Robert Mercer Is A Force To Be Reckoned With In Finance And Conservative Politics
When Robert Mercer accepted a lifetime achievement award from a technology group in 2014, the Renaissance Technologies co-CEO summed up his career modestly.
"What I am is simply a computer programmer," he told the crowd.
In fact, both professionally and politically, Mercer is much more than that.
At 70, Mercer is an American success story, having helped turn Renaissance into one of the most profitable hedge funds in the world, and by all accounts becoming very rich in the process.
Along the way, he and his daughter Rebekah have become a force to be reckoned with in conservative politics, contributing lavishly to right-wing causes in the United States and even Europe.
According to , in 2016 Mercer gave some $25 million to conservative groups and candidates, including President Trump. Last year, , alongside better-known figures such as George Soros, Sheldon
