William O. Perkins III (born February 2, 1969) is an American hedge fund manager, film producer, author, and high stakes poker player. Perkins manages Skylar Capital, an energy trading hedge fund that had approximately $500 million in assets under management as of 2023.[1]
Bill Perkins | |
|---|---|
 Perkins in 2015 | |
| Born | February 2, 1969 |
| Alma mater | University of Iowa (BS) |
| Occupation(s) | Hedge fund manager, film producer, poker player |
Biography
editEarly life and education
editPerkins grew up in Jersey City, New Jersey. His father, Bill Perkins, was a criminal defense attorney who served two terms in the New Jersey General Assembly and also played in four games as a running back for the New York Jets. His uncle was football player Don Perkins. His mother was a schoolteacher.[2] He graduated from St. Peter's Preparatory School in 1986. He received a B.S. in electrical engineering from the University of Iowa, his father's alma mater, where he was a walk-on defensive back for the Iowa Hawkeyes football team. He did not have good grades and quit playing football before his senior year to focus on graduating.[2] He never actually wanted to be engineer, with a career path almost pre-determined.[3]
Career
editEnergy trading
editIn 1991, watching the movie Wall Street, Perkins knew that he wanted to work in finance and become rich.[3] He hung out for 3 days in the lobby of a company hiring screen clerks, persistently asking for a job as a peon.[3] Perkins then became a trainee for a clerk on the New York Mercantile Exchange at 4 World Trade Center, checking trade logs against computer entries.[3] He started off making under $16,000 per year, which he justified because he was getting experience.[3][4] He received raises rather quickly.[5] In the evenings, Perkins drove a limo for traders, sometimes receiving large tips.[3] At night, he lived with his parents and read books on trading, the oil market, and options.[3] He eventually moved into a shared studio on the Upper West Side.[3]
In 1995, during the deregulation of the electricity market in Texas, Perkins moved to Houston to run a trade derivatives and options desk.[5] He was employed as a trader and risk manager for El Paso Energy, Statoil, AIG Energy Trading, and Zahr Securities.[6] By age 30, Perkins was a millionaire.[2]
In 1997, he founded Small Ventures USA, L.P. It was the lead investor in CUTUCO Energy, a project to build a liquefied natural gas facility and natural gas fueled power plant in El Salvador.[7]
In 2002, he joined his friend and former Enron trader John D. Arnold's new hedge fund, Centaurus Energy. He made $1 billion in trading profits for the firm, including taking the opposite side of trades that led to the collapse of Amaranth Advisors in 2006, making Arnold the youngest billionaire in the U.S. at age 33. Despite annual gains of over 100%, Centaurus shut down in 2012 due to low natural gas prices. Perkins, not ready to retire, then founded Skylar Capital, a fund to trade U.S. gas futures, options and swaps named after his daughter, Sky.[5] It raised $102 million in capital in its first 3 months.[8][9]
In 2006, Perkins was a member of the board of directors of NorthernStar Natural Gas.[7]
Perkins made a $1.25 million profit in a week on a trade in the stock of Goldman Sachs in September 2008, during the 2007–2008 financial crisis.[10]
Perkins' fund gained more than 100% in 2021 and 208% in 2022 after betting on a surge in natural gas prices ahead of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and then adjusting positions as prices declined.[4][1]
Film production
editIn 2009, Perkins became involved in film production, producing various films including After.Life (2009), Unthinkable (2010), and Cat Run (2011).[11]
Personal life
editPerkins has two daughters from a previous marriage to Stephanie Park. In July 2022, he married Lara Sebastian, an actress and professional dancer.[2] Perkins, a proponent of spending or giving away all of his earnings during his lifetime, lives what has been described as an "extravagant lifestyle" and has a popular Instagram account. Perkins also makes $500,000 "novelty bets" with friends on goals such as losing weight. He owns a 55' Sea Ray Stream Boat yacht.[12]
In 2014, for his 45th birthday, at his expense, Perkins rented a "secluded hotel" in St. Barts, flew in friends, and hired Natalie Merchant to perform, saying that it was a once in a lifetime chance for such an experience.[13]
In 2017, he filed a lawsuit against the United States Virgin Islands, claiming that he was entitled to a $5 million tax refund for tax year 2015.[14]
In 2020, Perkins released the book Die with Zero, a book for the well-to-do on how to get the most from both money and life, noting that dying with money in the bank means missed experiences and extraneous working.[2][13]
In 2021, Perkins bought a house on Lake Austin from Bumble founder Whitney Wolfe Herd. It was listed for $28.5 million.[15] That year, Perkins offered a 1-week stay in the house in a charity auction via Charitybuzz to benefit the National Tennis Foundation.[16]
In 2022, Perkins paid $15,275,000 at auction to acquire The Sugar Shack, a 1976 painting by Ernie Barnes that Perkins had coveted for years. It had been estimated to sell for $200,000, although Perkins knew the estimate was artificially low. Perkins expects the painting to be worth over $100 million in the future. The painting is a duplicate of the original, painted in 1971 by Barnes, featured in the sitcom Good Times, and currently owned by Eddie Murphy, who purchased it for $50,000 from the estate of Marvin Gaye.[17][2] Perkins also owns artwork by DabsMyla, Roy Lichtenstein, Angelbert Metoyer, and Augusto Torres.[18]
Perkins has contributed to the political campaign of Andrew Yang and has also contributed over $350,000 to Yang's foundation, Humanity Forward. He has also contributed over $250,000 to the Libertarian National Committee, and $25,000 to the House Majority PAC, which supports a Democratic Party majority in the United States House of Representatives.[19]
Poker
editPerkins, a poker player, has entered notable events including the World Series of Poker, Big One for One Drop, Triton Poker Super High Roller Series, PokerStars Big Game, and PokerStars Caribbean Adventure.[20][21][22] Perkins is friends with and often plays with Dan Bilzerian.[23]
His total live tournament winnings exceed $5.5 million of which $2.7 million came from his One Drop cash at the WSOP.[24] Despite his winnings, Perkins says he has also lost millions and considers himself an amateur.[17]
Philanthropy
editIn 2016, Perkins contributed $1.5 million towards the construction of the William O. Perkins III '86 Athletic Center at St. Peter's Preparatory School, his alma mater.[25]
In 2017, in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma, Perkins chartered a jet to provide generators, chainsaws and critical need medical supplies to the United States Virgin Islands.[26]
In 2023, Perkins funded a $5.9 million gift to the DePelchin Children's Center.[27]
References
edit- ^ a b Steinberg, Julie (January 27, 2023). "This Energy Hedge Fund Returned More Than 200% Last Year". The Wall Street Journal.
- ^ a b c d e f Snyder, Jim (September 2, 2022). "Former Hawkeye Football Player Bill Perkins is All In on Life". Iowa Magazine.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "#237 ‒ Optimizing life for maximum fulfillment - Bill Perkins". Peter Attia.
- ^ a b Fletcher, Laurence (July 19, 2022). "Top US energy trader Bill Perkins opens London office as gas market goes 'crazy'". Financial Times.
- ^ a b c Sittamparam, Rasika (March 2, 2023). "Good energy: US natural gas trader Bill Perkins on moving to London". Spear's Wealth Management Survey.
- ^ "LEADERSHIP". Skylar Energy.
- ^ a b "NORTHERNSTAR NATURAL GAS INC. FORM S-1". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
- ^ Prezioso, Jeanine (January 10, 2013). "Ex-Centaurus trader finds profitable swings in natgas". Reuters.
- ^ Loder, Asjylyn (June 18, 2013). "Skylar Hires Citadel's Loftus Fitzwater to Trade Natural Gas". Bloomberg News.
- ^ Phillips, Michael M. (September 24, 2008). "Trader Makes a Quick $1.25 Million on Rescue, Then Slams It". The Wall Street Journal.
- ^ Leydon, Joe (June 26, 2010). "Review: 'Unthinkable'". Variety.
- ^ Puko, Timothy (August 4, 2017). "Bill Perkins Is the 'Last Cowboy' Betting on Volatile Gas Markets". The Wall Street Journal.
- ^ a b Brown, Paul B. (July 10, 2020). "Awkward Timing, but the Financial Ideas Are Still Sound". The New York Times.
- ^ "Perkins v. United States Virgin Islands". Casetext.
- ^ Thompson, Paul (January 22, 2021). "Luxury housing reaches new heights: Million-dollar bidding wars, cold calls & a potential Lake Austin record". American City Business Journals.
- ^ "LIVE BID! 7-Night Stay on a Luxury Estate on Lake Austin, Texas". Charitybuzz.
- ^ a b Tarmy, James (May 13, 2022). "Why This Fund Manager Paid $15 Million for a Painting Estimated at $200,000". Bloomberg News.
- ^ Kinsella, Eileen (May 13, 2022). "'The Secret's Out': Bill Perkins, Buyer of the Record-Smashing Ernie Barnes Painting at Christie's, Tells Us About His Auction Coup of a Lifetime". Artnet.
- ^ "Donor Lookup". OpenSecrets.
- ^ Lopez, Linette (June 29, 2013). "This Is The Hedge Fund Manager That Knocked David Einhorn Out Of The World Series Of Poker". Business Insider.
- ^ Maldonado, Pamela (June 27, 2013). "Millionaire Businessmen Take On the Poker Pros in the $111,111 One Drop High Roller Event". PokerNews.
- ^ Lopez, Linette (July 23, 2013). "Six Brilliant Hedge Fund Managers Played In A Secret Poker Tournament Last Night". Houston Chronicle.
- ^ Pempus, Brian (April 7, 2016). "Dan Bilzerian, Bill Perkins Thinking Of Double-Or-Nothing Bets To Follow $1.2M Bike Ride Gamble". Card Player.
- ^ "William Perkins' profile on The Hendon Mob". The Hendon Mob Poker Database. Retrieved March 25, 2024.
- ^ Ojutiku, Mak (January 21, 2016). "St. Peter's Prep holds groundbreaking for $5.25 million athletic center". The Jersey Journal.
- ^ "Globetrotting Philanthropist Bill Perkins, Nicknamed "The Last Cowboy of Wall Street," Spearheading A Hurricane Irma Relief Effort in Virgin Islands, His Adopted Homeland" (Press release). PR Web. September 17, 2017.
- ^ France, Chandler (September 12, 2023). "DePelchin Children's Center receives $5.9M gift from Lara and Bill Perkins' nonprofit". American City Business Journals.