Top 10 Worst Biz Deals
Stephen Schwarzman, chairman and chief executive officer of the Blackstone Group.
Graham Barclay / Bloomberg / Landov
#1. The Public Invests in Blackstone Group
It was only a matter of time before the private equity firms let the public in on the game — for an inflated price. Blackstone boss Stephen Schwarzman pocketed half a billion dollars on the firm's $4 billion IPO. Since the IPO debuted, the credit markets seized up and so has the deal flow. After closing at $35.06 on its first day of trading, the stock has slipped 38%. A classic case of selling at the top to the suckers, which would be us — oh, and China too, which invested $3 billion in Blackstone at the height of the leveraged-buyout frenzy. Other private equity IPOs, such as Fortress Investment Group and Och-Ziff Capital Management, took the same route.
Photos: Hamas Recruitment Day
Going Bald for the Box Office
A Brief History of First Ladies and Their Causes
Patti Smith and Mapplethorpe: Bohemian Rhapsody
How They Train: Speed Skater Apolo Ohno
Asian Carp in the Great Lakes? This Means War!
Gift Giving on Facebook Gets Real
The Boy Scouts of America Turns 100
Robert Gates in Afghanistan
10 Questions for Grammy Winner Maxwell