Widely seen as the fiercest critic of the hedge fund and private equity industries, the former Prime Minister of Denmark Poul Nyrup Rasmussen was once described by Alchemy Partners founder Jon Moulton as “the most visible, dangerous opponent of the industry”.

Rasmussen's campaign against these industries began with a report released in March 2007 entitled Hedge Funds and Private Equity: A Critical Analysis, written with Dutch Socialist politician Leke van den Burg, months before the onset of the financial crisis.