Chris Bryant, Columnist

Paul Singer Got Coronavirus Right But May Still Lose

A leveraged buyout of Travelport caused bother for Blackstone a decade ago. Now it’s Elliott’s turn.

April 16, 2020 at 5:30 AM UTC

Chris Bryant is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering industrial companies in Europe. Previously, he was a reporter for the Financial Times.

Grounded.
Photographer: Alex Kraus/Bloomberg

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Hedge fund boss Paul Singer began warning employees at Elliott Management Corp. to prepare for quarantines as early as the start of February, well over a month before New York finally mandated a lockdown.

Though Singer was quick to realize how the new coronavirus would transform our lives, his prescience had its limits. It couldn't keep one recent investment — Elliott’s $4.4 billion debt-laden buyout of Travelport Worldwide Ltd., completed last May together with partner Siris Capital — from taking a battering in the ensuing economic turmoil.