Chuck Schumer has hedge (fund) trimmers in hand.
The Senate minority leader is insisting hedge fund Alden Global Capital come clean about its clients after the fund upped its stake in Tribune Publishing from roughly 25% to 32%. Tribune owns dozens of newspapers nationwide, including the Daily News.
New York’s senior senator, in a letter to Alden boss Heath Freeman, pointed out that most of the hedge fund’s assets come from foreign investors.
Government filings show 80% of Alden’s clients are “non-US persons” and about $832 million of its assets under management “are attributable to non-United States persons,” Schumer wrote in his letter, obtained by The Post.
“Would you commit to sharing more information on the identity or background of these clients?” he asked.
Schumer told Freeman he was concerned about Alden’s history of decimating local outlets — The Denver Post, The Delaware County Daily Times in Pennsylvania and The San Jose Mercury News, for example — and demanded to know what the hedge fund planned to do if it gains a controlling stake in Tribune, especially concerning newsroom layoffs.
The four-term Democrat also expressed concern about the $536 million Alden Global Opportunities Fund, based in the Cayman Islands — well-known for having virtually no taxes, including a corporate tax.
“Schumer is hoping the letter will produce additional information from Alden and spark further investigation into those that may be standing behind them,” said an insider with knowledge of Schumer’s thinking
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