Opening Bell: 8.13.15
Trading Probe Eyes Ex-Chairman of Dean Foods (WSJ)
Criminal and civil authorities are investigating whether the former chairman of Dean Foods Co. leaked inside information about a corporate spinoff to a professional gambler who in turn is suspected of tipping off golfer Phil Mickelson, according to people familiar with the probe. The scrutiny of Dean Foods ex-Chairman Thomas Davis brings a high-profile investigation first reported by The Wall Street Journal last year into the boardroom of a major company. The showcase probe could test the limits of the government’s ability to pursue high-profile insider-trading cases, as its efforts have been significantly set back by a 2014 appellate-court ruling.
Attacks on Fiber Networks Baffle FBI (WSJ)
The Federal Bureau of Investigation says San Francisco’s Bay Area has suffered more than a dozen attacks on its fiber optic infrastructure over the past year. The attacks slow Internet service and disrupt financial transactions and emergency phone calls. The way the cuts are clustered on single nights around the East Bay and in San Jose, Calif., at the heart of Silicon Valley, have led officials to believe the attacks are intentional. Beyond that, they have yet to nail down a motive, let alone a culprit, creating an unusual cyber whodunit with few leads and little understanding.
Citigroup’s ‘Bad Bank’ Isn’t So Bad Anymore (WSJ)
The “bad-bank” unit of Citigroup Inc., Citi Holdings for more than six years has been the repository for businesses the banking giant wanted to dump: its retail brokerage and life insurance unit, an array of toxic subprime loans, even a stake in a Mexican auto supplier. Now, after years of losses, the unit has reported four profitable quarters in a row. It also has sold more than $700 billion in assets, an amount that rivals the balance sheets of Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Morgan Stanley.
Greece Faces Two-Year Recession Amid Bailout Cuts (WSJ)
The country’s economy is expected to shrink 2.3% this year because of the recent months of turmoil and the cuts required by the bailout, the officials said, citing the latest estimates from the institutions that have been negotiating Greece’s new aid program. Next year, it is projected to contract 1.3%
Police find loaded gun in hollowed-out Bible (UPI)
Police said the vehicle was pulled over about 2:30 a.m. Monday and searched when officers detected the scent of marijuana. Investigators said they found marijuana, a gravity knife and the hollowed-out King James Bible containing a loaded Glock 17. DeShawn Thompson, 24, Santina Ferguson, 21, and Andre Allen, 34, were arrested on charges of criminal possession of a weapon and unlawful possession of marijuana.
Germany criticises Greek bailout (FT)
Germany’s finance ministry outlined its objections in a paper circulated to its eurozone counterparts just hours before the Greek parliament was due to debate on Wednesday the painful austerity and reform package that had been reluctantly accepted by the radical left government of prime minister Alexis Tsipras.
U.S. Appeals Ruling That A.I.G. Bailout Terms Were Too Harsh (Dealbook)
In a move that starts a new chapter in the battle over the bailout of the American International Group during the financial crisis, the Justice Department formally appealed a court ruling on Wednesday that said the government’s terms for saving the company had been too harsh...In June, Judge Thomas C. Wheeler of the United States Court of Federal Claims delivered a split decision: The Federal Reserve had indeed crossed the line by demanding a 79.9 percent equity stake in A.I.G., he ruled, and the central bank “did not have the legal right to become the owner of A.I.G.” Judge Wheeler awarded no damages, however, saying A.I.G. shareholders had not suffered financially.
American Apparel mulls bankruptcy filing amid unrest (NYP)
The embattled retailer, fighting labor unrest and a dwindling cash supply, said Tuesday its net loss swelled to $19.4 million in the second quarter from $16.2 million a year ago amid a 17 percent decline in revenue. The Los Angeles-based apparel maker had just $13 million in cash available on June 30 — having burned through roughly $23 million during the second quarter. A Chapter 11 filing is not out of the question, the company all but acknowledged in a regulatory filing.
Man Assaults Brother For Not Sharing Big Macs, Police Say (HP)
Thomas Veres, 47, was arrested early Wednesday morning after he allegedly punched his older brother, Matthew, 58, for eating three Big Macs and not saving one for him. Police said Veres was so mad that he ransacked the home they shared in Union Township, knocking over furniture and appliances and throwing food, the Washington County Observer-Reporter reports. Matthew Veres suffered injuries to his right eye and left cheek and had his ear cut during the assault, police said, according to the Associated Press.