Avid Life (B‪)‬

In 2010, GMP Capital (GMP) found itself the only investment bank willing to raise capital for Avid Life Media, the parent company of the controversial Ashley Madison online community for married people seeking to commit adultery. Since its inception in 1995, GMP had made a name for itself as a bold deal maker and not afraid to complete “bet-the-firm” transactions. With large profit potential, morality wasn’t always an issue when sex-based business plans were being promoted. Yet after facing negative publicity, GMP subsequently withdrew from the deal. How did GMP end up on the wrong side of a line other firms refused to cross?