Opening Bell: 07.22.10
Paulson Plans New Fund (WSJ)
Paulson & Co., is launching a fund under the European standard for open-ended investment funds, known as UCITS, that will track existing investments, according to one of the people familiar with the matter. Paulson plans to launch the fund, which will be domiciled onshore in Europe, in the coming months, the person familiar said. It is being launched in conjunction with Germany's Deutsche Bank AG.
Credit Suisse Sees Small Increase In Profit (NYT)
Credit Suisse’s profit rose 1.4 percent to 1.59 billion Swiss francs, or $1.5 billion, in the second quarter, from 1.57 billion francs in the same period last year. But earnings at its investment banking operation dropped 53 percent as unnerved clients cut back on trades.
Blackstone Reports Second Quarter Profit (BW)
$205 mill buys a lotta crabs. Just sayin'.
Bank of Ireland, Allied Irish Said to Pass EU's Stress Tests (Bloomberg)
Bank of Ireland’s 2.9 billion-euro ($3.7 billion) fundraising last month gave the lender enough capital to meet the threshold set by EU regulators, said the person, who declined to be identified because the talks are private. Allied Irish, the second-biggest lender by market value, passed because regulators included in their calculations the 7.4 billion euros the bank plans to raise by the end of the year, said another person who declined to be identified.
New York City Pensions Consider First Hedge-Fund Investments (Bloomberg)
The three funds, with combined assets of $64.5 billion as of March 31, want advice from firms on formulating strategy, identifying new investments and monitoring portfolios, according to a request for proposals from the comptroller’s office.
Greenwich Pillage (NYP)
In a move that dramatically turns up the heat on Walter Noel, the former socialite and jet-setter, Irving Picard claims Noel and other brass at Madoff feeder fund Fairfield Greenwich "purposefully turned a blind eye" to Madoff's shenanigans and used ill-gotten gains from the $7 billion in client funds they invested with the fraudster to fuel a lavish lifestyle. Picard says Noel and his main business partner Tucker, a former SEC attorney, each wrongfully earned $114 million in partnership distributions from 2002-08, in addition to salaries and bonuses. Tucker, Picard charges, was "acutely aware of many facts and red flags" but chose instead his "prized racehorses, private jets, and luxurious mansions."
Workers on Doomed Rig Voiced Concern About Safety (NYT)
In the survey, commissioned by the rig’s owner, Transocean, workers said that company plans were not carried out properly and that they “often saw unsafe behaviors on the rig.” Some workers also voiced concerns about poor equipment reliability, “which they believed was as a result of drilling priorities taking precedence over planned maintenance,” according to the survey, one of two Transocean reports obtained by The New York Times. “At nine years old, Deepwater Horizon has never been in dry dock,” one worker told investigators. “We can only work around so much.”
Gold rally to extend into 2011, macro fear persists (Reuters)
A poll of 55 analysts and traders showed expectations for gold prices in 2011 have risen by nearly 7 percent to a median $1,228 an ounce, from a forecast of $1,150 in a similar survey conducted in January.
