Attempt 1: “The financial community here is buried in white powder.” Continue reading »
Archive for November 2010
Financial Services Employee Attempts To Paint Picture Of Coke Consumption In Hong Kong
By Bess LevinFed Fires $600 Billion Stimulus Shot (WSJ)
Many outside the Fed, and some inside, see the move as a ‘Hail Mary’ pass by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke. He embraced highly unconventional policies during the financial crisis to ward off a financial-system collapse. But a year and a half later, he confronts an economy hobbled by high unemployment, a gridlocked political system and the threat of a Japan-like period of deflation, or a debilitating fall in consumer prices.
Goldman’s Pay Pool Shrinks Fastest as Traders’ Fortunes Dwindle (Bloomberg)
“We are seeing compensation down from 2009 anywhere from 22 to 27 percent” for traders, said Michael Karp, chief executive officer of recruitment firm Options Group in New York. “
Wall Street Bonuses Will Be Up This Year (NYT)
Bonuses will be up this year, according to a study to be released on Thursday by a Wall Street compensation expert, Alan Johnson. The survey shows that overall compensation in financial services will rise 5 percent this year, with employees in some businesses like asset management getting increases of 15 percent. “I did not expect compensation would come back the way it has,” Mr. Johnson said. “I underestimated the industry’s resiliency.”
Bush Says the Worst Moment of His Presidency Involved Kanye West (Gawker)
Former President George W. Bush told Today anchor Matt Lauer that the “all-time low” of his presidency was when rapper Kanye West said “George Bush doesn’t care about black people” on live television.
White House To Business: Can’t We Be Friends? (Reuters)
“The perception that the business community and the administration aren’t getting along is not productive for either side or for the economy and we see real opportunity for common ground on a number of policies,” said Austan Goolsbee, a longtime Obama aide who was recently promoted to become chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers…In the meantime, the president will also make a highly visible gesture toward corporate America when he sets off on a 10-day trip to Asia this week. On his first stop in Mumbai, he will address a U.S.-India business summit that will include a delegation of more than 200 U.S. chief executives — everyone from Boeing Co’s Jim McNerney and Honeywell International Inc’s David Cote to General Electric Co’s Jeffrey Immelt.
China Banking Adviser: US Dollar Printing Huge Risk to World (Reuters)
China must set up a firewall via currency policy and capital controls to cushion itself from external shocks, Xia Bin said in a commentary piece in the Financial News, a Chinese-language newspaper managed by the central bank. “As long as the world exercises no restraint in issuing global currencies such as the dollar — and this is not easy — then the occurrence of another crisis is inevitable, as quite a few wise Westerners lament,” he said.
NetJets Buys Marquis Jet (WSJ)
Financial details of the deal weren’t disclosed. Under the agreement, Marquis Jet is now a wholly owned subsidiary of NetJets.
Authorities discover 30 tons of marijuana, border tunnel (CNN)
U.S. authorities have discovered about 30 tons of marijuana that were part of a smuggling operation using a tunnel under the California-Mexico border, officials said Wednesday. The 600-yard tunnel — which features a rail system, lighting and ventilation — connects a warehouse in Tijuana with one in the Otay Mesa industrial area of San Diego. Continue reading »
$$$ Duff McDonald: Coverage of JPMorgan tends to be all Jamie, all the time. That must have been frustrating, especially in light of the success you and Bill had. Was it? Steve Black: Jamie has got some unbelievable strengths and is as good as anybody in the industry. When the outside world puts an individual like him on a pedestal and thinks that he’s the only person at the company who has any ability, sure, it can be a little frustrating. But that’s not the way Jamie acts. It’s not Jamie’s fault and it’s not because he governs that way. [Fortune]
$$$ Rabbi In Extortion Case Talked About Both FrontPoint And SAC Capital [Reuters]
$$$ Ms. Gianell, who has traveled the world working as a circus performer, a showgirl and a choreographer, said she enjoyed her jury service, despite being kicked off the Citi/EMI trial. [Dealbook] Continue reading »
If you’ve seen the latest General Motors S-1, you might have noticed that UBS is not listed as part of the syndicate anymore, although they were part of the team as recently as October 29. Why might that be? Glad you asked! Continue reading »
According to Dow Jones, Paulson Advantage Plus posted a 2.55% return (it is now up 2.55% YTD), Paulson Advantage was up 1.72% (1.4% YTD), Paulson Recovery was up 0.5% (8% YTD), Paulson Partner Enhanced was up 7.36% (16% YTD), Paulson Credit Opportunities was up 3% (12.4% YTD), and the gold fund was up 3.57% (26% YTD). [DJ]
Bank Of America Decides To Sell Majority Of BlackRock Stake Now That It Thinks About Things
By Bess Levin
Bank of America was a prettay prettay prettay good time when it was being run by Ken Lewis. The Strawberry Hill Boone’s Farm flowed freely and as a result of the boozing, you could buy any company you wanted, whether it was a ticking time bomb or made any sense strategically. It didn’t matter! You didn’t even have to justify it to anyone because everybody, the CEO most importantly, was there to party. “Who give a crap, just have fun,” the motto went. Unfortunately, now that Lewis is gone, God rest is soul, Brian Moynihan is taking a a slightly different, more sober approach to the business. Continue reading »
To: JPMorgan Employees
Date: Wed, 3 Nov 2010 1:35
Subject: A Message From Jamie DimonSteve Black has let me know that he would like to leave the firm early next year. I have known Steve for 30 years, and he is one of the finest and most capable executives I have ever met. Throughout our working relationship, he has always impressed me with his tremendous dedication to the firm, his candor and his strong character. He has done an outstanding job during his remarkable career at the firm.
Mark Haines thinks things while perched atop the roof of his car, in a photograph submitted by his son to be published in an upcoming book entitled “My Dad Is A Bro.” [BB]
Variety reports that Al Pacino has been cast as a hedge fund manager in a “financial thriller” tentatively titled Arbitrage, opposite Eva Green and Susan Sarandon. The only plot details that have been revealed are that Pacino is a “magnate” who gets “in over his head” and is “desperate to complete the sale of his trading empire to a major bank before his fraud is revealed. But an unexpected, bloody error forces him to turn to the most unlikely corner for help.” Naturally, we need to know more. Continue reading »
As Wall Street bonuses bulged and housing prices were peaking in 2005, Daniel Mudd found himself dreading his top job at Fannie Mae. Going to work felt like “a choice between poking my eye out and cutting off a finger,” Fannie’s former chief executive officer recalls in Bethany McLean and Joe Nocera’s new tome, “All the Devils Are Here.” [Bloomberg]
Billionaire Ken Fisher Sees 16% S&P 500 Rally After Elections (Bloomberg)
“Right now, every politician is chirping and burping and carrying on,” said Fisher. “It’s been in the interest of the Republicans running for office to talk down the economy. That goes away immediately after the election. Come June, you’ll see how quiet the political landscape will be — very little legislation and a lot of baby kissing…Next year is the sweet spot. Most political risk aversion occurs in the first year when the president has the most relative power to the opposition party he will ever have. He tries to get through whatever his toughest bills would be, and that freaks people out.”
Mohamed El-Erian: We’ve voted. What’s next for the economy? (WaPo)
Simply put, these realities make it necessary for Washington to resist two years of gridlock and policy paralysis. Democrats and Republicans must meet in the middle to implement policies to deal with debt overhangs and structural rigidities. The economy needs political courage that transcends expediency in favor of long-term solutions on issues including housing reform, medium-term budget rules, pro-growth tax reforms, investments in physical and technological infrastructure, job retraining, greater support for education and scientific research, and better nets to protect the most vulnerable segments of society.
California Voters Reject Legalization of Marijuana (AP)
Burn.
Morgan Stanley Slowly Rebuilds Fixed Income (NYT)
“We think management has a credible plan to rebuild the trading franchise,” wrote Schorr, after meeting with Morgan Stanley executives. But he added that the plan will take time and returns are likely to remain sluggish in the near term so Nomura remains neutral on the stock.
Freddie Mac Reports $2.5 Billion Loss (WSJ)
Freddie Mac reported a third-quarter net loss of $2.5 billion and asked the U.S. Treasury to provide a $100 million infusion, raising the government’s tab for its rescue of the mortgage-finance company to $63.2 billion. The third-quarter loss, the 12th in the last 13 quarters, compared with a year-earlier net loss of $5.4 billion.
GM Could Be Free Of Taxes For Years (WSJ)
According to documents filed with federal regulators, the revamping left the car maker with another boost as it prepares to return to the stock market. It won’t have to pay $45.4 billion in taxes on future profits.
Harry Potter Blamed For India’s Owl Crisis (AP)
Indian Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh has blamed fans of Harry Potter for the demise of wild owls in the country as children seek to emulate the boy wizard by taking the birds as pets. The hit books and films, which are popular in India, feature a snowy owl called Hedwig who is a feathered sidekick for the Potter character and used to deliver mail. “Following Harry Potter, there seems to be a strange fascination even among the urban middle classes for presenting their children with owls,” Ramesh said Wednesday, according to comments reported by the BBC. His remarks came as wildlife group Traffic presented a report called “Imperilled Custodians of the Night” which warned about the declining owl population in India. Researchers found that a growing number of owls were being trapped, traded or killed in black magic rituals. Continue reading »
