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Americans in City put their cash on Obama
Evening Standard 27 Aug 2008
These are nervous times for some of the big-money Americans based over here who have been investing in the Us Presidential race as Barack Obama and John McCain run neck and neck in the polls during the party convention season.
Political donors to any candidate must declare their gifts on a public register, and it makes for revealing reading. The key finding is that virtually every City figure who has given money is giving it to Obama. Ex-Goldman banker Jennifer Moses, chief executive of CentreForum, was an early donor to Obama with $2300, the same amount as donated by Ron Beller of Peloton and Value Retail chairman Scott Malkin, owner of Bicester shopping village.
Bebo social networking boss Joanne Shields has also given $2300 to Obama.
Also listed is Barbara Cassani, the former boss of no-frills airline Go and ex-London Olympics bid leader ($1250). Other Obama donors in London include Joseph Connolly of the Fulbright Commission ($2300) and literary agent Deborah Owen, wife of ex-British Foreign secretary Lord Owen (also $2300).
Another intriguing donor to Barack Obama: Ian Cheng, publisher of the Financial Times. While his donation was in a private capacity, the Pink 'Un's parent company, Pearson, would not be unhappy to see Obama elected as President. The Democrat would be likely to spend a lot more money than McCain on Pearson's education books in American schools...
* Here is the full extent of the support in the Square Mile for Obama. City Spy finds the following donors named in the official list of campaign contributions: Four people at Bank of America (including $3300 and twice at $2300), four from Goldman Sachs (including two at $2300 and another $2000), one banker from Credit Suisse ($4600), one from BlackRock and two more from sister company Merrill Lynch, two from Morgan Stanley, two from Barclays Capital, three from Deutsche, three from Citi, one from UBS, one from JPMorgan. City Spy struggled to find a single noteworthy City donor for John McCain. The Republicans did get financial support from one Credit Suisse banker. He gave $2300 - alas to Rudy Giuliani. So far, almost $1 million has been donated by people living in London - $826,000 for the Democrats and just $121,000 to the Republicans.
* The most alarming fact for political donors in America: every contributor must give their job and address. In the internet age, some sites such as the Huffington Post offer a direct link to Google Maps. So the web user can instantly see where some of these bankers and other wealthy types live. This applies to donors in London too. So the damn-near precise location of their home is just a click away...
The Sage drowns his sorrows
So the sage of Omaha doesn't always get it right. Warren Buffett admits that his Berkshire hathaway sold around 60% of its stake in US brewer Anheuser-Busch between April and June at about $61 or $62 a share. That was just before European brewer InBev launched its successful $70-a-share takeover. "In retrospect I was wrong," mutters the wise one.
* The reality of doing business in Britain today. "We used to build into the budget about £500 a week for people kicking the glass in, and we'd invariably spend it because every night, somewhere or other, some drunken yob would take a swing with his boot at a pane of glass" - Graham Parr, ex-boss of Harry Ramsden's on running the fish-and-chip restaurants chain.
* And Oulton Hall, a hotel near Leeds, is offering Sunday lunch at £22.50 for mum and dad. Children under 12 are put on the scales and charged accordingly. So if they're four stone, they pay £4 and five stone is £5. Seriously.
Mind the $29m failure gap
Fact for the day: according to Standard & Poor's survey of the highest-paid chief executives, John Thain (right) of Merrill Lynch, one of banks hit hardest by the credit crunch, has a remuneration package worth $83.1 million. The package of Lloyd Blankfein - boss of Goldman Sachs, probably the most successful bank in the world, which avoided the worst of the crunch - is worth just $54 million. Hmmm.
Carriers curbed - but can M&S bag more sales?
M&S is so keen to boast about its 80% reduction in plastic bags - the supermarket now charges 5p a bag - that it is launching an advertising campaign to celebrate the fact. The decision by boss Sir Stuart Rose generated lots of good eco-friendly publicity, but has it been good for sales in the stores? There is anecdotal evidence that many shoppers resent paying 5p a go. In some stores, M&S has been giving away its more durable eco-friendly Bags For Life - normal price 10p. Rose won't be boasting about that, will he?
* Did M&S's rose try to hire BT's chief executive wunderkind Ian Livingston? "M&S is a very interesting company and one which I hope does very well," the 44-year-old Livingston deadpans during an interview with BBC business editor Robert Peston on his Leading Questions programme. "I wish Stuart and the team the best." So that's a yes, then.
* Holiday property news: the credit crunch has finally caught up with Aldeburgh, known as Islingtononsea. City Spy's long-standing mole says there are more For Sale signs in the Suffolk town than for 15 years. It is estimated that Aldeburgh is made up of 40% second-home owners. City types may be discovering some of them have overstretched themselves over the past couple of years. Things don't look so hot now it's time to remortgage...
* But prices of beach huts at neighbouring Southwold, aka Chelsea-on-Sea (where Gordon Brown took his holiday) are holding up. One man paid £90,000 for a hut this summer. He said he would have bid £100,000 if necessary. City Spy wonders if there should be an official beach hut index. Sounds as if there is a direct correlation with superprime homes in central London, where the £10 million-plus bracket is still holding up. If these beach huts start falling in value, then we will know the housing crash has touched all ends of the market.
