Opening Bell: 11.22.21

It’s Jay; also it’s Alex; McKinsey mess; sayings of Ray; and more!

Author:
Dealbreaker
Publish date:
Nov 22, 2021

It’s Jay; also it’s Alex; McKinsey mess; sayings of Ray; and more!

Jerome Powell tapped for second term as Fed chair [Reuters]
Lael Brainard, the Federal Reserve board member who was the other top candidate for the job, will be vice chair, the White House said…. The decision to stick with Powell, a Republican and former private equity lawyer elevated to the Fed's top job by Trump, rejuvenates what in recent decades had been a bipartisan approach to filling the position, and several Republican senators have already endorsed the reappointment despite Powell's rocky relationship with Trump.

Deutsche Bank Names Alexander Wynaendts as Next Chairman [WSJ]
Wynaendts, a 61-year-old Dutchman, was the chief executive officer of Dutch insurer Aegon NV for 12 years through 2020. He began his career at lender ABN Amro NV, where he spent 13 years in private and investment banking in Amsterdam and London…. He will succeed longtime chairman Paul Achleitner, who has led the company’s supervisory board for nearly decade…. Deutsche Bank shares have fallen more than 50% since Mr. Achleitner became chairman, weighed down by massive regulatory fines and repeated capital raisings.

McKinsey Paying $18 Million to Settle SEC Investigation Over Insider-Trading Controls [WSJ]
The SEC didn’t accuse McKinsey or any employees of insider trading but said the firm should have had better policies to ensure partners didn’t misuse confidential information. McKinsey’s MIO unit settled the SEC’s investigation without admitting or denying wrongdoing…. McKinsey partners who decided on investments for MIO sold about $1 million of Puerto Rican bonds in 2017, when they had access to confidential information about the island’s financial situation, the SEC said in a settlement order.

Wall Street Fines Fall 18% in First Year of Biden Administration [WSJ]
The Securities and Exchange Commission obtained $3.9 billion in fines during its latest fiscal year, which ended in September. The SEC set a record for fines imposed through its civil enforcement actions in 2020, when the total surpassed $4.6 billion.
The Securities and Exchange Commission obtained $3.9 billion in fines during its latest fiscal year, which ended in September. The SEC set a record for fines imposed through its civil enforcement actions in 2020, when the total surpassed $4.6 billion.

Ray Dalio Says, ‘If You Worry, You Don’t Have to Worry’ [DealBook]
In two weeks, his third book in five years, “The Changing World Order,” will be published. It is an attempt to better understand the current economic environment and the challenges that it presents by delving into centuries of economic ups and downs…. “300 years seems like a very long time ago to Americans, but for the Chinese, it isn’t long at all. While the prospect of a revolution or a war that will overturn the US system is unimaginable to most Americans, both seem inevitable to the Chinese because they have seen those things happen again and again and have studied the patterns that inevitably precede them. While most Americans focus on particular events, especially those that are happening now, most Chinese leaders view current events in the context of larger, more evolutionary patterns.”

J.P. Morgan Offers a “Reimagined” World for Its 2022 List of Books and Experiences [Penta]
Among them is the pop-rock Six the Musical on Broadway in New York, which was originally scheduled to open just as New York theater shut down in March 2020, and the contemporary art collection of Kering Group founder François Pinault, which is being shown in a Pinault-developed museum, the Bourse de Commerce, in Paris…. The book recommendations include titles on leadership and business strategy, entrepreneurship, technology, spirituality, and medicine.

Opening Bell

It's (probably) gonna be Powell; this week is going to be nuts; whatever happens, buy the dip; how to survive getting locked in a beer cooler; and much more.

Opening Bell

Janet who?; SEC tells celebs not to hawk cryptocurrencies; Guggenheim might have done a little self-dealing; CDOs are back again, again, baby; Osama bin Laden was a 9/11 truther?; and much more.

Opening Bell

Chinese Premier Blasts Banks (WSJ) In an evening broadcast on state-run China National Radio, Mr. Wen told an audience of business leaders that China's tightly controlled banking system needs to change. "Let me be frank. Our banks earn profit too easily. Why? Because a small number of large banks have a monopoly," said Mr. Wen, according to the transcript of the program on the broadcaster's website. "To break the monopoly, we must allow private capital to flow into the finance sector." Regulators Expected to Penalize JPMorgan Over Lehman Collapse (NYT) The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is expected this week to file a civil case against JPMorgan. The bank is expected to settle the Lehman matter and pay a fine of approximately $20 million...The Lehman action stems from the questionable treatment of customer money — an issue that has been at the forefront of the recent outcry over MF Global. JPMorgan was also intimately involved in the final days of that brokerage firm. The trading commission is expected to accuse JPMorgan of overextending credit to Lehman for two years leading up to its bankruptcy in 2008, the people briefed on the matter said. Fitch Ditched in Bond Dispute (WSJ) Fitch Group's new chief executive said Credit Suisse Group AG CSGN.VX -1.61% dropped the firm's rating from a mortgage-backed security because Fitch took a harsher view than two rivals that assigned triple-A ratings to the deal. "It was an 11th-hour thing when they decided which agency it would be to publicly rate it," said Paul Taylor, who took over this week as chief executive of Fitch Group, in an interview. "We had a materially different take." Mr. Taylor said Fitch Group, which includes credit-rating firm Fitch Ratings, had been compensated for its rating on the mortgage-backed deal. Fitch shared its differing view with investors after the deal closed Friday, publishing a report critical of Standard & Poor's Ratings Services and DBRS Ltd. for issuing triple-A ratings on the residential-mortgage-backed security issued by Credit Suisse. Fed Signals No Need for More Easing Unless Growth Falters (Bloomberg) “A couple of members indicated that the initiation of additional stimulus could become necessary if the economy lost momentum or if inflation seemed likely to remain below” 2 percent, according to minutes of their March 13 meeting released today in Washington. That contrasts with the assessment at the FOMC’s January meeting in which some Fed officials saw current conditions warranting additional action “before long.” Spanish Bond Sale Fizzles (WSJ) Spain sold a total of €2.589 billion ($3.43 billion) of the 4.4% January 2015, 4.25% October 2016 and 4.85% October 2020 bonds, against its €2.5 billion to €3.5 billion target. Wednesday's sale, brought forward by one day due to a national holiday on Thursday, brought Spain's 2012 bond issuance completion to almost 46% of the €86 billion gross bond issuance target. ‘Apple Fever’ Prompts Predictions of $1 Trillion Value (Bloomberg) “Apple fever is spreading like a wildfire around the world,” Brian White, the Topeka analyst, said in a report that initiated coverage of the company with a buy recommendation. White’s new 12-month target of $1,001 is the highest among the 45 analysts tracked by Bloomberg and represents a 59 percent increase over today’s closing price. He said Apple’s market value will eventually top $1 trillion. £200,000 bar bill trader, arrested in FSA probe (CityAM) Alex Hope, the 23 year-old trader who hit the headlines after spending £125,000 on a single bottle of champagne, has been arrested on suspicion of being involved in an unauthorised foreign exchange trading scheme. Hope, who claims to be a self made foreign exchange trader, became infamous when he ran up a £125,000 bar bill in one evening at a Liverpool nightclub. Most of this was spent on a single 99lb bottle of champagne...Hope's publicist last night confirmed that he had been arrested but said that he denies all allegations. His personal website describes him as “a name to watch out for in the city” and “an expert in the UK economy” who regularly "trades millions." It calls him a “talented, charismatic and thoroughly likeable man." SEC Puts Exchanges on Notice Over Computer-Driven Trades (Bloomberg) “The consequences of a big failure are so severe that the SEC should be paying close attention to these issues,” James Angel, a finance professor at Georgetown University’s business school in Washington, said in an e-mail. “No human system is perfect and eventually something will happen, so they also want policies and procedures in place for catching problems quickly and cleaning up the mess afterwards.” Ready for a rumble: Falcone vs. Icahn (NYP) Falcone, who has funneled a whopping $2.9 billion into LightSquared, is desperate to salvage his shaky investment amid a battle with federal regulators over building out the wireless network. Falcone has said both publicly and privately that bankruptcy is not an option. However, some LightSquared creditors, including Icahn, would rather put the company into bankruptcy as part of a plan that would give them equity stakes in the company and greater control over its future, sources said. The deadline for creditors to decide is fast approaching. Icahn and other owners of LightSquared’s $1.6 billion loan due 2014 have given the company until the end of April before they decide whether to put LightSquared into default for breaching some loan covenants tied to its customer contracts. ADP: 209,000 Jobs Added (WSJ) Private businesses hired at a modest rate in March close to what economists expected, according to a report released Wednesday. Private-sector jobs in the U.S. increased 209,000 last month, according to a national employment report published by payroll processor Automatic Data Processing Inc. and consultancy Macroeconomic Advisers. The gain was just above economists' median expectation of 200,000 contained in a survey done by Dow Jones Newswires. Occupy London Hinders Burrito Sales More Than Banker Bonuses (Bloomberg) The protesters were evicted from St. Paul’s on Feb. 28 and at least one restaurant found its bookings jump back to pre- occupied levels. Sales were down 40 percent to 50 percent while the camp was at St. Paul’s, resulting in two or three staff members losing their jobs, said Pollie Hall, events manager at the Paternoster Chop House. “This isn’t the corporate fat cats they were affecting, it was average working Joes,” said Hall, who said her customers were verbally abused by protesters and she was called a “devil- worshipping mason.” A wedding scheduled at the restaurant on the first day of the protest had to be moved. Mega ‘winner’: $105M tix stashed in this McDonald's (NYP) The Baltimore woman who claims to have one of three winning Mega Millions tickets now says it’s hidden somewhere in the McDonald’s restaurant where she works. Marlinde Wilson, 37, coyly wouldn’t reveal whether she had stashed the slip of paper behind the McFlurry machine or under the all-beef patties. “I’m waiting for things to calm down so I can go back to McDonald’s and get it. The people [at McDonald’s] are too excited. I want their heads to cool down before I go back,” she said.