As we have discussed at length, UBS might move its headquarters to downtown New York in the next several years, a possibility that strikes fear into the hearts of Stamford officials and drool onto the faces of those fantasizing about the moderately-priced cheesecakes to be pillaged at the Costco that could move into the 36,000 (or so) square foot space. It’s an emotional issue for all, including employees, who are divided in their feelings. One trader has said there’s no way in hell he’ll leave southern Connecticut, where he moved 16 years ago because of UBS, and where he met his wife and raises his kids. Another can’t wait, as the move would mean he’ll “save $300 a month in train fare and major aggravation.” The 50 or so “cash trading” employees who were moved yesterday do not have the luxury of pondering how all of this makes them feel, but they do have some good new to share- those relocating are gettin’ paid! Continue reading »
Archive for July 2011
UBS Will Personally Wrap The Knick Knacks Of Those Leaving Stamford For Points South In Bubble Wrap, Possibly Even Drive Them To The Train
By Bess LevinZero Hedge points out this awesome chart in an otherwise kind of back-test-eriffic Stanford paper on credit-equity correlation trading:
The chart graphs 2003-2010 investment grade credit spreads (left axis) versus the S&P (bottom axis), with the size of the circles corresponding to the level of the VIX volatility index and the colors distinguishing the year of the observations.
Continue reading »
In New York this week, John Heileman repeats reports that Tim Geithner wants to resign as Treasury Secretary this year after the debt ceiling talks are resolved, and kind of surprisingly gives the nod to Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg as the most likely successor, adding to talk of her shortlisting from earlier this month. His logic is here, and includes Sandberg’s growing national reputation (especially after this week’s New Yorker profile), her history as chief of staff to Larry Summers at Treasury, and her appeal to the business community without any Wall Street/GE-doesn’t-pay-taxes baggage for the, um, anti-business community.
It’s hard to argue with Sandberg’s timing so far – she joined Google pre-IPO, cashed out after their 2004 IPO, and jumped to Facebook in 2008. So the next sensible new-media thingy would seem to be Twitter, and the Obama administration has that covered as well. Continue reading »
Not satisfied with taking down the names of everyone shorting Italian stocks so it could give them disappointed looks and ask them if they feel good about themselves for making Nonna cry over her lost pension, Italian securities regulator Consob has started using a little “moral suasion” to get their buddies to cut them off.
Continue reading »
As you know, Harbinger Capital currently has a big bet going on a wireless company called LightSquared. Should it succeed, Phil Falcone will make billions and his investors will receive the triple digit returns they scored on subprime. Should it fail…we don’t even want to go there but the victims will not be faceless and include but are certainly not limited to Lisa Falcone’s outfits (people in and of themselves) and the family’s cabaret performing pig. So far, unfortunately, LightSquared, illiquid shares of which were recently awarded to redemption-seeking investors, has encountered a few bumps in the road (as one often does when one is doing groundbreaking, visionary-esque work). Last month, it was reported that government tests indicated the company would not only cause “devastating interference” to all GPS devices in range but, according to the National Space-Based Positioning, Navigation and Timing Systems Engineering Forum, would “degrade global-positioning system navigation devices that are nearby and as far away as outer space.” LightSquared responded by promising “a workable solution for the small number” of GPS devices “that may be at risk,” but now it seems the venture has bigger problems than Mars on its hands– the boating community, which is pissed. Continue reading »
As Talks Stall, New Debt Plan Offered (WSJ)
In one sign that top leaders worry they won’t reach a deal in time, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) unveiled a proposal that would allow President Barack Obama to raise on his own the federal borrowing limit by $2.4 trillion in three installments before the end of 2012, unless two-thirds of Congress votes to block it. Because Mr. Obama would have to lift the debt ceiling, it could place any political fallout on him for doing so. But Republican conservatives protested that Mr. McConnell’s plan would give up the leverage the GOP has to force the White House to approve government spending cuts in return for a debt-ceiling increase.
Defaulted Greece May Have to Rescue Trichet (Bloomberg)
Trichet’s threat to refuse defaulted Greek bonds as bank collateral for ECB liquidity remains in force after European finance ministers failed to agree on measures to stem the region’s debt crisis. In a default, Greek lenders could instead get Emergency Liquidity Assistance, a short-term loan program by national central banks in use in Ireland, said economists at Deutsche Bank AG, Barclays Capital and BNP Paribas SA. That would leave the Greek central bank to firefight a banking crisis that Trichet has staked the ECB’s credibility on keeping clear of. The danger of such an event has gained credence as persistent speculation on the prospect of Greece defaulting transformed into regional contagion that sent bond yields soaring and stocks plunging from Portugal to Italy.
Moody’s says Italy debt payment sustainable (Reuters)
The maturity profile of Italian debt acts as a “buffer” against the spike in its cost, Moody’s analyst for Italy was quoted as saying on Wednesday, a day after the 10-year Italian yield broke above 6 percent.
Germany Says No Concrete Plans for Euro Crisis Summit (Reuters)
“There are no concrete plans for a special summit,” the spokeswoman said in response to a Reuters query. “The priority is for finance ministers to agree a new aid package for Greece.”
Authorities could bail out banks again, S&P says (FT)
Dodd-Frank, the legislation signed into law a year ago next week, was supposed to prevent bail-outs by allowing the government to seize and wind down safely an ailing “systemically important financial institution”, or Sifi. But in a research note, S&P said: “We believe the government may try to avoid contagion and a domino effect if a Sifi finds itself in a financially weakened position in a future crisis.”
Pimco’s Gross Raised Total Return’s Treasury Holdings in June, Pared Cash (Bloomberg)
Gross boosted his $243 billion Total Return Fund’s investment in U.S. government securities to 8 percent of assets in June from 5 percent in May, according to Newport Beach, California-based Pimco’s website. Bonds in developed markets outside the U.S. rose to 13 percent of holdings from 10 percent. Cash and equivalents dropped to 29 percent from 35 percent.
Madoff refund checks hitting mailboxes soon (NYP)
Irving Picard, the trustee in charge of cleaning up Bernie Madoff’s multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme, was given the OK yesterday to start doling out some of the $7.6 billion he’s collected in the fallout of the $65 billion stock fraud.
Hookers Know Way to San Jose (NBC)
After police budgets were slashed July 1, San Jose PD’s Vice Unit was disbanded, said San Jose Police Department spokesman Jose Garcia. This meant that part of their job responsibility – cracking down on prostitution and brothels – was reassigned to the police department’s Covert Response Unit. The CRU was originally responsible for narcotics busts in the area and despite the newly added responsibilities, the unit’s size increased by one officer. It now totals 14. Sources say the result has been an increase in illegal prostitution. Continue reading »
$$$ Geithner: We need a deal by next week (CNN)
$$$ Obama says he cannot guarantee Social Security checks will go out on August 3 (CBS)
$$$ McConnell Says ‘Real Deal’ Not Possible With Obama (WSJ)
$$$ PIMCO’s Gross raises Treasuries in flagship fund (Reuters)
$$$ Moody’s cuts Ireland to junk, warns of 2nd bailout (Reuters)
$$$ EU Will Support Banks Failing Stress Tests (WSJ)
$$$ Where’s the biggest Italian exposure? (FT Alphaville) Continue reading »
Just over a month ago, it was announced that David Einhorn would be acquiring a minority stake in the New York Mets. While thinking people (and people familiar with the matter) understand that these things take time, others have read into the “hold up,” wondering if deeper meaning is to be derived. While there’s no need to give credence to those raising questions, Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig chose to do so today, telling people, “Fuck you. He played ball in my backyard. Fuck you.” Continue reading »
Dylan Ratigan lets us in on his secret of inner peace in an Atlantic “What I Read” today. Answer – mainly Twitter, oil prices, and ’70s spiritualist and Timothy Leary associate Ram Dass:
The bottom line on Ram Dass is the realization that there is no personal identity. I’m an anchor, I’m a journalist, I’m a father, I’m a brother. But the only thing that’s important is infinite potential. Every human being’s identity is your potential. Right now I’m an anchorman in New York who’s a dude. But I’ll still be Dylan Ratigan. So who are you? My answer is infinite potential.
This dudeness allows him to not worry about things that some of the rest of us think about, like the debt ceiling debates, to which the only possible answer is obvs “infinite potential” but people just don’t get that because of, like, the media, man:
Continue reading »
His investors don’t appear bothered by the whole fake trees incident and not even all of his funds are down. You’re only hearing about the ones not doing as hot being people love to tear a big man down. Continue reading »
Last month we discussed the possibility of UBS moving out of its Stamford, CT building (which houses the largest trading floor in the world) and into New York City. The bank, which has not been doing too hot of late, seems to believe that leaving Stamford would be a panacea for all its woes which, according to UBS, boil down to no one wanting to work in Connecticut (rather than no one wanting to work at a place that doesn’t pay and yells at you when you ask if this month’s check will clear). Until recently, the talk has all been very casual, though it got kicked up a notch to semi-serious when word got out that senior execs had been speaking with developer Larry Silverstein about a possible deal at 3 World Trade Center, which conveniently has 5 trading floors located in “Tower 3,” causing more than a few people to flip out over the idea of a UBS-less Stamford. Still, though, the bank will more than likely be sticking it out for the next few years if not longer and may simply be playing games in order to get city/state officials to sweeten their stay. To that end, the news that 50 “cash trading” employees were moved to New York today shouldn’t be too distressing. Or should it? Continue reading »
