Leveraged buyouts, as bootstrap deals came to be known, began as a kind of aid to the elderly. By the mid-sixties, many of the men who had founded family-owned companies and prospered during the postwar economic boom were growing old As they looked for ways to avoid estate taxes, yet allow their families to retain control of their firms, they had three options: remain privately held, sell shares to the public, or sell out to a larger company. Each approach had drawbacks. Remaining private ignored the problem. Going public exposed the founder to a fickle stock market. Selling out usually meant
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