Good morning, everyone.

I met Matthew McFadyen last week in London. At the end of our convo, like the utter fanboy I am, I asked for a selfie: “Sorry - no, I don’t do them, but thank you very much for asking.” Gutted. I felt like the real life Cousin Greg.

This week’s newsletter includes: Mohamed El-Erian’s family dilemma, David Solomon’s AI prediction & the preferred football team of Blackrock Portfolio Manager’s.

Why PIMCO’s CEO Walked Away

In 2014, Mohamed El-Erian quit one of the most prestigious, well paid jobs in global finance as CEO of PIMCO...

At only 56, Mohamed was still a young buck, especially considering his seniority and status in the global finance community.

With a salary that reportedly breached $100 million a year, a loving family and a enormous mansion in Laguna Beach - people looked at Mohamed as someone who had it all.

But, all was not as it seemed.

In 2013, Mohamed’s daughter presented him with a hand written list that illustrated how he had missed 22 separate school events, including soccer games and parents evening.

Not 22 events he missed during her life, 22 events he had missed that year.

As part of the discussion, his daughter included her Year Book, which featured a photo of a class exhibition where Mohamed was visible in the background…writing emails on his Blackberry.
​
His daughter said: “Dad, even when you’re there, you’re not actually there”.

Mohamed was stunned.
​
The next morning Mohamed approached Bill Gross, Founder of PIMCO and legendary bond investor:

“Bill, in the next 12 months I’m going to step down. It’s up to you if that’s tomorrow or a years’ time, but I have to step down.”
​
After Mohamed shared the story of his daughter’s list with Bill, Bill replied:

“That’s bulls**t. You’re going to go and work for a competitor aren’t you?”
​
Mohamed: “I’m a New York Mets supporter, I’m a New York Jet’s supporter. Loyalty is something I believe in. Otherwise I would have found better teams, believe me!”
​
Bill: “Then you’re ill. Have you got cancer?”
​
Mohamed: “No”
​
Bill: “Mohamed, no one walks away from money.”
​
Mohamed: “Bill, I don’t know my daughter...”
​
Mohamed left PIMCO in March 2014 and pursued a portfolio career of part-time positions. This allowed him more power over his schedule, and more time with his family.

Reflecting on that moment years later, he said: “When I look at my relationship with my daughter today - even though it came at some cost - I really think I made the right decision.”

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BizStory is read by 2,000+ ambitious professionals from Blackstone, Blackrock, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Citadel and many more.

Finance Culture

• Like a finance version of Forrest Gump - Jon Gray at Blackstone just keeps on running. I see him on my insta, my Linkedin - everywhere. He’s running by himself, he’s running with key note speakers and now he’s running with clients. Some may cringe, but you can bet the amount of new business and opportunities his running content brings through the door is unbelievable.

• Goldman CEO David Soloman aka DJ D-Sol published an OpEd in the NY Times this week about how AI isn’t actually going to create a job apocalypse. Essentially, his argument is that 25% of grunt work will be outsourced to AI, leaving analysts and associates with more time for client meetings. Goldman seem to be doubling down on relationship based roles. As does everyone else.

• You already know SpaceX is going public. What you might not know is that one of the earliest investors was the Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust, who first invested $200m in the late 2010’s. That $200m is now worth…$4 Billion. Plaudits to Tom Slater & the team.

• Former US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin is selling his family home - an Upper East Side Townhouse. Yours, for $35 million.

• Janan at the FT says Arsenal is the preferred club of Blackrock Portfolio Managers. From personal experience, this might actually be true. Everyone at Blackrock seems to support Arsenal. In the C-suite of finance, Manny Roman (PIMCO CEO), Blair Jacobson (Ares Co-President) and Aliko Dangote are all fans, Aliko talked about how he tried to buy the club in this interview. As a life-long West Ham fan, let’s not talk about football for a while…

Want me to write about something from finance in particular? Just hit reply. I read every message.

Recommendation’s

• Check out my new video below on the story of Paul Singers investment into Argentina in 2001, leading to one of the craziest scenario’s in financial history.

• Awesome long-form interview with Mohamed El-Erian where he recounts the above story and many more. ​

Paul Singer Annexed An Argentinian Warship

Paul Singer lent Argentina money, but the country immediately collapsed. So he took one of their warships hostage to get his money back…

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: the little known true story of how Blackrock was founded.

How To Build A ‘Failure Framework’

In 1989 BlackRock was a failing disaster, but Larry Fink had a secret weapon. What followed was the most important client pitch in financial history…

Almost a year had passed since a 36-year-old Larry Fink and his co-founders launched new asset manager BlackRock, but they still hadn’t raised any money to manage.

No one trusted their unproven startup.

BlackRock were frequently rejected for being too small, too new and too young. Larry said:

“In the beginning we were laughed out of a lot of rooms”.

But an opportunity came in the form of a pitch to manage General Electric’s pension fund assets.

It wasn’t just any old client – GE was a whale, and landing them would put BlackRock on the map.

For nearly a year the BlackRock team pitched GE, refined, and pitched them again. No matter how hard they tried, GE kept rejecting them.

There was a huge problem to overcome...

GE did not trust BlackRock’s ability to handle risk.

On the brink of failure, Larry stopped trying to ‘sell’ BlackRock’s capabilities and used a secret weapon – personal failure.

Larry set up a meeting with GE’s executive team and explained how three years earlier he lost $100Million on a single trade whilst at First Boston. The trade almost ruined him personally and professionally, teaching him the importance of proactive risk management.

He assured GE’s team that he would never position any investment in such a vulnerable way again.

The story instantly resonated with GE’s exec’s and - one year after the initial pitch – they finally agreed to give BlackRock a slice of their assets to manage. BlackRock had its first major institutional client, and with it, the credibility to attract more.

Larry summarized the incredible impact of that pitch:

“The day we signed GE’s pension fund was the day that really launched BlackRock.”

Recommendation’s

• For more stories from Larry about founding BlackRock, check out this interview from 4 months ago. Some interesting Q&A at the end too.

• When I originally found the above picture of Larry and Ralph, I ran a Google Lens search on the cap they’re wearing. I found the cap online and it somehow landed me a meeting with Steve Schwarzman at his private office in New York. Here is the fully story.

500+ smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: a rare L for the godfather of investing.

Understanding The True Cost

Warren Buffett built an investing empire – but one deal humbled him, destroyed a company and cost $17 billion in lost wealth…

By the early 1990s, Warren Buffett looked unstoppable.

For nearly 30 years he had been beating markets. And with Charlie Munger by his side, Berkshire Hathaway had been transformed from a dying textile mill into one of the most powerful investment machines in history.

In 1993, Warren made what seemed like another masterstroke:

He bought Dexter Shoe.

Dexter was a company admired by investors the world over due to its strong margins and loyal customers. Warren genuinely believed it had “durable competitive advantage”.

But then, a devastating mistake…

Warren didn’t pay cash.

Instead of being paid in cash, the owners of Dexter Shoe wanted to be paid exclusively in shares of Berkshire Hathaway: 25,203 Class A shares - worth about $433 million at the time.

Slowly, cracks started to appear at Dexter.

Overseas competition crushed their domestic sales model. Margins evaporated. The brand collapsed and the company was worth zero. Unfortunately for Warren, the sting in the tail was much worse than just a dud company.

It was how he bought the company.

Those 25,203 Berkshire Hathaway shares he traded - carved out of the crown jewel he spent decades building - would now be worth well over $17 billion...

Warren was speechless: “I gave away 1.6% of a wonderful business…for a worthless business!”

That single mistake cost him more than any market downturn or bad stock pick. A rare and humbling lesson for the world’s greatest investor.

After making the biggest mistake of his career, Warren outlined a new perspective on life and business in a famous shareholder letter:

“Don’t risk what you have and need, for what you don’t have and don’t need.”

Recommendation’s

• A fantastic clip from the 2002 Berkshire Hathaway Annual Shareholder Meeting when an audience member asked Warren about Dexter...

• Or if you prefer to hear Warren’s views on friendship, and how to know who to trust - check out his answer from the 2024 Annual Meeting.

100+ smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: the true story of a dyslexic window salesman who became one of the most prominent leaders in Goldman’s history.

The ‘Small Win’ Framework: From Window Salesman to Goldman Sachs President

Gary Cohn - a dyslexic window salesman, was told he should be happy “if he becomes a garbage man”. Here’s the story of how one taxi journey propelled him to President of Goldman Sachs...
​
Growing up in Cleveland, Gary was told by a teacher he’d be lucky to “become a garbage man” due to his severe dyslexia.

After college, he became a salesman selling window frames.
​
One Friday, Gary took the afternoon off to observe a trading floor in the World Trade Center, hoping to break into the industry.

After watching for hours, a chance elevator encounter changed his life:
​
Trader: (talking to a colleague)“I gotta run, I’m going to the airport.”
Gary: “I just overhead that you are going to the airport, is it LaGuardia? Can I share a taxi with you?”
Trader: “Sure, by all means.”
​
Gary recalled: “I didn’t know him. He didn’t know me. But here’s my shot - I’ve got 45 minutes in traffic to convince this guy that I’m hirable and need a job.”
​
By the end of the ride, the trader asked Gary to come back Monday for an interview on their options desk.

The problem?

Gary knew nothing about options.
​
That evening, Gary bought ‘Options as a Strategic Investment’ - a 1,000 page bible of options trading.

Despite his dyslexia, he read it four times over that weekend.

The following week, Gary interviewed and got the job.
​
After a few years trading commodities, Gary joined Goldman Sachs in 1990, becoming President in 2006. He’s now Vice Chairman at technology powerhouse IBM.
​
Gary summed up his journey nicely:

“The one trait a lot of dyslexic people have is our ability to deal with failure is very highly developed. And so we look at most situations and see much more of the upside than the downside.”

Recommendation’s

• Gary doesn’t do many long-form interviews, but here’s a good, recent-ish interview where he discusses his career and overcoming bumps in the road.

100+ smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: the story of Michael Bloomberg getting fired and putting his entire severance pay into his start-up.

Michael Bloomberg and the “Yes, But” Framework

Michael Bloomberg was brutally fired from one of the most prestigious and high-paying jobs on Wall Street. It turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to him...

One hot summer night in 1981, Salomon Brothers’ partners were summoned to a secretive meeting marked:

“Mandatory Attendance: Utmost Secrecy Required.”

At the time, Salomon was one of the most powerful investment banks in the world.

But change was in the air.

Just days earlier, the firm had been acquired by energy trading giant Phibro Corporation, and rumours of layoffs were swirling through the corridors.

Everyone knew that this meeting could end careers.

The atmosphere inside the firm was suffocating.

John Gutfreund, Salomon’s hard-nosed Managing Partner, called Michael into a side room and gave it to him straight:

After 15 years at the firm, his time was up.

No explanations. No negotiation.

Michael was devastated:

“With 15 years of service - it was embarrassing, none of my friends got fired...it was hurtful and unfair.”

One moment, a rising figure at a Wall Street powerhouse.

The next, unemployed.

His career and identity seemed to vanish in an instant.

But instead of retreating, Michael acted.

The very next day, he decided to risk it all...

Michael took his his entire severance pay and invested every dollar into a new venture: putting financial data directly onto computer screens so traders could see it instantly.

From idea - to prototype - to product.

His effort and investment became the Bloomberg Terminal: a revolutionary product that would reshape finance.

From that single decision, Bloomberg LP grew into a global powerhouse spanning media, data, and technology - serving millions of customers worldwide.

Looking back decades later, Michael smiled:

“Thank goodness they fired me!”

Recommendation’s

• Awesome interview with Michael from 2007 is here. A fantastic quote: “Of all the people on the Salomon Brothers Executive Committee who fired me...6 are now paying customers of Bloomberg - so thank you very much!”

150+ smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: a sombre, untold true story from the Citadel universe.

The Story That Explains Citadel’s Rise Better Than Any Interview

Ken Griffin is the Billionaire Founder & CEO of one of the world’s most successful hedge funds - Citadel.

Here is the little known story of how he reacted when his executive assistant fell gravely ill…

In 2012 Susan Warmerdam - executive assistant to Ken at Citadel – was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer.

Despite having never smoked in her life, the condition was described by doctors as “untreatable and incurable”.

The diagnosis was devastating.

Upon hearing the news, Ken offered his private jet for her “to go anywhere in the world for 10 days.”

Susan couldn’t bring herself to take him up on the offer right away, but after two years of successful treatments including surgeries, clinical trials and chemotherapy, she was miraculously given the all clear and declared cancer free.

Upon hearing the news of Susan’s full recovery, and knowing her 50th birthday was nearing, Ken offered the jet to Susan again...

She accepted and took her entire family on vacation to Kauai – “the Garden Island” in Hawaii.

“He was so happy I was going,” Susan said.

The family posed for a picture creating letters that said Mahalo or ‘thank you’ in Hawaiian and sent it to Ken.

It’s not the first time Ken has offered employee’s unique opportunities and perks.

He has been known to rent entire movie theaters for employees and their families, to ship in special frozen milkshakes for the entire office from Wisconsin.

He also sends employees who have recently become parents gifts such as cashmere blankets and reading chairs.

Ken is frequently asked in interviews the secret behind how he has grown Citadel from his college dorm room to global investment giant so quickly, to which he typically replies:

“Our people are our greatest asset”.

Recommendation’s

• If you have 30mins, this Ken interview is great. If you have 2mins, check this out.

• Welcome to new subscribers from Harvard Business School, Blackstone, Goldman Sachs, and JP Morgan! And a surreal milestone: BizStory just got its first billionaire subscriber. Well, a deca-billionaire to be precise...

200+ smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: a 38-year-old Jon Gray at Blackstone making one of the biggest gambles in real estate history…and losing. But then coming back to win in an unbelievable way.

The Hilton Turnaround: From Disaster Deal to $14 Billion Profit

In 2007 Blackstone bought Hilton, but CEO Steve Schwarzman thought it was a catastrophic mistake. What followed was the most dramatic turnaround in private equity history...

Shortly after Blackstone bought the Hilton hotel chain for $26 billion, the 2008 financial crisis hit.

Tourism plummeted.

The hospitality industry was on the brink.

Media commentators branded the acquisition a “disaster”.

At one point, sentiment was so bad that Blackstone wrote down the Hilton investment...by an eye-watering 71%.

Steve Schwarzman, Blackstone’s CEO, said:

“We thought we had made the worst private equity deal in history!”

Jon Gray was Blackstone’s up and coming Global Head of Real Estate at the time.

At just 38-years-old, Jon was pushing hard to make the deal happen. Despite the incredibly negative environment, the young exec was confident in his strategy.

However, there was a huge problem: Hilton’s debt was enormous.

They needed to buy some time, otherwise sky-high debt repayments would destroy the company.

After the acquisition Blackstone immediately negotiated with lenders to refinance, cutting interest costs by buying back its debt at steep discounts.

They invested $800million into the company, and branched out into new, untapped markets like China and India.

Anywhere where tourism was growing, Hilton was there.

New leadership was put in place, with industry veteran Chris Nassetta installed as new CEO & President.

Jon pushed Hilton to invest heavily in technology and customer loyalty, introducing new reward points programs, new digital room keys and automating check-in/check-out processes.

In 2013, Blackstone took Hilton public.

And in 2018, they fully exited the investment...making over $14 billion in profit.

It remains one of the most profitable private equity deal in history.

Jon summarized that manic period and incredible turnaround:

“The deal felt crazy given the financial climate. But sometimes, the most challenging situations lead to the most significant successes.”

Recommendation’s

• If you have 30mins, this interview with Jon is great. Btw, keep an eye out for interviewer John Waldron at Goldman, very impressive individual. If you have 3mins but want to know more about the Hilton deal, check this out.

• BizStory welcomed new subscribers from HSBC, Citi and Amazon! Glad to welcome you all.

250+ smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: the true story of Garry Tan going from ‘being helpful’ to running one of silicon valley’s most elite communities.

The YC Story: Garry Tan Went From Photographer To CEO

Garry Tan was a struggling founder with no funding and no network – but one act of kindness caught the attention of Silicon Valley’s elite…

In 2008, Garry Tan was stuck.

He had worked at Microsoft and Palantir, but wanted to launch his own company.

The problem?

He had no funding. No network. No traction.

He was desperate for a break.

So desperate, he started taking photography gigs, shooting local hip-hop album covers just to make money.

Then he heard about Startup School.

A prestigious event hosted by Y Combinator (YC), where legends like Jeff Bezos and Marc Andreessen were speaking.

Garry wanted to be useful, but didn’t know how.

So he did something unusual…

He arrived early, sat in the front row, and - unannounced - started taking high-quality photos of every speaker.

No one asked him to. No one paid him. He just showed up and helped out.

Garry raced home, edited the photos, and uploaded them to Hacker News that evening.

He had no idea what would happen next, but when he woke up, his inbox was flooded.

His post went viral and attracted the attention of Paul & Jessica Graham - the founders of YC.

The duo received hundreds of requests for mentorship. But Garry? He didn’t ask for anything.

He just helped.

A year later, Garry stood in the same room - but this time, he wasn’t taking photos.

He was on stage, pitching his company. When YC announced their new batch, Garry’s name was on it.

Paul & Jessica later said that Garry’s act of initiative and kindness was one of the reasons they backed his business.

Then, the ultimate full-circle moment…

After selling his company, Garry returned to YC as a Partner.

And in 2022 Paul Graham called him with an even bigger offer: to become CEO of Y Combinator.

The same organization he once hustled to impress - now had his name at the top.

Garry later reflected on this time:

“If you give first, you’ll be surprised what you get back. What you put out in the world will come back to you ten thousand times over.”

Recommendation’s

• If you’ve got 5mins, check out Garry re-telling this story here. If you’ve got 1hr, a deeper dive interview is here.

• BizStory new subscribers joined this week from Citadel, PIMCO and Blackrock.

• Lots of smart, interesting people are reading Business Story - and you are one of them. Know someone who’d enjoy these stories? Send them to BizStory.co

300+ smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: Private equity legend Henry Kravis gave some advice that needs to be read by anyone who works in finance.

A Secret Confession From Investing Legend Henry Kravis

Ravi Gupta resigned from KKR and expected hell from Henry Kravis.

Instead, he got a masterclass in leadership and a secret confession…

In 2015, Ravi Gupta was a high-flyer at private equity firm KKR. But he had been approached to leave his well paid, comfortable role and join a scrappy start-up.

Ravi took the plunge and quit his job at KKR.

Henry Kravis - billionaire co-founder of KKR - found out about Ravi’s resignation and summoned Ravi to his office in New York.

Known for ruthless deal making and immortalised in ‘Barbarians at the Gate’, Henry was one of the most powerful men on Wall Street.

Ravi assumed this meeting would be an attempt to convince him to stay at KKR.

Or worse - a scolding from Henry...

He couldn’t have been more wrong.

Henry asked Ravi to sit down, and immediately congratulated him on his move.

Ravi was stunned: “Henry wanted to share the story of how he and George started KKR. He said he respected my desire to go help build something.”

But Henry’s masterclass in leadership wasn’t the most memorable thing about their meeting.

As Ravi was walking out, Henry stopped him…

Henry: “How old are you?”

Ravi: “I’m 33…”

Henry: “I would do anything to be 33 again…I would do anything to do it over again.”

Looking back on Henry’s parting comment a decade ago, Ravi recalled: “I didn’t understand it then. I do now.”

The start-up Ravi joined was Instacart, where he held roles as CFO and COO.

Despite an incredibly challenging environment and fierce competition from heavyweights such as Amazon and Walmart, Instacart is now worth $10 Billion.

At 80-years-old, Henry shared his view on starting something new:

“Don’t just talk about it, put both feet in and be dedicated - don’t be afraid to fail.”

Recommendation’s

• Henry gave a good interview spotting opportunities here. Or click here for Ravi’s original blog post about leaving KKR.

• BizStory is a community of smart, influential individuals who work at elite financial institutions. Welcome to new subscribers this week from Goldman Sachs and Jane Street.

• I have 34,000 followers on Linkedin. Follow along here if Linkedin is your thing.

400+ smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: a movie-like scenario that actually happened in the crazy world of hedge funds…

The Hedge Fund Manager Who Took On Argentina...And Won

Paul Singer was owed money by Argentina, so he captured one of their warships.

Here’s the unbelievable true story of money, power & reputation…

In 2000, Paul Singer’s hedge fund Elliott Management bought $600 million worth of Argentine bonds for just $100 million.

Soon after, Argentina plunged into an economic depression.

A few years later, the Argentinian President urged bondholders to accept deeply discounted repayment terms, as little as 25-cents on the dollar.

92% of bondholders took the deal.

Paul refused.

He took the fight global, suing Argentina and attempting to seize their assets - from central bank reserves to pension funds - in order to get the debt repaid in full.

It wasn’t working.

So Paul made an audacious move...

When an Argentine naval vessel called ‘The Libertad’ approached a port in Ghana, it was met with an unexpected standoff.

Paul had secured a court order to seize the ship.

His hedge fund was demanding a $20 million payment from Argentina before it was released.

News of the seizure sparked outrage across Argentina.

Their Minister of Economy called it “an affront to national sovereignty”.

The Argentine President said: “They can keep the frigate, but not the dignity of the Argentine Republic!”.

Paul remained silent throughout the ordeal, but just prior to the stand-off had publicly stated:

“Sovereign nations must be held to the same standards as individuals when it comes to repaying debts.”

The ship was eventually released, but the move sent shockwaves through bond markets.

Just over 15 years after his initial $100 million investment in Argentinian sovereign debt, the government finally agreed to settle and paid $2.4 billion to Paul’s firm.

Paul guards his privacy fiercely and gives very few interviews, but a journalist once asked him if these kinds of legal skirmishes were fun...

He stopped, raised his eyebrow, then turned to the journalist:

“Fun? Skiing is fun...this is work!”

Recommendation’s

• Paul rarely gives interviews, so check this one out from earlier this year with Nicolai from NBIM. Or here for the original BBC article of the ARA Libertad’s homecoming in 2013.

400+ smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: The Sage of Omaha’s favourite story ever, and my trip to Steve Schwarzman’s personal office.

The Investors Route To Heaven...or Hell

When faced with questions on valuation, Warren Buffett tells a story passed down by his mentor Benjamin Graham...

It’s the story of an oil prospector who dies, and meets St. Peter at the Pearly Gates.

When told his occupation, St. Peter said: “Oh, I’m really sorry...”

“You seem to meet all the tests to get into heaven. But we’ve got a problem...”

“See that pen over there? That’s where we keep the oil prospectors waiting to get into heaven. And it’s packed - we haven’t got room for even one more.”

The oil prospector thought for a minute.

Then he said: “Would you mind if I just said four words to those folks?”

“I can’t see any harm in that”, said St. Peter.

So the oil prospector cupped his hands, took a deep breath and yelled at the top of his lungs:

“OIL DISCOVERED IN HELL!”

Immediately, the oil prospectors broke the lock off the door and stampeded out, on a mission to reach hell as fast a possible.

“You know, that’s a pretty good trick”, St. Peter said.

“Come on in! The place is yours - you’ve got plenty of room in heaven now.”

The oil prospector paused...

He scratched his head, then said:

“No. If you don’t mind, I think I’ll go along with the rest of ’em. There may be some truth to that rumor after all!”

Recommendation’s

• Check out this recent interview with Warren, 94-years-old but as sharp as ever. I found the exact 1985 Berkshire Hathaway Shareholder Letter where Warren re-tells the oil prospector story.

• Business Story continues to grow and grow. New subscribers this week from Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, Cambridge University faculty and some west coast VC’s.

• What I’m reading: I’m re-reading Steve Schwarzman’s “What It Takes” this week. Such a fantastic book, tons of advice and practical learnings. I had the chance to meet Steve in his NYC office earlier this year, wild story. I’ll tell it next week!

400+ smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: my personal story of cold emailing and then somehow meeting the Co-Founder, Chairman & CEO of Blackstone.

The Cold Email That Led Me To Steve Schwarzman

I wasn’t trying to get a meeting - but a €30 baseball cap, a cold email, and a gamble led me straight to Steve Schwarzman’s office…

One Friday afternoon, I posted a photo on LinkedIn showing BlackRock’s 1990s spinout from Blackstone - complete with office party hats worn by early staff.

In the pic, some execs were wearing a now-forgotten cap: a startup-style BlackRock baseball hat.

As a memorabilia fan, I ran a Google Lens search on the cap.

One result came back…

A €30 listing on the German version of Craigslist:

“Old baseball cap. Made in USA. Some wear.”

The seller clearly had no idea what it was.

I bought it instantly.

Weeks later, the cap was gathering dust on my shelf - but I couldn’t stop thinking about its significance.

So I cold-emailed Steve Schwarzman, co-founder of Blackstone, and offered to “drop it off” when I was next in New York.

One hour later, he replied: “A great idea.”

I panicked.

What exactly was a ‘drop off’?

Was I meeting an assistant? Handing it over at reception? Or - possibly - getting a real meeting?

I over-prepared for all three scenarios by watching 20 hours of interviews, reading his book, ‘What It Takes’, and creating notes on his career, media, and philanthropic efforts.

Finally, the day arrived...

A reminder popped up on my Outlook so strange I doubt it’ll ever be topped:

“Drop off baseball cap to Steve Schwarzman”.

I had a light lunch at The Plaza and made my way over to 345 Park Avenue to see one of the most powerful and influential people in global finance.

This all felt very far away from my first job working the till at McDonalds.

The elevator doors opened: “Joseph Cass to see Mr. Schwarzman? Right this way…”

One of Steve’s team led me to an impressive meeting room. Crucially, I was advised:

“Steve usually likes to sit here, so maybe go for the seat opposite”.

Less than a minute later - Steve arrived.

Softly spoken, he smiled, and gave a zinger of a first line:

“So, what have you got for me?!”

He invited me to sit down, and took a seat in his usual spot.

Steve asked how I got hold of the cap, what I was doing in New York and my career aspirations.

He spoke about his life, building Blackstone and his broader experiences of working and living in the UK.

No phones on the table. No laptops out. No distractions.

Just me and him talking, with no real agenda.

30 minutes passed, and he got a nod from his assistant.

I asked for a quick photo, he obliged and - as is tradition - remarked on how tall I am.

Steve then walked through a seemingly secret door from the meeting room to his office, literally cap in hand. I headed back to the elevators, stunned by how genuine, polite and generous he was with his time.

Steve said it best in the early days of Blackstone, when he was trying to hustle support, raise funds and build connections:

“People in power are more open to meeting than you might think. If you ask, you often get.”

600+ smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: the tragic, but then ultimately uplifting true story of Charlie Munger, and some news on BizStory growth.

How Charlie Munger Rebuilt His Life

At 31, Charlie Munger simultaneously lost his son, his wife, and his fortune. Here’s how one incredibly simple framework changed his life forever…

As a young man, Charlie Munger appeared to have it all.

A Harvard-educated lawyer with a thriving career, known for his sharp intellect and quick wit, he had earned widespread respect in his field.

Personally, he was a devoted husband and father, raising a growing family and building a future.

However, devastating events dramatically changed the course of his life.

Charlie’s marriage ended in divorce, and he lost custody of his children. Shortly after, his 9-year-old son Teddy was diagnosed with leukemia.

Despite the best medical efforts, Teddy tragically passed away.

At the same time, a speculative real estate investment failed, leaving Charlie financially ruined.

Around this time, a routine eye operation was botched, leading to the surgical removal of his left eye.

By 31, Charlie had lost everything - his family, his fortune, and his direction.

But he refused to let tragedy define him:

“Life will have terrible blows, horrible blows, unfair blows. It doesn’t matter” he said.

His personal life framework was to adopt a positive outlook, refusing to be a victim.

Determined to rebuild his professional life, Charlie immersed himself in the study of investing, focusing on simplicity, long-term growth, and high-quality companies.

He also began to reform his personal life.

Charlie remarried and started a new family, finding joy and renewed purpose in a second chance at happiness.

By the 1970s, Charlie had met and partnered with Warren Buffett at Berkshire Hathaway.

Together, they created a global powerhouse, emphasizing discipline and patience in investing.

Today, Berkshire Hathaway is worth over $1 Trillion.

Before his death, Charlie argued that none of this would have been possible if he hadn’t adopted a positive life framework: “Feeling like a victim is a perfectly disastrous way to go through life”.

“I am not a victim. I am a survivor.”

Recommendation’s

• A few months before this death at the end of 2023, Charlie sat down with CNBC. It’s a long interview at nearly 2 hours, but worth every second. Watch it here.

• Business Story is growing about 20% per week! Subscribers are mainly investors, finance professionals and entrepreneurs. This week we welcomed senior folk from Blackstone, Citadel and Blackrock plus many more.

600+ smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: the real life ‘Tiger King’ (before the weird Netflix doc), and Big Short investor Michael Burry’s next bet.

Principles Vs Popularity

Julian Robertson built an enormous $22 Billion hedge fund, but dramatically shut it down in the middle of a huge bull market. Here’s why he walked away…

Julian Robertson was one of Wall Street’s most celebrated investors.

By the 1990’s, his fund - Tiger Management - was managing $22 billion and had delivered incredible above market returns for nearly two decades.

However, as the dot-com bubble inflated, the financial world went into a frenzy.

Other investors poured into speculative dot-com companies.

But Julian stuck to his principles by investing in companies with solid profits that he understood. He thought the tech boom was irrational:

“Bubbles are made when people stop thinking.”

The result?

His fund’s performance began to lag, his investors became frustrated and started pulling their money.

By 1999, Tiger Management had posted three years of underperformance and traders were threatening to go on strike unless they could invest in dot-com companies.

The situation was dire.

Julian faced a dilemma: abandon his value-based approach to chase the dot-com boom.

Or, stay true to his principles.

In March 2000, Julian shocked the financial world by announcing the closure of Tiger Management.

He returned billions of dollars to investors and said:

“We are not willing to be part of this irrational market. We’d rather shut down than abandon our discipline.”

Critics were harsh.

The media labelled him a relic, claiming he had failed to adapt to a “new era” of investing. One article said: “Tiger’s fall is a lesson in the dangers of sticking to outdated principles.”

Just months after Tiger closed, the dot-com bubble burst in dramatic fashion.

Markets tanked, trillions of dollars in value evaporated and dot-com tech stocks collapsed. Conversely, value stocks - the stocks Julian had championed - became a haven for investors, outperforming significantly despite the market turmoil.

He was vindicated.

After shutting down Tiger Management, Julian focussed on seeding other hedge funds and his “Tiger Cub” mentees went on to found some of the most successful hedge funds in history.

Before his death, Julian remarked on that remarkable period:

“I always told you value investing would win!”

Recommendation’s

• Big Short investor Michael Burry recently shut down his Scion Asset Management hedge fund, blaming ‘market exuberance’ in the AI sector. Some scoffed, some took note. See his final letter here.

• Business Story is going great guns, with hundreds of smart, new subscribers every week. Welcome to new subscribers from Amundi, Blackrock, JP Morgan and Brevan Howard.

700+ smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: the real life legend of Ken Moelis, one of the most respected and admired banker in the world. And the kind white lie he told me…

The Power Of A Personal Network

Ken Moelis quit his prestigious, well-paid job in finance to start his own firm. No one thought it would work, but one unbelievable deal changed everything…

In 2007, Ken Moelis was at the top of his game.

He was driving record profits as President of UBS Investment Bank and was known as Wall Street’s most powerful dealmaker - a ‘master of the universe’.

But he was tired.

Tired of corporate bureaucracy.

Tired of being part of the machine...

Determined to build something new, at 48-years old Ken did the unthinkable.

He quit.

Ken left UBS and began plotting the creation of a new firm to provide strategic advice on M&A: ‘Moelis & Company’.

No-one believed it would work.

In fact, his own company were so confident he would fail, during his garden leave Ken was allowed to meet old colleagues to discuss a business plan!

He recalled: “UBS were so unconcerned that while I was on gardening leave they let some of my team work up a business plan with me.

Ken had no start-up experience, no office, no employees and the global economy was on the brink of collapse.

The outlook was bleak.

However, Ken had a secret weapon – relationships.

Between leaving UBS, Ken wasted no time, building a small team and secured backing from 10 of the largest US institutional investors through his network of relationships built over decades.

Incredibly, just days after Ken’s contract with UBS expired, his brand new company landed its first ever advisory mandate: the enormous $26Billion sale of Hilton Hotels to the Blackstone Group.

The Hilton-Blackstone deal put Moelis & Company firmly on the map - just days after it was founded.

More deals followed, including mandates advising Yahoo and Anheuser-Busch on multi-billion dollar deals.

Today, Moelis & Company is a global investment banking powerhouse, with over 20 offices worldwide and billions in annual revenue.

Ken looked back on the skepticism he faced in the early days:

“Do you know how many people told me we were going to go bankrupt?

Eve-ry-one!”

Recommendation’s

• I met Ken recently in a social setting - surprisingly humble and sharp as ever. He even said he’s seen me on Linkedin - though he may have just been polite! Lol.

• Ken rarely gives long interviews outside of markets, but check out the first 20mins of this lecture from 2015 - well worth your time.

1,000 smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: the casino gamble that made FedEx, and what Ray Dalio said to me last week.

The $5,000 Blackjack Bet That Saved FedEx

In 1973 FedEx lost $29 million and was going bankrupt, so the Founder flew to Vegas with the last $5,000 and risked everything on a game of Blackjack…

Fred Smith launched FedEx in 1971 with $4 million inheritance from his father’s airline business and $80 million in loans.

The concept was groundbreaking - air transportation of small, essential goods for efficiency.

But fuel costs skyrocketed.

FedEx couldn’t escape its crippling debt and investors refused to lend more money to the firm.

The company had just $5,000 left in their bank account, but owed $24,000 in fuel bills that week.

Without telling any of his co-founders or colleagues, Fred made a desperate decision…

He took the final $5,000, flew to Las Vegas and bet it all on Blackjack.

Fred’s secret sauce was the ‘Hi-Lo’ card-counting method.

A strategy which only works if the casino plays with one deck of cards.

That, and a chunk of personal confidence: “we played a lot of Blackjack in officers clubs back in Vietnam…I was a very good player” he said.

After hours at the table – the risk paid off.

At 3am, Fred cashed in his chips and walked out of the casino with $27,000 in his pocket.

He returned to the office with a wad of cash.

His co-founder and friend Robert Frock was stunned…

Robert: “You mean you took our last $5,000 – how could you do that!”

Fred: “What difference does it make? Without the funds for the fuel companies, we couldn’t have flown anyway!”

He used the victory to buy some time and secure critical additional funding from investors.

This money allowed the company to stabilize, launch a new advertising campaign and regain investor confidence.

A few years later, FedEx turned its first profit and went on to become a billion-dollar business.

Fred reflected on that time:

“No business school would recommend gambling as a financial strategy, but sometimes it pays to be a little crazy early in your career.”

Recommendation’s

• Fred’s son Arthur Smith joined a Barstool podcast in 2021, and they called Fred live to ask him exactly what happened in Vegas. Watch it here.

• What I’m reading: Ray Dalio’s “How Countries Go Broke: The Big Cycle” (not affiliate link). I love Ray’s writing style, and had the good fortune of meeting him recently - we spoke about his book and life’s work. He said “it feels like I’m just getting started...”

1,000 smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: probably the most outrageous example of a ‘high agency individual’ you’ve ever read.

Steven Spielberg: The Backdoor Billionaire

Steven Spielberg was a 19-year-old nobody who kept getting rejected from film school. Here’s how one unbelievable hustle created a self-made billionaire…

In 1965, Steven Spielberg applied to the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts.

He was rejected.

He applied again.

Rejected a second time.

Instead of giving up, Steven enrolled in a local community college and moved to Los Angeles.

He wanted to be near the action, but that meant getting into Universal Studios. With no money or connections, he had to try something original.

At 19 years old, Steven joined the Universal Studios tour alongside other tourists.

But, half way though he snuck off the tram, hid behind a building, and wandered around the studio lot - alone.

An older man spotted him and asked what he was doing.

Steven said he was looking for a phone to call his cousin, then said:

“I want to be a director.”

The man’s name was Chuck Silvers, head of Universal’s television library. They spoke for an hour. By the end, Chuck handed him a 3-day visitor pass.

On the fourth day, Steven returned to Universal Studios - uninvited - wearing a old suit and carrying his father’s briefcase. He waved at the security guard like he worked there, and the guard waved back.

Steven started showing up to Universal every day.

He snuck into sound stages and editing bays, asking producers and directors to lunch. He built his own apprenticeship from scratch.

Eventually, Chuck gave him tough advice:

“You’ve got to stop showing up empty-handed. Make something of value.”

Steven vanished for months. When he returned, he handed Chuck a 22-minute short film called ‘Amblin’.

Chuck watched it, broke down in tears, and immediately called the VP of production at Universal:

“You have to see this tonight. If you don’t, someone else will.”

The next morning, Steven was offered a contract, becoming the youngest major studio director in Hollywood history.

A shrewd operator, Steven made sure to negotiate profit share from the movies he directed, including blockbusters like E.T, Jurassic Park and Indiana Jones.

He also co-founded Dreamworks SKG, eventually selling the studio to NBC Universal for $3.8 Billion.

Reflecting on those early days with his fathers briefcase and old suit, Steven said:

“I snuck in through the back door…and it opened.”

Recommendation’s

• Read an old interview with Steven from 2018 here, where he talks about this story. If you’re into movies, a fantastic interview with Steven from 1988 here.

1,000 smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: the crazy but true story of a working class lad from the Bronx - Lloyd Blankfein.

From Selling Hot Dogs To Goldman CEO

Lloyd Blankfein wasn’t meant to lead Goldman Sachs - but 24 hours after the CEO quit, he leapfrogged two elite rivals to the top job…

In 2006, Wall Street was stunned.

Goldman’s legendary CEO Hank Paulson had just been appointed U.S Treasury Secretary by President George W. Bush.

The financial powerhouse was at a crossroads.

And now its leader was gone.

Everyone expected one of Goldman’s polished division heads - Gary Cohn or Jon Winkelried - to take the top job.

Both were powerful, well-connected, and seen as natural successors.

But when the board met, Hank dropped a bombshell…

He didn’t endorse either of them.

Instead, he personally recommended someone else - a working class, Bronx-born kid who used to sell hotdogs outside Yankee Stadium.

Lloyd Blankfein.

Lloyd didn’t go to prep school, he didn’t summer in the Hamptons and he didn’t start his career in investment banking - the elite path to power inside Goldman.

He grew up in public housing.

His dad was a postal worker.

His mother was a receptionist.

Up until high school, he shared a small apartment with his extended family, which included his grandmother, his sister and his nephew.

Lloyd’s path to the top began in commodities trading: the firm’s scrappier, rougher division.

But despite his unorthodox path, inside the firm Lloyd was respected and fiercely ambitious. As co-head of Goldman’s powerful FICC division, he had built deep alliances and generated extraordinary profits.

Hank had watched it all, grew a strong relationship with Lloyd, and when the moment came - he backed him.

The board agreed.

Within 24 hours of Hank stepping down, the board named Lloyd new CEO of Goldman Sachs - leapfrogging the front-runners in one of the most high-stake successions in finance.

Years later, Lloyd reflected on his career:

“No one had a grand plan for me. In life, sometimes you need to create your own luck.”

Recommendation’s

• A few great long-form interviews out there with Lloyd, but this 1.5 hour session at HBS in October is by far the best one.

1,000 smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: Ari Gold’s Emanuel’s inase ability to build relationships, and why he thinks 3-day workweeks are in all of our futures.

The Blacklisted Billionaire Framework

At 34, Ariel Emanuel was fired and blacklisted from Hollywood’s elite circle.

Here’s how one question took him from humiliation to self-made billionaire…

Ari Emanuel landed his first job working for a Hollywood talent agency by calling three times a day - for two weeks - until they finally gave him a shot.

He made his way up the ladder and ended up at talent powerhouse ICM.

Ari was a senior agent, but wanted more.

So, he and three colleagues decided to break away and start their own firm. But ICM found out and the trio were fired immediately.

Worse, ICM hit them with a lawsuit - accusing them of conspiring to steal clients and company secrets.

From a small office above a burger shop, Ari and his colleagues launched Endeavor.

The industry blacklisted them and the media laughed at them.

Ari said: “we were sued, we had no money and no clients.”

The situation was bleak...

But Ari had a secret weapon – an insane ability to build relationships.

From the start of his career, Ari made hundreds of phone calls every day, keeping every relationship warm with short check-ins.

His secret sauce: one simple question…

“Can I help you with anything?”

When Ari wanted super-agent Patrick Whitesell to quit his job and join Endeavour, he called him every morning…for two years:

“Can I help you with anything?”

Eventually, Patrick agreed to join.

Endeavor was thriving. And then came the ultimate revenge move…

In 2009, Ari led a takeover of William Morris Agency, the oldest and most prestigious firm in Hollywood.

The same executives who once laughed at him - now worked for him.

By 2024, Endeavor was worth $13 billion. Ari reflected on his approach to building relationships...

“Don’t be afraid to call people, start a conversation. At the very least, you’ll be more interesting and at the most you’ll take your business in new and bigger directions.”

Recommendation’s

• ​Very worthwhile, recent long-form interview with Ari here. He talks about how the data he see’s point to a 3-day work week in the near future.

1,000 smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass

This week’s newsletter includes: a story that will change the way you see Walmart forever, and my short review of BizStory so far.

The Day Sam Walton Looked Up

Sam Walton was bankrupt, heartbroken and trapped – but one genius idea helped him build Walmart into a $250 Billion business...

In 1950, 32-year old Sam Walton was struggling.

His mother had died of cancer aged just 52, he lost his first store and had four kids to feed.

No store, no savings and no path forward.

He sold off everything, borrowed money from his father-in-law and scraped together enough to lease a new store in Bentonville, Arkansas.

But to keep it afloat, he had to drive back and forth across the Ozarks to manage suppliers and rebuild momentum.

A ten hour round trip through winding mountain roads.

Every wasted hour commuting reminded him of what he’d lost.

And what he couldn’t afford to lose again. It was brutal.

But then, one day, he looked up…

A small plane buzzed overhead, and it hit him:

“What if I could fly instead of drive?”

He chartered a pilot, tested the route, and turned a 10-hour slog into a 90-minute flight.

That decision changed everything.

As his chain of stores grew, he bought his own small plane - a ERCO Ercoupe 415C - and set off daily to check store inventory, meet staff and quickly fix problems on the ground.

Walmart continued to expand, in large part because Sam used his plane to scout traffic flows, checking competitor parking lots.

He identified the perfect sites for new stores.

Rivals thought he was reckless, the local press questioned why a small-town retailer was piloting himself around.

But Sam didn’t care.

He knew speed meant insight.

Insight meant edge. And edge meant growth.

Those handful of stores he flew between in the 1950s became Walmart. Today a $500 billion giant with over 10,000 stores worldwide.

Reflecting on that time, Sam said:

“Ignore conventional wisdom. If everybody else is doing it one way, find your niche by going in exactly the opposite direction.”

BizStory Review of 2025

• ​I started the BizStory newsletter in September 2025.

• 1,000+ subscribers: the majority of you work in finance and business - investors, bankers, entrepreneurs. Readers span from Harvard professors to ex-NASA astronauts, to the odd Billionaire! I always say it, but if you read BizStory - you’re in good company.

• My objective: My sole objective is to consistently create stories that are entertaining or educational. An email you can read, enjoy and learn from. It’s great to see a lot of you now replying every week with your view and experiences. I read every email.

1,000 smart finance and business executives subscribe to Business Story, including senior exec’s from Blackstone, PIMCO, Goldman Sachs and Citadel. If you know someone who would enjoy this kind of content, forward this on to them.

Joseph Cass