Portfolios with Purpose

Last updated
Portfolios with Purpose
AbbreviationPwP
Formation2011
TypeFoundation
Legal statusNon-Profit Organization
PurposeHumanitarian Aid
Location
  • 295 Madison Avenue, 34th Floor
    New York, NY 10017
    1-855-JOIN-PWP (564-6797) [1]
Executive Director
Brett Waikart
Main organ
Board of Directors
Staff
No salaried employees; volunteers only
Website portfolioswithpurpose.org

Portfolios with Purpose ("PwP") is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization [2] founded in 2011. [3] It is an annual virtual stock selection competition in which players of novice and professional experience pay a nominal entry-fee [4] [5] [6] [7] to choose a five-stock, long-term portfolio. The contestants with the top-performing portfolios over a 12-month period will direct the sum total of the collected entry-fees to the charitable cause of their choice; and have the opportunity of a meeting with one of the professional hedge fund managers. [2] [5] [6]

Contents

Operations

Portfolios with Purpose is an all-volunteer, non-profit organization overseen by a board of directors. Competitor stock portfolios are tracked, and progress is calculated daily. The contest's financial audits are prepared by Deloitte, and player's entry-fees are held in escrow at JPMorgan Chase. [8] 100% of entry-fees net of credit card service charges are donated to top three competitor's, chosen charitable causes. [5] [6]

Senior Management

Brett Waikart is the Executive Director and President.[ citation needed ]

Media Coverage

After a year-long trial period, the public announcement of Portfolios with Purpose was conducted on June 20, 2012. [9]

On September 6, 2012 Portfolios with Purpose announced the start of public registration, and the participation of several major hedge fund players: David Einhorn, Dan Loeb, Leon Cooperman, and Karen Finerman on the CNBC Fast Money Halftime Report. [10]

Asher's professional background and the history of the formation of Portfolios with Purpose is detailed along with other notable public figures in Forbes Magazine on December 1, 2012. [3]

On December 19, 2013 Portfolios with Purpose announced the official launch of the 2014 Contest Year with several participating philanthropists. [11] The Giving Pledge signatory Leon Cooperman, and Robin Hood Foundation board member David Einhorn [11] both founding Portfolios with Purpose members announced their return to the contest. As well as James Dinan, [2] Marc Lasry, Richard Pzena, and Doug Silverman. [4]

History

Portfolios with Purpose hosted its first stock picking contest for charity in 2013. 50 friends and family came together to play this year-long contest with each contestant building a fantasy stock portfolio and selecting a charity to represent. Players “bought-in” to the contest with an entry donation and competed to win the combined donation pool for the charity of their choice. As with every contest PwP manages, 100% of all entry donations were passed on to the winning charities. We had no idea this first contest would spark the philanthropic spirit of an entire industry. Fast forward to 2020 and our annual contests regularly draw thousands of professional and amateur investors who compete on behalf of their favorite charities.[ citation needed ]

Related Research Articles

A hedge fund is a pooled investment fund that holds liquid assets and that makes use of complex trading and risk management techniques to improve investment performance and insulate returns from market risk. Among these portfolio techniques are short selling and the use of leverage and derivative instruments. In the United States, financial regulations require that hedge funds be marketed only to institutional investors and other accredited investors such as high-net-worth individuals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fundraising</span> Process of gathering voluntary contributions of money or other resources

Fundraising or fund-raising is the process of seeking and gathering voluntary financial contributions by engaging individuals, businesses, charitable foundations, or governmental agencies. Although fundraising typically refers to efforts to gather money for non-profit organizations, it is sometimes used to refer to the identification and solicitation of investors or other sources of capital for for-profit enterprises.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jim Cramer</span> American stockbroker, television personality, entertainer, author

James Joseph Cramer is an American television personality, author, entertainer, and former hedge fund manager. He is the host of Mad Money on CNBC, and an anchor on Squawk on the Street. After graduating from Harvard College and Harvard Law School, he worked for Goldman Sachs and then became a hedge fund manager, founder, and senior partner of Cramer Berkowitz. He co-founded TheStreet, which he wrote for from 1996 to 2021. Cramer hosted Kudlow & Cramer from 2002 to 2005. Mad Money with Jim Cramer first aired on CNBC in 2005. Cramer has written several books, including Confessions of a Street Addict (2002), Jim Cramer's Real Money: Sane Investing in an Insane World (2005), Jim Cramer's Mad Money: Watch TV, Get Rich (2006), and Jim Cramer's Get Rich Carefully (2013).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Man Group</span> British alternative investment management business

Man Group plc is an active investment management business listed on the London Stock Exchange. It provides a range of funds across liquid and private markets for institutional and private investors globally and is the world's largest publicly traded hedge fund company, reporting $151.4 billion in funds under management as of March 2022. The firm is headquartered at Riverbank House in London and employs over 1,400 people in various locations worldwide. The company was a sponsor of the Man Booker Prize from 2002 to 2019.

Joel Greenblatt is an American academic, hedge fund manager, investor, and writer. He is a value investor, alumnus of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and adjunct professor at the Columbia University Graduate School of Business. He runs Gotham Asset Management with his partner, Robert Goldstein. He is the former chairman of the board of Alliant Techsystems (1994–1995) and founder of the New York Securities Auction Corporation. He was a director at Pzena Investment Management, a firm specializing in value investing and asset management for high net worth clients.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Tepper</span> American billionaire businessman

David Alan Tepper is an American billionaire hedge fund manager. He is the owner of the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL) and Charlotte FC in Major League Soccer (MLS). Tepper is the founder and president of Appaloosa Management, a global hedge fund based in Miami Beach, Florida.

David M. Einhorn is an American investor, hedge fund manager, and amateur poker player. He is the founder and president of Greenlight Capital, a "long-short value-oriented hedge fund".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Ackman</span> Billionaire American hedge fund manager and investor

William Albert Ackman is an American billionaire hedge fund manager who is the founder and chief executive officer of Pershing Square Capital Management, a hedge fund management company. His investment approach has made him an activist investor. As of June 2023, Ackman's net worth was estimated at $3.5 billion by Forbes.

A charity rally is a charitable event in which participants usually drive, ride or otherwise participate in through the medium of motorised wheeled transportation in an event to raise money for a charitable cause.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greenlight Capital</span> American hedge fund

Greenlight Capital is a hedge fund founded in 1996 by David Einhorn. Greenlight invests primarily in publicly traded North American corporate debt offerings and equities. Greenlight is most notable for its short selling of Lehman stock prior to Lehman Brothers' collapse in 2008 and the $11 million fine they received in January 2012 for insider trading in the UK. Einhorn remains the fund's manager.

The Sohn Conference Foundation was founded in 2006 to raise money to support medical research, the development of research equipment, and programs to help children with cancer and other childhood illnesses. As of 2018 more than $85 million has been raised. The Sohn Conference was founded in 1995 in memory of Ira Sohn, a Wall Street professional, who died of cancer at the age of 29. At that time the conference raised money for Tomorrow's Children's Fund. The foundation has 501(c)(3) non-profit status.

Marc Lasry is an American billionaire businessman and private equity manager. He is the co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Avenue Capital Group. He was a co-owner of the NBA's Milwaukee Bucks basketball team from 2014 to 2023.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mark Spitznagel</span> American investor and hedge fund manager (born 1971)

Mark Spitznagel is an American investor and hedge fund manager. He is the founder, owner, and chief investment officer of Universa Investments, a hedge fund management firm based in Miami, Florida.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crowdrise</span>

CrowdRise is a for-profit crowdfunding platform that raises charitable donations. CrowdRise was founded by Edward Norton, Shauna Robertson, and the founders of Moosejaw, Robert and Jeffrey Wolfe. CrowdRise was acquired in 2017 by GoFundMe.

Leon G. Cooperman is an American billionaire investor and hedge fund manager. He is the chairman and CEO of Omega Advisors, a New York-based investment advisory firm managing over $3.3 billion in assets under management, the majority consisting of his personal wealth.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CQS (Asset Manager)</span> London-based global multi-strategy credit-focused asset management firm

CQS is a London-based global multi-strategy credit-focused asset management firm. It launched its first credit strategy in 2000 and now manages a range of investment mandates. Specific investment capabilities include convertibles, asset backed securities, credit, loans, structured credit, and equities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SumZero</span> Financial service company

SumZero is an online community for professional investors, which hosts investment research, job opportunities, and capital introduction services. Buyside professionals are granted membership per an application, where they must be on the research team at a hedge fund, mutual fund, private equity fund, or investment banking proprietary trading desk. SumZero is a closed, application-based community, which currently has over 16,000 buyside members and over 60,000 'Basic' users. Roughly 75% of buyside applicants for membership are rejected. Members gain access to SumZero's Research platform and approximately 12,000 long-form theses on publicly traded securities. SumZero's ancillary products include Cap Intro and Job Vault.

Larry Robbins is an American hedge fund manager and philanthropist. He is the chief executive of Glenview Capital Management, a hedge fund with approximately $7.7 billion of capital under management as of March 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vinay Nair</span>

Vinay Nair is a serial entrepreneur and academic. He is involved as an advisor or board member in several companies in financial services, across investment management, venture capital and fintech. He is also involved in technology-enabled solutions that link Israel, India and the US. He is the founder and chairman of TIFIN, a platform to create and manage a portfolio of fintech brands and companies in areas of investments, wealth management and asset management, as well as founder and chairman of 55ip, a fintech firm with offices in Boston and Mumbai, India. Nair was a visiting professor at the MIT Sloan School of Management and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles J. Gradante</span>

Charles J. Gradante is an American businessman in the hedge fund industry, appearing on television and before the United States Congress in that role. Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute's PensionDaily.com called Gradante "one of Wall Street's most sought after opinion leaders" for financial and economic areas. Gradante is known as one of the first hedge fund industry executives to spark a legendary debate about the risk of hedge funds growing too large rather than focusing on finding investments where they have a competitive edge; he most recently discussed the issue at a conference hosted by The Palm Beach Hedge Fund Association that was covered by Yahoo Finance and CorpGov.

References

  1. "Contact Us". Portfolios with Purpose. Portfolios with Purpose. Retrieved 24 December 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 Russolillo, Steven (5 November 2013). "Portfolios With Purpose: Stock Picking for a Cause". WSJ. Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 5 November 2013.
  3. 1 2 Ziegler, Maseena (1 December 2012). "When Quitting Is Not An Option - How You Can Find Purpose And Fulfillment Through Your Career". Forbes. Retrieved 12 December 2012.
  4. 1 2 "Scene Last Night: Stock Pickers Ready for Charity Contest". BloombergLuxury. Bloomberg. 20 December 2013. Retrieved 20 December 2013.
  5. 1 2 3 "Contest". Portfolios with Purpose. Portfolios with Purpose. Retrieved 12 December 2012.
  6. 1 2 3 Williamson, Christine (23 July 2012). "Stock-picking competition all for a good cause". Pension Investments. Retrieved 12 December 2012.
  7. Chen, Jing (29 June 2012). "Hedge Fund-Backed Charity 'Stocks Up' for Good Cause". eVestment Alliance. Retrieved 12 December 2012.
  8. "Frequently Asked Questions". Portfolios with Purpose. Portfolios with Purpose. Retrieved 24 December 2013.
  9. "PwP Tests Your Investing Acumen, All In The Name Of Charity". FINAlternatives. FINAlternatives. Retrieved 12 December 2012.
  10. "CNBC". CNBC Video Archive. CNBC Video Archive. Archived from the original on 28 December 2013. Retrieved 12 December 2012.
  11. 1 2 "Trading for Charity". CNBC. CNBC. Retrieved 19 December 2013.