America, and further international purchases were made in the following two years—a Thai company in 2001, and in 2002, a Puerto Rican company.
On March 1, 2005, CEMEX completed its $5.8 billion acquisition of the London-based RMC Group, which made CEMEX the worldwide leader in ready-mix concrete production and increased its exposure to European markets. With the acquisition, the company expected its annual cement production to increase to 97 million tons. Also they had hoped to see its annual sales grow to $15 billion, just shy of the market leader, Lafarge , which had sales of $17 billion. As none of these targets was met, CEMEX started looking for another suitor in its M&A push.
On October 27, 2006, CEMEX announced a US$12.8 billion offer to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Rinker Group, Limited. Seven months later, on April 10, 2007, the Rinker board of directors approved an upgraded offer of USD 14.2 billion, and on June 7, 2007, CEMEX secured the commitment from the holders of more than 50% of the shares to complete the acquisition.
Recent history (2006–)
Shortly after the apparent finalization of the Rinker deal in 2007, the United States Department of Justice brought an antitrust lawsuit against CEMEX, blocking the acquisition. After a lengthy process, CEMEX complied with regulators by divesting (selling) 40+ cement and concrete plants formerly part of itself or Rinker, essentially devaluing the initial deal.
In April 2008, the President of Venezuela, Hugo Chávez, announced the nationalization of "the whole cement industry" in that country, in response to the belief that the industry was exporting its products in order to receive prices above those it was allowed within the country. In mid-2008 the Venezuelan government took over the Venezuelan operations of CEMEX, the largest Venezuelan producer with around a 50% market share; a deal on compensation was still to be reached in March 2009, despite agreements being reached in mid-2008 with the other two major cement producers. In December 2011, an agreement was reached, with Cemex receiving $600m in compensation, and benefiting from the cancellation of $154m in debt.
After having problems with the Mexican peso devaluation of 2008, including problems with derivatives, CEMEX had to rethink its international standings to decrease debt and avoid a default. In June 2009, CEMEX sold its Australian operations to Holcim for A$ 2.2 billion (US$1.75 billion) helping refinance its US$14 billion debt, which partly was due to the acquisition, two years earlier, of the Rinker Group.
In December 2010, DOL Resolves Employee Back Wage Case With CEMEX – The U.S. Department of Labor announced the filing of a consent judgment in a case against CEMEX Inc. and the recovery of $1,514,449 in overtime back wages for 1,705 current and former ready-mix drivers who worked in eight states.
In 2016, Cemex sold its Rinker Materials pipe business to Quikrete.
In February 2018, the company reported record earnings of $750 million for all of 2016, the highest in a decade. Lowering company debt after recent acquisitions were a main cause of the company's financial performance. In the second-quarter 2021 CEMEX reported a net profit of US$270 million and a Debt-to-Ebitda 2.85 leverage ratio, within investment-grade range.
In July 2022, Cemex acquired majority stake in ProStein, a German aggregates producer.
In 2023, the U.S. National Labor Relations Board affirmed findings that Cemex had committed over two dozen unfair labor practices leading up to a 2019 union election. The board used this case to set a new policy that an employer who interferes with an election will be compelled to recognize the union without an election, where previously a new election would be ordered. The case marked a significant new policy which partly revived the Joy Silk doctrine.
CEMEX worldwide
CEMEX World Corporate Headquarters is in Monterrey, Mexico and its U.S. operations headquarters is in Memorial City, Houston, Texas.
The company operates in over 30 countries/territories around the world including:
Cemento Ponce General (See Ponce Cement, Inc.) – Ponce, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rican Cement Company – Guaynabo, Puerto Rico
Compania Valencia de Cementos Portland S.A. – Madrid, Spain
CEMEX Asia Holdings Ltd. – Philippines
CxNetworks – Miami, Florida, United States
CEMEX USA – Houston, Texas, United States
Western Rail Road – New Braunfels, Texas, United States
Mojave Northern Railroad
CEMEX UK Limited – Rugby, Warwickshire, United Kingdom
New Sunward Holding – Amsterdam, Netherlands
CEMEX Mexico – Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico
Ready Mix USA – Birmingham, Alabama
Caribbean Cement Company Limited – Kingston, Jamaica
Trinidad Cement Limited – Trinidad
Island Cement Company Limited – Nassau, The Bahamas
Bahamas Concrete Holdings – Nassau, The Bahamas
Social responsibility
CEMEX has developed a number of educational and social responsibility initiatives. For example, it instituted the Premio CEMEX, an annual award that recognizes works in the fields of sustainability, accessibility, construction and architecture. Also, it funds the Catedra Blanca, and honors architecture courses in three universities: the ITESM, in Monterrey, the Universidad Iberoamericana, in Mexico City, and the Barcelona School of Architecture. Also, CEMEX has created the Centro CEMEX-Tecnológico de Monterrey, which is a research and development program for sustainable communities across Mexico thru the Premio CEMEX-TEC.
In 2007, the Organization of American States (OAS), through their Trust for the Americas, awarded the company The Corporate Citizen of the Americas Award 2007, for the social benefits of their program "Patrimonio Hoy", in Mexico, that according to José Miguel Insulza, President of the OAS, has a positive effect in low-income families. This initiative, conceived in 1998, aims to reduce the Mexican housing deficit, which leaves more than 20 million people with inadequate shelter. Patrimonio Hoy organizes low-income families into self-financing cells that facilitate and expedite the typical homebuilding process. CEMEX and its network provide the products needed but also the technical assistance, including an architect who helps design homes to optimize space and reduce waste. To date, more than 150,000 Mexican families have realized their dreams of home ownership
As of 2020, CEMEX Social Responsibility initiatives had benefited over 23 million people in its neighboring communities world-wide. The company also restated its Social Impact policy, with the goal of benefiting 30 million people by 2030. Fortune Magazine ranked CEMEX in 39th place in its 2020 Change the World Index.
Environmental record
CEMEX has been accused of violating environmental laws in the United States. Environmental watchdog groups and the United States Environmental Protection Agency are threatening to file suit claiming the company has committed numerous violations of the Clean Air Act in Lyons, Colorado. CEMEX divested its operation in Lyons, Colorado, in 2016. The United States Environmental Protection Agency has also filed suit against CEMEX in Victorville, California, claiming the company failed to install modern air pollution controls, despite spending millions in renovations. The case was settled in 2009. In February 2021 the U.S. Department of Energy awarded funding for research on carbon-capture at the CEMEX Victorville cement plant.
In the United Kingdom, CEMEX was originally fined £400,000 in October 2006 after hazardous dust was deposited up to three miles (5 km) away from its Rugby works. The fine was the highest ever given under the Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control regulations, and was also the highest for an Environment Agency prosecution for six years. The fine was, however, judged excessive by the Court of Appeal and so reduced to £50,000. In April 2007, CEMEX announced that it had installed a £6.5 million dust abatement system at the same works in Rugby, which had cut particulate emissions by 80%. The site comes under the auspices of the EU Waste Incineration Directive as it burns waste tires for fuel. There are concerns over the impact on both the environment and human health from this practice, although it is common practice in many cement works. In 2021 CEMEX announced investments in Europe to promote an environmentally-friendly “circular economy,” safely using waste as a substitute for fossil fuels, including in its Rugby plant.
During tests conducted from June 10 to August 5, 2008, the Monterey Bay (California) Unified Air Pollution Control District reported high levels of chromium VI, also known as hexavalent chromium, a cancer causing chemical agent, at an elementary school and fire department in Davenport, California. Chromium VI is the contaminant that inspired the movie, Erin Brockovich. The toxic substance apparently originated from dust emitted by the Cemex Cement plant in Davenport, as the levels of Chromium VI measured eight times the air district's acceptable level at Pacific Elementary School and 10 times at the Davenport Fire Department. Both are located less than a half-mile from CEMEX. Chromium VI may have been unwittingly produced at the CEMEX plant in Davenport for the last seven years. According to Ed Kendig, the executive director of the Monterey Bay Unified Air Pollution Control District, it's "highly possible" that Chromium VI continues to be produced across the country as an accidental, previously unknown byproduct of the cement-making process.
In 2007, the EPA filed a complaint against CEMEX for violating federal air regulations at its Victorville plant, and in 2006, CEMEX was cited for violations at plants in Santa Barbara and Michigan.
Cemex had a sand mining operation in the city of Marina, California, along the Monterey Bay coastline that concerned environmentalists and scientists. The California Coastal Commission in March 2016 issued a cease and desist order asking for "administration civil penalties", stating that "the operation is narrowing beaches and impacting environmentally sensitive habitat." Cemex denied the allegations and continued to operate. A settlement was reached in 2017 and CEMEX ended mining in December 2020.
In 2020 CEMEX announced a new climate action strategy, aiming to lower its overall carbon footprint by 35% in 2030 compared to a 1990 baseline, and to deliver net zero concrete by 2050. In May 2021 CEMEX partnered with British oil company BP to research industry-wide decarbonization of cement production.
In 2024, Oishi (Philippine brand) and CEMEX Asia Holdings Ltd. (Philippines) partnered to support sustainable disposal of plastic waste per commitment to environmental stewardship and circular economy principles in industrial operations. “Our partnership with Liwayway allows us to support them with the EPR law (Extended Producer Responsibility Act EPRA of 2022 Republic Act No. 11898), while it also contributes to our Future in Action agenda of becoming a net zero carbon emission company,” said Luis Franco, Cemex CEO. Liwayway will channel plastic packaging waste to Cemex's Solid Cement plant for co-processing.
Competitors
Main CEMEX competitors / global cement players are:
Holcim
HeidelbergCement
Votorantim Cimentos
Unibeton Ready Mix
See also
List of companies traded on the Bolsa Mexicana de Valores
List of Mexican companies
Economy of Mexico
|
Steven Spewak
|
[
"1951 births",
"2004 deaths",
"American management consultants",
"Case Western Reserve University alumni",
"Enterprise modelling experts",
"Businesspeople from Philadelphia",
"Ross School of Business alumni",
"20th-century American businesspeople"
] | 851 | 7,021 |
Steven Howard Spewak (1951 – March 26, 2004) was an American management consultant, author, and lecturer on enterprise architectures, known for the development of Enterprise Architecture Planning (EAP).
Biography
Born in Philadelphia, Spewak earned both his B.A. and his M.A. degree at Case Western Reserve University, and earned his Ph.D. in business administration at the University of Michigan in 1981 with the thesis "Analysis of dynamics of the logical design of information systems".
Early 1980s Spewak started his career in industry. In 1986 he became software editor at Continental Insurance, where he headed a data modeling project. Early 1990s he started his management consultant practice with offices in Princeton, N.J., and Washington. He worked with government agencies, and national and international organizations, and was a frequent lecturer on enterprise architecture planning.
Spewak has been the Chief Technical Editor of the "Data Resource Management Journal" and "Database Management Information Service". He died on 26 April 2004 in Alexandria VA, at the age of 53.
Work
Enterprise Architecture Planning
In his 1992 book Enterprise Architecture Planning (EAP), Spewak defined Enterprise Architecture Planning as "the process of defining architectures for the use of information in support of the business and the plan for implementing those architectures". Enterprise Architecture Planning is based on the Business Systems Planning (BSP) approach developed by John Zachman in the 1980. It takes a business-oriented approach to architecture planning to provide:
data quality,
access to data,
adaptability to changing requirements,
data interoperability and sharing, and
cost containment.
The ultimate goal of an Enterprise Architecture is to define practical and implementable application and technology projects along with those projects required to prepare the organization for its future IT environment. This view counters the more traditional view that applications should be defined before data needs are determined or provided for.
Spewak’s approach to Enterprise Architecture Planning is similar to that taken by DOE in that the business mission is the primary driver. That is followed by the data required to satisfy the mission, followed by the applications that are built using that data, and finally by the technology to implement the applications. This hierarchy of activity is represented in the figure on the right, in which the layers are implemented in order, from top to bottom.
His approach to Federal Enterprise Architecture has helped organizations with modeling, business strategy planning, process improvement, data warehousing, and various support systems designs, data administration standards, object-oriented and information engineering methodologies, and project management. The Enterprise Architecture Planning (EAP) methodology is beneficial to understanding the further definition of the Federal Enterprise Architecture.
Enterprise Architects, Inc.
Spewak was founding partner of Enterprise Architects, Inc. Along with two partners, Frank Digaetano and Stephan DeVocht he tutored several generations of Enterprise Architects, and performed many consulting assignments for Fortune 500 clients, US and Canadian Federal Government organizations, as well as State, Local and Tribal government bodies.
Since the publication of his seminal book, he and his partners introduced enhancements to the EAP methodology such as updates for technology architecture, expansion of implementation requirements, and methods for calculating planning project duration and effort. They also developed a planning tool (EAP Toolset Templates), and the StratTac Group LLC Planning Templates, to assist organizations EAP efforts.
Publications
Spewak authored and co-authored several books, papers and articles on enterprise architecture and related topics. A selection:
1981. Analysis of dynamics of the logical design of information systems. University of Michigan.
1993. Enterprise Architecture Planning: Developing a Blueprint for Data, Applications, and Technology. With S. C. Hill. Boston, QED Pub. Group.
Articles, a selection
1980. "A pragmatic approach to database design," VLDB '80 Proceedings of the sixth international conference on Very Large Data Bases. Vol 6. p. 151-152
1987. "Introducing Data Administration into a Business Organization". With Susan E. Smylie et al. in: Proceedings of the Sixth International Conference on Entity-Relationship Approach. p. 47-51
1992. "Developing a Blueprint for Data, Applications and Technology: Enterprise Architecture Planning," QED Technical Publishing Group
2006. "". With M. Tiemann. Journal of Enterprise Architecture, May 2006. p. 11-19
|
Tanya Van Court
|
[
"Living people",
"21st-century African-American businesspeople",
"American chief executives of financial services companies",
"American women chief executives",
"American women company founders",
"American industrial engineers",
"Businesspeople from Oakland, California",
"ESPN executives",
"Nickelodeon executives",
"Stanford University alumni",
"Women industrial engineers",
"Year of birth missing (living people)"
] | 862 | 8,493 |
Tanya Van Court is an American businesswoman who is the founder and Chief Executive Officer of Goalsetter, a financial education platform designed to educate kids about financial responsibility.
Early life and education
Van Court grew up in Oakland, California. At age 6, her mother died from a brain aneurysm, and Van Court and her siblings went to live with her aunt, who taught her about Black history and STEM.
In 1994, Van Count earned a bachelor's degree in industrial engineering from Stanford University. She earned her master's degree, also in industrial engineering, from Stanford in 2001.
Van Court worked as a vice president of business development for Covad Communications. When Covad went public in January of 2000, her stock shares in the company became valued at over a million dollars. Van Court held on to her stocks and due to the effects of the dot-com bubble, Covad went bankrupt the next year, wiping out her gains. She has also worked as an executive for both ESPN and Nickelodeon, as well as senior vice president of marketing for Discovery Education.
When her daughter turned 9, she asked for an "investment account and a bike" for her birthday, giving Van Court the idea to start an app to help teach kids about financial technology, or fintech. In 2016, she launched the app Goalsetter as a way to introduce the topic to children. Van Court has stated her hopes that providing financial education will help address the racial wealth gap present in America, citing a 2019 Federal Reserve report that found the "typical white family has eight times the wealth of the typical Black family". Goalsetter was also featured on the television program Shark Tank.
Van Court recounts the difficulty in finding traditional investors and was told Goalsetter was "uninvestable". She describes having more success as a Black-owned business after the murder of George Floyd, receiving $3.9 million in seed money. In 2021, NBA stars Kevin Durant, Carmelo Anthony, and Andre Drummond singed on as investors. Despite the investment, Van Count observed that "we were raising a fraction of what our counterparts were".
|
John Shoven
|
[
"1947 births",
"Living people",
"American economics writers",
"American male non-fiction writers",
"Economists from California",
"Economics educators",
"University of California, San Diego alumni",
"Yale University alumni",
"Stanford University Department of Economics faculty",
"Harvard University staff",
"Fellows of the Econometric Society",
"21st-century American economists"
] | 546 | 4,871 |
John B. Shoven (born May 24, 1947) is the former Trione Director of the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research, the Charles R. Schwab Professor of Economics at Stanford University, the Buzz and Barbara McCoy Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution and a research associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research. He specializes in public finance and corporate finance and has published on social security, corporate and personal taxation, mutual funds, pension plans and applied general equilibrium economics.
Shoven was born in 1947. Shoven has been at Stanford since 1973, serving as chairman of the economics department from 1986 to 1989, director of the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research (SIEPR) [formerly Center for Economic Policy Research] from 1989 to 1993 and 1999 to 2015, and dean of the School of Humanities and Sciences from 1993 to 1998. Shoven served as a consultant for the U.S. Treasury Department from 1975 to 1988. The author of more than one hundred professional articles and eighteen books, notably The Real Deal: The History and Future of Social Security and Putting Our House in Order: A Guide to Social Security and Health Care Reform, he has been a visiting professor at Harvard University, the London School of Economics, Kyoto University, and Monash University. In 1995 he was elected a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Shoven is a University of California, San Diego alumnus earning a B.A. in physics from University of California, San Diego and a Ph.D. in economics from Yale University.
At Stanford, Shoven served as the dean of the School of Humanities and Sciences from 1993 to 1998.
|
Economy of Mexico
|
[
"Economy of Mexico",
"OECD member economies",
"World Trade Organization member economies"
] | 19,055 | 203,756 |
The economy of Mexico is a developing mixed-market economy. It is the 13th largest in the world in nominal GDP terms and by purchasing power parity as of 2024. Since the 1994 crisis, administrations have improved the country's macroeconomic fundamentals. Mexico was not significantly influenced by the 2002 South American crisis and maintained positive, although low, rates of growth after a brief period of stagnation in 2001. However, Mexico was one of the Latin American nations most affected by the 2008 recession, with its gross domestic product contracting by more than 6% that year. Among OECD nations, Mexico has a fairly strong social security system; social expenditure stood at roughly 7.5% of GDP.
The Mexican economy has maintained high macroeconomic stability, reducing inflation and interest rates to record lows. Despite this, significant gaps persist between the urban and the rural population, the northern and southern states, and the rich and the poor. Some of the unresolved issues include the upgrade of infrastructure, the modernization of the tax system and labor laws, and the reduction of income inequality. Tax revenues, 19.6 percent of GDP in 2013, were the lowest among the 34 OECD countries. The main problems Mexico faces are poverty rates and regional inequalities remaining high. The lack of formality, financial exclusion, and corruption has limited productivity growth. The medium-term growth prospects were also affected by a lower proportion of women in the workforce, and investment has not been strong since 2015.
The economy contains rapidly developing modern industrial and service sectors, with increasing private ownership. Recent administrations have expanded competition in ports, railroads, telecommunications, electricity generation, natural gas distribution, and airports, to upgrade infrastructure. As an export-oriented economy, more than 90% of Mexican trade is under free trade agreements (FTAs) with more than 40 countries, including the European Union, Japan, Israel, and much of Central and South America. The most influential FTA is the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA), which came into effect in 2020 and was signed in 2018 by the governments of the United States, Canada, and Mexico. In 2006, trade with Mexico's two northern partners accounted for almost 90% of its exports and 55% of its imports. Recently, Congress approved important tax, pension, and judicial reforms. In 2023, Mexico had 13 companies in the Forbes Global 2000 list of the world's largest companies.
Mexico's labor force consisted of 52.8 million people as of 2015. The OECD and WTO both rank Mexican workers as the hardest-working in the world in terms of the number of hours worked yearly. Pay per hour worked remains low.
Mexico is a highly unequal country: 0.2% of the population owns 60% of the country's wealth, while 46.8 million people live in poverty (2024).
The Porfiriato brought unprecedented economic growth during the last quarter of the nineteenth century. This growth was accompanied by foreign investment and European immigration, the development of railroad networks and the exploitation of the country's natural resources. Annual economic growth between 1876 and 1910 averaged 3.3%. Large-scale ownership made considerable progress while foreign land companies accumulated millions of hectares. At the end of Porfirio Díaz's dictatorship, 97% of arable land belonged to 1% of the population and 95% of peasants were landless, becoming farmworkers in huge haciendas or forming an impoverished urban proletariat whose revolts were crushed one by one.
Political repression and fraud, as well as huge income inequalities exacerbated by the land distribution system based on latifundios, in which large haciendas were owned by a few but worked by millions of impoverished peasants living in precarious conditions, led to the Mexican Revolution (1910–1920), an armed conflict that drastically transformed Mexico's political, social, cultural, and economic structure during the twentieth century. The war left a harsh toll on the economy and population, which decreased over the 11-year years between 1910 and 1921. The reconstruction of the country was to take place in the following decades.
The period from 1940 to 1970 has been dubbed by economic historians as the Mexican Miracle, a period of economic growth that followed the end of the Mexican Revolution and the resumption of capital accumulation during peacetime. During this period, Mexico adopted an import substitution industrialization (ISI) model, which protected and promoted the development of national industries. Mexico experienced an economic boom through which industries rapidly expanded their production. Important changes in the economic structure included free land distribution to peasants under the concept of ejido, the nationalization of the oil and railroad companies, the introduction of social rights into the 1917 Constitution, the birth of large and influential labor unions, and the upgrading of infrastructure. While the population doubled from 1940 to 1970, GDP increased sixfold during the same period.
Growth, while under the ISI model, had reached its peak in the late 1960s. During the 1970s, the presidential administrations of Luis Echeverría (1970–76) and José López Portillo (1976–82) tried to include social development in their policies, an effort that entailed increased public spending. With the discovery of vast oil fields during a period of oil price increases and low international interest rates, the government borrowed from international capital markets to invest in the state-owned oil company Pemex, which in turn seemed to provide a long-run income source to promote social welfare. This produced a remarkable growth in public expenditure, and president López Portillo announced that the time had come to "manage prosperity" as Mexico multiplied its oil production to become the world's fourth-largest exporter.
+Average annual GDP growth by period 1900–1929 3.4%1929–1945 4.2%1945–1972 6.5%1972–19815.5%1981–1995 1.5%1983 Debt Crisis -4.2%1995 Peso Crisis -6.2% 1995–2000 5.1% 2001 US Recession -0.2% 2009 Great Recession -6.5%
From 1981 to 1982 the international panorama changed abruptly: oil prices plunged and interest rates rose. In 1982, López Portillo, just before ending his administration, suspended payments of foreign debt, devalued the peso, and nationalized the banking system, along with many other industries that were severely affected by the crisis, among them the steel industry. While import substitution had contributed to Mexican industrialization, by the 1980, thes protracted protection of Mexican companies had led to an uncompetitive industrial sector with low productivity gains.
President Miguel de la Madrid (1982–88) was the first of a series of presidents who implemented neoliberal policies. After the crisis of 1982, lenders were unwilling to return to Mexico, and in order to keep the current account in balance, the government resorted to currency devaluations, which sparked unprecedented inflation, reaching an annual record of 139.7% in 1987.
One of the first steps toward trade liberalization was Mexico's signature of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in 1986 under President de la Madrid. During the administration of Carlos Salinas de Gortari (1988–94), many state-owned companies were privatized. The telephone company Telmex, a government monopoly, became a private monopoly, sold to Carlos Slim. Also not opened to private investors were the government oil company Pemex or the energy sector. Furthermore, the banking system that had been nationalized in the waning hours of the López Portillo administration in 1982 was privatized, but with the exclusion of foreign banks. Salinas pushed for Mexico's inclusion in the North American Free Trade Agreement, expanding it from a U.S.-Canada agreement. The expanded NAFTA was signed in 1992, after the signature of two additional supplements on environments and labor standards. It came into effect on January 1, 1994.
Salinas also introduced strict price controls and negotiated smaller minimum wage increments with the labor union movement under the aging Fidel Velázquez to curb inflation. While his strategy successfully reduced inflation, growth averaged only 2.8 percent a year. By fixing the exchange rate, the peso became rapidly overvalued while consumer spending increased, causing the current account deficit to reach 7% of GDP in 1994. The deficit was financed through tesobonos, a public debt instrument that reassured payment in dollars.
The January 1994 Chiapas uprising, and the assassinations of the ruling party's presidential candidate in March 1994, Luis Donaldo Colosio and the Secretary-General of the party and brother of the Assistant-Attorney General José Francisco Ruiz Massieu in 1994, reduced investor confidence. Public debt holders rapidly sold their tesobonos, depleting the Central Bank's reserves, while portfolio investments, which had made up 90% of total investment flows, left the country as fast as they had come in.
This unsustainable situation eventually forced the entrant Zedillo administration to adopt a floating exchange rate. The peso sharply devalued, and the country entered into an economic crisis in December 1994. The boom in exports, as well as an international rescue package crafted by U.S. president Bill Clinton (1993-2001), helped cushion the crisis. The economy was growing again in less than 18 months, and annual rate growth averaged 5.1 percent between 1995 and 2000. More critical interpretations argue that the crisis and subsequent public bailout "preserved, renewed, and intensified the structurally unequal social relations of power and class characteristic of finance-led neoliberal capitalism" in forms institutionally specific to Mexican society with GDP growth spurred by one-time privatizations. Per capita economic growth in the 2000s was low.
President Ernesto Zedillo (1994–2000), and President Vicente Fox (2000–06), of the National Action Party (Mexico), the first opposition party candidate to win a presidential election since the founding of the precursor of the Institutional Revolutionary Party in 1929, continued with trade liberalization. During Fox's administrations, several FTAs were signed with Latin American and European countries, Japan and Israel, and both strove to maintain macroeconomic stability. Thus, Mexico became one of the most open countries in the world to trade, and the economic base shifted accordingly. Total trade with the United States and Canada tripled, and total exports and imports almost quadrupled between 1991 and 2003. The nature of foreign investment also changed with a greater share of foreign direct investment (FDI) over portfolio investment. The wealth of Mexico's leading billionaires stems from the privatizations of the 1990s, when the country sold off its state-owned companies at low prices: telecoms (Telmex) to Carlos Slim, trains (Ferromex) to German Larrea, and television (TV Azteca) to Ricardo Salinas.
Macroeconomic, financial and welfare indicators
Main indicators
GDP per capita PPP US $16,900 (2012–15)GNI per capita PPP US $16,500 (2012–15)Inflation (CPI) 3.7% (February 2021)Gini index 43.4 (World Bank 2016)Unemployment 4.5% (January 2021)HDI 0.779 (2020)Labor force 78.4 million (2011)Pop. in poverty 13.8%
Mexico's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in purchasing power parity (PPP) was estimated at US$2,143.499 billion in 2014, and $1,261.642 billion in nominal exchange rates. It is the leader of the MINT group. Its standard of living, as GDP in PPP per capita, was US$16,900. The World Bank reported in 2009 that Mexico's Gross National Income in market exchange rates was the second highest in Latin America, after Brazil at US$1,830.392 billion, which lead to the highest income per capita in the region at $14,400. As such, Mexico established itself as an upper middle-income country. After the slowdown of 2001, the country recovered and grown 4.2, 3.0, and 4.8 percent in 2004, 2005, and 2006, even though it is considered to be well below Mexico's potential growth.
The Mexican peso is the currency (ISO 4217: MXN; symbol: $). One peso is divided into 100 centavos (cents). MXN replaced MXP in 1993 at a rate of 1000 MXP per 1 MXN. The exchange rate remained stable between 1998 and 2006, oscillating between 10.20 and 11=3.50 MXN per US$. The Mexican peso parity decreased under president Enrique Peña Nieto, reaching an exchange rate of $20.37 per dollar in 2017. Interest rates in 2007 were situated at around 7 percent, having reached a historic low in 2002 below 5 percent. Inflation rates are also at historic lows; the inflation rate in Mexico in 2006 was 4.1 percent and 3 percent by the end of 2007. Compared against the US Dollar, Mexican Peso has devalued over %7,500 since 1910.
Unemployment rates are the lowest of all OECD member countries at 3.2 percent. However, underemployment is estimated at 25 percent. Mexico's Human Development Index was reported at 0.829 in 2008, (comprising a life expectancy index of 0.84, an education index of 0.86 and a GDP index of 0.77), ranking 52 in the world within the group of high-development.
The following table shows the main economic indicators in 1980–2023 (with IMF staff estimates in 2024–2028). Inflation below 5% is in green.
YearGDP
(in billion US$PPP)GDP per capita
(in US$ PPP)GDP
(in billion US$nominal)GDP per capita
(in US$ nominal)GDP growth
(real)Inflation rate
(in Percent)Unemployment
(in Percent)Government debt
(in % of GDP)1980404.35,984.8228.63,383.79.5%26.5%1.2%n/a1981480.36,934.4293.64,238.88.5%28.0%0.9%n/a1982507.47,148.6213.13,002.2-0.5%59.1%4.2%n/a1983508.87,001.9173.72,390.4-3.5%101.8%6.1%n/a1984545.27,331.8204.92,755.03.4%65.4%5.6%n/a1985574.77,559.2217.42,859.22.2%57.8%4.4%n/a1986568.37,314.4150.51,937.4-3.1%86.4%4.3%n/a1987592.37,465.9165.12,080.41.7%132.0%3.9%n/a1988621.17,670.6201.92,493.81.3%113.5%3.5%n/a1989671.98,137.0246.12,979.94.1%19.9%2.9%n/a1990733.28,710.7290.43,450.25.2%26.7%2.7%n/a1991789.99,212.0348.14,060.04.2%22.6%2.7%n/a1992836.59,580.9403.74,624.03.5%15.5%2.8%n/a1993879.89,902.0500.85,636.42.7%9.8%3.4%n/a1994943.010,435.6527.85,841.04.9%7.0%3.7%n/a1995902.29,823.1360.13,920.7-6.3%35.1%6.2%n/a1996980.910,514.4411.04,405.16.8%34.4%5.5%44.7%19971,066.211,256.0500.45,283.16.8%20.6%3.7%40.9%19981,133.911,796.6526.55,477.95.2%15.9%3.2%42.0%19991,181.512,120.0600.26,157.22.8%16.6%2.5%43.8%20001,268.012,835.7707.97,166.14.9%9.5%2.2%40.3%20011,291.312,899.4756.77,559.0-0.4%6.4%2.8%39.3%20021,310.912,916.1772.17,607.40.0%5.0%3.0%41.9%20031,356.113,180.1729.37,088.51.4%4.6%3.4%44.2%20041,447.113,878.1782.27,501.93.9%4.7%3.9%40.8%20051,526.914,450.1877.58,304.02.3%4.0%3.5%38.5%20061,644.815,349.7975.49,102.54.5%3.6%3.5%37.4%20071,728.015,890.11,052.79,680.42.3%4.0%3.6%37.2%20081,781.216,133.61,110.010,053.71.1%5.1%3.9%42.5%20091,697.915,146.9900.08,029.3-5.3%5.3%5.3%43.7%20101,806.315,879.31,057.89,299.55.1%4.2%5.3%42.0%20111,911.316,567.21,180.510,232.43.7%3.4%5.2%42.9%20122,012.817,212.61,201.110,271.43.6%4.1%4.9%42.7%20132,064.517,428.61,274.410,759.01.4%3.8%4.9%45.9%20142,173.218,119.81,315.410,967.12.9%4.0%4.8%48.9%20152,230.618,382.21,171.99,657.13.3%2.7%4.3%52.8%20162,383.419,422.11,078.58,788.62.6%2.8%3.9%56.7%20172,472.619,933.51,158.99,342.92.1%6.0%3.4%54.0%20182,587.220,643.61,222.49,753.72.2%4.9%3.3%53.6%20192,628.320,764.01,269.010,025.5-0.2%3.6%3.5%53.3%20202,445.619,137.41,089.88,528.1-8.1%3.4%4.4%60.1%20212,755.921,368.81,312.610,177.05.8%5.7%4.1%56.9%20223,064.023,547.81,465.911,265.53.9%8.0%3.3%54.0%20233,277.624,976.01,811.513,803.73.2%5.5%2.9%52.7%20243,423.625,875.81,994.115,072.02.1%3.8%3.0%54.8%20253,543.726,573.62,081.215,606.61.5%3.1%3.4%55.1%20263,676.827,364.82,171.316,159.91.8%3.0%3.6%55.5%20273,818.128,211.22,260.116,699.12.0%3.0%3.7%55.9%20283,968.929,113.82,356.817,287.92.1%3.0%3.7%56.3%
Poverty in Mexico is measured under parameters such as nutrition, clean water, shelter, education, health care, social security, quality and basic services in the household, income and social cohesion as defined by social development laws in the country. It is divided into two categories: Moderate poverty and Extreme poverty.
While less than 2% of Mexico's population lives below the international poverty line set by the World Bank, as of 2013, Mexico's government estimates that 33% of Mexico's population lives in moderate poverty and 9% lives in extreme poverty, which leads to 42% of Mexico's total population living below the national poverty line. The gap might be explained by the government's adopting the multidimensional poverty method as a way to measure poverty, so a person who has an income higher than the "international poverty line" or "well being income line" set by the Mexican government might fall in the "moderate poverty" category if he or she has one or more deficiencies related to social rights such as education (did not complete studies), nutrition (malnutrition or obesity), or living standards (including elemental, such as water or electricity, and secondary domestic assets, such as refrigerators). Extreme poverty is defined by the Mexican government as persons who have deficiencies in both social rights and an income lower than the "well being income line". Additional figures from SEDESOL (Mexico's social development agency) estimates that 6% (7.4 million people) live in extreme poverty and suffer from food insecurity.
Recently, extensive changes in government economic policy and attempts at reducing government interference through privatization of several sectors, for better or worse, allowed Mexico to remain the biggest economy in Latin America, until 2005 when it became the second-largest; and a so-called "trillion dollar club" member. Despite these changes, Mexico continues to suffer great social inequality and lack of opportunities. The Peña Nieto's administration made an attempt at reducing poverty in the country, to provide more opportunities to its citizens such as jobs, education, and the installation of universal healthcare.
Income inequality
A single person in Mexico, Carlos Slim, has a net worth equal to six percent of GDP. Additionally, only ten percent of Mexicans represent 25% of Mexican GDP. A smaller group, 3.5%, represent 12.5% of Mexican GDP.
According to the OECD, Mexico is the country with the second highest degree of economic disparity between the extremely poor and extremely rich, after Chile – although this gap has been diminishing over the last decade. The bottom ten percent of the income rung disposes 1.36% of the country's resources, whereas the upper 10% dispose of almost 36%. OECD also notes that Mexico's budgeted expenses for poverty alleviation and social development are only about a third of the OECD average – in absolute and relative numbers. According to the World Bank 2004, 17.6% of Mexico's population lived in extreme poverty, while 21% lived in moderate poverty.
Remittances
Mexico was the fourth-largest receiver of remittances in the world in 2017. Remittances, or contributions sent by Mexicans living abroad, mostly in the United States, to their families at home in Mexico comprised $28.5 billion in 2017. In 2015, remittances overtook oil to become the single largest foreign source of income for Mexico, larger than any other sector.
The growth of remittances has more than doubled since 1997. Recorded remittance transactions exceeded 41 million in 2003, of which 86 percent were made by electronic transfer.
The Mexican government, cognizant of the needs of migrant workers, began issuing an upgraded version of the Matrícula Consular de Alta Seguridad (MACS, High Security Consular Identification), an identity document issued at Mexican consulates abroad. This document is now accepted as a valid identity card in 32 US states, as well as thousands of police agencies, hundreds of cities and counties, and banking institutions.
The main states receiving remittances in 2014 were Michoacán, Guanajuato, Jalisco, the State of Mexico and Puebla, which jointly captured 45% of total remittances in that year. Several state governments, with the support of the federal government, have implemented programs to use part of the remittances to finance public works. This program, called Dos por Uno (Two for everyone), is designed so that for each peso contributed by migrants from their remittances, the state, and the federal governments will invest two pesos in building infrastructure at their home communities.
Regional economies
Regional disparities and income inequality are a feature of the Mexican economy. While all constituent states of the federation have a Human Development Index (HDI) higher than 0.70 (medium to high development), the northern and central states have higher levels of HDI than the southern states. Nuevo León, Jalisco and the Federal District have HDI levels similar to European countries, whereas that of Oaxaca and Chiapas is similar to that of China or Vietnam.
At the municipal level, economic disparities are even greater: Benito Juárez borough in Mexico City has an HDI similar to that of Germany or New Zealand, whereas Metlatónoc in Guerrero, would have an HDI identical to that of Malawi. The majority of the federal entities in the north have a high development (higher than 0.80), as well as the entities Colima, Jalisco, Aguascalientes, the Federal District, Querétaro and the southeastern states of Quintana Roo and Campeche). The less developed states (with medium development in terms of HDI higher than 0.70) are located along the southern Pacific coast.
In terms of share of the GDP by economic sector (in 2004), the largest contributors in agriculture are Jalisco (9.7%), Sinaloa (7.7%), and Veracruz (7.6%); the greatest contributors in industrial production are the Federal District (15.8%), State of México (11.8%) and Nuevo León (7.9%); the greatest contributors in the service sector are also the Federal District (25.3%), State of México (8.9%) and Nuevo León (7.5%).
Since the 1980s, the economy has slowly become less centralized; the Federal District's annual rate of GDP growth from 2003 to 2004 was the smallest of all federal entities at 0.2%, with drastic drops in the agriculture and industrial sectors. Nonetheless, it still accounts for 21.8% of the nation's GDP. The states with the highest GDP growth rates are Quintana Roo (9.0%), Baja California (8.9%), and San Luis Potosí (8.2%). In 2000, the federal entities with the highest GDP per capita in Mexico were the Federal District (US$26,320), Campeche (US$18,900) and Nuevo León (US$30,250); the states with the lowest GDP per capita were Chiapas (US$3,302), Oaxaca (US$4,100) and Guerrero (US$6,800).
Of the world's 2000 largest companies, ranked in the Forbes Global 2000, 13 are headquartered in Mexico. Three are also among the 500 largest, measured by the Fortune Global 500.
The list includes the largest Mexican companies in 2023:
RankForbes 2000 rankNameHeadquartersRevenue(billions US$)Industry1177América MóvilMexico City43.57Telecommunications2312Fomento Económico MexicanoMonterrey35.86Beverages3375BanorteMonterrey16.82Finance4496Grupo MéxicoMexico City13.93Mining5610Grupo BimboMexico City20.74Food processing61048InbursaMexico City4Financial services71071CemexMonterrey15.93Building material81130Arca ContinentalMonterrey10..8Beverages91188Grupo CarsoMexico City10.18Conglomerate101384 ALFAMonterrey18.27Conglomerate111558El Puerto de LiverpoolMexico City8.75Retail121606Grupo ElektraMexico City8.19Finance131743Fibra UnoMexico City1.17Real Estate
Economic sectors
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in purchasing power parity (PPP) in 2024 was estimated at US$3,43 trillion, and GDP per capita in PPP at US$25,963. The service sector is the largest component of GDP at 70.5%, followed by the industrial sector at 25.7% (2006 est.). Agriculture represents only 3.9% of GDP (2006 est.). The Mexican labor force is estimated at 38 million, of which 18% is occupied in agriculture, 24% in the industry sector, and 58% in the service sector (2003 est.). Mexico's largest source of foreign income is remittances.
Agriculture as a percentage of total GDP has been steadily declining and now resembles that of developed nations in that it plays a smaller role in the economy. In 2006, agriculture accounted for 3.9% of GDP, down from 7% in 1990, and 25% in 1970. Given the historic structure of ejidos, it employs a considerably high percentage of the workforce: 18% in 2003, mostly of which grows basic crops for subsistence, compared to 2–5% in developed nations in which production is highly mechanized.
+Food and agriculture Product Quantity (Tm) World Rank1Avocados 1,040,390 1Onions and chayote1,130,6601Limes and lemons1,824,8901Sunflower seed212,7651 Dry fruits 95,150 2 Papaya955,6942 Chillies and peppers 1,853,6102 Whole beans 93 0003 Oranges3,969,8103 Anise, badian, fennel32 5003 Chicken meat2,245,0003 Asparagus67,2474 Mangoes1.503.0104 Corn20,000,00041Source:FAO
After the Mexican Revolution, Mexico began an agrarian reform, based on the 27th article of the Mexican Constitution than included transfer of land and/or free land distribution to peasants and small farmers under the concept of the ejido. This program was further extended during President Cárdenas' administration during the 1930s and continued into the 1960s at varying rates. The cooperative agrarian reform, which guaranteed small farmers a means of subsistence livelihood, also caused land fragmentation and lack of capital investment, since commonly held land could not be used as collateral. To raise rural productivity and living standards, this constitutional article was amended in 1992 to allow for the transfer of property rights of communal lands to farmers cultivating it. With the ability to rent or sell it, a way was open for the creation of larger farms and the advantages of economies of scale. Large mechanized farms are now operating in some northwestern states (mainly in Sinaloa). However, privatization of ejidos continues to be very slow in the central and southern states where the great majority of peasants produce only for subsistence.
Until the 1980s, the government encouraged the production of basic crops (mainly corn and beans) by maintaining support prices and controlling imports through the National Company for Popular Subsistence (CONASUPO). With trade liberalization, however, CONASUPO was gradually dismantled, and two new mechanisms were implemented: Alianza and Procampo. Alianza provides income payments and incentives for mechanization and advanced irrigation systems. Procampo is an income transfer subsidy to farmers. This support program offers 3.5 million farmers who produce basic commodities (mostly corn), representing 64% of all farmers, with a fixed income transfer payment per unit of cropland area. This subsidy increased substantially during President Fox's administration, mainly to white corn producers, to reduce imports from the United States. This program has been successful, and in 2004, roughly only 15% of corn imports were white corn –the one used for human consumption and the type that is mostly grown in Mexico– as opposed to 85% of yellow and crashed corn –the one used for feeding livestock, and which is barely produced in Mexico.
Crops
In spite of corn being a staple in the Mexican diet, Mexico's comparative advantage in agriculture is not in corn, but in horticulture, tropical fruits, and vegetables. Negotiators of NAFTA expected that through liberalization and mechanization of agriculture, two-thirds of Mexican corn producers would naturally shift from corn production to horticultural and other labor-intensive crops such as fruits, nuts, vegetables, coffee, and sugar cane. While horticultural trade has drastically increased due to NAFTA, it has not absorbed displaced workers from corn production (estimated at 600,000). Corn production has remained stable (at 20 million metric tons), arguably as a result of income support to farmers or a reluctance to abandon a millenarian tradition in Mexico: not only have peasants grown corn for millennia; corn originated in Mexico. Mexico is the seventh largest corn producer in the world.
Potatoes
The area dedicated to potatoes has changed little since 1980 and average yields have almost tripled since 1961. Production reached a record 1.7 million tonnes in 2003. Per capita consumption of potato in Mexico stands at 17 kg a year, very low compared to its maize intake of 400 kg. On average, potato farms in Mexico are larger than those devoted to more basic food crops. Potato production in Mexico is mostly for commercial purposes; the production for household consumption is very small.
Mexico is the world's largest avocado growing country, producing several times more than the second largest producer. In 2013, the total area dedicated to avocado production was , and the harvest was 2.03 million tonnes in 2017. The state that produces the most is Michoacán, which produces nearly 75% of all Mexican avocados.
Sugar cane
Approximately 160,000 medium-sized farmers grow sugar cane in 15 Mexican states; currently there are 54 sugar mills around the country that produced 4.96 million tons of sugar in the 2010 crop, compared to 5.8 million tons in 2001. Mexico's sugar industry is characterized by high production costs and lack of investment. Mexico produces more sugar than it consumes. Sugar cane is grown on 700,000 farms in Mexico with a yield of 72 metric tons per farm.
In 2019, the country was the world's largest producer of silver 9th largest producer of gold, the 8th largest producer of copper, the world's 5th largest producer of lead, the world's 6th largest producer of zinc, the world's 5th largest producer of molybdenum, the world's 3rd largest producer of mercury, the world's 5th largest producer of bismuth, the world's 13th largest producer of manganese and the 23rd largest world producer of phosphate. It is also the 8th largest world producer of salt.
In April 2022, the Senate passed a law that nationalizes the lithium mining industry in the country. The federal government will monopolize all new lithium mines in the country, but existing operations will be allowed to continue in private hands. Critics of the move argue that the constitution already does this and that the government lacks the technical capacity to mine the major reserves, which are mostly in clay deposits that are difficult to mine. The government made a similar failed attempt to nationalize uranium mining in the 1980s.
Industry
+Industrial production Main industriesAircraft, automobile industry, petrochemicals, cement and construction, textiles, food and beverages, mining, consumer durables, tourismIndustrial growth rate 3.6% (2006)Labor force 29% of total labor forceGDP of sector 25.7% of total GDP
The industrial sector has benefited from trade liberalization; in 2000, it accounted for almost 50% of all export earnings.
Among Mexico's most important industrial manufacturers is the automotive industry, whose standards of quality are internationally recognized. The automobile sector in Mexico differs from that in other Latin American countries and developing nations in that it does not function as a mere assembly manufacturer. The industry produces technologically complex components and engages in some research and development activities, an example of that is the new Volkswagen Jetta model with up to 70% of parts designed in Mexico.
The "Big Three" (General Motors, Ford and Chrysler) have been operating in Mexico since the 1930s, while Volkswagen and Nissan built their plants in the 1960s. Later, Toyota, Honda, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz have also participated. Given the high requirements of North American components in the industry, many European and Asian parts suppliers have also moved to Mexico: in Puebla alone, 70 industrial part-makers cluster around Volkswagen.
The relatively small domestic car industry is represented by DINA Camiones, a manufacturer of trucks, busses and military vehicles, which through domestic production and purchases of foreign bus manufacturers has become the largest bus manufacturer in the world; Vehizero that builds hybrid trucks and the new car companies Mastretta design that builds the Mastretta MXT sports car and Autobuses King that plans to build 10000 microbuses by 2015, nevertheless new car companies are emerging among them CIMEX that has developed a sport utility truck, the Conin, and it is to be released in September 2010 in Mexico's national auto show, And the new electric car maker Grupo Electrico Motorizado. Some large industries of Mexico include Cemex, the world's largest construction company and the third largest cement producer the alcohol beverage industries, including world-renowned players like Grupo Modelo; conglomerates like FEMSA, which apart from being the largest single producer of alcoholic beverages and owning multiple commercial interests such OXXO convenience store chain, is also the second-largest Coca-Cola bottler in the world; Gruma, the largest producer of corn flour and tortillas in the world; and Grupo Bimbo, Telmex, Televisa, among many others. In 2005, according to the World Bank, high-tech industrial production represented 19.6% of total exports.
Maquiladoras (manufacturing plants that take in imported raw materials and produce goods for domestic consumption and export on behalf of foreign companies) have become the landmark of trade in Mexico. This sector has benefited from NAFTA, in that real income in the maquiladora sector has increased 15.5% since 1994, though the non-maquiladora industry has grown much faster. Contrary to popular belief, this should be no surprise since maquiladora's products could enter the US duty-free since a 1960s industry agreement. Other sectors now benefit from the free trade agreement, and the share of exports from non-border states has increased in the last 5 years while the share of exports from maquiladora-border states has decreased.
Currently, Mexico is focusing on developing an aerospace industry, and the assembly of helicopter and regional jet aircraft fuselages is taking place. Foreign firms such as MD Helicopters, Bell, Cessna and Bombardier build helicopter, aircraft and regional jets fuselages in Mexico. Although the Mexican aircraft industry is mostly foreign, as is its car industry, Mexican firms have been founded such as Aeromarmi, which builds light propeller airplanes, and Hydra Technologies, which creates Unmanned Aerial Vehicles such as the S4 Ehécatl, other important companies are Frisa Aerospace that manufactures jet engine parts for the new Mitsubishi Regional jet and supplies Prat&whittney and Rolls-Royce jet engine manufacturers of casings for jet engines and Kuo Aerospace that builds parts for aircraft landing gear and Supplies bombardier plant in Querétaro.
As compared with the United States or countries in Western Europe, a larger sector of Mexico's industrial economy is food manufacturing, which includes several world-class companies, but the regional industry is undeveloped. Some national brands have become international and local Mom and Pop producers but little manufacturing in between.
Mexico's electronics industry has grown enormously within the last decade. Mexico has the sixth largest electronics industry in the world after China, United States, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. Mexico is the second largest exporter of electronics to the United States, and it exported $71.4 billion worth of electronics in 2011. The Mexican electronics industry is dominated by the manufacture and OEM design of televisions, displays, computers, mobile phones, circuit boards, semiconductors, electronic appliances, communications equipment and LCD modules. The Mexican electronics industry grew 20% between 2010 and 2011, up from its constant growth rate of 17% between 2003 and 2009. Electronics represent 30% of Mexico's exports.
Televisions
The design and manufacture of flat panel plasma, LCD, and LED televisions is the single largest sector of the Mexican electronics industry, representing 25% of Mexico's electronics export revenue. In 2009 Mexico surpassed South Korea and China as the largest manufacturer of televisions, with Sony, Toshiba, Samsung, Sharp (through Semex), Zenith LG, Lanix, TCL, RCA, Phillips, Elcoteq, Tatung, Panasonic, and Vizio manufacturing CRT, LCD, LED and Plasma televisions in Mexico. Due to Mexico's position as the largest manufacturer of televisions, it is known as the television capital of the world in the electronics industry.
Computers
Mexico is the third largest manufacturers of computers in the world with both domestic companies such as Lanix, Texa, Meebox, Spaceit, Kyoto and foreign companies such as Dell, Sony, HP, Acer Compaq, Samsung and Lenovo manufacturing various types of computers across the country. Most of the computers manufactured in Mexico are from foreign companies. Mexico is Latin America's largest producer of electronics and appliances made by domestic companies.
OEM and ODM manufacturing
Mexico is also home to many OEM and ODM manufacturers, both foreign and domestic. Among them include Foxconn, Celestica, Sanmina-SCI, Jabil, Elcoteq, Falco, Kimball International, Compal, Benchmark Electronics, Plexus, Lanix and Flextronics. These companies assemble finished electronics or design and manufacture electronic components on behalf of larger companies such as Sony or Microsoft using locally sourced components, for example the ODM, Flextronics manufactures Xbox video games systems in Guadalajara, Mexico for Microsoft using components such as power systems and printed circuit boards from a local company, Falco Electronics which acts as the OEM.
Engineering and design
The success and rapid growth of the Mexican electronics sector are driven primarily by the relatively low cost of manufacturing and design in Mexico, its strategic position as a major consumer electronics market coupled with its proximity to both the large North American and South American markets, whom Mexico shares free trade agreements with; government support in the form of low business taxes, simplified access to loans and capital for both foreign multinational and domestic startup tech-based firms; and a very large pool of highly skilled, educated labor across all sectors of the tech industry. For example, German multinational engineering and electronics conglomerate Siemens has a significant Mexican base, which also serves as its business and strategy hub for Central American countries and the Caribbean region.
There are almost half a million (451,000) students enrolled in electronics engineering programs with an additional 114,000 electronics engineers entering the Mexican workforce each year and Mexico had over half a million (580,000) certified electronic engineering professionals employed in 2007. From the late 1990s, the Mexican electronics industry began to shift away from simple line assembly to more advanced work such as research, design, and the manufacture of advanced electronics systems such as LCD panels, semiconductors, printed circuit boards, microelectronics, microprocessors, chipsets and heavy electronic industrial equipment and in 2006 the number of certified engineers being graduated annually in Mexico surpassed that of the United States. Many Korean, Japanese and American appliances sold in the US are actually of Mexican design and origin but sold under the OEM's client names. In 2008 one out of every four consumer appliances sold in the United States was of Mexican design.
Joint production
While many foreign companies like Phillips, Vizio and LG simply install wholly owned factories in Mexico; a number of foreign companies have set up semi-independent joint venture companies with Mexican businesses to manufacture and design components in Mexico. These companies are independently operated from their foreign parent companies and are registered in Mexico. These local companies function under Mexican law and retain a sizable portion of the revenue. These companies typically function dually as in-company OEM development and design facilities and manufacturing centers and usually produce most components needed to manufacture the finished products. An example would by Sharp which has formed Semex.
Semex was founded as a joint venture between Sharp and Mexican investors which acts as an autonomous independent company which Sharp only maintains partial control over. The company manufactures whole products such televisions and designs individual components on behalf of Sharp such as LCD modules and in return Semex is granted access to Sharp capital, technology, research capacity and branding. Notable foreign companies which have set up joint venture entities in Mexico include Samsung which formed Semex, a local designer and manufacturer of finished televisions, white goods and individual electronic components like printed circuit boards, LCD panels and semiconductors, Toshiba, who formed Toshiba de México, S.A. de C.V., an administratively autonomous subsidiary which produces electronics parts, televisions and heavy industrial equipment.
Some of these subsidiaries have grown to expand into multiple branches effectively becoming autonomous conglomerates within their own parent companies. Sony for example started operations in Mexico in 1976 with a group of Mexican investors, and founded the joint venture, Sony de Mexico which produces LED panels, LCD modules, automotive electronics, appliances and printed circuit boards amongst other products for its Japanese parent company, Sony KG. Sony de Mexico has research facilities in Monterrey and Mexico City, designs many of the Sony products manufactured in Mexico and has now expanded to create its own finance, music and entertainment subsidiaries which are Mexican registered and independent of their Japanese parent corporation.
Domestic industry
Although much of Mexico's electronics industry is driven by foreign companies, Mexico also has a sizeable domestic electronics industry and a number of electronics companies including Mabe, a major appliance manufacturer and OEM which has been functioning since the nineteen fifties and has expanded into the global market, Meebox, a designer and manufacturer desktop and tablet computers, solar power panels and electronics components, Texa, which manufactures computers laptops and servers, Falco, a major international manufacturer of electronic components such as printed circuitboards, power systems, semiconductors, gate drives and which has production facilities in Mexico, India and China, and Lanix, Mexico's largest electronics company which manufactures products such as computers, laptops, smartphones, LED and LCDs, flash memory, tablets, servers, hard drives, RAM, optical disk drives, and printed circuitboards and employs over 11,000 people in Mexico and Chile and distributes its products throughout Latin America. Another area being currently developed in Mexico is Robotics, Mexico's new Mexone robot has been designed with the idea that in future years develop a commercial application for such advanced robots
Mineral resources are public property by constitution. As such, the energy sector is administered by the government with varying degrees of private investment. Mexico is the fourteenth-largest oil producer in the world, with . Pemex, the state-owned company in charge of administering research, exploration and sales of oil, is the largest company in Mexico, and the second largest in Latin America after Brazil's Petrobras. Pemex is heavily taxed of almost 62 per cent of the company's sales, a significant source of revenue for the government.
Without enough money to continue investing in finding new sources or upgrading infrastructure, and being protected constitutionally from private and foreign investment, some have predicted the company may face institutional collapse. While the oil industry is still relevant for the government's budget, its importance in GDP and exports has steadily fallen since the 1980s. In 1980 oil exports accounted for 61.6% of total exports; by 2000 it was only 7.3%.
Mexico's installed electricity capacity in 2008 was 58 GW. Of the installed capacity, 75% is thermal, 19% hydro, 2% nuclear and 3% renewable other than hydro. The general trend in thermal generation is a decline in petroleum-based fuels and a growth in natural gas and coal. Since Mexico is a net importer of natural gas, higher levels of natural gas consumption (i.e. for power generation) will likely depend upon higher imports from either the United States or via liquefied natural gas (LNG).
Manufacturing in Mexico grew rapidly in the late 1960s with the end of the US farm labor agreement known as the bracero program. This sent many farm laborers back into the Northern border region with no source of income. As a result, the US and Mexican governments agreed to The Border Industrialization Program, which permitted US companies to assemble products in Mexico using raw materials and components from the US with reduced duties. The Border Industrialization Program became known popularly as The Maquiladora Program or shortened to The Maquila Program.
Over the years, simple assembly operations in Mexico have evolved into complex manufacturing operations including televisions, automobiles, industrial and personal products. While inexpensive commodity manufacturing has flown to China, Mexico attracts U.S. manufacturers that need low-cost solutions near-by for higher value end products and just-in-time components.
The automotive sector accounts for 17.6% of Mexico's manufacturing sector. General Motors, Chrysler, Ford, Nissan, Fiat, Renault, Honda, Toyota, and Volkswagen produce 2.8 million vehicles annually at 20 plants across the country, mostly in Puebla. Mexico manufactures more automobiles of
any North American nation. The industry produces technologically complex components and engages in research and development.
The "Big Three" (General Motors, Ford and Chrysler) have been operating in Mexico since the 1930s, while Volkswagen and Nissan built their plants in the 1960s. In Puebla 70 industrial part-makers cluster around Volkswagen. In the 2010s expansion of the sector was surging. In 2014 more than $10 billion in investment was committed in the first few months of the year. Kia in August 2014 announced plans for a $1 billion factory in Nuevo León. At the time Mercedes-Benz and Nissan were already building a $1.4 billion plant near Aguascalientes, while BMW was planning a $1-billion assembly plant in San Luis Potosí. Additionally, Audi began building a $1.3 billion factory at San José Chiapa near Puebla in 2013.
Mexico has a MXN 4.027 trillion retail sector (2013, about US$300 billion at the 2013 exchange rate) including an estimated US$12 billion (2015) in e-commerce. The largest retailer is Walmart, while the largest Mexico-based retailers are Soriana super/hypermarkets, FEMSA incl. its OXXO convenience stores, Coppel (department store), Liverpool department stores, Chedraui super/hypermarkets, and Comercial Mexicana super/hypermarkets. While urban areas like Mexico City, Monterrey, and Guadalajara dominate in terms of retail infrastructure and consumer spending power, rural areas and smaller towns still present opportunities for retailers, especially those catering to local needs and preferences. Seasonal shopping patterns in Mexico can significantly impact retail sales. For instance, major holidays like Christmas, Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), and Easter prompt increased spending on gifts, food, and decorations. International luxury brands have expanded their presence in Mexico, opening flagship stores in prestigious shopping districts such as Polanco in Mexico City, Santa Fe, and upscale malls like Antara Polanco and Centro Santa Fe.
In 2013 the tertiary sector was estimated to account for 59.8% of Mexico's GDP. In 2011 services employed 61.9% of the working population. This section includes transportation, commerce, warehousing, restaurant and hotels, arts and entertainment, health, education, financial and banking services, telecommunications as well as public administration and defense. Mexico's service sector is strong, and in 2001 replaced Brazil's as the largest service sector in Latin America in dollar terms.
Tourism is one of the most important industries in Mexico. It is the fourth largest source of foreign exchange for the country. Mexico is the eighth most visited country in the world (with over 20 million tourists a year).
Banking system
According to the IMF the Mexican banking system is strong, in which private banks are profitable and well-capitalized. The financial and banking sector is increasingly dominated by foreign companies or mergers of foreign and Mexican companies with the notable exception of Banorte. The acquisition of Banamex, one of the oldest surviving financial institutions in Mexico, by Citigroup was the largest US-Mexico corporate merger, at US$12.5 billion. The largest financial institution in Mexico is Bancomer associated to the Spanish BBVA.
The process of institution building in the financial sector in Mexico has evolved hand in hand with the efforts of financial liberalization and of inserting the economy more fully into world markets. Over the recent years, there has been a wave of acquisitions by foreign institutions such as US-based Citigroup, Spain's BBVA and the UK's HSBC. Their presence, along with a better regulatory framework, has allowed Mexico's banking system to recover from the 1994–95 peso crisis. Lending to the public and private sector is increasing and so is activity in the areas of insurance, leasing and mortgages. However, bank credit accounts for only 22% of GDP, which is significantly low compared to 70% in Chile. Credit to the Agricultural sector has fallen 45.5% in six years (2001 to 2007), and now represents about 1% of total bank loans. Other important institutions include savings and loans, credit unions (known as "cajas populares"), government development banks, “non-bank banks”, bonded warehouses, bonding companies and foreign-exchange firms.
A wave of acquisitions has left Mexico's financial sector in foreign hands. Their foreign-run affiliates compete with independent financial firms operating as commercial banks, brokerage and securities houses, insurance companies, retirement-fund administrators, mutual funds, and leasing companies.
Securities market
Mexico has a single securities market, the Mexican Stock Exchange (Bolsa Mexicana de Valores, known as the Bolsa). The market has grown steadily, with its main indices increasing by more than 600% in the last decade. It is Latin America's second largest exchange, after Brazil's. The total value of the domestic market capitalization of the BMV was calculated at US$409 billion at the end of 2011, and raised to US$451 billion by the end of February this year.
The Indice de Precios y Cotizaciones (IPC, the general equities index) is the benchmark stock index on the Bolsa. In 2005 the IPC surged 37.8%, to 17,802.71 from 12,917.88, backed by a stronger Mexican economy and lower interest rates. It continued its steep rise through the beginning of 2006, reaching 19,272.63 points at end-March 2006. The stockmarket also posted a record low vacancy rate, according to the central bank. Local stockmarket capitalisation totalled US$236bn at end-2005, up from US$170 bn at end-2004. As of March 2006 there were 135 listed companies, down from 153 a year earlier. Only a handful of the listed companies are foreign. Most are from Mexico City or Monterrey; companies from these two cities compose 67% of the total listed companies.
The IPC consists of a sample of 35 shares weighted according to their market capitalisation. The largest companies include America Telecom, the holding company that manages Latin America's largest mobile company, América Móvil; Telmex, Mexico's largest telephone company; Grupo Bimbo, world's biggest baker; and Wal-Mart de México, a subsidiary of the US retail company. The makeup of the IPC is adjusted every six months, with selection aimed at including the most liquid shares in terms of value, volume and number of trades.
Mexico's stock market is closely linked to developments in the US. Thus, volatility in the New York and Nasdaq stock exchanges, as well as interest-rate changes and economic expectations in the US, can steer the performance of Mexican equities. This is both because of Mexico's economic dependence on the US and the high volume of trading in Mexican equities through American Depositary Receipts (ADRs). Currently, the decline in the value of the dollar is making non-US markets, including Mexico's, more attractive.
Despite the recent gains, investors remain wary of making placements in second-tier initial public offerings (IPOs). Purchasers of new issues were disappointed after prices fell in numerous medium-sized companies that made offerings in 1996 and 1997. IPO activity in Mexico remains tepid and the market for second-tier IPOs is barely visible. There were three IPOs in 2005.
Monetary and financial system and regulation
Banco de México
+Financial indicatorsCurrency exchange rate 17.08 MXN per US$1 (February 27, 2024)Reserves US $214.413 billion (2023) Government budget US $196.5 billion (revenues)Public debt 20.7% of GDP (2006)External debt US $178.3 billion (2006)Bank funding rate 5.25% (May 15, 2009)
Banco de México is Mexico's central bank, an internally autonomous public institution whose governor is appointed by the president and approved by the legislature to which it is fully responsible. Banco de México's functions are outlined in the 28th article of the constitution and further expanded in the Monetary Law of the United Mexican States. Banco de México's main objective is to achieve stability in the purchasing power of the national currency. It is also the lender of last resort.
Currency policy
Mexico has a floating exchange rate regime.
The floating exchange originated with reforms initiated after the December 1994 peso crash which had followed an unsustainable adherence to a short band. Under the new system, Banco de México now makes no commitment to the level of the peso exchange rate, although it does employ an automatic mechanism to accumulate foreign reserves. It also possesses tools aimed at smoothing out volatility. The Exchange Rate Commission sets policy; it is made up of six members—three each from the Ministry of Finance and Public Credit (Secretaría de Hacienda y Crédito Publico—SHCP) and the central bank, with the SHCP holding the deciding vote.
In August 1996, Banco de México initiated a mechanism to acquire foreign reserves when the peso is strong, without giving the market signals about a target range for the exchange rate. The resulting high levels of reserves, mostly from petroleum revenues, have helped to improve the terms and conditions on debt Mexico places on foreign markets. However, there is concern that the government relies too heavily on oil income in order to build a healthy base of reserves. According to the central bank, international reserves stood at US$75.8 billion in 2007. In May 2003, Banco de México launched a program that sells U.S. dollars via a monthly auction, with the goal of maintaining a stable, but moderate, level of reserves.
From April 1, 1998, through April 1, 2008, the Peso traded around a range varying from $8.46 MXN per US$1.00 on April 21, 1998, to $11.69 MXN per US$1.00 on May 11, 2004, a 10-year peak depreciation of 38.18% between the two reference date extremes before recovering.
After the onset of the US credit crisis that accelerated in October 2008, the Peso had an exchange rate during October 1, 2008, through April 1, 2009, fluctuating from lowest to highest between $10.96 MXN per US$1.00 on October 1, 2008, to $15.42 MXN per US$1.00 on March 9, 2009, a peak depreciation ytd of 28.92% during those six months between the two reference date extremes before recovering.
From the $11.69 rate during 2004's low to the $15.42 rate during 2009's low, the peso depreciated 31.91% in that span covering the US recession coinciding Iraq War of 2003 and 2004 to the US & Global Credit Crisis of 2008.
Some experts including analysts at Goldman Sachs who coined the term BRIC in reference to the growing economies of Brazil, Russia, India, and China for marketing purposes believe that Mexico is going to be the 5th or 6th biggest economy in the world by the year 2050, behind China, United States, India, Brazil, and possibly Russia.
Monetary system
Mexico's monetary policy was revised following the 1994–95 financial crisis, when officials decided that maintaining general price stability was the best way to contribute to the sustained growth of employment and economic activity. As a result, Banco de México has as its primary objective maintaining stability in the purchasing power of the peso. It sets an inflation target, which requires it to establish corresponding quantitative targets for the growth of the monetary base and for the expansion of net domestic credit.
The central bank also monitors the evolution of several economic indicators, such as the exchange rate, differences between observed and projected inflation, the results of surveys on the public and specialists’ inflation expectations, revisions on collective employment contracts, producer prices, and the balances of the current and capital accounts.
A debate continues over whether Mexico should switch to a US-style interest rate-targeting system. Government officials in favor of a change say that the new system would give them more control over interest rates, which are becoming more important as consumer credit levels rise.
Until 2008, Mexico used a unique system, amongst the OECD countries, to control inflation in a mechanism known as the corto (lit. "shortage") a mechanism that allowed the central bank to influence market interest rates by leaving the banking system short of its daily demand for money by a predetermined amount. If the central bank wanted to push interest rates higher, it increased the corto. If it wished to lower interest rates, it decreased the corto. In April 2004, the Central Bank began setting a referential overnight interest rate as its monetary policy.
Business regulation
Petty corruption based on exercise of administrative discretion in matters of zoning and business permits is endemic in Mexico adding about 10% to the cost of consumer goods and services. An April 2012 article in The New York Times reporting payment of bribes to officials throughout Mexico in order to obtain construction permits, information, and other favors resulted in investigations in both the United States and Mexico.
Using relatively recent night light data and electricity consumption in comparison with Gross County Product, the informal sector of the local economy in Veracruz state is shown to have grown during the period of the Fox Administration though the regional government remained PRI. The assumption that the informal economy of Mexico is a constant 30% of total economic activity is not supported at the local level. The small amount of local spatial autocorrelation that was found suggests a few clusters of high and low literacy rates amongst municipios in Veracruz but not enough to warrant including an I-statistic as a regressor. Global spatial autocorrelation is found especially literacy at the macro-regional level which is an area for further research beyond this study.
Improved literacy bolsters both the informal and formal economies in Veracruz indicating policies designed to further literacy are vital for growing the regional economy. While indigenous people are relatively poor, little evidence was found that the informal economy is a higher percentage of total economic activity in a municipio with a high share of indigenous people. While the formal economy might have been expanding relative to the informal economy in 2000, by 2006 this process had been reversed with growing informality. While rural municipios have smaller economies, they are not different than urban municipios in the share of the economy that is informal. Programs in the past that might move economic activity from the informal to the formal sector have not succeeded, suggesting public finance issues such as tax evasion will continue to plague the state with low government revenues.
+International tradeExports US $248.8 billion f.o.b. (2006)Imports US $253.1 billion f.o.b. (2006)Current account US $400.1 million (2006)Export partners US 90.9%, Canada 2.2%, Spain 1.4%, Germany 1.3%, Colombia 0.9% (2006)Import partners US 53.4%, China 8%, Japan 5.9% (2005)
Mexico is a trade-oriented economy, with imports and exports totaling a 78% share of the GDP in 2019. It is an important trade power as measured by the value of merchandise traded, and the country with the greatest number of free trade agreements. In 2020, Mexico was the world's eleventh largest merchandise exporter and thirteenth largest merchandise importer, representing 2.4% and 2.2% of world trade, respectively (and those rankings increased to 7th and 9th if the EU is considered a single trading entity). From 1991 to 2005, Mexican trade increased fivefold. Mexico is the biggest exporter and importer in Latin America; in 2020, Mexico alone exported US$417.7 billion, roughly equivalent to the sum of the exports of the next 5 largest exporters (Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Peru, and Colombia).
Mexican trade is fully integrated with that of its North American partners: , approximately 80% of Mexican exports and 50% of its imports were traded with the United States and Canada. Nonetheless, NAFTA has not produced trade diversion. While trade with the United States increased 183% from 1993 to 2002, and that with Canada 165%, other trade agreements have shown even more impressive results: trade with Chile increased 285%, with Costa Rica 528% and Honduras 420%. Trade with the European Union increased 105% over the same time period.
Free trade agreements
Mexico joined the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in 1986, and today is an active and constructive participant of the World Trade Organization. Fox's administration promoted the establishment of a Free Trade Area of the Americas; Puebla served as temporary headquarters for the negotiations, and several other cities are now candidates for its permanent headquarters if the agreement is reached and implemented.
Mexico has signed 12 free trade agreements with 44 countries:
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) (1992) later United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA) (2019) with the United States and Canada;
Grupo de los tres, Group of the three [countries], or G-3 (1994) with Colombia and Venezuela; the latter decided to terminate the agreement in 2006;
Free Trade Agreement with Costa Rica (1994); superseded by the 2011 integrated Free Trade Agreement with the Central American countries;
Free Trade Agreement with Bolivia (1994); terminated in 2010;
Free Trade Agreement with Nicaragua (1997); superseded by the 2011 integrated Free Trade Agreement with the Central American countries;
Free Trade Agreement with Chile (1998);
Free Trade Agreement with the European Union (2000);
Free Trade Agreement with Israel (2000);
Northern Triangle Free Trade Agreement (2000), with Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras; superseded by the 2011 integrated Free Trade Agreement with the Central American countries;
Free Trade Agreement with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), integrated by Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Switzerland (2001);
Free Trade Agreement with Uruguay (2003);
Free Trade Agreement with Japan (2004);
Free Trade Agreement with Peru (2011);
The integrated Free Trade Agreement with Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua (2011);
Free Trade Agreement with Panama (2014); and
The Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) (2018).
Mexico has shown interest in becoming an associate member of Mercosur. The Mexican government has also started negotiations with South Korea, Singapore and Peru, and also wishes to start negotiations with Australia for a trade agreement between the two countries.
North American Trade Agreement and the USMCA Agreement
The 1994 North American Trade Agreement (NAFTA) is by far the most important Trade Agreement Mexico has signed both in the magnitude of reciprocal trade with its partners as well as in its scope. Unlike the rest of the Free Trade Agreements that Mexico has signed, NAFTA is more comprehensive in its scope and was complemented by the North American Agreement for Environmental Cooperation (NAAEC) and the North American Agreement on Labor Cooperation (NAALC). An updating of the 1994 NAFTA, the U.S., Mexico, Canada (USMCA) is pending in early 2020, awaiting the ratification by Canada; the U.S. and Mexico have ratified it.
The NAAEC agreement was a response to environmentalists' concerns that companies would relocate to Mexico or the United States would lower its standards if the three countries did not achieve a unanimous regulation on the environment. The NAAEC, in an aim to be more than a set of environmental regulations, established the North American Commission for Environmental Cooperation (NACEC), a mechanism for addressing trade and environmental issues, the North American Development Bank (NADBank) for assisting and financing investments in pollution reduction and the Border Environmental Cooperation Commission (BECC). The NADBank and the BECC have provided economic benefits to Mexico by financing 36 projects, mostly in the water sector. By complementing NAFTA with the NAAEC, it has been labeled the "greenest" trade agreement.
The NAALC supplement to NAFTA aimed to create a foundation for cooperation among the three members for the resolution of labor problems, as well as to promote greater cooperation among trade unions and social organizations in all three countries, in order to fight for the improvement of labor conditions. Though most economists agree that it is difficult to assess the direct impact of the NAALC, it is agreed that there has been a convergence of labor standards in North America. Given its limitations, however, NAALC has not produced (and in fact was not intended to achieve) convergence in employment, productivity and salary trend in North America.
The agreement fell short in liberalizing movement of people across the three countries. In a limited way, however, immigration of skilled Mexican and Canadian workers to the United States was permitted under the TN status. NAFTA allows for a wide list of professions, most of which require at least a bachelor's degree, for which a Mexican or a Canadian citizen can request TN status and temporarily immigrate to the United States. Unlike the visas available to other countries, TN status requires no sponsorship, but simply a job offer letter.
The overall benefits of NAFTA have been quantified by several economists, whose findings have been reported in several publications like the World Bank's Lessons from NAFTA for Latin America and the Caribbean, NAFTA's Impact on North America, and NAFTA revisited by the Institute for International Economics. They assess that NAFTA has been positive for Mexico, whose poverty rates have fallen, and real income salaries have risen even after accounting for the 1994–1995 economic crisis. Nonetheless, they also state that it has not been enough, or fast enough, to produce an economic convergence nor to reduce the poverty rates substantially or to promote higher rates of growth. Beside this the textile industry gain hype with this agreement and the textile industry in Mexico gained open access to the American market, promoting exports to the United States. The value of Mexican cotton and apparel exports to the U.S. grew from $3 billion in 1995 to $8.4 billion in 2002, a record high of $9.4 billion in 2000. At the same time, the share of Mexico's cotton textile market the U.S. has increased from 8 percent in 1995 to 13 percent in 2002. Some have suggested that in order to fully benefit from the agreement Mexico should invest in education and promote innovation as well as in infrastructure and agriculture.
Contrary to popular belief, the maquiladora program existed far before NAFTA, dating to 1965. A maquiladora manufacturer operates by importing raw materials into Mexico either tariff free (NAFTA) or at a reduced rate on a temporary basis (18 months) and then using Mexico's relatively less expensive labor costs to produce finished goods for export. Prior to NAFTA maquiladora companies importing raw materials from anywhere in the world were given preferential tariff rates by the Mexican government so long as the finished good was for export. The US, prior to NAFTA, allowed Maquiladora manufactured goods to be imported into the US with the tariff rate only being applied to the value of non US raw materials used to produce the good, thus reducing the tariff relative to other countries. NAFTA has eliminated all tariffs on goods between the two countries, but for the maquiladora industry significantly increased the tariff rates for goods sourced outside of NAFTA.
Given the overall size of trade between Mexico and the United States, there are remarkably few trade disputes, involving relatively small dollar amounts. These disputes are generally settled in WTO or NAFTA panels or through negotiations between the two countries. The most significant areas of friction involve trucking, sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, and a number of other agricultural products.
Mexican trade facilitation and competitiveness
A 2008 research brief published by the World Bank as part of its Trade Costs and Facilitation Project suggested that Mexico had the potential to substantially increase trade flows and economic growth through trade facilitation reform. The study examined the potential impacts of trade facilitation reforms in four areas: port efficiency, customs administration, information technology, and regulatory environment (including standards).
The study projected overall increments from domestic reforms to be on the order of $31.8 billion, equivalent to 22.4 percent of total Mexican manufacturing exports for 2000–03. On the imports side, the corresponding figures are $17.1 billion and 11.2 percent, respectively. Increases in exports, including textiles, would result primarily from improvements in port efficiency and the regulatory environment. Exports of transport equipment would be expected to increase by the greatest increment from improvements in port efficiency, whereas exports of food and machinery would largely be the result of improvements in the regulatory environment. On the imports side, Mexican improvements in port efficiency would appear to be the most important factor, although for imports of transport equipment, improvements in service sector infrastructure would also be of relative importance.
Major trade partners
The following table shows the largest trading partners for Mexico in 2021 by total trade value in billions of USD.
CountryTrade Value Import ValueExport ValueBalance609.67221.31388.36167.05120.16101.0219.14 -81.8837.9311.2226.7115.4926.8518.967.89 -11.0826.5017.219.29 -7.9322.8517.085.78 -11.3013.498.724.77 -3.9512.9512.390.556 -11.8310.104.585.520.93510.065.924.14 -1.78
See also
Small and medium enterprises in Mexico
List of companies of Mexico
List of largest Mexican companies
List of hotels in Mexico
List of Mexican brands
Index of Mexico-related articles
Mexico and the World Bank
Poverty in Mexico
Further reading
Merrill, Tim and Ramón Miró. Mexico: a country study (Library of Congress. Federal Research Division, 1996) US government document; not copyright
|
Genting Singapore
|
[
"1984 establishments in Singapore",
"Companies listed on the Singapore Exchange",
"Multinational companies headquartered in Singapore",
"Singaporean brands",
"Companies in the Straits Times Index"
] | 505 | 5,045 |
Genting Singapore PLC is a Singapore-based regional leisure, hospitality and integrated resorts development specialist listed on the main board of the Singapore Exchange Securities Trading Limited. The principal activities of the company’s subsidiaries include developing and operating large scale integrated resorts, investments, casino operations, provision of information technology application related services as well as marketing support services to leisure and hospitality related businesses and investments.
Overview
Over the last 20 years, Genting Singapore PLC has been involved in gaming and integrated resort development in Australia, the Americas, Malaysia, the Philippines and the United Kingdom. They also own Resorts World Sentosa, a S$6.6 billion integrated resort development in Singapore’s Sentosa island.
Genting Singapore PLC won the bid to develop one of two integrated resorts with casinos in Singapore in December 2006. It became the first operator of an integrated resort in Singapore when Resorts World Sentosa opened in January 2010.
After January 2010, Resorts World Sentosa opened four hotels, a casino, Universal Studios Singapore, celebrity chef restaurants, a resident theater show called Voyage de la Vie, free public attractions, and the Maritime Experential Museum and Aquarium. Resorts World Sentosa has 1,500 hotel rooms and tourist attractions such as Universal Studios Singapore and the Marine Life Park. In the third quarter of 2012, the revenues of the Genting Singapore fell almost 20% from a year earlier.
A company of the Genting Group, Genting Singapore PLC was named Asiamoney’s Best Managed Companies 2010 (Large-Cap Corporate of the Year in Singapore). It continues to assess strategic acquisitions, investments and collaborations.
After integrated resorts in Japan were legalized in 2018, in February 2020, Genting Singapore withdrew a bid for an integrated in Osaka, after bidding against MGM Resorts and Galaxy Entertainment.
|
Roger Ailes
|
[
"1940 births",
"2017 deaths",
"20th-century American businesspeople",
"21st-century American businesspeople",
"Accidental deaths from falls",
"Accidental deaths in Florida",
"American chairpersons of corporations",
"American political consultants",
"American television executives",
"Businesspeople from Bergen County, New Jersey",
"Businesspeople from New York (state)",
"Businesspeople from Ohio",
"Neurological disease deaths in Florida",
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"Fox News people",
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"Ohio Republicans",
"Ohio University alumni",
"People from Cresskill, New Jersey",
"People from Garrison, New York",
"People from Warren, Ohio",
"People with haemophilia",
"United States presidential advisors",
"Warren G. Harding High School alumni"
] | 4,906 | 51,174 |
Roger Eugene Ailes (May 15, 1940 – May 18, 2017) was an American television executive and media consultant. He was the chairman and CEO of Fox News, Fox Television Stations and 20th Television. Ailes was a media consultant for Republican presidents Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, and George H. W. Bush, and for Rudy Giuliani's 1989 New York City mayoral election. In July 2016, he left Fox News after allegations of sexually harassing female Fox employees, including on-air hosts Gretchen Carlson, Megyn Kelly, and Andrea Tantaros.
Ailes had hemophilia, a medical condition in which the body is impaired in its ability to produce blood clots. He died on May 18, 2017, at the age of 77 after a subdural hematoma that was aggravated by his hemophilia. Ailes is known for his influence on conservative media, the conservative movement, and American presidents. He is also considered controversial due to the numerous allegations of sexual harassment against him throughout his career and for allegedly creating a misogynistic environment at Fox News.
Early life
Ailes was born and grew up in the factory town of Warren, Ohio, to Donna Marie (née Cunningham) and Robert Eugene Ailes, a factory maintenance foreman. Ailes had hemophilia and was often hospitalized as a youth. He attended the Warren city schools, and later was inducted into Warren G. Harding High School's Distinguished Alumni Hall of Fame. Actor and playwright Austin Pendleton was a childhood friend of Ailes.
Ailes's father was an authoritarian parent who was often physically and verbally abusive, while Ailes later recalled that his mother feared his hemophilia and was only physically affectionate "once in a while". His parents divorced in 1960; when he came home from college for Christmas break, they informed him that he would have to stay at a friend's house. In 1962, Ailes graduated from Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, where he majored in radio and television and served as the student station manager for WOUB for two years.
Career
Early television
Ailes's career in television began in Cleveland and Philadelphia, where he started as production assistant (1961), producer (1965), and executive producer (1967–68) at KYW-TV, for a then-locally produced talk-variety show, The Mike Douglas Show. He continued as executive producer for the show when it was syndicated nationally, and in 1967 and 1968 he won Emmy Awards for it.
In 1967, Ailes had a spirited discussion about television in politics with one of the show's guests, Richard Nixon, who took the view that television was a gimmick. Later, Nixon called on Ailes to serve as his Executive Producer for television. Nixon's successful presidential campaign was Ailes's first venture into the political spotlight. His pioneering work in framing national campaign issues was later chronicled in The Selling of the President 1968 by Joe McGinniss.
Ailes was an employee of Television News Inc., a syndicated television newsfilm service owned by Joseph Coors, from January to September 1975.
Political consulting
In 1984, Ailes worked on the campaign to reelect Ronald Reagan. In 1987 and 1988, Ailes was credited (along with fellow consultant Lee Atwater) with guiding George H. W. Bush to victory in the Republican primaries and in the victory over Michael Dukakis.
Ailes was credited with the "Orchestra Pit Theory" regarding sensationalist political coverage in the news media, which originated with his quip: Ailes's last campaign was the unsuccessful effort of Richard Thornburgh in his run for the U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania in November 1991. He announced his withdrawal from political consulting in 1991.
Days after the 9/11 attacks, Ailes advised President George W. Bush that the American public would be patient as long as they were convinced that Bush was using the harshest measures possible. The correspondence was revealed in Bob Woodward's book Bush at War. Criticized for giving political advice, Ailes lashed out against Woodward, saying "Woodward got it all screwed up, as usual", and "The reason he's not as rich as Tom Clancy is that while he and Clancy both make stuff up, Clancy does his research first." Ailes refused to release a copy of the memo he sent to Bush.
Book
In 1988, Ailes wrote a book with long-time aide Jon Kraushar entitled You Are the Message: Secrets of the Master Communicators.
In 1989, Ailes wrote a book with Jon Kraushar entitled You Are the Message: Getting What You Want by Being Who You Are.
America's Talking channel
Ailes eventually made his way back to television, this time focusing on cable news. In 1993, he became president of CNBC and later created the America's Talking channel, which would eventually become MSNBC. He hosted an interview program on America's Talking. In 1995, NBC hired a law firm to conduct an internal investigation after Ailes allegedly called NBC executive David Zaslav a "little fucking Jew prick." This was not confirmed as the reason for his departure.
20th Television/Fox News
Ailes was hired by News Corp chairman Rupert Murdoch in 1996 to become the CEO of Fox News, effective on October 7.
After the departure of Lachlan Murdoch from News Corporation, Ailes was named Chairman of the Fox Television Stations Group on August 15, 2005. Following his newest assignment, one of his first acts was canceling A Current Affair in September 2005 and replacing it with a new Geraldo Rivera show, Geraldo at Large, which debuted on Halloween, 2005. Rivera's show drew about the same ratings as A Current Affair in January 2007.
Ailes hired former Viacom executive Dennis Swanson in October 2005 to be president of the Fox Television Stations Group. Additionally, there were changes in affiliates' news programs with the standardization of Fox News Channel-like graphics, redesigned studios, news-format changes, and the announcement of a new morning television show called The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet to be produced by Fox News Channel.
In January 2011, 400 rabbis, including leaders from various branches of Judaism in the United States, published an open letter in The Wall Street Journal on the UN-designated Holocaust Remembrance Day. They called on Rupert Murdoch to sanction Fox News commentator Glenn Beck for his use of the Holocaust to "discredit any individual or organization you disagree with." An executive at Fox News rejected the letter, calling it the work of a "George Soros-backed left wing political organization." Ailes is also said to have once referred to Jewish critics of his as "left-wing rabbis."
Also in 2011, Ailes was criticized for referring to executives of the public radio network NPR as "Nazis" for firing a news analyst, Juan Williams, after Williams had made remarks considered by NPR to be offensive. Ailes apologized to a Jewish group, but not to NPR, for using the expression, writing to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL): "I was of course ad-libbing and should not have chosen that word, but I was angry at the time because of NPR's willingness to censor Juan Williams for not being liberal enough ... My now considered opinion 'nasty, inflexible bigot' would have worked better." The ADL welcomed and accepted the apology through its National Director, Abraham Foxman; in a subsequent letter to The Wall Street Journal Foxman said that both Ailes and Beck were "pro-Israel stalwarts."
In October 2012, Ailes's contract with Fox News was renewed for four years, through 2016. If completed, he would have served as head of Fox News Channel for 20 years. Salary terms were not made public, although his earnings for the 2012 fiscal year were $21 million (~$ in ) inclusive of bonuses. In addition to heading Fox News and chairing Fox Television Stations, Ailes also chaired 20th Television, MyNetworkTV and Fox Business Network.
Sexual harassment cases
In a book published in 2014, Gabriel Sherman alleged that, in the 1980s, Ailes offered a television producer a raise if he would sleep with him. Fox News denied the allegation and rejected the authenticity of Sherman's book.
On July 6, 2016, former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against Ailes; Carlson's allegations were the impetus for more than a dozen female employees at 21st Century Fox to step forward regarding their own experiences with Ailes's behaviour. Carlson alleged that she had been fired for rebuffing Ailes's advances. Ailes, through his attorney, Susan Estrich, denied the charges. Three days later, Sherman reported accounts from six women (two publicly and four anonymously) who alleged sexual harassment by Ailes. In response, Ailes's counsel released a statement: "It has become obvious that Ms. Carlson and her lawyer are desperately attempting to litigate this in the press because they have no legal case to argue."
Resignation
Ten days later, New York magazine reported that an internal review into Carlson's claims had expanded into a broader review of Ailes's stewardship. It also claimed Rupert Murdoch and his sons, Lachlan and James, had seen enough information in the preliminary review to conclude that Ailes had to go. They disagreed on the timing, however; James wanted Ailes out immediately, while Rupert and Lachlan wanted to wait until after the Republican National Convention. On July 19, New York reported that Megyn Kelly told investigators Ailes made "unwanted sexual advances toward her" at the start of her career. The magazine also reported that the Murdochs had given Ailes an ultimatum—resign by August 1 or be fired.
On July 21, 2016, Ailes resigned from Fox News, receiving about $40 million (~$ in ) from 21st Century Fox (the then-parent company of 20th Century Fox and Fox News) in an exit agreement. Rupert Murdoch succeeded him as chairman, and as interim CEO until the naming of a permanent replacement. In a letter to Murdoch, Ailes wrote: "I will not allow my presence to become a distraction from the work that must be done every day to ensure that Fox News and Fox Business continue to lead our industry." Ailes was thanked for his work, without mention of the allegations. He continued to advise Murdoch and 21st Century Fox through 2017 until his death.
After 20th Television and Fox News
Following Ailes' resignation, Andrea Tantaros claimed in August 2016 that she approached Fox News executives about Ailes' behavior towards her in 2015. She stated that her allegations resulted first in her being demoted, and then in her being taken off the air in April 2016. Tantaros filed a lawsuit against Fox News in August 2016 for sexual harassment, also accusing Bill O'Reilly and Scott Brown.
On August 8, 2016, Shelley Ross, writing for The Daily Beast, described her encounter of sexual harassment with Ailes in 1981. She claimed that at a lunch meeting Ailes asked her, "When did you first discover you were sexy?" When Ross explained to Ailes that she found the conversation "very embarrassing," he responded that "the best expression of loyalty comes in the form of a sexual alliance." The next month, 21st Century Fox announced it had settled a lawsuit with Carlson over her allegations of harassment against Ailes. 21st Century Fox was also reported to have made separate settlements with at least two other women who made complaints about Ailes.
In November 2016, Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly wrote in her book about the details of her sexual abuse allegations against Ailes. According to Kelly, when she first joined Fox News, Ailes would have meetings with her, during which he would make sexual remarks. Kelly alleges that he also tried to kiss her several times during a closed-door meeting, but she was able to get away and leave the office. After that incident in 2006, Kelly says that Ailes did not sexually harass her again. Then, in 2016, when Gretchen Carlson first made her sexual abuse allegations, 21st Century Fox pressured Kelly to defend Ailes, which she refused to do.
In 2016, after he left Fox News, he became an adviser to Donald Trump's presidential campaign, where he assisted with debate preparation.
Personal life
Ailes was married three times. He married his second wife Norma Ferrer in 1980 after meeting while working together on the Mike Douglas Show. Ailes adopted Norma's daughter Shawn Ferrer upon their marriage, walking Shawn down the aisle at her own first wedding to Alexander Visco on April 12, 2001. Norma and Roger were married until 1995. He married his third wife Elizabeth Tilson (born 1960) on February 14, 1998. Formerly a television executive, she was the owner and publisher of local New York state newspapers The Putnam County News & Recorder and The Putnam County Courier. Roger Ailes had one son, named Zachary, with Tilson. The family resided in Garrison, New York, on a hilltop parcel in a home constructed of Adirondack river stone across the Hudson River from United States Military Academy at West Point. Ailes also had residences in Cresskill, New Jersey, and Palm Beach, Florida.
Ailes was a longtime friend of journalist and media personality Barbara Walters.
Philanthropy
Ohio University
In October 2007, Ailes donated to Ohio University for a renovated student newsroom. Ailes had majored in radio and television while at Ohio University and served two years as manager of the school's radio station. Starting in 1994, he funded scholarships for Ohio University students in the school's telecommunications programs.
Putnam County senior center
Ailes and his wife Elizabeth, through their charity, ACI Senior Development Corp., promised $500,000 toward the completion of a senior center in Cold Spring, Putnam County, New York. Local opposition to Ailes's participation in the project arose after publication of the sexual harassment accusations against him and in response to a Journal News report about previously undisclosed conditions attached to the proposed gift. Under those conditions, ACI would act as general contractor for the project with no obligation to conduct competitive bidding before awarding construction management and other subcontracts.
Further, ACI was excused from any obligation to pay prevailing wages to workers on the project, workers and subcontractors would have no recourse against ACI in case of payment disputes and ACI would deliver its work without warranty. There was extensive public objection to Ailes's participation. At an August 2, 2016 public hearing, the Putnam County Legislature suspended adoption of the proposed charitable donation agreement with ACI. The next day Ailes withdrew the gift.
Death
In a 2013 book excerpt from Roger Ailes: Off Camera, Ailes spoke about facing death, saying, "Because of my hemophilia, I've been prepared to face death all of my life. When it comes, I'll be fine, calm. I'll miss life, though. Especially my family."
On May 10, 2017, Ailes fell and hit his head at his Palm Beach, Florida, home. He died on May 18, three days after his 77th birthday, due to injuries from the fall. The Palm Beach County Medical Examiner attributed his death to a subdural hematoma, aggravated by hemophilia. His wife, Elizabeth, announced his death in a statement on the Drudge Report.
George H. W. Bush, Rupert Murdoch, Sean Hannity, Bill Hemmer, Bret Baier, Geraldo Rivera, Laura Ingraham, Kimberly Guilfoyle, Jesse Jackson, Ainsley Earhardt, Shannon Bream, Al Sharpton, David Axelrod, Jeanine Pirro, Martha MacCallum, Newt Gingrich, and Lou Dobbs paid tribute to Ailes.
In popular culture
In 2018, Ailes briefly appears in the Adam McKay film Vice.
In 2019, Russell Crowe portrayed Roger Ailes in Showtime's limited series The Loudest Voice alongside Naomi Watts as Gretchen Carlson. Crowe won a Golden Globe for the performance.
The same year, John Lithgow received critical acclaim for playing Ailes in Jay Roach's film Bombshell, also starring Charlize Theron as Megyn Kelly and Nicole Kidman as Gretchen Carlson.
Documentaries
Divide and Conquer: The Story of Roger Ailes (documentary, 2018, dir. Alexis Bloom)
|
Sheng Aiyi
|
[
"1900 births",
"1983 deaths",
"Businesspeople from Shanghai",
"St. John's University, Shanghai alumni",
"20th-century Chinese businesswomen",
"20th-century Chinese businesspeople"
] | 608 | 4,747 |
Sheng Aiyi (; 1900–1983), was the first Chinese women entrepreneur in the entertainment industry, the general manager of Shanghai BaiLeMen company. She was also a member of the school board of the Shanghai Jiao Tong University (the original Nan Yang College of Chiao Tung). She was the seventh daughter of Sheng Xuanhuai, Shanghai's biggest capitalist at that time.
Biography
Sheng Aiyi was so smart and glib when she was still a little girl that she became the most favorite daughter of Sheng Xuanhuai. Sheng Aiyi was admitted to Shanghai St. John's university, and she had a good knowledge of English. She also had many other talents, such as drawing Chinese pictures, embroidering and hand writing. Her father died she was 16 years old, and at that time she had already become a graceful lady. If there were any private things, her mother, Mrs. Sheng, would like to share with her. Though less than 20 years old, she was so well informed that she became famous in Shanghai.
Relationships
As a talented woman of an era, Sheng Aiyi was pursued by many men, the most famous one was the affair with T. V. Soong, the brother of Soong Mei-ling. However, at that time T. V. Soong was just a poor boy back abroad and then became the personal secretary of Sheng Enyi (Sheng Aiyi's brother). T. V. Soong and Sheng Aiyi then fell in love with each other but it was strongly rejected by Mrs. Sheng because of Song's inferior household. So later T. V. Soong went to Guangzhou to seek his fortune and Sheng Aiyi promised him not to marry to other man before his return. He then served as governor of the Central Bank of China and minister of finance In the Kuomintang-controlled government and married to Lo-Yi Chang (張樂怡 Zhang Leyi), ignoring the fact that Sheng Aiyi was still waiting for him.
Events
In September 1927, Mrs. Zhuang died of an illness, and Sheng Aiyi's three brothers, namely Sheng Enyi, Sheng Shengyi and Sheng Zhongyi, declared all the property to themselves, excluding her from the inheritance. Much to their surprise, Sheng Aiyi was a modern woman and she took his three brothers and two nephews to court in June 1928, making her the first woman in China's history to practise the law to protect women's rights. With the support of Soong Ching-ling and Soong Ai-ling, Sheng Aiyi won the case and got her rightful share of the property. The lawsuit had important significance for setting a precedent for women's right to inheritance.
In 1932, with the money Sheng Aiyi won from the case, she built the six-floor Paramount ballroom in American style. It was said that the mayor of Shanghai of the national government also attended the opening ceremony. It became one of the most famous luxurious entertainment club in Shanghai. Many KMT officials joined the club, and even Soong Mei-ling often had reception banquets there.
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