- Barclays’ Remarkable Bargain
- Pieces of Madoff Are on the Block
- Trustee Seeks Billions for Madoff Investors
- Morgan Stanley trading behind Goldman
- Lazard eyeing new leadership structure
- Fannie May Write Down $5.2 Billion in Tax Credits
- Wage Freeze Is Lifted for Some at J.P. Morgan
- Barclays’s Net Drops 54% on Impairment Charges
- Fed Says All Banks Except GMAC Meet Capital Deadline
- AIG May Be Able to Pay Back Fed Loan, Moody’s Says
- Obama Taps Banker With Private,Public Experience To Head PBGC
- Oracle Receives European Union Objections Over Sun
- Electronic Arts Plans to Cut 1,500 Jobs
Barclays’ Remarkable Bargain – NY Times
Barclays, it turns out, cut itself a remarkably good deal. A recent court filing — this one free of redactions — even accuses Barclays of making off with $5 billion without anyone noticing, an amount that Lehman’s creditors seem to think should be treated as the largest theft in banking history.
In simplest terms, the creditors to Lehman’s estate — including large pension funds and hedge funds — claim that Barclays bought the American firm for $5 billion less than it was worth.
How could that possibly happen?
According to the filing, Barclays received Lehman securities valued at about $50 billion for just $45 billion in cash…..
Pieces of Madoff Are on the Block – Wall Street Journal
Bernard Madoff’s watches, his personalized Mets jacket and Post-it notes will go on the auction block this weekend in a government-run garage sale designed to raise at least $500,000 for the victims of his Ponzi scheme.
The trove of jewelry, furs and sports memorabilia seized by the U.S. Marshals from the imprisoned Ponzi-scheme operator’s Manhattan penthouse and Montauk, N.Y., beach home offers a peek at the lifestyle of Mr. Madoff and his wife, Ruth. Proceeds from the sale of the roughly 200 items will go toward compensating victims…..
Trustee Seeks Billions for Madoff Investors – NY Times
….Although Mr. Picower’s will, which is expected to be filed on Tuesday, leaves the bulk of the estate to charity, that amount depends on how much his family pays to settle legal claims brought by the trustee gathering assets for Mr. Madoff’s victims.
But the estate is clearly large enough to add at least several billion dollars to the $1.4 billion that the trustee has gathered so far. The trustee, Irving H. Picard, estimates that the cash losses in the enormous Ponzi scheme total at least $21 billion……
Morgan Stanley trading behind Goldman – Financial Times
Morgan Stanley’s traders lost money on five of 64 trading days last quarter, a performance that underscored that the markets’ gradual revival had not helped the bank close the gap with its arch-rival, Goldman Sachs, which had one losing day.
Details of the trading results, disclosed on Monday in a filing with US securities regulators, come four months after Morgan Stanley executives conceded that their traders’ reluctance to put more of the bank’s own capital at risk had affected results in the second quarter…..
Lazard eyeing new leadership structure – NY Post
Investment banking powerhouse Lazard may be leaning toward a multi-headed management structure in the wake of CEO Bruce Wasserstein’s death last month.
Sources told The Post that the investment firm’s board may pick more than one person to lead the firm that Wasserstein helped build into an iconic franchise.
Ken Jacobs could be named as CEO, one source said, adding that Steve Golub, currently interim CEO, may be made chairman. Ace banker and vice chairman Gary Parr could be given a leadership role as well….
Fannie May Write Down $5.2 Billion in Tax Credits – Bloomberg
Fannie Mae is reviewing whether it will have to write down $5.2 billion in low-income housing tax credits after the U.S. Treasury rejected its request to sell the investments, the mortgage-finance company said today.
The Treasury found an agreement to sell about half of Fannie Mae’s credits would have cost taxpayers more than the company would gain from the deal, according to a letter sent Nov. 6 to the Washington-based company. The Treasury was considering whether to let Goldman Sachs Group Inc. buy credits, which could be used to lower the firm’s tax bill…….
Wage Freeze Is Lifted for Some at J.P. Morgan – Wall Street Journal
J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. lifted a salary freeze on all employees earning more than $60,000 and announced a one-time $500 award for lower-paid employees, according to an internal memo.
The memo from John Donnelly, director of human resources, was sent to all J.P. Morgan employees.
“We now plan to lift that salary freeze globally as part of our year-end performance and compensation review process, with raises effective early next year,” he wrote…..
Barclays’s Net Drops 54% on Impairment Charges – Wall Street Journal
Barclays PLC, one of the few British banks not to resort to a multibillion government bailout, posted a 54% fall in third-quarter net profit as impairment charges continued to weigh, although they will peak earlier than expected.
Net profit for the three months to Sept. 30 declined to £1.08 billion ($1.81 billion) from £2.33 billion a year earlier. Pretax profit, a measure closely watched by analysts, fell to £1.56 billion from £2.84 billion. The year-earlier result included a £1.5 billion gain from its acquisition of Lehman Brothers operations in North America….
Fed Says All Banks Except GMAC Meet Capital Deadline – Bloomberg
The Federal Reserve said nine of 10 bank holding companies deemed short of capital in May have raised their reserves enough to withstand the risk of higher unemployment and slower economic growth.
“The one exception, GMAC, is expected to meet its remaining buffer need by accessing the TARP Automotive Industry Financing Program, and is in discussions with the U.S. Treasury on the structure of its investment,” the Fed Board said today in a press release. The Treasury has provided about $76 billion in loans or equity investments to the auto industry…..
AIG May Be Able to Pay Back Fed Loan, Moody’s Says – Bloomberg
American International Group Inc., the insurer bailed out by the U.S., will be able to repay its Federal Reserve credit line and “much or all” of the Treasury Department’s investment if financial markets stabilize, Moody’s Investors Service said today.
The U.S. is “committed to working with the firm to maintain its ability to meet obligations as they come due throughout the restructuring process,” Moody’s said today in a statement, maintaining its credit ratings on the New York-based insurer. AIG owed more than $44 billion on the credit line as of last week and has tapped more than $40 billion from Treasury facilities…..
Obama Taps Banker With Private,Public Experience To Head PBGC – Wall Street Journal
President Barack Obama on Monday nominated an investment banker who has managed public institutions to head the U.S. Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp.
Joshua Gotbaum, a current partner at Blue Wolf Capital, has “advised businesses, unions and governments on a diverse range of mergers, acquisitions and restructurings, in steel, transportation, and many other industries” for three decades, according to a White House statement.
Gotbaum’s background includes his role as a trustee, from 2003 to 2004, of Hawaiian Airlines’ chapter 11 reorganization……
Oracle Receives European Union Objections Over Sun – Bloomberg
racle Corp., the world’s biggest database software maker, was told by European Union regulators that its $7.4 billion purchase of Sun Microsystems Inc. may break antitrust rules even though the U.S. approved the deal.
The European Commission, the EU’s antitrust agency, issued a so-called statement of objections today, Sun said in a regulatory filing. The commission said Oracle’s acquisition of Sun’s MySQL database software causes competition concerns…..
Electronic Arts Plans to Cut 1,500 Jobs – NY Times
Electronic Arts, the video game company, said it would lay off 1,500 workers and shrink its product lineup, even as it announced that it had acquired Playfish, a start-up that makes online games…..
