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Pequot Capital Management was a multibillion-dollar hedge fund sponsor that closed in 2010. The firm's investment funds invested in a range of markets through a variety of strategies. The firm invested in
public equities A public company is a company whose ownership is organized via shares of stock which are intended to be freely traded on a stock exchange or in over-the-counter markets. A public (publicly traded) company can be listed on a stock exchange (list ...
as well as private equity, venture capital, distressed securities, and various other fixed income securities. The firm closed in 2010 following allegations of insider trading.


History

Pequot was founded in 1998 by
Arthur J. Samberg Arthur Jay Samberg (February 6, 1941 – July 14, 2020) was an American businessman and philanthropist. He founded Pequot Capital Management and served as the chief executive officer, president and chairman of the company. Samberg's flagship Peq ...
. Based in Westport, Connecticut, United States, the firm had additional offices in San Francisco; New York City; Los Angeles;
Greenbrae Greenbrae is a small unincorporated community in Marin County, California. It is located south-southeast of downtown San Rafael, at an elevation of 33 feet (10 m), located adjacent to U.S. Route 101 at the opening of the Ross Valley. Part of ...
, California; Menlo Park, California; Wellesley, Massachusetts; and London, United Kingdom. In 2001 Pequot was reported to be the largest hedge fund globally with $15 billion in assets. The firm's venture capital business, Pequot Ventures, spun off on June 30, 2008, into a separate company named FirstMark Capital. The company is based in New York City. FirstMark Capital received control of Pequot Ventures' existing venture capital portfolio assets.


Closure

In May 2009, the firm announced it was closing and, in an agreement with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 27, 2010, paid a $28 million settlement (consisting of $18 million in returned profit and $10 million in penalties). Samberg was barred from working as an investment adviser for alleged violations of insider trading involving
Microsoft Corporation Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washingt ...
stock occurring in 2001 and a prospective new hire of the hedgefund, David Zilkha, from Microsoft. On May 28, 2009, with an insider trading investigation ongoing, Samberg wrote, "With the situation increasingly untenable for the firm and for me, I have concluded that Pequot can no longer stay in business." SEC awarded $1 million to Glen Kaiser and Karen Kaiser for providing information leading to the settlement. One of the investigators of the case, Gary J. Aguirre, won a whistleblower case after being fired when he recommended that the investigation proceed further.Senate report, pp. 11–14
"The Firing of an SEC Attorney and the Investigation of Pequot Capital Management." Joint report by the United States Senate Committee on Finance and the Senate Judiciary Committee (August 3, 2007). Retrieved February 20, 2011


See also

* FirstMark Capital


References


Further reading


Hedge Fund Retrenches by Giving Back Almost $2 Billion
New York Times.
World's Biggest Hedge Fund Group Plans, Once More, to Split
New York Times.
Many Hedge Funds Stumble on Wrong Side of Market Surge
New York Times.
THE MARKETS: Market Place; Hedge Fund Falls Victim To Tech Bear
New York Times.
Former First Boston Chief Is Named Chairman of Hedge Fund Company
New York Times.
S.E.C. Is Reported to Be Examining a Big Hedge Fund
New York Times.
Court Says S.E.C. Lacks Authority on Hedge Funds
New York Times.
Inquiry Clouds Future for a Hedge Fund Survivor
New York Times.
Panel Is Told S.E.C. Stopped a Hedge Fund Inquiry
New York Times.
Pequot Says S.E.C. Won't Take Action
New York Times.


External links


Pequot Capital Management
(company website)
FirstMark Capital
(company website) {{Authority control Financial services companies established in 1998 Defunct hedge funds Hedge fund firms in Connecticut Venture capital firms of the United States Companies based in Westport, Connecticut