Opening Bell: 11.19.09
A Hedge Fund King Comes Under Siege (WSJ)
Ken Griffin is ready to move on from last year, and would like you to move on and invest with him. If you're nervous about the losses, take heart: "If there were a repeat of 2008's market turmoil, Mr. Griffin says, his funds would lose less than 20% rather than 55%. Citadel's biggest hedge fund has rebounded 58% this year through mid-November. And recently, Mr. Griffin has resumed talking about an initial public offering for Citadel as early as next year."
Whitney Says Goldman Has Lost 'Talent' (Bloomberg)
Not just a little talent but a "tremendous amount of talent," as a result of execs leaving to start hedge funds, apparently.
New Link In Insider Trading Case (WSJ)
Gary Rosenbach, a Galleon senior partner who left the hedge fund "due to family health reasons" earlier this year.
Elizabeth Warren: Winning Means You Won't Sell It If You Can't Explain It (Bloomberg)
"We need a new model: If you can't explain it, you can't sell it," said Warren.
Goldman Was Exposed to AIG Losses: Government Report (NYT)
Surprise! If AIG had collapsed, it would have made it difficult for Goldman to liquidate its trading positions with AIG, even at discounts, the report said. It also would have put pressure on other counterparties that "might have made it difficult for Goldman Sachs to collect on the credit protection it had purchased against an AIG default." A Goldman spokesman called the risks discussed in the report a "moot point."