Opening Bell: 08.27.13
Trader in J.P. Morgan 'Whale' Case Arrested (WSJ)
Spanish police arrested one of two former J.P. Morgan Chase traders charged with hiding losses on bad bets that cost the bank more than $6 billion, a spokesman for the National Police said. Javier Martin-Artajo, a Spanish national, turned himself in to police in Madrid following a conversation with a unit specializing on fugitives, and was detained earlier Tuesday, the spokesman said. Mr. Martin-Artajo was the supervisor of Bruno Iksil, the trader who engineered the disastrous bets and was given the nickname "London whale." U.S. officials had previously issued an arrest warrant for him, said the spokesman. Mr. Martin-Artajo will now be brought in front of a Madrid judge, he added.
Ex-JP Morgan Executive Released After Arrest In Spain (Reuters)
Martin-Artajo, who will not be allowed to leave Spain under the terms of his release and who will have to appear in court every 15 days, has told a Spanish court he is not willing to be extradited to the United States, the source said.
US Treasury To Hit Debt Limit In Mid-October (WSJ)
The deadline, which is sooner than many on Capitol Hill had expected, gives a sobering jolt to a number of fiscal discussions that have faltered for months.
Sotheby's Auction House Becomes Target Of Third Point's Dan Loeb (Bloomberg)
Sotheby's, the New York-based art and collectibles auction house, is being targeted by Daniel Loeb’s Third Point LLC activist hedge-fund firm, which amassed a 5.7 percent stake. Third Point, based in New York, spent $156.7 million on the holding, according to a filing yesterday with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Loeb, 51, intends to engage Sotheby’s board and management in talks, the regulatory filing shows. The filing indicates that the discussions may relate to changes in leadership or strategy at the auctioneer, led by Chairman and Chief Executive Officer William Ruprecht.
Argentina Reopens Debt Swap (WSJ)
Argentina's government will reopen a 2005 debt swap for a second time after an adverse ruling in a New York court last week. The move, unveiled by President Cristina Kirchner Monday, comes as the government deals with the fallout from a U.S. court decision last week that ordered Argentina to pay a group of so-called holdout bondholders 100% of the roughly $1.33 billion they are owed in principal and accrued interest. The Kirchner administration has refused to pay the holdouts, saying they don't deserve 100% of what they are owed under U.S. law. Argentina defaulted on its debt at the end of 2001, and in 2005 and 2010 it offered to pay bondholders only a third of what they were owed on the defaulted debt. Though 93% of bondholders eventually accepted Argentina's terms, others, such as the group of holdouts who were favored in last week's decision, held out hope for a better offer. The offer never came, and Mrs. Kirchner indicated Monday that her government wouldn't comply with the court order, even if it is upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Man charged after drunken, naked joyride on Juneau whale-watching boat (AP)
Juneau police say a 35-foot whale-watching boat was taken out for an unauthorized spin over the weekend. Witnesses called police at 2:22 a.m. Saturday after seeing two intoxicated people stumble down a dock and get on board the K'eet, a vessel used by Juneau Whale Watching. Witnesses also say the vessel was doing "doughnuts" in Auke Bay. Coast Guardsmen responded and took control of the boat. The boarding crew described the man and woman as drunk and naked.
Glitch Costly For Goldman Sachs (Reuters)
Goldman Sachs Group lost tens of millions of dollars after a computer glitch led to a flood of erroneous options trades last week, a source close to the matter said yesterday. An upgrade of Goldman’s internal system Aug. 20 affected options on stocks and some exchange-traded funds with symbols beginning with the letters H through L, leading to trades vastly out of line with market prices.
Facebook Vaults Past $100 Billion (NYP)
FYI.
Bob BATS-bashed (NYP)
We’re No. 3! Nasdaq is likely to get bumped from being the second-largest stock exchange in the world after two smaller rivals merge. The planned combination of BATS Global Markets and Direct Edge will oust Nasdaq from its ranking as the second-largest exchange, behind just NYSE Euronext. It’s another blow to Nasdaq CEO Bob Greifeld, still reeling from the technological meltdown last week that forced his exchange to close for three hours.
81 Year-Old Man Shoots Himself With Bullet Meant For Raccoon (NHR)
An 81-year-old man hospitalized Sunday with a gunshot wound told police he accidentally shot himself with a .22 that was meant for a large raccoon that had been scratching at the door of his Russell Street home for several days. James Pace Sr., taken to Yale-New Haven Hospital by his son, shot himself in the shin and his injury is non-life threatening, police said. Officers were called to the hospital after Pace arrived. He told police he armed himself with the rifle and waited for the raccoon to show up. While waiting, he sneezed and fell from his chair, then realized he had shot himself, police said. The victim “secured the rifle” and told his son what happened.