Bill Ackman Wants Firm’s Listing On Amsterdam Stock Exchange Dropped After Antisemitic Attacks

08 Nov 2024 by Ty Roush · Forbes

Topline

Bill Ackman, the billionaire founder and CEO of Pershing Square Holdings, said Friday he has requested approval from the hedge fund’s board to remove the company’s listing from Amsterdam’s stock exchange, citing a series of antisemitic attacks in the Dutch city this week.

The hedge fund billionaire said “events” in Amsterdam were an “appropriate tipping point,” after ... [+] dozens of people were arrested for antisemitic attacks in the city.Associated Press

Key Facts

Ackman, in a lengthy post on X, wrote he will seek approval from Pershing Square’s board to eliminate its listing on Euronext’s Amsterdam exchange, saying events in the city over the last 24 hours “provide an appropriate tipping point for this conclusion.”

On Thursday, the Israeli Embassy in the Netherlands said fans of the Israeli soccer club Maccabi Tel Aviv were “ambushed and brutally attacked” as mobs “chanted anti-Israel slogans” in Amsterdam after the team’s match against the Dutch club Ajax.

Amsterdam police said 62 people were arrested and five people were hospitalized after the attacks, adding law enforcement was investigating reports of a possible hostage situation and missing persons.

Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof condemned the “completely unacceptable antisemitic attacks on Israelis,” noting he had spoken with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to say those who carried out the attacks “will be tracked down and prosecuted.”

Removing Pershing Square’s listing in Amsterdam will allow trading to concentrate on the company’s listing on the London Stock Exchange, which represents more than 90% of its trading, Ackman said.

Ackman said he has also spoken with Universal Music Group—whose board Ackman sits on—to move its listing from Amsterdam to the U.S., suggesting the move will “offer … highly material benefits.”

Crucial Quote

Men on scooters searched for Maccabi supporters and carried out “hit and run” attacks, according to Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema, who reportedly condemned the incidents: “It’s against everything we’re proud of in Amsterdam.”

Key Background

Ackman has become a prominent critic of antisemitism over the last year, following a series of pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses after the militant group Hamas attacked Israel. In December 2023, Ackman doubled down in his criticism of his alma mater, Harvard University, where he had been a major donor, and said antisemitism had “exploded” at the Ivy League school. Ackman claimed on social media that protests at the school had “gotten more aggressive” and pushed for the removal of Harvard President Claudine Gay, who eventually resigned. Ackman offered similar criticisms against students protesting at other universities, including the University of Pennsylvania and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In an interview with CNBC earlier this year, Ackman indicated he would launch an activist organization to combat antisemitism and reform higher education.

Forbes Valuation