What was your big break?
你的重大转折点是什么?
Brahman. The European team at Highbridge left so I started looking at European Special Situations. That's how I met the founding partners at Brahman. I knew Europe reasonably well and spoke French and Italian. So when Brahman hired me from Highbridge, they said, "Go invest in Europe." That was really the beginning.
那是我在Brahman公司的时候。由于高桥资本管理公司的欧洲团队离开了,所以我把目光投向欧洲特别情况基金(European Special Situations),就这样,我认识了Brahman的创办合伙人。我对欧洲较为了解,而且我会说法语和意大利语,所以Brahman公司把我从高桥资本挖走,他们对我说:“去投资欧洲的公司吧。”然后就有了后来的故事。
Originally, I was the only one looking at European opportunities. I was focused on a different geography and I had real autonomy. Within two years, approximately two-thirds of the fund's assets had shifted to Europe and I had hired several analysts to help me.
一开始,我是唯一关注欧洲机会的人。我关注的是一个不同的地区,而且我拥有真正的自主权。在不到两年的时间里,这支基金大约有三分之二的资产都被转移到了欧洲,而且我也雇佣了几个分析师来帮我。
They didn't give me a budget, it wasn't "here's 'x' dollars." It was, "find the best ideas and we'll figure out how to prioritize." I am very grateful to them for taking a chance on me.
公司高层并没有给我一个预算,他们不会说“这里有多少多少钱,”而是说,“去找最好的投资点子,我们来想办法对它们进行优先排序。”我非常感激他们信任我,让我放手去干。
The first idea of real magnitude was Fiat. When we launched Permian in 2008, a famous hedge fund manager gave us money because, he said: "You had the guts when you were 23 to look at a company that no one else did. That's why I believe in you."
我做的第一笔真正重量级的交易是菲亚特(Fiat)。当我们在2008年建立Permian基金时,一位知名的对冲基金经理给了我们许多钱,他说:“你很有胆量,你在23岁的时候就敢于关注一家没人关注的公司,所以我对你有信心。”
How did you get to Fiat?
你为什么会投资菲亚特?
Sergio Marchionne, the new CEO, was a guy with a track record for creating value in Switzerland. He spent time in GE (GE, Fortune 500) and made his mark at a Swiss quality control company. He came into a company [Fiat] whose reputation was tarnished and whose brand equity had been decimated. But philosophically smart people choose smart businesses. Marchionne saw the opportunity, and we saw Marchionne.
菲亚特公司的新任首席执行官塞尔吉奥•马奇奥尼在瑞士多次创造出卓越价值。他曾在通用电气公司(GE)工作过,然后在一家瑞士的质量控制公司做出了引人注目的成绩。当他接管菲亚特的时候,菲亚特的名声已经受损,而且品牌资产大幅下跌。明智的人会选择明智的业务。马奇奥尼看到了菲亚特的机会,而我们看中了马奇奥尼。