Bruce Wasserstein died today... he was hospitalized earlier this week because of an irregular heartbeat.
See link:
http://dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/14/bruc…
Thoughts on Lazard now?
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Food for thought monkeys - Typical investment banking career thesis:
1) Sacrifice youth to work non-stop and get rich quick 2a) Retire and enjoy the good life 2b) Die young from years of stress and unhealthy living
That was exactly what I thought 2 seconds after seeing the news come across the wire.
Did this guy spend enough time with his wife/kids/grandkids/family/friends? Im sure hes extremely wealthy, but did he get a chance to truely enjoy it? I'm not one to judge by looks, but taking a look at some of his earlier pictures, its obvious this guy's health went down the drain a while ago.
A lesson to all of us, I guess...collect that coin and gtfo of this business as soon as you can.
Although I don't look forward to dying at 61, I wouldn't say it's "young".
Truly a legend.
nrc_chicago is right. Live every day like it's your last, because one day you'll be right.
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dam, and he just got married this year eh?
married for the fourth time, to someone around 40 years younger
Yea, Elaine L. Chao's sister.
Irregular heartbeat?
I think we all might know where it came from.
It is truly a huge loss, he was certainly a genius in his own right.
I often wonder what the opportunity cost will be for trying so hard to get into the industry but coming from a background where money was nowhere near abundant I know what life is like as a kid who doesn't have much. While I look back and remember how I enjoyed the quality time I spent with my family, I often wonder how my life would have been different had my parents been more wealthy. I hope I can gain the experience I need to make some bucks and spend the majority of my life with the love of my life and my kids, if I am so blessed.
We all make choices in life and the daunting part is there is no road map, no certainties. You just do what you can and hope for the best.
Best wishes to his family and friends.
Regards
Also raising his sister's daughter after her mother (Wendy Wasserstein) passed away. Very sad.
Bruce Wasserstein, CEO of Lazard, hospitalized (Originally Posted: 10/12/2009)
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Lazard-says-CEO-Wasserstein-rb-3424079018…
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Investment bank Lazard Ltd (NYSE:LAZ - News) said on Sunday that Chairman and Chief Executive Bruce Wasserstein, a legendary dealmaker, had been hospitalized for an irregular heartbeat.
Wasserstein's condition is serious, but he is stable and recovering, Lazard said, adding that it will not be providing updates at this time.
"This is not a talking head. This is a person that's deeply involved in the relationships that are so fundamental to this company," said Campbell Harvey, a professor at Duke University's business school. "It just screams uncertainty."
A Lazard spokeswoman declined to comment beyond the company statement.
...
Hopefully Wasserstein will be able to recover in just a matter of days. If it turns out that Wasserstein needs to leave Lazard for health reasons, though, how likely do you guys think it is that Lazard's reputation/prestige/dealflow would be affected? If I'm thinking about Lazard as a full-time option next year, should Wasserstein's health be something for me to consider? Or would his potential departure not at all be a bump in the road for the firm? I'm definitely interested in hearing your thoughts...
He's huge ... but out of respect, I doubt you will see any seniors leaving for at least a year or two.
That being said, Lazard will remain a very prestigious bank regardless.
time to short the stock.
Even if Wasserstein leaves, I'd expect that the prestige of the Lazard brand would remain intact, especially as a name on a resume for analyst positions. However, I can't see how dealflow would be unaffected if Wasserstein were indeed to leave the company.
Maybe it's time for him to start grooming successors / stepping back a bit?
Lazard has been in the M&A game longer than anyone, including Wasserstein. While he definitely boosted the brand in recent years, you'll still have at great bank with or without him.
but i think its time that lazard started making some acquisitions and became a bigger player.
I'm making it up as I go along.
Restricted stock doesn't vest until 2012. Prestige will stay strong until then.
But way to get at the true answer to whether or not people will leave.
Got recession?!
Lazard could pull Felix Rohatyn back in (he used to be an MD there). I spent some time with him a few weeks ago and even at age 81 he's at the top of his game. They could do worse for an interim Chief. He's well-versed in the current challenges and was a senior adviser to Dick Fuld (for all the good it did him) before Lehman went under.
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Probably not... from what I understand, he was basically pushed out in a power play. He used to be way more than an MD there.
Edmundo for CEO, he knows what he's doing.
^^ True that. High finance is like quicksand, you get in and you can almost never be able to get out of it on your own.
yea, we can all come to the conclusion that he died because he was overworked, he was wealthy etc.
My 2 cents on the topic, people in finance aren't as interested in the monetary compensation in the sense that they need it to do something with, it's just a matter of keeping score of how you're doing in comparison to others... We're all over achievers whether we want to admit it or not and as finance is held (or used to be held) at the top level of achievement in recent history, anyone wishing to prove something to himself in terms of character wanted to be in finance... so wealth accumulated as that's the only way to compare yourself to other people in finance...
as for whther he should of quit, my opinion, no... Anyone who has closed a deal knows the excitement (pain and frustration yes) of what it means to get that under your belt... and you grow nostalgic, especially sitting on a beach or travelling (living out of hotels) for vacations for the next 15yrs till death... you need a purpose even at that old age...
I think he went out doing what he loved, made him happy and lets all hope we get that someday...
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