Just putting this out in the universe. And because WSO is a broad community, I should start here.
Chuck Feeney is my hero. He's also apparently in ill health. I want to meet him this year, while there's still time.
When I was in college I carried around a folded copy of an article that had just been published about the 'billionaire who wasn't'. For 3 years when classes would get tough I'd reach in to the first pocked of the notebook and read the article to remind me of the big picture.
Chuck was a self-made billionaire, who doesn't own a car, doesn't own a house, wore a cheap plastic Casio watch, and had been secretly giving away his money almost as fast as he was making it. He was born to a humble working-class Irish American family in New Jersey, and was the first in his family to go to college (post-Airforce on the GI Bill).
In contrast to so many others, Chuck gave away hundreds of millions of dollars anonymously for years, until he was forced to divulge one of his donations where the recipient refused to accept anonymous donations - sometime around 1996 or so. That's when the press got ahold of the story, dug around a bit, and published the story. I was moved, and I clipped it and kept it for years.
Along the way he also founded General Atlantic, the PE firm, to manage money for the Atlantic Philanthropies. I was told that at some point he handed over ownership that to GA's employees (unconfirmed).
What a legend. What a hero. So, since someone at GA told me the man is ill, I'm gonna make it this year's mission to meet him. Just to shake his hand and buy the man a beer or a tomato sandwich or whatever.
Ask him to fix GA's burning reputation in the meantime
my personal opinion is that GA is still a top caliber growth equity firm. Would put them miles ahead of Insight that has had to raise fund after fund because they deployed way too quickly and too much in 2020 and 2021... I think of GA as a more patient player (that obviously has made their fair share of mistakes as well e.g. DLOCAL)
what's going on with GA?
m_1 Jamoldo Jamie_Diamond AndyLouis WallStreetOasis.com Isaiah_53_5 💎🙌💎🙌💎
Can you help a brother out?
Easily one of the most respectable names in history... From recognizing the business opportunity for Duty Free Shoppers during his time in the Korean War, to eventually building it into every international airport today and then selling it for nearly $2.5B to LVMH, it's incredible.
Chuck's net worth was over $8B at its peak and now he has less than $200k to his name and lives in a small apartment outside of SF, he's not someone who brags about giving away 1% of their wealth like many other high flying billionaires, but someone who has effectively given away all his wealth to make the world a better place.
I hope you get the chance to meet him, the books about him are worth reading!
Thanks Psil. This confirms what I've heard. I do want to meet him.
Qui in incidunt deserunt rem quis. Magnam velit et omnis et nam ab qui.
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