One size doesn't fit all

When Marc Mogull, founder of London-based Benson Elliot Capital Management, stood up before delegates at the PERE Forum: Europe 2008 in London last month, he knew his comments would be controversial. He wanted them to be. Reigniting the debate about the relationship between general and limited partners, as well as corporate governance principles and guidelines published by the European Association for Investors in Non-listed Real Estate Vehicles (INREV), Mogull wanted to call attention to what he argued were the dangers of a “one size fits all” approach to reporting and corporate governance. A snap poll of the audience revealed that most people agreed with the thrust of his comments. Here, in an abridged version of Mogull's speech, the founder of Benson Elliot sets forth his views on the general partner-limited partner relationship, and why the INREV guidelines are not for him.