Second Opinion

The Last Days of Lehman Brothers: The collapse of Wall Street bank Lehman Brothers is being dramatised by the BBC in a made-for-TV movie to be shown around October. (Reuters) Got the VC Model Backward? "While so many startups are groveling for funding, the founder and CEO of Paltalk, an online social video conferencing startup based in New York, decided to use its cash to buy back a major chunk of the company from a venture capital backer." (The Deal) South Park Meets Harvard Business School: Introducing California-based Singularity University, a new institution that aims to educate "a cadre of leaders" about the rapid pace of technology and to address humanity's grand challenges, such as climate and health. (FT) Matching Up Lenders With Borrowers: One solution to the credit crunch, which persists, particularly in the middle market, is the "minibond," Luke Johnson suggests. (FT) Silicon Valley Six: Want to know more about the most sought-after startups in Silicon Valley? Reuters has a breakdown of their backgrounds. (Reuters) What Does UBS Stand For: U Better Sing? Unreliable Bankers Swiss? A myriad of other examples from Barry Ritholtz. (The Big Picture)

This Is Bad: The New York Times published a pretty unfavorable article about New York City Comptroller William C. Thompson Jr. The system has lagged in performance behind its peers even as the city tripled its money managers and fees paid. Meanwhile Thompson's campaign contributions have grown. "In some cases, the executives gave to Mr. Thompson just months before the pension funds hired them to manage tens of millions of dollars, according to interviews and public records," the article states. (NY Times) Putting an End to the Speculation: Mark your calendars for August 26 to finally find out what's up with the FDIC's rules on PE investing in banks. That's when they're voting. (Reuters) Debate Club: Private Equity versus Venture Capital. BusinessWeek thinks private equity wins in times of economic trouble. (Bigger is better? Believing the "operational expertise" lie?) (BW) And On The Other Side Of The Pond: Private equity firms are going back to investors for more money to fix ailing companies or to make acquisitions, opening a new round of tough talks as they struggle to recover from the credit crunch. (Reuters) The Travails of Journalists Turned Financiers: The crossover hasn't been pleasant for all. (DJ)

HA: When it comes to Leon Black, The NY Post photo illustration team was not to be outdone by the Times' Greek god-themed image from earlier this year. No, no. The Post has stepped up by superimposing Black's head on the body of a vulture. Get it? Because he's buying up distressed debt! He's a vulture! But if you read the story, you'll learn that he's also The Dark Prince. And apparently the Dark Vulture Prince is attempting, through a loan-to-own process, to buy Charter Communications. Keep reading for a random anecdote about Black's past as an uncommitted high school basketball player. (NY Post) Quick Look: The Tech IPO market-time to party like its 1999? (Deal Journal) Should Goldman Sachs Lower its Bonuses? Some analysts think so. (Dealbook) Crunch Crunch: The tight credit market has kept activist investors sidelined. (Reuters) What's a Mini-MBA? It's a Short program that provides an overview of management essentials. (BW)

CNBC Is Hiring: The financial news network has "extended an invitation to anyone who owns a suit to drop by the financial news network and be a guest expert, cohost a show with Larry Kudlow, or do whatever." (The Onion) Citadel: One more way to keep your leveraged loan holdings liquid. Citadel has opened a trading operation for bank debt. (Bloomberg) FYI: Illinios Teachers plans to commit between $700 million and $1.2 billion next year with between nine and 16 funds. (P&I) Light On The Ladies: "Women represent just 10% of the 747 Europe-based investment professionals at Europe's 10 biggest firms in the private-equity industry, according to figures from data provider Preqin and the firms themselves." (Dow Jones)

Renminbi: More details on Blackstone's China fund. The firm is partnering with the Peoples' Government of Shanghai Pudong New Area. (FT) So Much For That: Recent evidence suggests not only has Wall Street survived, but it is essentially unchanged. (WSJ) IPO Fever: "The worst thing that could happen to an infant exit market is for an over-aggressive listing to dent its fragile confidence." (FT) Everyone Freak Out: Look at all those IPOs. Too bad this BusinessWeek article overlooks the fact that private equity-backed IPOs aren't for profits, they're for debt! (BW) Meanwhile: Barclays is fanning the fire, preparing for a "tidal wave" of private equity-backed IPOs. (Financial News)

Finance DOES Pay: Steve Schwarzman is the highest paid CEO in the US. (peHUB) Blackstone Issues Its First Ever Bond Offering: And its for "general corporate purposes." Is the firm on the prowl for strategic acquisitions? There are plenty of targets out there and Steve and Tony have always hinted at expanding via asset management plays. (Reuters) Is Private Equity Creating a Microlending Bubble? Private equity funds have "poured billions of dollars over the past few years into microfinance world-wide," leading to poor neighborhoods in India being "carpet-bombed" with loans. (WSJ) The Real Housewives of Goldman Sachs: Part two. Now a Goldman wife has been arrested for a DWI. Oy. (Dealscape)

Well if George Says So: The U.S. economy has hit bottom and the current quarter will see positive growth due to the government's stimulus spending, billionaire financier George Soros said. (Reuters) I Swear, He's Cool: "JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon is taking the rare step of meeting with the heads of the biggest buyout shops to assure them that he's behind his new -- but relatively unknown -- head of the team that serves private-equity firms." (NY Post) In the Atticus Aftermath: The Five Greatest Hedge Fund Farewells. (Deal Journal) There's Something About Mary: Felix Salmon noticed a change in the WSJ Stipple drawing of SEC Chairwoman Mary Shapiro. (Reuters)

New Firm Alert: Mahindra Partners, the in-house private equity group of Mahindra & Mahindra. (Reuters) What Are PE Pros Reading This Summer? Contributions from professionals at CalPERS, Carlyle, THL, Bain Capital, Providence Equity, New Mountain Capital and more...(Private Equity Beat) Need a Job? Go to China. (New York Times) Need a Job In Private Equity? Here's some advice from Abby Adlerman, who leads the PE practice at executive recruiter Russell Reynolds. (The Deal)

Throwdown! Investment banks aren't happy that firms like Apollo and KKR are stepping into their territory with their investment advisory services. (FT) When Is the Last Time You Heard an Entrepreneur Say This? "I receive a seemingly endless stream of calls from VCs and private equity firms eager to hand over some of their money," he said. (FT) Retail Therapy: Barney's, backed by Istithmar, is in a little trouble. The firm hired Perella Weinberg Partners to help it restructure its debt. Wonder what this means for Istithmar's other retail businesses (Loehmann's comes to mind) and other struggling PE-backed luxury retailers like Neiman Marcus (Leonard Green) and Lord & Taylor (NRDC)... (NY Post) News Lite: There's an event called Fashion Meets Finance, which, as the NY Times nicely puts it, "shamelessly" attempts to pair women in fashion with men in finance. And that event organization has declared the recession over. Not a self-serving declaration at all, eh guys? (NY Times) News Heavy: Is it now a crime to be poor? (Barbara Ehrenreich)

How Many Times Have You Heard This? "We're a good company with a bad balance sheet?" Daniel Gross thinks that excuse is lame with a capital "L." (Slate) Why a Hyatt IPO Now? The Chicago Tribune reports that family politics are likely driving the move to take the Berkshire Hathaway-backed company public. (Chicago Tribune) TXU Trouble: A group of lenders to the energy giant formerly known as TXU are resisting efforts by the company to amend its loan agreements, according to Dealbook. Oh, Rich Man Follies: Will Guy Hands get away with his tax haven? (NY Times)