Finn M. W. Caspersen describes himself as a political independent: Over the years he has backed both Republicans and Democrats, often focusing on officials with influence over the financial industry. From 1976 to 1998, Caspersen ran the Beneficial Corporation, one of the nation's largest consumer-lending companies, which specialized in managing credit card and mortgage debt for low- and middle-income Americans.
With Caspersen at the head, Beneficial kept close watch on tax laws and banking regulations, targeting many of its contributions to members of the House Banking and Financial Services Committee. Caspersen himself appeared before the Senate Government Affairs Committee in 1995 to ask for more favorable tax procedures for Beneficial's low-income tax-refund loans. At the time, consumer advocates charged that the fees levied by Beneficial and other lenders were too high considering the low risks and short terms of the tax-refund loans.
Beneficial dismissed such accusations. "Banks and finance companies aren't generally liked anyway," company vice president Gary Perkinson told the Los Angeles Times in 1997. "Who likes a bank? You go down the pole and you get to consumer finance companies. You imagine what would happen to us if we weren't in Congress or various state legislatures, making our case."
In 1998, the company's political relationships paid off with congressional approval of Beneficial's merger with competitor Household International. Shortly after the merger, the New York Times estimated that the Caspersen family owned stock valued at $860 million.
Caspersen soon left Household to start Knickerbocker Management, a private investment firm catering primarily to trusts and foundations. He is also chairman of Westby Corporation, a private agriculture conglomerate; a member of the Harvard Law School Dean's Advisory Board; a trustee emeritus at Brown University; a trustee of the New Jersey State Board of Higher Education; and a former chairman of the American Financial Services Association, a national trade association.
During the 2000 election, Caspersen sat on the steering committee of the Republican Leadership Council, an advocacy group which lists its mission as social inclusion, lower taxes, and less government regulation. In addition to the money he gave directly to politicians and parties, Caspersen also funded a $250,000 advertising campaign against Senator Jon Corzine (D-N.J.). The ad took Corzine to task for not releasing his income tax returns. "I just wanted to elevate it to a higher level of debate," Caspersen told the New York Times.
Caspersen gave another $100,000 to help fund George W. Bush's inauguration. His wife, Barbara, also gave $100,000.
-- Michael Scherer
