The Ledger
Every statement that passed quotation and attribution checks. Mix any filter with any other: certainty 1/5, debate potential 5/5, or both at once.
why aren't all 6 resolved? a statement only gets an assessment when the public record can support or contradict it. opinions and what-ifs never can, and 0 checkable ones are still open, waiting for their date. predictions held up or didn't; assertions are supported or contradicted. on every card: ▮▮▮▮▮ certainty · ▮▮▮▮▮ debate potential. speakers are clickable
Lyon: Only four structural terms actually matter in credit and hybrid documentation
“There are four things that matter. The ability to put debt on top of you, the ability to take assets away, the ability to take money out of the system, the economic terms of your agreement.”
Lyon: Many hybrid capital managers pitch downside protection while taking equity risk
“There are too many people in this hybrid space that pitch unrealistic returns that you're only being driven by either buying equity And something has a lot of volatility or taking massive industry or company risk, and you're pitching it as downside protection.…”
Lyon: Value trap theses based on cost-cutting always perform poorly
“My least favorite theses are value traps. I'm going to fire X, Y, and Z, and I'll be able to create an X multiple. Other people may do this well. In my 31, 32 years of doing this, that's always gone poorly. I will take top line Over terminating people, cutting…”
Lyon: Neuberger Berman avoids backing companies chaired by professional board members
“Having a financial guy as chairman of a company I don't want that. I don't want someone on eight boards. I want someone who lives it and breathes it.”
Lyon: Performing Companies Quickly Refinance Expensive 16% Preferred Equity Bridges
“When you're doing straight preferreds, oftentimes they just refinance us out. You are a bridge in the structure between six and eight times, If the company does it all well, they're very quickly going to eliminate 16% money.”
George Walker created Goldman Sachs's first outsourced CIO practice
“George Walker, who's now running Neuberger, had come up with this idea that I really described as the first outsource CIO at Goldman. We were over the wall working with large institutional families, a lot of times pre-transaction.”