It’s funny when companies do things that harm the public directly or indirectly, we get high minded passionate economists or whomever telling us how companies have a sacred duty to maximize shareholder value, blah blah blah.
When you see countless companies get looted and crushed by private equity takeovers, to the point that middle schoolers can predict with accuracy when a company will vaporize, you get analysts with nonsensical stories about turnarounds, etc.
But when self-dealing management use the company to enrich themselves in a way that is at best ethically questionable, you don’t hear too much.
Incubating a culture of corruption has some obvious negative impacts.
There's also a variety of complications, from pension funds that do invest in VC funds, to national security implications of foreign principals funneling investments to individuals. You also have disruptive market behavior if we allow the boys with access to VC capital the ability to do whatever, while publicly traded real estate trusts need to meet regulatory requirements that prohibit that type of activity.
"Once mutual funds and pension funds start investing in WeWork, then I’ll care."
there is a good chance that pension funds have already invested in WeWork, directly or indirectly. Where do you think the money is coming from? The VCs aren't putting in their own money.
> Once mutual funds and pension funds start investing in WeWork, then I’ll care.
“all is mine which is not nailed down and nothing is nailed down that can be pried loose.”
Cultures, laws and traditions aren't set in stone and can be changed. If society and culture simply look the other way and the media simply rehash press releases, then the day will come when acting like this becomes the norm.
It lets WeWork's CEO shape our world. Those with money can build buildings and fund businesses and ventures that affect the reality of thousands or millions, ie the public. We would like that power to be granted appropriately.
When those vc's sell the company to your mutual there is a phrase they use as they light a Monte Cristo with a 1000 dollar bill in an infinity pool: "That guy from the mutual? We ripped his face off."
When you see countless companies get looted and crushed by private equity takeovers, to the point that middle schoolers can predict with accuracy when a company will vaporize, you get analysts with nonsensical stories about turnarounds, etc.
But when self-dealing management use the company to enrich themselves in a way that is at best ethically questionable, you don’t hear too much.