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Loeb criticizes W. Buffet

07/05/2015 16:08
Hedge fund mogul Daniel Loeb called billionaire Warren Buffett a hypocrite.

Daniel Loeb manages funds of $17.5 bn of Third Point, which is a major shareholder of Hellenic Bank with a share of 22.55%.

"I love how he criticizes hedge funds yet he really had the first hedge fund. He criticizes activists but he was the first activist," Loeb said, according to Reuters.

Loeb, known in investment circles for his sharp tongue and top returns, made the comments at the SkyBridge Alternatives Conference, known as SALT, less than one week after Buffett hosted his company's shareholder meeting in Omaha.

Buffett, whose own strong record earned him his nickname, has in the past said that hedge funds could pose a threat to global markets and has a running bet with a New York-based hedge fund firm that hedge funds will underperform a low-cost index tracker over ten years. So far Buffett is winning the bet, he said at the weekend meeting in Omaha.

“In Las Vegas, where Loeb was speaking to hundreds of hedge fund managers, investors, and lawyers in the Bellagio ballroom, the crowd was clearly on the fund manager's side, judging by the hearty applause his comments got”, Reuters said.

“He has a lot of wisdom but there is a disconnect,” Loeb said referring to the things Buffett says and what he actually does.