Wall Street’s Heavy Hitters Come Out for the ‘Met Ball of Finance’

On the second Monday in May, the Empire State Building flickered Robin Hood green, for a night when some of New York City’s deepest pockets gathered for a charitable cause.

A few thousand guests packed into the Javits Center for the annual gala hosted by Robin Hood, an antipoverty group that gives millions in grants each year to organizations across the city and which has long been a popular charity among Wall Street’s heavy hitters.

The convention center was transformed into a futurescape, with large, inflatable clouds, and performers dangling from the rafters on swings. A sign near the entrance invited people to the Robin Hood Matrix, “a vision of New York City, limited only by your imagination.”

Pat Kiernan, the NY1 anchor, arrived early in the evening. Like other guests, he walked through a smoke machine and a tunnel lit with green lasers, drawing on the imagery of the iconic 1999 Keanu Reeves sci-fi film.

“I really just respect the work that Robin Hood does and the way they do it to get out into the community and really measure the effectiveness of things,” said Mr. Kiernan, who added that he had attended the event before.