This week, we speak with we speak with Henry Cornell, founder of Cornell Capital. The firm manages $3 billion in long term investments into private companies. Previously, he was the Vice Chairman at Goldman Sachs, where he helped create and build its Merchant Banking Division.
Building out the private equity business at Goldman took him to Japan in the late 1980s. The country’s economy was in its biggest boom (and bubble) ever, and Tokyo was the hottest country in the world. He found lots of the opportunities for private investing, and added 1000s of employees for Goldman in Japan. The firm moved him to Hong Kong in the early 1990s, as China was beginning its move away from its purely communist towards a more market based economy.
The firm co-invests with such firms as Goldman Sachs, Alibaba, and other well known shops. He references the advantages of having spoken with 100s of CEOs and their network, the deal flow for private investments becomes substantial. Cornell explains the firm’s expertise in insurance, packaging, consumer industrial, including firms like KDC, and Purell.
His favorite books are here; A transcript of our conversation is available here.
You can stream and download our full conversation, including the podcast extras, on Apple iTunes, Spotify, Overcast, Google, Bloomberg, and Stitcher. All of our earlier podcasts on your favorite pod hosts can be found here.
Next week, we speak with Jon Taffer, the star and creator of Bar Rescue, and one of the first inductees in the Nightclub Hall of Fame, about the state of bars and restaurants under lockdown and beyond. Taffer is the author of Don’t Bullsh*t Yourself!: Crush the Excuses That Are Holding You Back.
Henry Cornell’s favorite books
Henry Cornell’s Favorite Books
On the Road by Jack Kerouac
The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
The Guns of August by Barbara W. Tuchman
Catastrophe 1914: Europe Goes to War by Max Hastings
Books Barry mentioned
Lords of Finance: The Bankers Who Broke the World by Liaquat Ahamed
