Bill Ackman
Born 1966 · Age 60
American billionaire hedge fund manager, founder & CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management; activist investor and philanthropist.
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Life & Career Timeline
Born in Chappaqua, New York
William Albert Ackman was born in Chappaqua, New York, son of Ronnie I. (née Posner) and Lawrence D. Ackman.
Graduated Horace Greeley High School (approx.)
Completed secondary education in Chappaqua and played on the high‑school tennis team (estimated year based on college enrollment).
Graduated Harvard College (BA, magna cum laude)
Received a BA magna cum laude in social studies; senior thesis titled "Scaling the Ivy Wall: The Jewish and Asian American Experience in Harvard Admissions."
Graduated Harvard Business School (MBA)
Earned an MBA from Harvard Business School; began investing with classmate David Berkowitz.
Founded Gotham Partners (with David P. Berkowitz)
Launched Gotham Partners Management Company shortly after HBS graduation with an initial fund (~$3 million) financed mostly by family and friends.
Married Karen Ann Herskovitz
Married landscape architect Karen Herskovitz; the couple later had three daughters.
Bid for Rockefeller Center with Leucadia
Partnered with Leucadia National to bid for Rockefeller Center; bid failed but raised Gotham's profile and investor interest.
Gotham Partners AUM reached ~$568M
Gotham's assets under management grew substantially during the 1990s, reported around $568 million by 2000.
Gotham Partners litigation and liquidity problems
Gotham became entrenched in litigation with shareholders and experienced large investor redemptions leading to wind‑down decisions.
Published MBIA research and bought credit default swaps
Publicly challenged MBIA's AAA rating and bought CDS against MBIA; legal/regulatory scrutiny followed (including subpoena requiring copying ~725,000 pages).
Announced liquidation of Gotham Partners
Ackman and Berkowitz announced liquidation of Gotham's remaining assets and closure of the firm.
Feud with Carl Icahn over Hallwood deal
Ackman sold $4.5M in Hallwood Realty shares to Icahn under an agreement; later sued when Icahn refused to pay profit split; litigation resolved in 2011.
Founded Pershing Square Capital Management
Launched Pershing Square beginning Jan 1, 2004 with around $54 million (Ackman personal + $50M from Leucadia National).
Profited from MBIA short during financial crisis
MBIA exposure to subprime led to a collapse in value; Ackman's earlier CDS/shorts on MBIA proved profitable during the 2007–2008 crisis.
Reported covering MBIA short (13D filed)
Ackman reported covering his short position on MBIA on Jan 16, 2009, per a 13D filing with the SEC.
Pershing Square became large stakeholder in J.C. Penney; took Howard Hughes chair later
Pershing Square began buying J.C. Penney shares in 2010; Ackman also became chairman of Howard Hughes Holdings in 2010 (company remained a long-term Pershing holding).
Acquired ~39M shares of J.C. Penney
Pershing paid an average of $22 for 39 million shares (~18% of J.C. Penney stock) as part of a multi‑year activist campaign.
Announced $1B short against Herbalife
In December 2012 Ackman publicly announced Pershing Square had made a roughly $1 billion short bet against Herbalife and alleged it was a pyramid scheme.
Carl Icahn builds stake in Herbalife
Carl Icahn publicly announced a long stake in Herbalife in January 2013, opposing Ackman's short and sparking a high‑profile public feud.
Resigned from J.C. Penney board
Ackman stepped down from J.C. Penney's board in August 2013 after disagreements with fellow directors, ending a two‑year transformation campaign.
Pershing Square delivered ~$4.5B in net gains in 2014
Pershing Square reported approximately $4.5 billion in net gains for investors in 2014, bringing lifetime gains to about $11.6 billion since 2004.
Pershing Square Holdings (PSH) listed on Euronext Amsterdam
Launched a publicly traded vehicle (Pershing Square Holdings) to mirror Pershing Square investments; enabled public investors to access Pershing strategy.
Named among world's top 20 hedge fund managers (LCH Investments)
LCH Investments named Ackman one of the world's top 20 hedge fund managers after Pershing Square's strong 2014 performance.
Major investment in Valeant (~$3.2B for ~9% stake)
Pershing Square invested roughly $3.2 billion to acquire about a 9% stake in Valeant Pharmaceuticals (later Bausch Health).
Testified before U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging re: Valeant
Ackman testified alongside Valeant executives about the company's pricing practices and business model during a heated Senate hearing.
Herbalife settled with FTC ($200M) — regulatory outcome of long campaign
Herbalife agreed to pay $200 million and restructure certain U.S. operations to resolve FTC charges; Ackman's campaign had spurred regulators' interest.
Separated from first wife Karen Herskovitz
Public report of separation from wife Karen Ackman; the couple had three children and later divorced.
Sold remaining Valeant shares (to Jefferies) for ≈$300M
Ackman sold 27.2 million shares of Valeant to Jefferies for about $300 million after the position incurred large losses; total cost of position estimated ~$4.6B.
Reported covering portion of Herbalife short; shifted to put options
Ackman announced he had covered his short position in Herbalife but planned to continue a bearish stance using put options.
Exited Herbalife short (~$1B loss)
Ackman completely exited his near‑billion‑dollar short against Herbalife at a loss on Feb 28, 2018.
Pershing Square returned 58.1% in 2019
After poor performance in prior years, Pershing Square posted a very strong return of 58.1% in 2019.
Married Neri Oxman
Ackman married Israeli‑American designer and MIT-affiliated Neri Oxman at Central Synagogue in Manhattan.
First child with Neri Oxman born
Birth of first child with Neri Oxman (spring 2019)
Realized ~$2.6B from COVID‑19 hedge
The CDS hedge generated approximately $2.6 billion in less than a month after markets plunged due to the pandemic.
Hedged Pershing portfolio before COVID crash with $27M CDS
Purchased $27 million of credit protection (CDS) ahead of the market drop; Pershing disclosed the hedge March 3, 2020.
Publicly urged a '30‑day shutdown' to curb COVID-19
In a CNBC interview, Ackman called for a 30‑day U.S. economic shutdown to slow coronavirus spread and warned of widespread economic damage without it.
Founded Pershing Square Tontine Holdings (PSTH) (blank‑check company)
Launched Pershing Square's blank check/SPAC vehicle (Pershing Square Tontine Holdings) in 2020 for potential large transactions.
Donated 26.5M Coupang shares valued at ≈$1.36B
Donated 26.5 million shares in Coupang to three entities including Pershing Square Foundation; value reported ≈$1.36B.
Funded a $25M gift to reestablish David Sabatini lab (announced Feb 2023 partnership)
Announced (Feb 2023) that Pershing Square Foundation + anonymous donor would fund Sabatini $25M over five years to start a new lab.
Led group exploring $150M equity investment in WTA (tennis)
Ackman led investors discussing a $150 million equity investment to take a leadership role in professional tennis (WTA) in 2023.
Public campaign to remove Harvard President Claudine Gay (escalation)
Ackman pressed for removal of Harvard President Claudine Gay over perceived insufficient response to antisemitism and amplified plagiarism allegations.
Announced plans to raise $25B for Pershing Square USA IPO
In early 2024 Ackman aimed to raise as much as $25 billion to take a Pershing Square‑style vehicle public on the NYSE (Pershing Square USA).
Sold 10% stake in Pershing Square for ≈$1.05B
Ackman sold a 10% stake in Pershing Square to an investor group (including Iconiq Capital, Menora Mivtachim, BTG Pactual) for about $1.05 billion to seed a U.S. vehicle.
Harvard President Claudine Gay resigned
Following pressure campaigns including Ackman's public activism, Claudine Gay announced her resignation as Harvard president.
Business Insider exposé on Neri Oxman plagiarism
Business Insider published a report alleging portions of Ackman's wife Neri Oxman's dissertation contained plagiarized passages; Oxman apologized Jan 4, 2024.
Announced he would not support Joe Biden in 2024
Publicly said he would not support President Joe Biden in the 2024 election, citing Biden's alleged lack of support for Israel; later endorsed Donald Trump in July 2024.
Reported participant in private WhatsApp group supporting Israel narrative
Reported to have been in a WhatsApp group with Israeli military leaders and U.S. business leaders to coordinate messaging and screenings of Israeli government‑compiled film; said to have ceased participation on Jan 10, 2024.
Endorsed Donald Trump for president (2024)
Public endorsement of Donald Trump in the aftermath of the attempted assassination in July 2024.
Withdrew Pershing Square USA IPO after weak demand
After securing only about $2 billion in interest versus a $25 billion target, Ackman withdrew the IPO on Aug 1, 2024 and planned to relaunch a revised structure.
Forbes estimated net worth at $9.4B (July 2025)
Forbes reported an estimated net worth of $9.4 billion for Bill Ackman as of July 2025.
Received wild card and played doubles at Hall of Fame Open
Received a wild card into the International Tennis Hall of Fame Open (2025) and lost a doubles match; subsequent controversy and public criticism followed.
Chairman of Howard Hughes Holdings (tenure ended 2024; noted in 2025 filings)
Long‑time Pershing investment Howard Hughes Holdings had Ackman as chairman from 2010 through 2024; Pershing continued to hold material positions through 2025.
Panel at Center for Jewish History defending Trump's defunding of Harvard science
Spoke on a panel with Deborah Lipstadt and Leon Wieseltier defending Trump's defunding of Harvard research funding on grounds of campus antisemitism and alleging coordination of student protesters.
Offered $10M endowment to International Tennis Hall of Fame; gave $10M to Junior Tennis Champions Center
After the Hall of Fame declined a $10M endowment offer, Ackman donated $10M to the Junior Tennis Champions Center; the Hall of Fame later said the event informed future decisions.
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