Publications

2019
Book

Patient Capital: The Challenges and Promises of Long-Term Investing

By: Victoria Ivashina and Josh Lerner

There has never been a greater need for long-term investments. And it is increasingly unlikely that the public sector will be willing or able to fill the gap. Those best positioned to address the long-run needs are likely to be the pools of capital in the hands of... View Details

Keywords: Long-term Investing; Large Investors; Capital; Investment; Strategic Planning; Problems and Challenges; Opportunities; Society

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January 2018
Case

Trian Partners' Proxy Contest at Procter & Gamble

By: Suraj Srinivasan and Quinn Pitcher

In July 2017, activist hedge fund Trian Partners announced that it was launching a proxy fight at U.S. consumer goods giant Procter & Gamble. P&G would be the largest company ever subjected to a proxy fight, as Trian sought to have its CEO, Nelson Peltz, elected to the... View Details

Keywords: Investment; Corporate Governance; Institutional Investing; Investment Activism; Business and Shareholder Relations; United States

22 Dec 2006
Research & Ideas

What’s Behind the Private Equity Boom?

Podcast with: Josh Lerner Interviewer: James Aisner Running Time: 15 min., 56 sec. View Details

Keywords: by Jim Aisner; Financial Services

March 2024 (Revised June 2024)
Case

Kashat: Navigating the Uncertainties of the Egyptian Fintech Market

By: Paul A. Gompers and Ahmed Dahawy

Karim Nour, the founder of Kashat, an Egyptian nano-lending fintech company, is contemplating how to manage the growth of his startup. Over the summer of 2022, Kashat's loan disbursements had grown by nearly 40%, fueled by macroeconomic instability in Egypt. However,... View Details

Keywords: Fintech; Business Model; Developing Countries and Economies; Acquisition; Business Exit or Shutdown; Mobile and Wireless Technology; Business Growth and Maturation; Business Startups; Financing and Loans; Capital; Financial Services Industry; Banking Industry; Egypt

October 2001 (Revised March 2006)
Case

Chad-Cameroon Petroleum Development and Pipeline Project (A), The

By: Benjamin C. Esty and Carrie Ferman

On June 6, 2000, the World Bank's and IFC's board of directors was scheduled to vote on whether to approve funding for the $4 billion Chad-Cameroon Petroleum Development and Pipeline project. Although the project presented a unique opportunity to alleviate poverty in... View Details

Keywords: Risk Management; Negotiation; Ethics; Social Issues; Economic Sectors; Investment; Cost vs Benefits; Project Finance; Developing Countries and Economies; Corporate Finance; Mining Industry; Chad; Cameroon

14 Apr 2009
First Look

First Look: April 14, 2009

Working Papers The Investment Strategies of Sovereign Wealth Funds Authors: Shai Bernstein, Josh Lerner, and Antoinette Schoar Abstract This paper examines the direct private equity investment strategies across sovereign wealth View Details

Keywords: Martha Lagace

Sara McKinley Torti

Sara Torti is a senior product and operating executive who has focused extensively on creating and scaling technology-based businesses that require a combination of detailed execution, business insight and technical acumen. She has grown products... View Details

September 2023
Case

FoodCloud: Tackling Food Insecurity and Climate Change in One Bite

By: Brian Trelstad and Emer Moloney

In 2013, Aoibheann O’Brien and Iseult Ward founded FoodCloud, a non-profit social enterprise that aimed to address food waste and food insecurity issues. Through its technology platform, Foodiverse, FoodCloud connected surplus food from retailers with community groups... View Details

Keywords: Nonprofit Organizations; Expansion; Technological Innovation; Environmental Sustainability; Social Issues; Growth and Development Strategy; Green Technology Industry; Agriculture and Agribusiness Industry; Food and Beverage Industry; Republic of Ireland; Europe

October–December 2015
Article

Reducing Bounded Ethicality: How to Help Individuals Notice and Avoid Unethical Behavior

By: Ting Zhang, Pinar O. Fletcher, Francesca Gino and Max H. Bazerman

Research on ethics has focused on the factors that help individuals act ethically when they are tempted to cheat. However, we know little about how best to help individuals notice unethical behaviors in others and in themselves. This paper identifies a solution:... View Details

Keywords: Ethics; Management Skills; Behavior; Perception

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December 2022 (Revised January 2023)
Case

Cann: High Hopes for Cannabis Infused Beverages

By: Ayelet Israeli and Anne V. Wilson

Founded in 2018 by Jake Bullock and Luke Anderson, Cann sold “social tonics,” or cannabis-infused beverages. By 2022, the company had several notable celebrity investors and talent partners, had sold over 10 million beverages to consumers, was distributing in six... View Details

22 Aug 2017
Working Paper Summaries

Investors as Stewards of the Commons?

Keywords: by George Serafeim

March 1994
Case

Fremont Financial Corporation (B)

Fremont has a third option to finance its loan portfolio, which involves securitizing and selling the small-business loans into the capital markets. Emphasizes asymmetric information and moral hazard problems involved in designing an asset securitization. When used in... View Details

Keywords: Capital Markets; Financial Markets; Corporate Finance; Financial Services Industry

November 2006
Case

Selling Biovail Short

By: Malcolm P. Baker, Chris Lombardi and Aldo Sesia

Hedge fund SAC Capital and analysts from Gradient Analytics and Banc of America face charges of stock price manipulation from Biovail, a Canadian pharmaceutical company. Gradient and BofA produced negative reports on Biovail's earnings quality. At the same time, SAC... View Details

Keywords: Stock Shares; Investment Banking; Asset Pricing; Financial Strategy; Crime and Corruption; Pharmaceutical Industry; Financial Services Industry; Canada

October 1993 (Revised September 1994)
Case

Northern Telecom (A): Greenwich Investment Proposal (Condensed)

By: Robert J. Dolan

The business products division has developed a business proposal asking for $50 million to fund the creation of a new telephone system for the small business market. The company's last entry into this marketplace lost $70 million. The new product would face 100... View Details

Keywords: Risk and Uncertainty; Communication Technology; Market Entry and Exit; Corporate Entrepreneurship; Investment; Product Development; Telecommunications Industry; Canada