Russell Might Divest From Northwestern Mutual

Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance bought Russell in 1999 for a variety of reasons.  Now there are rumors that the mega life insurance company might be selling it to raise cash and focus on their core business.

Now that times are difficult for many investment management service firms, industry sources say the divestiture of Russell could occur, gfinancenews.com reports.

After it was acquired the subsidiary went on an acquisition binge buying Pantheon Ventures, a private equity fund of funds, and the Australian HR division of Towers Perrin.

This was the strategy of the firm, early on in the 2000’s, to be the go-to for institutional investors.

The Russell Building

Now that times are difficult for many investment management service firms, industry sources say the divestiture of Russell could occur, gfinancenews.com reports.

Russell recently sold Pantheon Ventures, to Affiliated Managers Group for $775 million.

Both, spokespeople for Russell and Northwestern will not comment, with Northwestern spokesman, Darryll Fortune saying Russell is not for sale.

Russell’s recent setbacks

1. CEO, Craig Ueland resigns with a large number of executives
2. CFO, Frank Ryan announces departure
3. 2008, Shut down Fund of Funds business
4. Business affected from financial crisis from 2007-2009, continues today

Russell would be an attractive company for potential suitors.

Many pension funds and other investors heavily use their products and services.

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Stanley’s Angles

Zoe Cruz, the former investment banker at Morgan Stanley – nicknamed “Cruz Missile” – has launched her own hedge fund called Vorás Capital Management, together with former colleague Ellen Brunberg. The firm will be split in two; one global macro fund and one credit opportunities fund.

“I guess one will be buying, while the other is selling.”

econotwist

After spending nearly a quarter of a century at Morgan Stanley, reaching Co-President in 2006, she was ousted from the firm for numerous reasons.   One key being, a unit that reported to Cruz losing around US$ 3,7 billion in sub-prime real estate investments.

In 2006, she was on the Forbes 100 list of the most powerful women in the world, ranked number 10.

As being one of the most influential women on Wall Street, she was able to recruit many former Morgan Stanley employees, like Philip Newcomb, who was co-head of interest rates and currencies.

Mr. Newcomb is now chief operating officer at Voras Capital Management and is based in New York, off Park Avenue.

Why Voras?  Voras is a Greek word for “north” which is the name of the area where Zoe Cruz was born, gfinancenews.com writes.

Voras Capital Management has opened up offices in New York and Hong Kong. The fund is incorporated in the United Kingdom.

Fundraising has been challenging post-crisis, however Cruz managed to raise a decent amount.

Many pension funds have programs aimed at investing in emerging minority-female managers, and the Harvard business school graduate has been actively fundraising for the past few months and raised around US$ 200 million.

Two funds with unique strategies will be created, a global macro fund, which will be managed by Zoe Cruz.

The other fund is a credit opportunities fund run by Ellen Brunberg, who previously ran Morgan Stanley’s European securitized products group.

Credit opportunity funds are particular attractive to institutional investors, especially ones flush with cash.

Related Articles:

• Zoe Cruz’s Hedge Fund Raises $200 Million (MS) (businessinsider.com)
• ‘Cruz Missile’ Lifts Off With New Hedge Fund (blogs.wsj.com)
• Zoe Cruz Unplugged: Create Quotas for Women on Wall Street (blogs.wsj.com)
• Gross Joins Cruz in Hunt for High-Yield Debt as Treasuries Soar (businessweek.com)

Overdose – The Next Financial Crisis

Overdose: Peter Schiff Gerald Celente, ABC Four Corners Crisis, 2010 Dollar Collapse, Gold. Silver, 911, AIG, Fannie,  Freddie, Deficit, Inflation, Bailout…..

Part 1 of an ABC series- four Corners documentary about the coming economic crisis, featuring Gerald Celente and Peter Schiff. Original air date: 23rd August, 2010.

Vodpod videos no longer available.

Overdose – The Next Financial Crisis 1/3 , posted with vodpod

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• Successful Trends Forecaster Gerald Celente Sees “Greatest Depression” Soon (grantlawrence.blogspot.com)
• Gold Price Experts Greenlight To Buy Gold Coins and Bullion (prweb.com)
• Draining the Treasury With Wars and Foreign Entanglements (lewrockwell.com)
• Don’t Worry About A Precious Metal Bubble, Worry About The Dollar (businessinsider.com)
• Gerald Celente: Wall Street runs the US, but will collapse before 2011 (politics.ie)