David Einhorn, the hedge fund manager who is most famous for shorting Lehman Brothers before its collapse, was talking at the Value Investing Congress in New York today.
Mr Einhorn talked about his reasoning for buying gold as a hedge against future inflation, and went into the reasons to be wary not only of the dollar but of currencies including the yen and sterling. Making a choice among them was like choosing between different forms of dental treatment, he said.
The most intriguing moment came when he was asked where he stored the physical gold that his hedge fund Greenlight Capital has amassed. The questioner asked whether the metal was kept in London, since the US government has in the past tried to limit gold speculation in times of economic distress.
No, said Mr Einhorn, his gold was being stored “close to here”. He was speaking at a hotel in Times Square and Greenlight’s head office is on 45th Street in Manhattan.
It felt quite tantalising.
