Plunder Quotes

“Most importantly, do not give in to despair or nihilism. Yes, private equity is part of a larger story of the financialization of our American economy, a story about how our country has grown more unequal and unjust. But to believe that our condition is, for better or worse, inevitable is exactly what the most privileged among us want you to believe. They want you to think that a better world isn’t possible. They want things to stay as they are. This isn’t to say that change is certain, but it is possible. Let’s get started.”
― Brendan Ballou, Plunder: Private Equity's Plan to Pillage America

“Private equity surrounds you. When you visit a doctor or pay a student loan, buy life insurance or rent an apartment, pump gas or fill a prescription, you may—wittingly or not—be supporting a private equity firm. These firms, with obscure names like Blackstone, Carlyle, and KKR, are actually some of the largest employers in America and hold assets that rival those of small countries.

Yet few people understand what these firms are or how they work. This is unfortunate because private equity firms, which buy and sell so many businesses you know, explain innumerable modern economic mysteries. They explain, in part, why your doctor’s bill is so expensive and why your veterinary clinic seems to be in decline. They explain why so many stores are understaffed or closing altogether. They explain why there are ever fewer companies in America and why those that remain are selling ever lower-quality products.

In fact, despite their relative anonymity, private equity firms are poised to reshape America in this decade the way in which Big Tech did in the last decade and in which subprime lenders did in the decade before that. And as we will explore, they’re all doing it with the government’s help.”
― Brendan Ballou, Plunder: Private Equity's Plan to Pillage America