Sons Andy and Mark? No, of course not. Because a) They knew nothing and b) are on a previously scheduled fishing trip. Instead, the Journal reports that two longtime Madoff Securities assistants are getting the probe. They are Semone Anderson and Winnie Jackson, who did “clerical work” for Annette Bongiorno, who’s handled accounts for the firm’s oldest clients for 40 or so years. Meanwhile:
Archive for February 2009
You know, it would be amusing (in a not at all funny way) if this whole Stanford thing turned out to be much ado about nothing. Could it be that it really was “former disgruntled employees”?
R. Allen Stanford, the billionaire chairman of Houston-based investment firm Stanford Group Co., blamed “former disgruntled employees” for stoking regulatory probes into his firm.
Stanford Group is under investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, according to people familiar with the matter who declined to be identified because they didn’t want to put their jobs at risk. The agencies are examining the company’s sales of certificates of deposit issued by its Antigua-based affiliate, Stanford International Bank Ltd., and the consistent, above- average returns those investments paid, the people said.
“We are all aware that former disgruntled employees have gone to the regulators questioning our work and our processes,” Stanford said yesterday in an e-mail to staff members that was obtained by Bloomberg News. “This could have compounded an otherwise routine examination.”
Investigators from Finra visited six Stanford Group offices last month, downloaded information from computer hard drives and looked through files, the people said.
“And I would have gotten away with it too if it wasn’t for those pesky disgruntled employees!”
Stanford Blames ‘Former Disgruntled’ Workers in Probe [Bloomberg]
S&P 500 is up 0.2% going into the speech, let’s just see how the market reacts, shall we? We’ll also take bets on which CEO gets invited to leave the audience for trying to trade on his/her Blackberry during the talk.
Obama: We’re in tough economic times. [Lists litany of challenges] But, I’m not here to repeat a litany of our challenges.
True, everyone but the AFL CIO thinks my plan sucks. But the spirited debate this causes is a good thing.
Back in 1933, a meeting like this resulted in the New Deal programs that transformed our economy. It was the cooperation of private industry that made this possible.
Like your Managing Director, my door will always be open so I can tell you the failed theories that we should cast aside.
Thank you for allowing me to waste your time without telling you anything new.
And… -scene-
Congrats my little Bank of Amerillwiders– you’re all getting a Vermont Teddy Bear Love Bandit, on Lewis. No, you wish. But this almost as good. Turns out you’ll be getting the entirety of 2008′s bonus in under a decade! DowJones has confirmed what we told you yesterday:
Bank of America Corp. (BAC) reversed course on a controversial decision to defer 2008 bonus payments for some investment banking staff. The bank’s change of plan is designed to limit discontent amid a rocky integration with newly acquired Merrill Lynch.
The Charlotte-based bank is telling some employees in various businesses across the bank that a portion of their bonuses will be paid out over six quarters. That change significantly shortens a previous plan that would have deferred bonus payments to some employees over a period of time that stretched through 2012.
Congress Set To Pass Stimulus Plan (Reuters)
“The U.S. Congress on Friday is expected to pass a $789 billion economic stimulus package that is aimed at unleashing large spending and tax cuts to help dig the economy out of a 14-month recession.
The Democratic-controlled House of Representatives and Senate are expected to approve the emergency package, giving President Barack Obama a political victory but falling short of his goal of broad Republican backing.”
France Calls For Hedge Fund Crackdown (FT)
France, in its infinite wisdom, is essentially calling for the United States and Britain to do a better job of regulating hedge funds, because, well, that’s where the majority of them are. No one in France has taken notice though that the lack of fund activity in their country could be attributed to the fact that they often don’t have a clue what they’re talking about.
Starbucks To Sell Instant Coffee (NYT)
It’s really too bad this didn’t hit the street about six years ago: I can see hordes of analysts picking up twelve packs of this crap and mixing it at double/triple strength to pull 20 hour shifts.
Merkel Looks To Nationalize Hypo (Bloomberg)
It looks like talks with J.C. Flowers are going south: they’re looking for €10/share where as the German Government wasn’t willing to explore anything much over market value. The shareholders have obtained council but it doesn’t look like ze Germans are going to be willing to budge much on this one: they’ve all ready put $131B into the company and socialism isn’t a word they overly fear.
Geithner Will Be Under Pressure At G7 (NYT)
With banks and investment institutions of vary degrees being nationalized around the world to shore their solvency, Geithner and the American policy (thus far) of private enterprise is facing its critics. He’s going to have a shit show on his hands, such that if American banks continue to fail there’s going to be downward pressure on the whole system which now includes many foreign governments.
Morgan Stanley Suspends Global Head Of Real Estate For Bribery (FT)
“Morgan Stanley has suspended its global head of real estate investing after revealing that actions by an employee believed to be the former China property head “appear to have violated” the foreign corrupt practices act, a US law that prohibits corporate bribery.
People close to Morgan Stanley said the bank had put Sonny Kalsi, a high-profile banker who leads its big real estate division, on administrative leave effective immediately.”
$$$ Defending Tim Geithner, by Jim Cramer [NYM]
$$$ Wells Fargo Adds Impairment [WSJ]
$$$ Critical, if improving. [The Deal]
$$$ “When one’s trust fund implodes, there’s no better place to run than a gathering of the still-rich in Monte Carlo.” [Slate]
I don’t know about you, but I fucking hate the god damn press. All they ever do is ruin my good time. I’m just trying to kick back, forget my trubs, maybe nail a hooker or two during a coke fueled bender of a weekend at the Bellagio with my colleagues before finishing up on some really critical pitchbooks with my red pen and bitching out an associate on the airphone, knowwhatimsayin? And who cares if my company is on the brink of insolvency?* WHO CARES?
From: [redacted @ BAC]
Sent: Wednesday, February 04, 2009 5:05 PM
Subject: Event Guidelines
Importance: High
Given the ongoing negative press, the Marketing transition team has issued the following guidelines regarding event and conference activity:
Guidelines
1. No resorts
Oh, you thought the evil $400,000 cap was history, right? You thought it was going to be limited in scope, and only in the amount of $500,000 this time right? You thought stock wasn’t going to be included, right? Wrong.
SEC. 6012. LIMIT ON EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION.
(a) IN GENERAL.–Notwithstanding any other provision of law or agreement to the contrary, no person who is an officer, director, executive, or other employee of a financial institution or other entity that receives or has received funds under the Troubled Asset Relief Program (or ”TARP”), established under section 101 of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, may receive annual compensation in excess of the amount of compensation paid to the President of the United States.
[...]
SEC. 6014. COMPENSATION.
As used in this subtitle, the term ”compensation” includes wages, salary, deferred compensation, retirement contributions, options, bonuses, property, and any other form of compensation or bonus that the Secretary of the Treasury determines is appropriate.
[...]
SEC. 6006. REVIEW OF PRIOR PAYMENTS TO EXECUTIVES.
(a) IN GENERAL.–The Secretary shall review bonuses, retention awards, and other compensation paid to employees of each entity receiving TARP assistance before the date of enactment of this Act to determine whether any such payments were excessive, inconsistent with the purposes of this Act or the TARP, or otherwise contrary to the public interest.
(b) NEGOTIATIONS FOR REIMBURSEMENT.–If the Secretary makes a determination described in subsection (a), the Secretary shall seek to negotiate with the TARP recipient and the subject employee for appropriate reimbursements to the Federal Government with respect to compensation or bonuses.
[...]
(c) DEFINITIONS.–As used in this section, the following definitions shall apply:
EXCESSIVE BONUS.–
(A) IN GENERAL.–The term ”excessive bonus” means the portion of the applicable bonus payments made to a covered individual in excess of $100,000.
Cliff notes: You won’t get over $400,000. Period. If you were paid a bonus over $100,000 you might be giving it back to the Treasury. Interestingly, I can’t find a provision that defines how far back they can look.
That’s ok, however. You can probably apply to Obama for mortgage assistance.
Update: Be aware, this is the Senate Bill’s draft text, not the text of the bill that will weigh down the President’s desk. What comes out of further negotiations is anyone’s guess.
Senate Draft Bill.pdf
We Thought It Was Absurd Too, But It Turns Out That Obama Really IS Going To Pay Your Mortgage
By Equity PrivateYou thought she was kidding at the time, didn’t you? Shows what we know about the absurd. (Nothing).
The Obama administration is hammering out a program to subsidize mortgages in a new front to fight the credit crisis, sources familiar with the plan told Reuters on Thursday, firing financial markets.
In a major break from existing aid programs, the plan under consideration would seek to help homeowners before they fall into arrears on their loans. Current programs only assist borrowers that are already delinquent.
Speechless. (No word on gas yet though- stay tuned).
Related video, after the jump.
Of course, we poke fun and satire at white collar crime here on Dealbreaker, that’s our purpose- a bit of commentary stirred up with a dose of mocking escapism. It is, however, effectively impossible (and shady) to even attempt to satirize this sort of thing:
The son of William Foxton, 65, said his father was so distraught after losing his family’s entire savings in the alleged [Madoff] Ponzi scheme that he shot himself in a park in Southampton on Tuesday with a handgun.
[...]
“I spoke with my father recently and he confided in me that he was in ‘an absolute s***fight’ with his banks’, as his life savings had been invested in two hedge funds; the Herald USA Fund and Herald Luxembourg Fund,” Mr Foxton said.
“He had found out that the offices of these funds had closed and that the money had in fact been invested in the Madoff Hedge funds.
It is the cruel irony of such scams, given that they are perpetrated by the least honorable among us, that they seem to impact the most honorable the most severely. Foxton served with the French Foreign Legion and joined the British Army were, despite losing an arm in combat, he eventually rose to Major. Foxton was named Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE) in 1986 and Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1999 for his work with the disabled and in former Yugoslavia respectively.
Bernard Madoff has ‘blood on his hands’ over William Foxton suicide [Times Online]
By his own admission on Power Lunch earlier today, Charlie Gasparino thought yesterday’s hearing on Capitol Hill sucked, so much so that he “fell asleep” (passed out?) three times. But it was not all for naught. Chaz walked away from the Congressional bitch sesh with a crush and maybe– please God, please– co-host for the hotly anticipated Chazparino Variety Hour. Sayeth CG:
