Insider-Trading Clash Will Get U.S. Supreme Court Review (Bloomberg)
Under insider-trading law, prosecutors must show that a tipster received a “personal benefit” for leaking information. That much is clear. Now, the Supreme Court will define that term. Does it mean that the tipster received something concrete, like cash, in return for the tip? Or is it enough that the insider and the recipient of the tip share a close family relationship?
Bank of America, Morgan Stanley Ready to Cut Costs (WSJ)
Big U.S. and European banks already have eliminated more than 100,000 jobs since 2012, and billions of dollars in assets have come off their balance sheets as executives settled into the postcrisis era. Yet many of their returns still are trailing what investors consider their cost of capital, leading many to conclude 2016 will be another lean year. “Our No. 1 priority is to control what we can control given the market realities,” James Gorman, Morgan Stanley’s chairman and chief executive, said during Tuesday’s conference call with analysts.
Einhorn Buys Macy's Stake Saying It Could Be a Takeover Target (Bloomberg)
In discussing a real estate deal, Einhorn echoes remarks from activist investor Starboard Value, which has been pushing for Macy’s to tap its properties since July. While Macy’s rejected that idea last year, the math may have changed after the shares lost more than half their value from a July high of $72.80, the New York-based hedge fund firm wrote.
Proposed Legislation Would Add New Scrutiny of Wall Street Regulators (Dealbook)
A bipartisan group of senators is working on a package of regulatory reform bills that most likely would include a measure to subject the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Securities and Exchange Commission and other independent agencies to a heightened cost-benefit analysis and review process for major rules, according to people briefed on the plans.
Cat resembling Adam Driver adopted after photo went viral (UPI)
Twitter user Marci Robin posted a photo of the cat named Corey, who was being held at the Monmouth County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, comparing it to Driver, who recently stared as Kylo Ren in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. "Tell me this cat at Monmouth County SPCA doesn't look like Adam Driver," she wrote...By Sunday, Corey's internet fame ultimately led to it finding a new home as the shelter announced via Twitter that the cat had been adopted.
Bill Gross: The Fed is old fashioned (CNBC)
One other concern Gross pointed out is the divide between the financial economy and the real economy. "What is going on is the financial economy is divorced from the real economy," Gross said. "You see the markets cave based on the opinion of the financial economy that is still highly levered."
Corporate Growth Reflects Global Slowdown (WSJ)
“I don’t see a huge case for growth,” said Eric Slover, U.S. stock strategist for Barclays. His bank projects 4% earnings gains for companies in the S&P 500 index, which get about 40% of their sales from overseas (and more at the biggest firms). “That’s basically just saying you’re limping into 2017,” he said.
Napoleon’s autograph is pretty valuable (NYP)
A 19th-century marriage document with signatures of French rulers Napoleon and Josephine Bonaparte will hit the market next month for the très grande price of $20,000, a New York collector said Tuesday. Napoleon and his wife were witnesses to the marriage of Gen. August Hulin and Marie Jeanne-Louise Tiersonnier on May 30, 1804, in Paris. The contract signed by Hulin and his wife amounted to a “19th-century version of a prenuptial agreement,” according to David Lowenherz, president of Lion Heart Autographs.
Giant church in shape of shoe to open in Taiwan (Reuters)
Budai, a township in southwest Taiwan, is building a church in the form of a giant high-heeled shoe, made of metal and blue glass tiles, seeking to attract more tourists to the area. Still under construction, the structure is some 17 meters (55.77 ft) tall at the highest point, the heel.
