Just one, not all. Start small. Continue reading »
Archive for December 2010
New Year’s Resolution For S&P To Consider: Properly Rate A Security For The First Time
By Bess Levin
Before all you naysers go to town about how it would be outrageous for him to be allowed to ever come within 100 feet of another pooch, let us look to the lessons of John Meriwether, which can be applied to most life situations. Continue reading »
Apparently it was “very constructive,” “very thoughtful,” and Wolf came away feeling this administration has “lots of business acumen.”
Onto the house!
On Monday night, Stephen Colbert announced that after one of his writer’s had found a lost credit card belonging to Goldman Sachs partner Buckley T. Ratchford, he would be giving out one number per show each day that BTR failed to appear on the Colbert Report to talk Wall Street bonuses. Though Buck presumably had the mental faculties to cancel the card upon losing it, we wagered that he would prefer the information not to be distributed. And, also, that Goldman would not be offering up a body and if need be, Blankfein would head over to the studio to bust some skulls. Luckily for Steph-o, it didn’t come to that. Continue reading »
Last month, JPMorgan announced it would be giving out free iPads to all investment banking associates. After almost three weeks of waiting to blast out mass emails with a “sent from my iPad” signature, iPad Day has finally come. Continue reading »
Morgan Stanley Guy Who Committed Hit And Run Provides Pretty Legit Excuse For Faux Pas
By Bess Levin
Back in November, it was reported that last summer, Morgan Stanley financial adviser Martin Joel Erzinger, pictured, had driven over a doctor who was on his bike and then kept going, “until he reached a Pizza Hut parking lot, where he stopped and called Mercedes auto assistance to report the damage to his vehicle.” Dr. Steven Milo suffered damage to his knees and scapula, spinal cord injuries, bleeding to the brain, in addition to ‘disabling’ headaches and the possibility of multiple surgeries. The part of the story that was somewhat more shocking was that rather than be slapped with serious to quite serious charges, a court decided that for his crime, MJE would be hit with two misdemeanour traffic violations and restitution to the victim. People were somewhat outraged, to say the least. But! That was prior to hearing all of Marty’s side of the story. Continue reading »
Reuters reports that Ireland’s parliament has approved the 85 billion euro bailout, by a vote of 81 to 75. In related news, one Canadian posing as a Irish citizen recently offered his two cents on the situation, noting that there are four causes of Ireland’s current predicament. They are: 1) ‘greed, greed and more greed’ 2) ‘the stupid fucking government’ 3) ‘very deceitful and conniving developers’ 4) ‘wanking fucking bankers…assholes.’ Continue reading »
Wilbur Ross: Ireland Will Overcome Problems In Two Years (CNBC)
Ireland passed a very tough budget, cutting the minimum wage, and it now has in place a bailout by the European Union and the International Monetary Fund, showing the government’s determination to solve the problem the country faces, Ross said. “Ireland has a very specific problem, we think they’ll overcome it in a couple of years,” he added.
Dress To Impress, UBS Tells Staff (WSJ, Dealbreaker)
Yes, they did.
Fed Signals Stronger Economy Won’t Slow $600 Billion Stimulus (Bloomberg)
The Federal Open Market Committee said yesterday after its final meeting of 2010 that growth is “insufficient to bring down unemployment” and inflation has “continued to trend lower.” U.S. central bankers affirmed a plan to buy $600 billion of bonds through June and renewed their pledge for an “extended period” of low interest rates.
Spain Rating Put On Review By Moody’s (Bloomberg)
Spain’s credit rating may be cut from Aa1, Moody’s Investors Service said, as the government prepares its final bond sale of the year tomorrow amid concern it may follow Greece and Ireland in seeking a bailout. Spain has to raise 170 billion euros ($226 billion) next year, while refinancing needs for its regions total 30 billion euros and for banks around 90 billion euros, Moody’s estimates. “Spain’s substantial funding requirements, not only for the sovereign but also for the regional governments and the banks, make the country susceptible to further episodes of funding stress,” Kathrin Muehlbronner, an analyst at Moody’s, said in a report today.
Senate Sets Wednesday Vote On Tax Cuts (Reuters)
While the Senate neared a rare bipartisan vote on the bill to renew all Bush-era income tax breaks and add provisions to stimulate the economy, House Democrats mulled ways to pull back on some of the measure’s tax breaks for the wealthy.
Tax Deal Shaping 2012 GOP Campaign (WSJ)
Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney have both come out sharply against the measure, which President Barack Obama hammered out last week with Senate Republican leaders. Both cite the deal’s price tag, with Mr. Romney saying it will heap billions more onto the nation’s debt load. Supporting the package are former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, all of whom praise the deal as good for the economy and the only way to spare Americans the jolt of a sudden tax increase that otherwise would take effect on Jan. 1.
No Funeral, Just Cremation For Mark Madoff (NYP)
“He is going to be cremated at the family’s wishes,” the source said, hours after Mark’s body was released by the Medical Examiner’s Office to a Manhattan funeral home. “No services, no viewing. The family doesn’t want a viewing.” Continue reading »
$$$ Obama to meet with UBS Americas Chair Robert Wolf tomorrow, among others. [BW]
$$$ As we reported Friday, there were major layoffs at FrontPoint Partners. The news was confirmed by someone who spoke on condition of anonymity this afternoon. [Dealbook]
$$$ Military tactics to use in the office [FINS]
$$$ Feds Stick To Bond-Buying Policy [WSJ] Continue reading »
