Why are there buyside (hf) on the west coast?
(Monkey, 40
Points)
on 7/26/12 at 1:00am
This may be a dumb question, but I still hope someone can shed some light .
I have noticed there are more buyside shops on the west coast than expected: VC in the Bay Area, PE in Hollywood, PIMCO in Newport Beach, and some other hf. I know VC is there for the tech industry. PE is in Hollywood for entertainment business.
But I never really understood why PIMCO and hf located there in the first place.
It's in a different time zone and 3000 miles away from NYC, Chicago, and London.
What advantages am I missing? The weather LOL
Anyway, I want to know your opinion.
Cheers.







Not a stupid qns but one of
Not a stupid qns but one of which theres no real, definite answers.
Usually funds sprout up where there are a cluster of related communities. West coast is one major one just like why are there funds in Fort Worth etc.
Maybe the founder likes it
Maybe the founder likes it out there...?
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Why is PIMCO near the beach,
Why is PIMCO near the beach, why is Bridgewater in the middle of the woods, why do people working in Stamford reverse commute from NYC...all fascinating questions
And I think it's gonna be a long, long, time
A lot of people don't want to
A lot of people don't want to be located near the Wall Street group think. Given telecommunications, there is little or no need to be located in NYC.
Buy side firms exist in every major city on the West Coast but are primarily located in the Bay Area and LA. Most of the funds outside of those cities are fairly small / nichey.
The only thing that is a
The only thing that is a little bizarre to me are hedge funds on the West Coast. Those mornings must be killer.
I'm not sure how it works for
I'm not sure how it works for PE firms but domestic public market investors based on the West Coast have the most brutal hours... jesus.
Yeah the hours are not for
Yeah the hours are not for the faint of heart. Only the hardcore survive on the West Coast, none of that pansy shit you guys in New York try to pull :D
Ravenous: A lot of people
A lot of people don't want to be located near the Wall Street group think. Given telecommunications, there is little or no need to be located in NYC.
Buy side firms exist in every major city on the West Coast but are primarily located in the Bay Area and LA. Most of the funds outside of those cities are fairly small / nichey.
Disagree that there is "no need" to be located in NYC as a fund. LPs from all over the country make regular trips to NYC to meet with funds and most investment bankers and corporate lawyers are still based in New York. It's easier to maintain relationships with these contacts when you can ping any one of them at any time for drinks in midtown. Yes, the buyside is still very much a relationship-driven business...and it's like they say, long distance ones just don't work.
LPs are lame dude, working
LPs are lame dude, working for people so wealthy they can support their own fund structure strictly on their private capital is the NKI
But seriously, if your track record is good, LPs will be dying to meet you regardless of where you are.
valueisoverrated: Ravenous:
A lot of people don't want to be located near the Wall Street group think. Given telecommunications, there is little or no need to be located in NYC.
Buy side firms exist in every major city on the West Coast but are primarily located in the Bay Area and LA. Most of the funds outside of those cities are fairly small / nichey.
Disagree that there is "no need" to be located in NYC as a fund. LPs from all over the country make regular trips to NYC to meet with funds and most investment bankers and corporate lawyers are still based in New York. It's easier to maintain relationships with these contacts when you can ping any one of them at any time for drinks in midtown. Yes, the buyside is still very much a relationship-driven business...and it's like they say, long distance ones just don't work.
And a fund that invests primarily in tech (VC, HF, even some PE [e.g. Silver Lake]) would be best served being in the Bay Area, or one that invests in entertainment / media in LA, or gaming (as in casinos, not ATVI / EA) in Vegas... Per Ravenous' comment, the LPs will come to you, or if you need be, you can occassionally go to them.
Fair point
Fair point
kidflash: The only thing that
The only thing that is a little bizarre to me are hedge funds on the West Coast. Those mornings must be killer.
Its all relative. Think about west coast s&t hours. Sure your getting into the office at 430 am which is a grind but your off at the latest by 430 or 5pm. That's ample time to workout, eat dinner and get things done at home before doing it all over again the next day.
Here's the thing. If you can't spot the sucker in the first half hour at the table, you are the sucker.
We have offices in both NYC
We have offices in both NYC and West Coast. Sometimes I'm jealous I'm not over there chilling on a beach during the trading day or something. Or is that unrealistic?
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I think CapRe started in
I think CapRe started in California because the founder cashed out in 1929 and wanted to get away from Wall Street. That's probably part of the rationale for a lot of traditional AM shops.
A lot of HY/debt funds are in LA because their founders worked at Drexel with Milken.
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PE in LA has nothing to do
PE in LA has nothing to do with hollywood / entertainment, nor are PE shops even located in Hollywood.
They exist out here for 2 primary reasons. First the guys running the shops want to be in LA, or in the case of PIMCO, Newport. Second there are tons of west coast companies in the middle market that can support PE deal flow. As far and HFs are concerned, its probably just because where people want to live. Its not a strategic value proposition just a lifestyle choice, or as you put it the weather. No joke. Not sure why this is such a difficult concept to understand.
Ravenous: LPs are lame dude,
pimco was part of pacific
samoanboy: Ravenous: LPs
CaliforniaAnalyst: pimco was
Money Never Sleeps? More like Money Never SUCKS amirite?!?!?!?
Ravenous: samoanboy: Rave
I'm guessing that access to
bullbythehorns: kidflash: T
west coast is the best! i
I personally think shops and
CaliforniaAnalyst: west coast
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VC is also there because
if you like it then you shoulda put a banana on it
BlackHat: CaliforniaAnalyst
This may be a dumb question,
There are also a number of
The answer is actually