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$$$ Free Tacos for Life, in Exchange for a Tattoo [WSJ]
$$$ Warburg Pincus stake in Primerica sent a signal [The Deal]
$$$ Frank Bars ICE Lobbyist Roberson From Contacting House Committee Members [Bloomberg]
$$$ Since it’s Richard “Sir, we don’t have your keys” Grubman Day, here’s one for the memories. [Chron]
$$$ In case you’ve been missing having Rebecca Jarvis in your life. [TV Newser]
But it’s after 5 the night before a 3-day and if I can speak freely? I need to get out of here and can’t wade through this story just now. Also, while I’m sure there’s many a gem to be found within, based on an intimate knowledge of the firm, plus the article’s dek (“When it comes to its role in the financial crisis, Goldman Sachs has a message for the world”), there’s no need. If I know my Masters of the Universe– and I think I do!– the message is this: “blow us.” Or variants thereof. Prove me wrong.
Unlike his younger co-star, who has the stomach and the skills to withstand the highs and lows of trading, Michael Douglas is out.
The Hollywood actor – who made the motto famous as trader Gordon Gekko in 1987 film Wall Street – says he chased the big bucks for years. The movie veteran said: “I played. Years ago, through the tech booms, I definitely did it.” Then it all came tumbling down. The actor, 65, said: “I lost 35 to 40 per cent of my net worth on the 2008 crash.” Despite prices starting to recover, he was shocked into ending his profiteering – and pulled most of his cash from stocks. He revealed: “At the end of last year, I took a whole bunch out.”
It’s Wall Street Over For Douglas [The Sun via Daily Intel]
Absolute Return has published its annual list of the top hedge fund earners of the year and while you might’ve thought differently at the time, it turns out keeping a pair of brass testicles on your desk and rubbing them at various intervals throughout the day for good luck isn’t so silly or homoerotic afterall. (Kidding, of course it still is, but doing so might score you a $4 billion take-home so, perhaps its worth it.) Other takeaways: Paul Tudor Jones is gonna make it hailstorm chicken and someone just stuck an extra pin in the voo-doo doll shaped like her ex-husband.
10. Phil Falcone, Harbinger Capital, $825 million
9. John Arnold, Centaurus Advisors, $900 million
8. Ken Griffin, Citadel, $900 million
7. Eddie Lampert, ESL Investments, $1.3 billion
6. Carl Icahn, Icahn Capital, $1.3 billion
5. Steve Cohen, SAC Capital, $1.4 billion
4. John Paulson, Paulson&Co, $2.3 billion
3. James Simons, Renaissance Technologies, $2.5 billion
2. George Soros, Soros Fund Management, $3.3 billion
1. David Tepper, Appalossa Management $4 billion
Related: 2008′s Highest Earning Hedge Fund Managers
2008′s Top Losers (Lampert, Please Report To Clean Up In Aisle 8, Clean Up In Aisle 8 Please)
Kate Hudson is apparently “dating” an “big-time” “hedge fund manager” “based in LA.” Who is it? I don’t know, because it was only mentioned as a blind item. But! I’m sure we can take two to figure it out. Assuming we’re supposed to be using the loosest definition of the identifiers, here are some early guesses: Continue reading »
March performance info. Continue reading »
Not sure if any of you have learned this lesson yet but let it be known, there is no justice in the world of parking your damn car wherever you want. Richard Grubman learned this the hard way Tuesday night, when he attempted to leave his vehicle, a 2007 BMW X5 SUV, in a lot at the Ritz reserved only for residents. After being informed by a valet that the mom-mobile would have to be moved, the Highfields Capital manager chose to do what anyone in his position probably would, which was to throw an obscenities-laced “curbside fit.” Not feeling his message was sufficiently being communicated, Grubs then threw his keys in the valet’s face, “striking him in the upper lip area.” It was at that moment, while the blood gushed from the worker’s face that Rich asked himself a serious question– “What can I do to top this? People are going to talk about the incident and when they do I want them to focus so not much on the fact that I’m a self-important prick but the total fucking lunatic aspect.” And that’s when it came to him. Continue reading »
Barnier to Review Bank Pay With Geithner (Bloomberg)
Bonuses are “extraordinary, insane in some cases,” Michael Barnier, the European Union’s financial services commissioner, said in an interview in London today. He plans to meet with Timothy Geithner later this year, Barnier said. “It is required to put an end to the discrepancies between remuneration and performance,” Barnier said. “There is a need to work with others to do this, and it’s something we’ll be working on with the U.S.”
Corporate Bosses Paid Less (WSJ)
Burn: “Charles Ergen, CEO and founder of Dish Network Corp., earned the distinction of having the harshest drop in pay. He drew a $623,100 salary that was 92.5% lower than his 2008 total compensation, even though the company’s stock doubled.”
JPMorgan’s Dimon Regrets Using FDIC Guarantee Program (Bloomberg)
“We didn’t need it,” Dimon, 54, said in his annual letter to shareholders, which was released yesterday. “And it just added to the argument that all banks had been bailed out and fueled the anger directed toward banks.”
UBS broker chief McCann: no plans for split, name change (Reuters)
Crushing the dream of everyone hoping to bust out the old PaineWebber swag.
Ivy Asset Draws Probe Over Roles With Madoff (WSJ)
Ivy Asset Management, which BNY Mellon Asset Management is closing, is under investigation for advice it allegedly gave related to investing with Bernard Madoff, according to a person familiar with the matter. New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo’s office has been investigating Ivy, a fund manager that places money with hedge funds, for about a year, and the investigation has come to a head in recent weeks, the person said. At issue among other things is whether Ivy failed to relay concerns it had about Mr. Madoff’s firm.
Unpaid Spanish air hostesses strip in protest (NYDN)
Flight attendants owed up to nine months’ wages by a grounded Spanish airline have posed nude for a calendar to draw attention to their plight, one of the cabin crew turned models said on Wednesday. “We are just demanding our rights to receive what is ours, we each have eight or nine months of unpaid salaries,” attendant Adriana Ricardo said.
Credit Suisse May Buy Minority Stake in York Capital (WSJ)
York Capital Management is in talks with Credit Suisse Group about the bank’s interest in buying a minority stake of the $12 billion investment firm.
Looking At The iPad From Two Angles (NYT)
“This device is laughably absurd,” goes a typical remark on a tech blog’s comments board. “How can they expect anyone to get serious computer work done without a mouse?” “This truly is a magical revolution,” goes another. “I can’t imagine why anyone will want to go back to using a mouse and keyboard once they’ve experienced Apple’s visionary user interface!” Continue reading »
