{"id":2587866,"date":"2026-04-07T06:29:44","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T10:29:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/group-dedicated-to-ethics-in-finance-funded-by-top-bernie-madoff-associate\/"},"modified":"2026-04-07T06:35:35","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T10:35:35","slug":"group-dedicated-to-ethics-in-finance-funded-by-top-bernie-madoff-associate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/group-dedicated-to-ethics-in-finance-funded-by-top-bernie-madoff-associate\/","title":{"rendered":"Group dedicated to ethics in finance funded by top Bernie Madoff associate"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">24<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fgroup-dedicated-to-ethics-in-finance-funded-by-top-bernie-madoff-associate%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2587866&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>&#8211; The Private Equity Stakeholder Project (PESP) is a nonprofit watchdog founded in 2017 to push for ethical practices by private equity-owned companies, focusing on workers, customers, adn the environment.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The Freedom Together Foundation, funded by the estate of Jeffry Picower, a close associate of Bernie Madoff, has become one of PESP\u2019s largest donors, contributing more than 10% of PESP\u2019s revenue in 2024.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Picower was believed to be the single-largest beneficiary of Madoff\u2019s Ponzi scheme; after his death, his estate settled with victims, and his philanthropy continued through Freedom Together Foundation, chaired by Picower\u2019s widow, Barbara Picower.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Since 2019, Freedom Together Foundation has given about $900,000 to PESP, and the foundation also holds substantial financial interests in private equity firms criticized by PESP, including $20.6 million in Carlyle Group holdings and about $4.6 million tied to Brookfield.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; PESP has accused private equity firms of enabling fraud, biased accounting, increased debt for providers, job insecurity for workers, and even colluding to inflating housing costs and rent gouging; the group has testified before U.S. lawmakers on these issues (notably in 2021 and 2024).<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The article notes potential conflicts of interest given Freedom Together\u2019s investments in firms targeted by PESP,and both PESP and Freedom Together did not respond to requests for comment.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Left-leaning group dedicated to ethics in finance funded by estate of top Bernie Madoff associate<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_807263\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>An organization founded to ensure that investment firms conduct themselves ethically counts a charity funded by a close associate of fraudster Bernie Madoff as one of its largest donors, tax filings show.<\/p>\n<p>The Private Equity Stakeholder Project was founded in 2017 as a &ldquo;nonprofit watchdog&rdquo; intended to ensure that companies owned by private equity treat their workers, customers, and the environment fairly. The Freedom Together Foundation, which is funded by the estate of Madoff associate Jeffry Picower, has emerged as one of PESP&rsquo;s most important funders, contributing <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/projects.propublica.org\/nonprofits\/organizations\/900747216\/202513219349101966\/full\">more than 10%<\/a> of its <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/projects.propublica.org\/nonprofits\/organizations\/821722599\/202523159349304262\/full\">total revenue<\/a> in 2024, the most recent year for which data is available.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Picower is believed to have been the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/business\/2010\/dec\/17\/bernard-madoff-friend-jeffry-picower-settlement\">single-largest beneficiary<\/a> of Madoff&rsquo;s infamous Ponzi scheme, taking roughly $7.2 billion in profits from the operation, personally and through related entities, during its more than two-decade run. In 2010, the year following Picower&rsquo;s death, the billionaire&rsquo;s estate agreed to pay the money back to victims of the scheme. While the money was repaid, Picower was nonetheless able to invest it and enrich himself during his lifetime, the proceeds of said ventures going on to finance his philanthropic operations.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>The <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.influencewatch.org\/non-profit\/freedom-together-foundation\/\">Freedom Together Foundation<\/a>, founded by Picower&rsquo;s widow in 2011 and funded by her late husband&rsquo;s estate, is one such charitable operation. Even as recently as 2024, the estate was pouring <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/projects.propublica.org\/nonprofits\/organizations\/900747216\/202513219349101966\/full\">seven-figure sums<\/a> into the foundation. Picower&rsquo;s widow, Barbara, serves as the chairwoman of the board for the Freedom Together Foundation, where she draws a modest salary.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">In this Jan. 14, 2009, file photo, Bernard Madoff arrives at Federal Court in New York. On Thursday, Sept. 24, 2020, a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/federal-court-is-fast-tracking-sidney-powells-request-for-a-forensic-exam-of-dominion-voting-machines\/\" title=\"... Is Fast...Tracking Sidney Powell\u2019s Request For A Forensic Exam Of Dominion Voting Machines\">federal appeals court<\/a> said that investors who profited from Madoff&rsquo;s massive Ponzi scheme must pay back their profits even if they knew nothing of it. Madoff is serving a 150-year prison sentence imposed after he pleaded guilty to federal charges in 2009. (AP Photo\/Stuart Ramson, File)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Since 2019, the Freedom Together Foundation has given <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/projects.propublica.org\/nonprofits\/organizations\/900747216\">$900,000<\/a> to PESP. Over that period, PESP has accused private equity firms of enabling fraud and misleading consumers, not dissimilar to what Madoff was found guilty of doing during his lifetime.<\/p>\n<p>In <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/pestakeholder.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/PESP-Testimony-for-Ways-Means-Oversight-Hearing-on-Private-Equity-and-Healthcare-032521.pdf\">2021 testimony<\/a> to the House Ways and Means Committee, Eileen O&rsquo;Grady, then a researcher at PESP, argued that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/private-equity-drains-resources-from-u-s-hospitals-report\/\" title=\"Private equity drains resources from U.S. hospitals: Report\">private equity&#038;rsquo<\/a>;s increasing presence in the healthcare industry had increased the risk of fraud in public health programs. She further argued that private equity firms use creative accounting to boost their profits while saddling medical providers with debt and risking them going under. O&rsquo;Grady gave <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/pestakeholder.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/April-2024-HELP-written-testimony-FINAL.pdf\">similar testimony<\/a> to the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee in 2024.<\/p>\n<p>PESP has been broadly critical of private equity over nearly a decade of operation, arguing that purportedly irresponsible financial management practices from said firms have <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/pestakeholder.org\/private-equity-risks\/\">consistently exposed<\/a> workers to high levels of job insecurity and failed to compensate them fairly. Additionally, they&rsquo;ve accused private equity players of <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/pestakeholder.org\/explore-the-issues\/housing\/the-real-deal-on-realpage\/\">colluding with each other<\/a> to artificially inflate housing prices and of engaging in <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/pestakeholder.org\/reports\/blackstone-comes-to-collect-how-americas-largest-landlord-and-wall-streets-highest-paid-ceo-are-jacking-up-rents-and-ramping-up-evictions\/\">rent gouging<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3492496\/opeiu-pesp-business-watchdog-union-lobbying\/\"><strong>THIS UNION CUT A CHECK TO A BUSINESS WATCHDOG. WEEKS LATER, THEY WERE DOING ITS BIDDING&nbsp;<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Freedom Together Foundation holds financial interests in many of the specific firms PESP has criticized.<\/p>\n<p>The foundation, for instance, had $20.6 million in holdings with the Carlyle Group as of 2024, <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/projects.propublica.org\/nonprofits\/organizations\/900747216\/202513219349101966\/full\">according<\/a> to its most recent tax filings. The Carlyle Group is one of PESP&rsquo;s most frequent <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/pestakeholder.org\/explore-the-issues\/?filter_pesp_type=3&amp;filter_pesp_issue=&amp;filter_fund_manager=77&amp;filter_submit_btn=Search\">targets of criticism<\/a>, with the latter accusing the former of misleading the public regarding its environmental record, engaging in union busting, and inflating housing costs.<\/p>\n<p>The Brookfield Corporation, another <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >private equity firm frequently criticized<\/a> by PESP, is also present in Freedom Together Foundation&rsquo;s endowment, with the charity holding roughly $4.6 million in assets linked to the firm. Similar to Carlyle, PESP has <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/pestakeholder.org\/explore-the-issues\/page\/2\/?filter_pesp_type=3&amp;filter_pesp_issue&amp;filter_fund_manager=79&amp;filter_submit_btn=Search\">accused<\/a> Brookfield of skirting federal disclosure requirements, union busting, and making money off fossil fuels despite publicly taking an eco-friendly stance.<\/p>\n<p>PESP and Freedom Together Foundation did not respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Madoff associate&#8217;s charity funds ethics watchdog group<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":894,"featured_media":2587867,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/AP21104489273534.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[77300,77297,77299,59298,77298],"class_list":["post-2587866","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-corporate-ethics-2","tag-ethics-in-finance","tag-financial-accountability-2","tag-fraud-prevention-2","tag-ponzi-scandals"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/AP21104489273534.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2587866","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/894"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2587866"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2587866\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2587870,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2587866\/revisions\/2587870"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2587867"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2587866"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2587866"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2587866"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}