Citadel boss Ken Griffin sees Miami taking over New York as financial capital
Hedge fund manager Ken Griffin said there’s a chance Miami could one day overtake New York’s Wall Street as financial firms concerned about rising crime rates migrate to the state’s business-friendly climate. Sol and its lower taxes.
“I believe Miami represents the future of America,” Griffin said, praising the city’s “incredibly vibrant economy” in remarks at the Citadel Securities Global Macro Conference in Miami, according to a transcript obtained by The Post.
“We’ll see how big Wall Street South gets,” Griffin added in comments that were previously reported by Bloomberg“We’re in Brickell Bay, and maybe in 50 years it will be Brickell Bay North as we refer to New York in finance.”
Miami has become a hub for financial titans like Griffin, who moved his company from crime-ravaged Chicago to Miami last June and recently splashed out on a $107 million home in Coconut Grove.
That was after Carl Icahn’s Icahn Capital Management abandoned its posh Manhattan digs above the General Motors building on Fifth Avenue in favor of a 14-story office complex in a Miami suburb in August 2020.
Hedge fund magnate Paul Singer’s Elliott Management, which oversees a total of $59.2 billion after shifting investment targets such as AT&T, Twitter and the Argentine government, also moved its headquarters from midtown Manhattan to West Palm Beach, Florida, in October 2020.
In total, 160 Wall Street firms have moved out of the Big Apple in recent years, 56 of which brought their businesses to Florida, absorbing a whopping $1 trillion in financial assets under management outside of Manhattan.
Citadel’s move to the Sunshine State was reportedly motivated by Florida’s business-friendly climate and tax advantages, and by concerns about rising crime rates in Chicago, people familiar with the matter said at the time. Griffin’s thought.
The $51 billion firm is now spreading its wings across six floors at the 830 Brickell Tower Building, which recently wrapped construction this year in Brickell, largely considered the financial district of South Florida.
Although Griffin has seemingly gone all-in on Florida, he still maintains a sizable presence in New York, which has yet to lose business to Miami.
“Talent density in both financial services and large enterprises in New York City is among the highest in the world,” Griffin said.
“It’s really the epicenter of people who are thoughtful and passionate about their careers.”
Citadel plans to build a 1,350-foot Manhattan skyscraper, extending higher than the top floor of the Empire State Building, comprised of 51 floors of offices and seven terraces, according to Bloomberg.
The new office space at 350 Park Ave. is expected to be completed in 2032.
Griffin, who is worth $35.5 billion, according to Bloomberg, is also spearheading a construction project in Palm Beach, where he plans to build a palatial estate on the 27 acres of Palm Beach waterfront he recently acquired.
When the ambitious renovation, which is expected to net Griffin up to $400 million, is complete, his mega-property will be worth an estimated $1 billion, making it the most expensive home on the planet.
This colossal property will be situated just a quarter-mile south of former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago, a stretch of South Ocean Boulevard known to locals as “Billionaires’ Row.”
It’s unclear exactly when the mammoth mansion will be finished, which comes after the 55-year-old purchased a $106,875,000 four-acre compound in Coconut Grove this time last year.
Citadel representatives declined to comment beyond Griffin’s comment Tuesday.
