Podcast #118 | John Coates: The Problem of Twelve, Index Funds and Private Equity

In episode #118 of the Boardroom Governance Podcast, Evan Epstein talks with John Coates, the John F. Cogan, Jr. Professor of Law and Economics at Harvard Law School, where he also serves as Deputy Dean and Research Director of the Center on the Legal Profession.

Professor Coates served as General Counsel and as Acting Director for the Division of Corporation Finance for the SEC. Before joining Harvard, he was a partner at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, specializing in financial institutions and M&A. At HLS and at HBS, he teaches corporate governance, M&A, finance, and related topics.

In this podcast, they talk about John’s latest book: "The Problem of Twelve: When a Few Financial Institutions Control Everything," where he highlights how a small number of institutions have acquired an outsized influence over the politics and economy of the nation. The focus in on the Big Four index funds (BlackRock, Vanguard, State Street and Fidelity) and the Big Four of private equity firms (Apollo, Blackstone, Carlysle and KKR).

You can listen to the episode directly in the Boardroom Governance Podcast website (where you can find all the show notes), or wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts such as in: Apple, Spotify, Google and Amazon.

You can also join as a Patron of the Podcast at patreon.com/BoardroomGovernancePod and/or subscribe to the Boardroom Governance Newsletter at evanepstein.substack.com

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