Harvey Pitt has been named deputy attorney general of Alabama where he will be investigating "short sellers and false rumors involving Colonial BancGroup, actions designed to drive down the institution's stock price." CNB apparently approached Pitt about the gig knowing that rumor mongering and wicked short selling are favorite topics of the erstwhile SEC chairman and current private citizen, which he believes are "serious problems...[that have] led to a whole host of additional problems in the marketplace." Pitt also hilariously noted that he has been contacted by other firms known by those in the know to be short-seller targets, but has thus far been rebuffed because they're self-conscious about having their asses tapped (sayeth Pitt: "They don't want it known that they are the targets of short sellers").
The P-man's compensation for the job has been disclosed but even if he's being paid in Lehman stock the whole thing sure to pay off in spades. The plan is prettay prettay genius--make up some stuff up based on speculation and hearsay about malicious shorts being responsible for CNB's horrific performance (the bank's stock lost 53 percent of its value this year), and then take the case study to Cox as evidence that the SEC really needs to extend now-defunct emergency rule to all financial companies which would mean KA-CHING for Pitt's newly formed RegSHO.com. RS is a web-based real-time electronic stock lending and location service that matches traders with available stocks that can be borrowed for short sales and offers immediate data on the short-sell market. Obviously the biz would be made exponentially more profitable if the SEC expands and extends the rule, practically forcing Pitt and Co to charge customers for both locating and pre-borrowing.
One error in Pitt's flawless money-making scheme, however, is the matter of his partner, John Tobacco. Anecdotal evidence shows that he's a bit of a Tim Sykes (please refer to the last comment on this thread).
Call Him Deputy Attorney General Pitt [NYT]
CEOs Launch Web Site To Protect Short Sellers: Firm Aids Compliance With SEC Naked-Sale Rules [Washington Post]
Posted by guest , Aug 20, 2008 1:32PM
Thank you for using the phrase "ka-ching!" for the sound of the register. The phrase "cha-ching!" is improper because it doesn't reverse mirror the phrase "Ka-boom!"
~The Guy Who Notes Stuff Like That
Posted by guest , Aug 20, 2008 1:43PM
Tomacco is the wave of the future...
Posted by guest , Aug 20, 2008 1:43PM
fuck that mayo guy stay off the blog.
Posted by guest , Aug 20, 2008 1:43PM
fuck that mayo guy stay off the blog.
Posted by guest , Aug 20, 2008 1:49PM
Here's some DNS registrar information on regsho.com, (on unix: `whois regsho.com | less', I told ya that us trading-systems, back-office monkeys can be useful for something...):
Registrant:
Tom Ronk
417 Orchid Ave
Corona Del Mar, California 92625
United States
"Harvey Pitt, SEC chairman from 2001 to 2003 and chief executive of District-based global consulting firm Kalorama Partners, teamed up with John Tabacco, chief executive of LocateStock.com, and Tom Ronk, the chief executive of Buyins.net, to launch RegSHO.com."
Yup, sounds like a conflict of interests to me.
Posted by guest , Aug 20, 2008 2:01PM
Harvey Pitt loves mayo so much that he once proposed to a jar of Hellmanns
Posted by guest , Aug 20, 2008 2:11PM
BESS! You better comment on the fact that Erin B. just said, "Sometimes you have to pick who you get in bed with." (It was during the Fannie Freddie piece with Bill Gross.) Please follow up on this story and advise the DB readers.
Posted by guest , Aug 20, 2008 3:12PM
Loving the fact that the former head of the SEC is getting in bed with a nailed stock tout--who welched on his fine, natch-- for a few bucks?
I am, sort of.
Posted by Anal_yst , Aug 20, 2008 4:06PM
@5
or you could just do a whois search from (virtually) any domain registrar's public internet site...
just saying
Posted by Anal_yst , Aug 20, 2008 4:10PM
@5
or you could just do a whois search from (virtually) any domain registrar's public internet site...
just saying
Posted by guest , Aug 20, 2008 4:16PM
BUYINS.NET THOMAS RONK. (CRD#2293671
===================================================
THOMAS Carter RONK (CRD#2293671, Registered Representative,
Corona Del Mar, California)
submitted a Letter of
Acceptance, Waiver, and Consent
pursuant to which he was censured,
fined $50,000, and suspended
from association with any NASD
member in any capacity for 30
days. Without admitting or denying
the allegations, RONK consented to
the described sanctions and to the
entry of findings that he participated
in private securities transactions
without providing prior written
notice to his member firm describing
the proposed transactions and
his proposed role therein. (NASD
Case #C02990057)
==============================================
RONK, THOMAS C.Individuals Revoked For
Failing To Pay Fines And/Or
Costs In Accordance With
NASD Rule 8320
=======================================================
Corona Del Mar, California
Individuals Revoked For
Failing To Pay Fines And/Or
Costs In Accordance With
NASD Rule 8320
Biddick, Bruce
Rancho Santa Fe, California
(February 8, 2002)
Chepak, John A.
West Harrison, New York
(February 8, 2002)
Flynn, Scott D.
Highlands, New Jersey
(February 8, 2002)
Gerace, Joseph G.
S. Laguna, California
(February 8, 2002)
RONK, THOMAS C.
Corona Del Mar, California
(February 8, 2002)
Sitomer, Richard A.
New York, New York
(February 8, 2002)
Waddell, Charles K.
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
(February 8, 2002)
http://www.nasd.com/web/groups/enforcement/documents/monthly_disciplinary_actions/nasdw_007466.pdf