George Soros - Hedge Funds, Philanthropy
Although long a familiar name to investors, George Soros would be unknown to the general public if not for his tens of millions in "soft-money" funding for left-wing political groups. A long-time advocate of what he calls open societies, Soros has practically acknowledged his desire to destroy the Bush administration. Before the 2004 presidential election, he said he would donate his entire fortune if it would guarantee Bush's defeat.
In foreign policy, Soros advocates working with the United Nations to resolve international crises peacefully. Although he built much of his fortune using off-shore accounts outside the U.S. tax system, he supports more progressive taxes. Like billionaires Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, Soros advocates higher estate taxes yet selects charitable organizations. Apparently the government knows the best use of everyone's money but his own.
His philanthropy isn't limited to the political arena. He's donated over $4.6 billion to charities, mostly eastern European organization, and at one time was the largest single contributor to post-Soviet Russia, a country where he lost over $1 billion when the ruble collapsed.
As far as creating wealth, Soros is most interesting when compared to Warren Buffett. Born only eighteen days before Buffett, Soros was on the opposite side of the world geographically and politically. The Jewish man survived both Nazi and Soviet occupation of his native Hungary to escape to the West. Although his investing style was opposite Buffett's, Soros matched his lifetime performance.
If the academicians have a tough time reconciling Buffett's success, they have even more difficulty accepting that Soros' highly leveraged and frequently speculative trades wouldn't lead to disaster. Despite his success, they almost did.