That will likely be a very short, but very amusing, speech by the one-time Republican vice presidential nominee.
Nevertheless, Asian brokerage and research power-house, CLSA, have invited Mrs. Palin to speak at their annual investors forum in Hong Kong. It will reportedly be Mrs Palin’s first time in Asia, making her financial advice potentially more well-traveled than the former Alaskan governor herself.
From the Wall Street Journal’s China Journal blog (H/T Clusterstock):
[Aug. 31] CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets, a Hong Kong-based brokerage, announced Monday that the former Republican candidate for the U.S. vice presidency and, until she resigned last month, governor of Alaska, will address the Sept. 21-25 event in what a press release called her first international speaking engagement outside North America.
Palin ” who’s never been to East Asia and isn’t exactly famous for her mastery of public speaking or her expertise in finance and international affairs ” might seem an unusual choice for an event that, according to CLSA, is Asia’s premier investment conference providing unrivalled corporate access to 1,300 global fund managers from 32 countries, representing more than $10 trillion in funds under management. CLSA spokeswoman Simone Wheeler says that orators at the forum often come from outside the securities industry. Our keynote speakers are always notable luminaries, and they usually address subjects that go beyond finance, such as geopolitics, she says. Our goal is to provide investors a diversity of views.
Indeed, while the forum has hosted its share of finance bigwigs ” Alan Greenspan addressed it in 2006, the same year Clinton and Al Gore also spoke, and Michael Milken and Marc Faber have both attended multiple times ” it has had a fairly eclectic mix of others, too: Bob Geldof, the rocker turned anti-poverty activist, spoke in 2007, along with Tutu, the Nobel Peace Prize winner from South Africa. CLSA has also hired Sir Elton John, Macy Gray, and Tom Jones in years past as entertainment.
This will also be Palin’s first commercial speaking engagement since taking early retirement from her gubernatorial office.
Interestingly enough, however, as of August 31, Palin’s aides were still claiming that the former VP candidate hadn’t yet finalised any paid speaking engagements, though they noted she had received more than 1,070 invitations for speeches and political appearances since she resigned.
Offers for Palin-brand speeches are expected to go for at least $100,000.
If other bookings generate as much PR and amusement worthwhile financial insight as Mrs Palin’s CLSA engagement undoubtedly will, you can consider it money well-spent.
Related links:
Palin goes to Hong Kong, what will she say? – The Atlantic
Stock picking with Sarah Palin – FT Alphaville
Hedge funds, porn … and Sarah Palin – FT Alphaville