Opening Bell: 05.10.10
Goldman Sachs Expects More Investigations (Reuters)
"We anticipate that additional putative shareholder derivative actions and other litigation may be filed, and regulatory and other investigations and actions commenced, against us with respect to offerings of (collateralized debt obligations)," the bank said in a statement.
Euphoria Greets EU's $1 Trillion Rescue (BW)
"This is shock and awe, Part II and in 3-D, with a much bigger budget and a more impressive array of special effects," said Marco Annunziata, chief economist at UniCredit Group in London. "This truly is overwhelming force, and should be more than sufficient to stabilize markets in the near term, prevent panic and contain the risk of contagion," he said.
European Lawmakers To Unveil Hedge Fund Clampdown (Reuters)
"We want to have clear rules that these managers have to stick to," said Udo Bullmann, a German Socialist member of the European Parliament who plays a central role in deciding the law. "The hedge funds played a role in the Greek crisis." Bullmann said the rules would include curbs on pay such as an end to "golden handshakes", as well as strict limits on private equity investors trying to extract dividends from companies within the first four years of ownership.
SEC Summons Exchange Chiefs To Washington (WSJ)
Mary Schapiro wants to examine ways to prevent a recurrence of the plunge, including possible short-term fixes, according to people familiar with the matter. The meeting is expected to address how disparate trading rules, such as different circuit breakers at the NYSE compared with those elsewhere, may have affected trading. Duncan Niederauer and Nasdaq CEO Robert Greifeld agreed to attend the meeting, as did execs with BATS Global Markets and Direct Edge.
Hedge Funds Gain More Than 1% In April, Paulson Shines (WSJ)
Paulson's Recovery fund, which invests in financial institutions that need new capital, jumped 6.83% in April, up more than 25% YTD. Paulson's gold fund, which the firm launched at the start of 2010, returned almost 10% in April, up more than 4% YTD.
Rare Manet Self-Portrait Is Going To Auction (NYT)
Steve C has owned it for over ten years- now he's bored of it and it can be yours June 22 when it's expected to go for $30.1 million to $45.2 million.
Feds Probing JPMorgan's Silver Market Trades (NYP)
"The probes are centering on whether or not JPMorgan, a top derivatives holder in precious metals, acted improperly to depress the price of silver, sources said. The CFTC is looking into civil charges, and the Department of Justice's Antitrust Division is handling the criminal probe, according to sources, who did not wish to be identified due to the sensitive nature of the information. The probes are far-ranging, with federal officials looking into JPMorgan's precious metals trades on the London Bullion Market Association's exchange, which is a physical delivery market, and the Nymex for future paper derivative trades."
Moodys Served Well's Notice By SEC (Moody's)
The ratings agency maintains its innocence.
Exchange Points Fingers Over Human Hands (WSJ)
Enjoy this visual: "As stocks took their sudden nose dive on Thursday, the NYSE's hybrid model swung into action. The exchange shut down computer trading of some stocks for a minute or so at a time and handed it over to humans—the traders on the floor of the exchange. That hand-over is designed to slow the market, as humans help find the right price for volatile stocks while applying the brakes. But the NYSE is the only major exchange with such a system. The rest of the market's computerized exchanges kept trading, which built up a huge volume of sellers with virtually no buyers. Instead of bringing sanity back to a volatile market, the NYSE floor traders looked a bit like rodeo contestants trying to jump back on to bucking broncos."
Imagine YouTube For Traders (NYT)
Go on, do it.
Charter Schools' New Cheerleaders: Financiers (NYT)
Anchorage Capital, Greenlight and Pershing Square all have their pom-poms out.