Marc Lasry on finance
From StartUp Westport's: Innovator of the Year 2026: Marc Lasry, CEO of Avenue Capital Group · · The Westport Library
“I made them 25 million. This is in 1986. That's a shitload of money back then. What do you think my bonus was? If you make somebody $25 million, what do you think your bonus should be? ... 10,000. That was the bonus.”
On , Marc Lasry, Co-Founder & CEO at Avenue Capital, spoke about finance during StartUp Westport's: Innovator of the Year 2026: Marc Lasry, CEO of Avenue Capital Group on The Westport Library.
About Marc Lasry
Marc Lasry, co-founder and CEO of Avenue Capital Group, was honored as Startup Westport’s Innovator of the Year 2026 at an event held at the Westport Library on May 5. During a conversation, Lasry discussed his career trajectory from a bankruptcy lawyer to distressed-debt investing. He described his strategy of focusing on liquidation values and aiming for consistent returns of 15–20 percent, which he likened to hitting “singles and doubles.” He noted that during the 2008 financial crisis, Avenue Capital managed $20 billion and lost $5 billion in a single year. Lasry also commented on artificial intelligence valuations, stating that he believes they are “way too high” and that while some companies like Anthropic or OpenAI may dominate, he plans to wait rather than invest in the sector. Lasry also discussed his involvement in a failed effort to keep the Connecticut Sun women’s basketball team in the state, describing it as one of the few times he undertook a project where he did not expect to make money. He expressed gratitude for the support he has received from Connecticut and its community. During the event, Lasry recounted an early career anecdote in which he generated $25 million for his employer in 1986 but received a $10,000 bonus. He defended his firm’s practice of buying distressed debt from panicked sellers, describing it as “providing a service” and “providing liquidity.”