Terren Peizer
Terren Scott Peizer | |
|---|---|
| Born | July 31, 1959 |
| Alma mater | Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania |
| Occupation | Investment banker |
Terren Scott Peizer is an investment banker who has held positions at Goldman Sachs, First Boston, and Drexel Burnham Lambert.[1] He came into public view during U.S. v Michael Milken, "testifying in the insider-trading case against Michael Milken".[2] Peizer later held positions at Beachwood Financial,[3] as well as Hollis-Eden Pharmaceuticals Inc., researching the management of HIV/AIDS through pharmacotherapy.[4][5] Within the pharmaceutical industry, T. Scott Peizer also worked to develop Prometa, a drug used to to terminate drug addiction.[6]
Early career
Terren Peizer held positions as an investment banker at Goldman Sachs from 1981 to 1985, as well as at First Boston.[1][7] In 1985, Terren Peizer arrived in Los Angeles and started a position at Drexel Burnham Lambert, under Michael Milken.[1] Later, Peizer confessed that the company was involved in insider trading and provided evidence against his boss,[8] giving evidence to prosecutors for against Michael Milken and David Solomon, both of whom were employed at Drexel Burnham Lambert.[9] Peizer's lawyer was Plato Cacheris, who he hired after being subpoenæd.[10] He was granted immunity by the government.[9] According to Mary Zey, Milken pressured Peizer to destroy evidence.[11]
"Peizer said he had kept a running tally on a ledger of the amounts owed between the firms" and when Ivan F. Boesky complied with the investigation, Peizer was told by Milken "to give the ledger to an associate, and it was never recovered".[12] Moreover, "Peizer also testified that a big Drexel customer received a personal interest in stock of Storer Communications Inc. after the company he worked for bought a large block of a Storer securities."[13] In this court case, U.S. v Michael Milken, Terren Peizer was also able to provide insight into the work environment of the corporation, stating that "Drexel employees would meet in a small kitchenette so that the running water of a faucet would mask any conversations in case there were hidden microphones".[14]
Prometa Criticism
Beginning in 2003, Terren promoted Prometa, a treatment for methamphetamine, alcohol, and cocaine addiction. The treatment, which costs between $12,000 - $15,000, was pushed to the public before a double-blind study was performed. The treatment consisted of 3 already available drugs, flumazenil, hydroxyzine, and gabapentin. The treatment protocol was never FDA approved. Prometa was reported to have an "abstinence rates of between 60 percent and 80 percent" according to Hythiam, the manufacturer.[15][16] A 60 Minutes report found that a lot of clinics and doctors who were backing Prometa were financially involved with the company.[17] A later independent study that was published in the journal Addiction showed that Prometa was "no more effective than placebo."[18] Peizer, who made the following statement, was criticized for marketing Prometa without solid scientific evidence.[19]
If you had a son. If you had a son or a daughter, and maybe you do. If he’s strung out on meth. And he’s going to kill himself. Would you, if you had the opportunity. And I said to you, will you treat your son with Prometa?…Would you take that option for your son?[20]
Later investments
In 1987, Peizer was involved in the Barris Industries merger with Guber-Peters Co.. He was credited for giving Burt Sugarman, who had 31% of shares, the voting rights on all of John Peters and Peter Guber's shares.[21][22] Following his departure with Drexel Burnham Lambert, Peizer, from 1993 to 1997, managed "his own investments through a private holding company, Beachwood Financial, named after his hometown in Ohio".[3] In the latter part of the 1990s, Peizer served as the president of Hollis-Eden Pharmaceuticals Inc., being "passionate about the prospects for its anti-AIDS drugs".[4]
Peizer currently serves as the chairman and chief executive officer for Catasys, Inc., which "provides specialized healthcare management services to health plans and employers".[23]
References
- ^ a b c Griffin, Nancy; Masters, Kim (17 June 1997). Hit and Run. Simon and Schuster. p. 142. ISBN 9780684832661.
Peizer was twenty-five years old when he arrived in Los Angels in 1985 to start his job at Drexel Burnham Lambert. ...A former salesman at First Boston, Peizer had gained Milken's favor and confidence. Peizer was given a favored position next to Milken at his large X-shaped desk and a starting salary of $3.5 million a year with other perks thrown in.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Springer, Paul (10 August 2015). "Halcyon Cabot accused of kickback scheme to hide discount in Cell Therapeutics". The Deal. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
Crede is the family office of investor Terren Peizer, who is known in part for testifying in the insider-trading case against Michael Milken, who Peizer worked with as a salesman at Drexel Burnham Lambert in the 1980s.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ a b Lee, Patrick (31 July 1994). "In the Shadow of the '80s : Yesterday's High Rollers Struggle in a New Era of Sobriety". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ a b Eaton, Leslie (17 February 1998). "Market Place; No Sales, but Watch the Stock Soar". The New York Times. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
Now Mr. Peizer has turned up as the president of Hollis-Eden Pharmaceuticals Inc., a fledgling drug company with a stock that has soared 170 percent this year, to $16.75 on Friday. While biotechnology stocks have been making something of a comeback lately, the Nasdaq index of these shares, which includes Hollis-Eden, has risen just 5.7 percent this year. While Hollis-Eden's market value, $112 million, might seem big for a company with no sales, much less earnings, Mr. Peizer is passionate about the prospects for its anti-AIDS drugs, and he is a persuasive salesman. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity for me, he said last week. We have something special.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Lubove, Seth (6 September 1999). "Small world, ain't it?". Forbes. Archived from the original on 29 October 2015. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
Among them is Hollis-Eden Pharmaceuticals, an otherwise obscure San Diego biotech startup with one hopeful product: a potential treatment for HIV and other deadly viruses that could replace the current therapy of protease inhibitors and retrovirals.
{{cite web}}:|archive-date=/|archive-url=timestamp mismatch; 9 September 2009 suggested (help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Pelley, Scott (7 December 2007). "Prescription for Addiction". 60 Minutes. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
Addicts who have tried everything and remained hopelessly hooked say their drug cravings ended almost overnight. The therapy is called "Prometa." As correspondent Scott Pelley reports, it's being promoted by Terren Peizer, a former junk bond salesman whose business is business, not medicine.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Terren S. Peizer". MarketWatch. 2015. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
He served as a senior member of the investment banking firm of Drexel Burnham Lambert, Inc.'s High Yield Bond Department. Mr. Peizer held investment banking positions from 1981 to 1985 at Goldman, Sachs & Co.'s Risk and International Arbitrage Division as well as the First Boston Corp.'s High Yield Securities Department.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Milken Trial Produces Fascinating Portrait Of Drexel's Junk-Bond King". The Seattle Times. 30 October 1990. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
Then it was The Moment. Terren Peizer, a young Drexel trader seated on Milken's left, was watching his boss as the words that would change both Wall Street and Milken's life forever materialized like tiny ghosts from the dark innards of his stock-quote machine: Ivan Boesky, the ticker said, had confessed to insider trading and become an informant.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ a b Another Side of the Story. New York Magazine. 20 July 1992. p. 14. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
In a second example, Kornbluth shows how the Feds let themselves be conned into granting immunity to an apparently guilty Milken underling, Terren Peizer. This happened when Peizer gave prosecutors, hungry for evidence against Milken, a seemingly incriminating document that he said was written by Milken.
{{cite book}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Stewart, James B. (20 November 2012). Den of Thieves. Simon and Schuster. p. 458. ISBN 9781439126202.
As soon as he received his subpoena, Peizer hired a Washington lawyer, Plato Cacheris, a former partner of William Hundley, Trepp's lawyer; Cacheris had recently represented Fawn Hall in the Iran-Contra scandal. Peizer met with Cacheris in Washington, bringing with him a cache of documents from Drexel's Beverly Hills office. "I have these documents that are really damaging and I want to make a deal," Peizer said, displaying an unusual conviction and sense of purpose.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Zey, Mary (1993). Banking on Fraud: Drexel, Junk Bonds, and Buyouts. Transaction Publishers. p. 11. ISBN 9780202364421.
{{cite book}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help); Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Eichenwald, Kurt (28 November 1990). "Witness Against Milken Settles S.E.C. Charges". The New York Times. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
In testimony at Mr. Milken's pre-sentencing hearing, Terren Peizer, a former Drexel trader, said he oversaw much of this trading. Mr. Peizer said he had kept a running tally on a ledger of the amounts owed between the firms. When Mr. Boesky agreed to cooperate with the Government, Mr. Milken told Mr. Peizer to give the ledger to an associate, and it was never recovered, Mr. Peizer said.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "No Proof Of Bribery Is Offered Witness Fails To Link Milken". Philadelphia Media Network. 20 October 1990. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Demick, Barbara (21 October 1990). "Prosecution In Milken Case Falters As Witnesses Forget, Aclu Criticizes - philly-archives". Philadelphia Media Network. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
Many of the Drexel group testified that an atmosphere of paranoia pervaded the trading room. Drexel employees would meet in a small kitchenette so that the running water of a faucet would mask any conversations in case there were hidden microphones, testified Terren Peizer, a former Drexel salesman.
{{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ "Prometa Founder's Spotty Background Explored". DrugFree. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
- ^ Huus, Kari. "Unproven meth, cocaine 'remedy' hits market". Retrieved 3 December 2015.
- ^ "Prescription For Addiction". Retrieved 3 December 2015.
- ^ Ling, Walter. "Double-blind placebo-controlled evaluation of the PROMETA™ protocol for methamphetamine dependence". Addiction. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
- ^ Humphreys, Keith. "The Rise and Fall of a "Miracle Cure" for Drug Addiction". Washington Monthly. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
- ^ "Prescription For Addiction". CBS News. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
- ^ {{cite book | first1=Nancy | last1=Griffin | title=Hit and Run | publisher=Simon and Schuster | date=17 June 1997 | accessdate=26 November 2015 | last2=Masters | first2=Kim | page=149 | language=English | isbn=9780684832661
- ^ "Barris to Buy Guber-Peters". Retrieved 3 December 2015.
- ^ Collins, Allison (28 April 2015). "Turnaround Tuesday: Struggling Behavioral Health-Services Provider Catasys Raises Cash". The Middle Market. Retrieved 27 November 2015.
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