Opening Bell: 12.1.14

Hackers With Wall Street Savvy Stealing M&A Data (Bloomberg)
Hackers with Wall Street expertise have stolen merger-and-acquisition information from more than 80 companies for more than a year, according to security consultants who shared their findings with law enforcement. A group dubbed FIN4 by researchers at FireEye Inc. has been tricking executives, lawyers and consultants into providing access to confidential data and communications, and probably using the information for insider trading, FireEye said in a report today. The hackers’ sophistication suggests they’ve worked in the financial sector, Jen Weedon, FireEye’s manager of threat intelligence, said in an interview.

Bankers can soon cash-in on deferred recession era bonuses (NYP)
A rash of bonuses that were deferred in the wake of the financial crisis will begin to vest in the coming weeks, resulting in vastly larger paydays than if bankers and traders had been paid in cash, according to a report by Crain’s New York Business. After a challenging 2009, Goldman Sachs cut average employee pay by 13 percent, but to dull the pain, granted staffers $3.6 billion worth of shares that couldn’t be sold until January 2015, according to a regulatory filing. The stock is currently valued at $5.1 billion, thanks to a 40 percent-plus run-up in Goldman stock to Friday’s close at $188.41. “You’re going to see a deluge of bankers cashing out their restricted stock grants in the weeks ahead,” said Mark Williams, a lecturer at Boston University and former Federal Reserve Bank examiner. “These grants are deeply in the money.”

Snapchat for CEOs? Anonymous app OneOne launched (CNBC)
An Irish entrepreneur has launched an anonymous messaging app aimed at the business elite, with messages that self-destruct in 24 hours. OneOne - described as a "super-secure version of Snapchat" by the founder - was launched just over a week ago and allows users to send messages to each other with no tracking or storing of data..."I have been doing a small road-show speaking to lawyers, execs, because I think they will be our early adopters," founder Kevin Abosch said. "A couple of big CEOs said they are using it when they wanted to talk to somebody on the board about terminating someone else's employment. That is a touchy area."

Greenberg’s AIG Suit in Hands of Judge Unfazed by Stars (Bloomberg)
The presentation of testimony in the case ended last week. Once considered a long-shot, Wheeler’s rulings in favor of Boies, the lawyer’s success in eliciting damaging testimony and the judge’s impatience with the tactics of government lawyers have made a victory for Greenberg and Starr seem plausible. Wheeler, who sang in his church choir and coached softball, is seen by those who know him as unfazed by the heavyweights who were called as witnesses during the AIG trial. “Those are big names. That’s not going to intimidate Tom,” said Carl Vacketta, a former law firm colleague who said he taught Wheeler when he was a student at Georgetown University Law Center. “He’s smart and adept,” Vacketta said. “He’s not going to be bothered by anybody from Wall Street.”

Program Offers Bitcoin Entrepreneurs Camplike Atmosphere (WSJ)
For three months this summer and fall, in an open-plan office here stocked with Red Bull and ramen noodles, Brian Gamido and a couple dozen other true believers toiled at what he conceded sounds like “a pipe dream”—building viable businesses based on bitcoin. But this bitcoin boot camp was hardly a shoestring effort: Mr. Gamido and the other fledgling entrepreneurs were bankrolled in part by one of Silicon Valley’s most storied families, which has emerged as among the alternative currency’s biggest supporters.

Cops: Woman, 47, Stabbed Boyfriend For Starting Thanksgiving Dinner Without Her (TSG)
Incensed that her boyfriend began eating their Thanksgiving dinner while she was asleep following a day of drinking, a Pennsylvania woman grabbed a knife and stabbed the man after chasing him around the dining room table, cops report. Jack-Lyn Blake, 47, is locked up in the Luzerne County jail on an assortment of criminal charges, including aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, reckless endangerment, and making terroristic threats. According to Wilkes-Barre police, officers responded yesterday to Blake’s residence around 6:30 PM after receiving a 911 call about a stabbing. When they arrived at the home, Blake, who was exiting the residence, announced, “I stabbed him.” Further investigation revealed that Blake’s beau, Benjamin Smith, had been stabbed in the chest. Smith, who was pressing a towel to his wound when police arrived, was later treated at a local hospital for the non-life-threatening injury. Smith, 45, told officers that he had argued earlier in the day with Blake, who was reportedly intoxicated and had gone upstairs to sleep. While Blake snoozed, Smith began Thanksgiving dinner without her.

Moody’s Downgrades Japan’s Credit Rating (WSJ)
Moody’s Investors Service downgraded Japan’s credit rating Monday, highlighting the challenges facing Prime Minister Shinzo Abe as he tries to stoke inflation and growth. In explaining its move, Moody’s cited heightened uncertainty over Japan’s ability to cut its fiscal deficit after Mr. Abe decided last month to delay an increase in the national sales tax scheduled to take effect next year.

Brevan Howard Said to Close Commodity Hedge Fund After Losses (Bloomberg)
Brevan Howard Asset Management LLP, the hedge-fund firm that oversees $37 billion, is shutting its commodity hedge fund run by Stephane Nicolas after losses this year, according to two people with knowledge of the matter. The fund, which had about $630 million in assets under management, has fallen about 4.3 percent through the end of October, said one of the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private.

Swiss Say Foreign Millionaires Are Still Welcome After Vote (Bloomberg)
Swiss voters refused to give up a 152-year-old tax break for rich foreigners in Geneva and other wealthy areas that the government says helps the economy. Fifty-nine percent voted against an initiative, sponsored by the Socialist Party, that would have abolished a system allowing foreigners to duck income and wealth taxes by negotiating lump-sum payments with Swiss cantons, the government said yesterday. Two other proposals, on the Swiss National Bank’s gold holdings and on immigration limits, also were rejected.

Barclays Center sale buzz builds (NYP)
Billionaire media mogul Phil Anschutz has held early stage talks to buy Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, The Post has learned. Anschutz Entertainment Group, which owns or operates arenas around the world, last month held talks with Forest City Enterprises, which owns 55 percent of the two-year-old arena, sources said. The No. 2 concert promoter in the country behind Live Nation is expected to make a decision on whether to proceed with talks — or walk away — before Dec. 31, sources said.

Star Witness in Apple Lawsuit Is Steve Jobs (NYT)
In December, the company is set to go to trial in the third major antitrust lawsuit it has faced since Mr. Jobs died. His emails will play an important role in the case, as they did in the last two. But lawyers will probably have to work hard to give his statements a positive spin. The potential damages — around $350 million — are a pittance for a company that in its last quarter had an $8.5 billion profit. Executives are often told by their lawyers to be careful what they put in writing for fear it will end up as evidence in a courtroom. Perhaps Mr. Jobs did not get the memo. His emails in past lawsuits — a mix of blunt litigation threats against his opponents and cheery financial promises for potential business partners — have made him an exceptional witness against his own company, even beyond the grave.

DUI Suspect Allegedly Drinks Vodka While Being Questioned By Cop (HP)
Florida woman France Riney, 60, is facing a DUI charge after she allegedly sat behind the wheel of a parked car and drank vodka while a St. Lucie County Sheriff's deputy tried to question her, TC Palm reports. The deputy responded to a call about a woman who “appeared out of it” in a parked vehicle at the American Legion at around 5:40 p.m. on Nov 16. According to an affidavit, Riney was in the driver’s seat with the keys in the ignition, but the car wasn’t running. When the deputy asked Riney for her license, she allegedly handed him a bag of chips, then a bottle of water. When the deputy informed her the item in her hand was not her license, she allegedly picked up a bottle of vodka and took a swig.