Bill Ackman: ‘I really blame CNBC’ for ‘Hell is coming’ controversy

Bill Ackman lashed out at CNBC on Wednesday after anchors prodded him about his controversial appearance on the cable network this spring during the early days of the coronavirus.

On March 18, the 54-year-old hedge fund manager appeared to be fighting back tears on CNBC, fretting about his father’s health amid the pandemic. Ackman warned that “Hell is coming,” just hours after he had pleaded with President Trump on Twitter to shut down the country for 30 days.

That afternoon, the Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 6.3 percent, or more than 1,300 points, with some investors blaming Ackman’s gloom-and-doom speech.

BRIDGEWATER ASSOCIATES FALSIFIED EVIDENCE AGAINST EMPLOYEES, ARBITRATORS SAY

A week later, however, it was revealed that Ackman had made a huge, lucrative bet against the credit markets, bagging a $2.6 billion windfall on a $27 million investment. Critics pounced, accusing Ackman of rattling Wall Street and profiting in the process.

“I really blame CNBC,” Ackman said Wednesday when pressed about the timing of his massive short bet against the markets, and whether he had closed out his lucrative position before he did the interview.

Insisting that he had, in fact, closed out his bet before his “Hell is coming” comments, Ackman went on to complain that CNBC had replayed the emotional clip from his 20-minute interview incessantly, despite the fact he had also said he was buying shares in companies like Hilton Hotels amid the tumult.

COHEN BIDDING $2B FOR METS FRANCHISE AND $2B FOR CABLE NETWORK: GASPARINO

“It took 15 seconds of my interview and then went around scaring people because it was good television,” Ackman griped. “I gave a very bullish message. I said I was buying stocks.”

Ackman also said Wednesday he is now bullish on shares of US companies with the exception of those that are highly indebted.

“We are not short any stocks,” Ackman said. “We are obviously bullish on America.”

GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERE

Ackman did his March 18 CNBC appearance just hours after firing off a tweetstorm addressed to President Trump, in which he pleaded with the commander-in-chief to shut down the country for 30 days to prevent the spread of the pandemic.

Despite the controversy, Ackman’s shrewd bet against the credit markets has helped him rebuild his reputation on Wall Street. On Wednesday, his new blank-check company, Pershing Square Tontine Holdings, was trading up 8 percent after raising a record $4 billion.