(The people who questioned his artistic integrity re: the whole “Chooch” thing don’t count, right? Okay, cool, then no one, ever.) Continue reading »
Archive for November 2010
(An Indignant) Steve Rattner: Andrew Cuomo Is The First Person To Ever Question My Ethics Or Integrity
By Bess Levin
According to a filing, the investigations are looking at “particular investments and trading in securities of particular issuers,” and it’s unclear as to who is conducting the probe (or if it’s related to the inquiry the Securities and Exchange Commission reported last week). One thing, however, is clear. Continue reading »
SUPER excited? Continue reading »
To be sure, there are many interesting positions to be had at SAC that most boys and girls would kill for. There’s Steve’s, which is a pretty good gig. There’s IR, which is fun. There’s president Cohnheeney’s, though few are good looking enough. There’s SC’s bodyguard, which is exciting and involves a gun. And of course there are the trading slots. They all come with great money, fleece apparel and of course prestige.
But unless you also want serious stress and pressure hanging over your head hour to hour day to day month to month, none of them are for you. You want the job where it is possible to utter the words “I’m gonna take off for a few hours, hit the links, maybe grab a sandwich” during the course of a trading session without fear of having a sand wedge shoved up your ass. You want the job that belongs to Sam Evans, SAC Capital golf pro in residence. Continue reading »
Closest without going over, guesses in by 3PM EST. Winner gets your choice of dinner with Dan Akerson or a visit from The Sandwich Fairy (TSF) at lunch tomorrow.
GM Stock Sale In High Gear (WSJ)
Wednesday afternoon at the Manhattan headquarters of one of the lead bankers, Morgan Stanley, GM executives were greeted by traders and bankers standing and cheering while wearing blue GM T-shirts over their shirts and ties.
GM Aiming For No Debt On Balance Sheet (CNBC)
General Motors aims to eliminate all debt from its balance sheet and make its European operations profitable by 2012, GM CEO Daniel Akerson told CNBC today. “We want to delever as much as possible, in fact our goal is to have zero debt on our balance sheet,” Akerson said, without elaborating on the timeframe. He said this move was needed so GM could better withstand the headwinds of economic cycles.
Bernanke Defends Fed Policy as Republicans Step Up Criticism (Bloomberg)
Bernanke, in a closed-door meeting yesterday, said the Fed’s plan to buy $600 billion in assets would spur job growth while keeping inflation under control. John Boehner, the presumptive House speaker, and three other Republicans sent Bernanke a letter expressing “deep concerns” about a policy they said risked weakening the dollar and fueling asset bubbles.
British Taxpayers `Knee Deep’ in Ireland After Bank Bailouts (Bloomberg)
“We’re knee deep already in Ireland’s banks,” said Peter Hahn, a former managing director of Citigroup Inc. who now lectures on corporate finance at Cass Business School in London. “It’s going to get increasingly disturbing for people to see how exposed we are to Ireland’s banks.” If anything, 18.4 billion pounds “sounds like a low number,” he said.
Will Ferrell Bombs in Case Against JPMorgan (Dealbook)
Mr. Ferrell, his wife, a business manager and a trust for another comedian, Larry David, filed an arbitration claim against JPMorgan in August 2008, asserting that the Wall Street bank “engaged in unauthorized and unsuitable purchases” of $18 million of preferred securities. On Wednesday, a three-member arbitration panel denied the claim and ordered Mr. Ferrell and the others to pay JPMorgan $600,000 in legal fees.
George Soros Tells Progressive Donors Obama Might Not Be The Best Investment (HP)
The Hungarian-American financier was speaking to a small side gathering of donors who had convened in Washington D.C. for the annual gathering of the Democracy Alliance — a formal community of well-funded, progressive-minded individuals and activists. According to multiple sources with knowledge of his remarks, Soros told those in attendance that he is “used to fighting losing battles but doesn’t like to lose without fighting. We have just lost this election, we need to draw a line,” he said, according to several Democratic sources. “And if this president can’t do what we need, it is time to start looking somewhere else.” Continue reading »
$$$ Cornell Senior: “…each fall and spring Goldman recruiters are afforded space on East Hill. The bank, along with the rest of corporate America, pursues Cornell’s best and brightest — tabling at career fairs, holding information sessions and setting up shop in the narrow corridors of Barnes Hall. It vets and interrogates, tests and examines, and eventually it leaves campus with a wish list of eager undergrads. A few months later, those same undergrads are paying for a few rounds of drinks at a celebratory Long Island iced tea night. And come summer, these undergrads have transformed into full-fledged Goldmanites — squeezing every drip of profit out of the rag that is America with conscious abandon — under the tragically correct assumption that the rest of us are, above all else, jealous of them.
This must end. A corporation with Goldman’s track record of bubble-building and profiteering has no place on this campus.” [Cornell Sun via BI]
$$$ Citigroup M&A rank droops as bailout stigma bites [Reuters]
$$$ General Motors Stock Is Priced at $33 in IPO [WSJ] Continue reading »
When we last checked in with Neel Kashkari in December 2009, he wasn’t doing so hot. He’d barely escaped from the Treasury intact and was holed up in the woods starving himself in an effort to lose the 20 pounds he’d put on working with Hank but even more so to exorcise the demons he’d acquired during the worst year of his life. Fast forward 11 months later and it appears that time really does heal all (as does the daily Conga line around the PIMCO office). Kashkari is refreshed, happy, and finally ready to speak about Project TARP, which he did on Bloomberg TV this morning. At the time, Kash-K says, the bailout felt a lot like giving yourself an at-home budget colonic but in hindsight it’s something he can now appreciate.
“In the worst moments of the crisis, I didn’t know if we’d get even a dollar back. I thought it would cost all $700 billion at the worst moments. I certainly didn’t think we’d get any money back from the auto companies or AIG. The fact that they’re now getting healthier and in a position to pay back some of the money, hopefully all of it, is a resounding success beyond my own wildest dreams. The American people should feel very good about it. We did something very unpleasant, distasteful, but it was effective and much less costly than we expected.”
From the mailbag: Continue reading »
“No, I will probably not by shares of GM,” TBP told Bloomberg TV. “I remember what happened to the equity holders there one time. I’d buy Ford.”
Renowned Businessman And Bankruptcy Expert Announces He’s Thinking Of Running For President
By Bess Levin
The new First Family?
Earlier today on Power Lunch, Donald Trump popped by to thank the gang for the special they’ve produced about him airing tonight. They chatted about a slew of topics including Michelle Caruso-Cabrera being pissed off her appearance on this season of The Apprentice was cut and whether or not Don will run for president. “A lot of people think I should [and] for the first time in my life, I’m really thinking about it,” Trump admitted. Continue reading »
