Bono's Facebook investment

[jameskinsella]

I'm not sue if this has been posted yet. If it has, admin can delete it.

It's on aol.co.uk. I not sure how to properly post the link so I've just used copy and paste.

He's not just a pretty face, that Bono. It turns out, rather than putting all his eggs in one superband-shaped basket, the U2 frontman made a smart little investment in Facebook last year.

We say little, it was actually £130 million for a 1.5 per cent share but let's face it, that's probably a drop in the ocean, where Bono's concerned.

And 2011 is already lucky for the Irishman because the social networking site's value has soared this week and his £130m has already turned into £485m.

It's particularly good news for Bono - his investment firm, Elevation Partners, was once voted the "worst investor in America".

 

[gvox]

Huh! Not bad!

 

[Moser]

Smart investment!

But I have a feeling Facebook is way overvalued, so I would cash out when it goes public!

EDIT: Okay, not immediately after it goes public. But when it starts dropping, I would jump ship and not believe in false hopes.

 

[jameskinsella]

If that money is truly Bono's investment, and not that of a consortium, then if he does cash in at that value.....that would make him the second richest recording artist in the world after McCartney, right?

Imagine the press he'll get.

 

[Galeongirl]

It's not just his money. It's his firm's money..

 

[powerhour24]

But you'd probably be hard pressed to find another living recording artist more financially successful than U2 and McCartney.

 

[MikeyJB]

Yet more ammo for the haters I suppose. You can see the point I suppose, I mean how can he justify such obscene investments whilst campaigning for the world's poor?! I dunno, I more than admire his humanitarian efforts and I do appreciate its his money to do what he likes with...its just a tricky juxtaposition to contend with.

 

[powerhour24]

the more money he makes, the more he can do with it. Also, he's the type of humanitarian that knows that throwing the most money isn't the best way to help a cause.

 

[corianderstem]

No, no - if you're going to get behind charity and stuff, you either have to live in utter poverty or else you're a hypocrite!

Or, once you've advocated your charity, you cannot do anything else whatsoever with your money!

True fax.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

I suppose after palm and spiderman he had to have a hit eventually.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

If that money is truly Bono's investment, and not that of a consortium, then if he does cash in at that value.....that would make him the second richest recording artist in the world after McCartney, right?

Imagine the press he'll get.

I'm not sure macca is number one anymore, considering all the royalties he lost to michael jackson and to ole captain one leg.

I actually think it's jay-z.

Bono splits all of u2's royalties 5 ways so I would doubt he's at the top of the list.

 

[VintagePunk]

No, no - if you're going to get behind charity and stuff, you either have to live in utter poverty or else you're a hypocrite!

Or, once you've advocated your charity, you cannot do anything else whatsoever with your money!

True fax.

Seriously. Why the hell do people care what he's (not actually he, but his group) investing in, and how successful or unsuccessful the investments are? Why is this newsworthy? If he were spending the money on coke and whores, that would at least be titillating news, but this? Crazy.

 

[GirlsAloudFan]

When they make The Social Network 2, I'm totally going to star as Bono.

 

[BVS]

Yet more ammo for the haters I suppose. You can see the point I suppose, I mean how can he justify such obscene investments whilst campaigning for the world's poor?! I dunno, I more than admire his humanitarian efforts and I do appreciate its his money to do what he likes with...its just a tricky juxtaposition to contend with.

This makes very little to no sense... It was his riches that allowed him to do his humintarian work, if he stopped making money he would have to stop or at least slow down his good works...

How many living in poverty are making a difference with the poverty stricken?

 

[MikeyJB]

This makes very little to no sense... It was his riches that allowed him to do his humintarian work, if he stopped making money he would have to stop or at least slow down his good works...

How many living in poverty are making a difference with the poverty stricken?

Oh come on, I'm not saying anything remotely like the idea that he has to stop making money (like that's ever gonna happen anyway) or give up all his riches, he's worked hard for and deserves them. Just like he has the right to horde it all for himself somewhere on a tropical island like most other wealthy people do. All I saying is that whilst I know all that, there is still a part of my gut that feels like that huge level of wealth, that the vast majority of people will never see anything close to, should be related, at least in part, to his humanitarian work.

I dunno, I respect everything the guy does charity-wise, god knows its far more than I would ever be able to or would have the drive to do; I guess I just find Bono the entrepreneur investing vast amounts of capital into technology and social media, and Bono the humanitarian rallying governments to invest capital into poorer nations slightly tricky to comprehend or make sense of.

Plus BVS, I would add that there are many many people out there who make small but worthwhile differences trying to help those in poverty whilst being close to poverty themselves. Just they don't make the headlines.

 

[vjacqb]

I suppose after palm and spiderman he had to have a hit eventually.

My thoughts exactly about Palm. Spiderman might still turn around...


Look, the guy is trying to make money for college funds of his kids. Can't blame him for investing his wealth. Plus, then he'd have more to give out in charity. Sounds like a win situation to me.

 

[biff]

Actually, the Palm investment worked out very well in the end: Hewlett-Packard bought it for $1.2 billion, so they more than made back their money.

 

[MikeyJB]

Look, the guy is trying to make money for college funds of his kids.

By amounting an investment of nearly half a billion dollars?!?

In the UK at the moment there's a huge shitstorm unfolding about university tuition fees being raised, and how kids from less than affluent backgrounds will be restricted from higher education. With that amount of money Bono could pay for nearly all these kids college fees.

 

[BoMac]

By amounting an investment of nearly half a billion dollars?!?

In the UK at the moment there's a huge shitstorm unfolding about university tuition fees being raised, and how kids from less than affluent backgrounds will be restricted from higher education. With that amount of money Bono could pay for nearly all these kids college fees.

I would think that the money he's accrued during his career is more than enough to pay for the education of his children, grandchildren, and even great-grandchildren.

He doesn't need this Facebook investment for that.

But that's neither here nor there, and I couldn't care less about how much money he makes.

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

He should make as much as he possibly can... as should everyone else in the world.

 

[MikeyJB]

He should make as much as he possibly can... as should everyone else in the world.

"Greed is good"

Not sure I agree with that statement to be honest. It was exactly that mentality that landed the world in this current economic mess.

 

[MMP]

"Greed is good"

Not sure I agree with that statement to be honest. It was exactly that mentality that landed the world in this current economic mess.

There's a large difference between greed and "make as much as you possibily can". Greed can make you do things that shouldn't be possible due to legal restraints. When you cross those barriers you go into greed territory. But make as much money as you can while still having a conscience isn't wrong. That's what capitalism is about.

 

[popacrobat]

He should make as much as he possibly can... as should everyone else in the world.

/thread

 

[lemonfly]

I'm guessing that someone like Bono has an army of business people who invest his money without him knowing too much about it? I don't think Bono spends his days delving into the stock markets on his laptop, he let's his employees get on with it and he checks the balance sheet at the end of each month. I don't care about the "money side" of it. None of my business. It is possible for people to be hard nosed capitalists and humanitarians/philantropists concurrently. Bill Gates doesn't get any grief, but Bono admittedly makes himself an easy target with all his "preaching".

 

[deep]

Bono should have stayed with FB, and done TSN soundtrack
and let Trent Reznor do the Spidey project.

 

[powerhour24]

Trent Reznor Spider-Man Broadway musical... now there's a crazy concept to think about for a moment.

 

[MikeyJB]

Bill Gates doesn't get any grief, but Bono admittedly makes himself an easy target with all his "preaching".

But equally Bill Gates' direct charitable donations have been well-documented and reported in the press whereas Bono's not-so. Plus Bono/RED incurred all that stick last year for wasting donations money. I'm not suggesting that Bono needs to make his donations public, just that the fact that he doesn't clearly makes it easier to be cynical about his humanitarian work when coupled with investments such as this, whilst similarly Gates receives no criticism.

 

[MikeyJB]

Bono should have stayed with FB, and done TSN soundtrack
and let Trent Reznor do the Spidey project.

But then we would never have heard Reznor's Social Network score which is, in my opinion, remarkable and well-worthy of winning an Oscar this year.

 

[gman]

"Greed is good"

Not sure I agree with that statement to be honest. It was exactly that mentality that landed the world in this current economic mess.

No it wasnt....it was banks giving out loans to bad debts!

 

[MikeyJB]

No it wasnt....it was banks giving out loans to bad debts!

I don't think its too much of a stretch of the imagination to envisage the mentality of 'make as much money as we possibly can' being inherent in the bankers who instigated the economic collapse though, do you?