Colin Curvey graduated from Duke in 1993, and since 1999 has worked in London for the private equity firm Duke Street Capital, becoming a partner in the firm last year.
Private equity in the United Kingdom
"When I came here eight years ago most people didn't know about private equity really. They still called it venture capital."
"As the industry has grown, there's naturally been a huge growth in awareness, and frankly there's been a lot of misunderstanding as to what PE funds do. The treasury select committee has started an imprecisely-defined investigation into the effects of private equity on the UK."
London's ascent and culture
"As a barometer, if you take investment banking and consulting, most US firms used to have satellite offices in London," like those in any other foreign city such as Tokyo, Mexico City, etc. Now these London offices are growing and rivalling the size and importance of the American headquarters.
"London is a big, busy, competitive city. There's no getting around hard work, but there's definitely a more balanced approach to life."
"The two big differences are you get more of a holiday, and there's more of a culture of using it. Also weekends are more sacred. I certainly work my fair share of weekends, but they're expected to be family time, not work time."
"There's probably less free time if you work for a big investment bank."
Todd Finegold gradauted from Duke in 1998, and currently works for the Dallas-based hedge fund Maverick Capital. Lifestyle considerations weren't a major factor in his decision to move to London: "I viewed it as an opportunity from a work perspective."
Finegold says that while regulatory issues are a small factor in some of London's success at New York's expense, the driving factor is geography. "People are paying huge prices for assets in emerging markets such as Turkey, the Former Soviet Union and Ukraine. These are underbanked, underpenetrated markets with significant growth potential."
Matt McConnell graduated from the Fuqua School of Business in 2004. He currently works for a hedge fund in London.
Financial regulation in the U.K.
"Right now there seems to be a good partnership between the financial industry, the regulators, and the government and political process."
"The regulator here takes a somewhat different approach than the SEC. It's not quite as rules-based. It's based on principles. A lot of it comes down to good sense."
"You don't spend time looking for loopholes. If a company's behavior smells fishy then they can be prosecuted."
Emma Rasiel is an assistant professor of the practice of economics, as well as the economics department's director of undergraduate studies. Prior to earning her Ph.D. from Fuqua in 2003 she was as an executive director in the London office of the investment bank Goldman Sachs.
Work environment in London vs. New York
"Vacation time tends to be a bit longer in London, just because of different cultural conventions. Working hours in London, for investment banks at least, are pretty much the same as they are in New York. Work culture is probably different in London, because the majority of employees in London offices are from all over Europe, while New York offices are primarily staffed with Americans. There are big cultural differences between Europeans and Americans, and inevitably that spills over to some extent into the work environment in the two cities." (by e-mail)
Sarah Ryan graduated from Duke in 1999, and told her new bosses at Merrill Lynch "from Day 1" she wanted to work in London. Spending her junior year studying at Dublin'sTrinity College made Ryan realize she wanted to live in the Europe. She started out in Chicago but eventually transferred to London, and returned in 2005 after earning her M.B.A.
Ryan has found the community of foreigners in London to be very transient. "I definitely want to be here for the long haul," she said, "[but] the thing is your friends leave often."
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