A Manhattan financier who jumped to his death from the 10th floor of a skyscraper on Monday struggled to keep his company afloat after the departure of his longtime business partner and the impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Charles de Vaulx, 59, was the chairman and chief investment officer of International Value Advisers (IVA) when he apparently took his own life on Monday at the company’s offices at 717 Fifth Avenue in midtown Manhattan.
The company confirmed the married father-of-two’s death on its website but the cause of his death was revealed by the research firm Morningstar, which reported that the award-winning portfolio manager had apparently taken his own life.
And while de Vaulx’s death occurred seven weeks after the firm abruptly announced it would liquidate its funds and halt business, his company, which was once worth $20billion, began unraveling last year.
Though the reasoning behind IVA’s liquidation, which was completed on April 19, is still a mystery, it is believed the company started its downfall in the early months of the pandemic and continued through the summer when Vaulx’s business partner Chuck de Lardemelle left abruptly.
His resignation caused alarm for clients in the company, which by that time had already been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic as investors withdrew their money.
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Charles de Vaulx (pictured), 59, was the chairman and chief investment officer of International Value Advisers (IVA) when he allegedly took his own life on Monday at the company’s offices at at 717 Fifth Avenue in midtown Manhattan
De Vaulx’s company began unraveling last year, partly do to the pandemic and to the abrupt departure of his longtime business partner, Chuck de Lardemelle (left), who left IVA in July 2020
According to Morningstar, the reason de Lardemelle’s departure didn’t go over well with some was because clients felt reassured having two experienced individuals in place instead of just one, de Vaulx.
De Lardemelle is also said to have been ‘more at ease’ with handline the client-relations duties.
According to the New York Post, de Lardemelle and de Vaulx would often bicker over day-to-day workings of the company like the workflow and which analysts would report to who.
And just months before de Lardemelle left the firm, the pandemic was already hobbling value trading strategies across the board.
In 2020, the S&P 500 Value index gave investors total returns of 1.4 per cent, a far cry of the 16.5 per cent returns of the entire S&P 500 complex, according to S&P Global.
There’s no doubt that 2020 was the worse year value stocks have ever had, which followed followed their worst performing decade between 2010 and 2019.
In fact, value investing has returned an annualized 10.7 per cent over the last decade, which makes it the second-worst performing of the 11 trading strategies, according to S&P Global.
The company confirmed the married father-of-two’s death on its website but the cause of his death was revealed by the research firm Morningstar, which reported that the award-winning portfolio manager had apparently taken his own life
Emergency personnel respond to the scene on Monday after reports of a man jumping from a skyscraper
Couple the pandemic and de Lardemelle’s departure with investors continuously pulling money from IVA, led to de Vaulx watching his company go from being worth $20billion to just $3billion in assets shortly before it was closed last month.
Sources close to de Vaulx told the Post that he was hurt when some investors no longer trusted him with their money.
‘It was never about the money,’ one person close to de Vaulx told the outlet. ‘IVA was an embodiment of de Vaulx’s personality and when it began to unwind, he took it personally.’
In a statement on IVA’s website, company representatives wrote: ‘It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of our Chairman and CIO, Charles de Vaulx. The entire IVA community convey their deepest sympathy to his family at this difficult time.’
De Vaulx had founded the company 14 years ago and built it up to be worth more than $20billion in assets at its peak.
A body believed to be that of de Vaulx is covered with a sheet on the road after his suicide
Charles de Vaulx (center), founder of International Value Advisers, is seen in a July 27, 2018, photo visiting the offices of Commonwealth Capital Management in Kentucky
A street view from the skyscraper which de Vaulx plunged from is seen above
A source close to de Vaulx told the Post that the tale of de Vaulx is ‘a Shakespearean tragedy on a lot of levels’ because ‘many of the stocks he owned have appreciated significantly in the past few months’.
The source described the late financier as a ‘complex man with a lot of hubris’.
‘[He] felt he failed in his mission of value investing and lost his raison d’etre,’ the source added.
De Vaulx was a protégé of legendary investor Jean-Marie Eveillard and had founded IVA after abruptly leaving the firm First Eagle.
Known as a value manager who favored undervalued and unloved stocks, de Vaulx was named Morningstar’s International Stock Manager of the Year in 2001 along with Eveillard – his long-time mentor. He was a runner-up for the same prize in 2006.
In a statement on their website, First Eagle shared: ‘We are saddened to learn of the passing of our former colleague Charles de Vaulx. A long-time champion of value investing, Charles left an indelible mark on the investment management industry and on those who had the opportunity to work with him.
‘He was a key contributor to First Eagle’s Global Value team under the leadership of Jean-Marie Eveillard, spending 20 years of his career with First Eagle Funds (and its predecessor SoGen Funds) as an analyst and portfolio manager until his departure in 2007. We extend our deepest condolences to Charles’s family and friends during this difficult time.’
Call the toll-free 24-hour hotline of the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (1-800-273-8255); TTY: 1-800-799-4TTY (4889)
