TIME designated Summer 2001 in honor of the Shark. Private equity underwriters (PEU's) managed $750 billion in assets at the end of 2001.
For the last decade PEU sharks hunted for companies. By 2007 they were in a full-out feeding frenzy. At the end of 2011 PEU's had $3 trillion in assets under management.
That's 300% growth in AUM over a decade, which means more financial sharks are in the water. 2012 is the Year of Dividend Bleeding for PEU Chums.
