Investing isn’t sports, where the best team wins. Over time the cream tends to rise to the top–ask Warren Buffett–but the ground is littered with failed investment teams that were sold on charm and connections, rather than solid strategies. That’s how someone with Mark Mezvinsky’s connections–he’s Chelsea Clinton’s husband–can get otherwise savvy investors to back him and his partners to the tune of $400 million. Mezvinsky’s Eaglevale Partners Main Fund lost money in two of the last three years, according to the Wall Street Journal. The WSJ also says that the Eaglevale fund focused on Greece lost a staggering 48% last year, having been “incorrect” about the Greek economy.
Overall, the Eaglevale main fund dropped just 3.6%, whereas “similar hedge funds tracked by HFR Inc.” rose 5.7%. The S&P 500 outperformed hedge funds generally, as Warren Buffett predicted.
