Overview
Elliott Management Corp. is a hedge fund manager based in New York. It focuses on distressed debt and has a reputation for being an aggressive investor, taking on battles with management and often winning them. Its main funds are Elliott Associates and Elliott International.
Founder and principal Paul Singer is a longtime Republican fundraiser. Mr. Singer and other Elliott employees were big donors to former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani's bid for the 2008 U.S. presidential Republican nomination. He also backed a controversial proposed California ballot initiative in 2007 called "Take Initiative America" to change that state's winner-take-all Electoral College vote system.
The firm is known for investing in the sovereign debt of developing and middle-income countries, including the Republic of Congo. But these positions represent less than 1% of its assets. Recently it has been expanding into commodities trading, including sugar. The firm is looking to raise as much as $2 billion in 2010 to seize the opportunities to invest in troubled companies amid a wave of expected bankruptcies.