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Ken Griffin is no stranger to giving out big gifts in the big cities where he lives and does business. In Chicago, the financial magnate donated $125 million in 2019 to help modernize the Museum of Science and Industry. Now the billionaire founder of the Citadel financial empire is using his fortune to make a mark in Florida, where he moved from Chicago in 2022. His gifts are the highest-profile example of how recently transplanted financial professionals are forging a new era of philanthropy across the Sunshine State. From Tampa to Miami and Sarasota to Boca Raton, affluent young people and families rooted in Wall Street careers have helped drive a boom in giving.
Summary and audio linked here.
Chicago’s political leadership is floating a pension buyout program as evidence it is seriously addressing the city’s thirty-six-billion-dollar unfunded pension liability, but Mark Glennon, founder of the Illinois policy research organization Wirepoints, said that the proposal moves debt from one column to another rather than reducing it, and that the broader fiscal picture facing the city continues to deteriorate across every measurable dimension. Audio here.
Expect no retraction or apology. This what they do.
The state’s existing buyout program for its own pensions is the precedent for Chicago, which should be a warning: Look out for similar exaggerated claims and shoddy analysis.
Full interview and summary linked here.
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Ken Griffin and a fair chunk of his firm left because the city, states attorney, cook county circuit court system and the state backed off on enforcing criminal law, and apparently intentionally let crime get out of control. He warned the city and county. He made huge donations to charities and our cultural scene (hospitals and museums) while he was here. The D’s from Pritzker on down said don’t let the door hit you in the a** on the way out, and that it was no big deal. Chicago’s loss. I saw that Pritzker only recently admitted he was sad… Read more »
He’s setting a really good example for Jumbo Belly to follow in Chicago.
Ken Griffin/David Geffen also donated $400M to Sloan Kettering cancer center.
https://www.mskcc.org/news-releases/mskcc-announces-landmark-400-million-gift-from-kenneth-griffin-and-david-geffen