1) The Hero Rogue Trader (The Daily Beast) - Not everyone is pissed about rogue UBS trader Kweku Adobili and his $2 billion loss. In fact, some folks are tickled pink because they think it will provide the British government the necessary ammunition to crack down on the banks.
2) Delta One Desks Are Big Moneymakers (CNBC) - Many people are wondering how an ETF trader (rogue or otherwise) manages to rack up a $2 billion loss. You might not know it, but SocGen's Jerome Kerviel worked on a Delta One desk too, and managed to lose almost $7 billion. This article explains what they do and how a trader can get into that kind of trouble trading ETFs.
3) Insiders handed four- and 10-year prison terms (Reuters) - Rounding out our rogue traders trilogy this week is news of the sentencing of Zvi "Octopussy" Goffer, the 34-year old Galleon Group trader convicted of insider trading earlier this year. He got 10 years. SOOO not worth it.
4) What's Behind the Bank of America, Citi, and Wells Fargo Downgrades? (The Atlantic) - Have the Too Big To Fail banks become Too Big To Bail? Moody's seems to think so. Maybe there won't be a government safety net when the shit hits the fan again.
5) Top 10 Things You Never Want to Hear at Work (Yahoo! Finance) - When your boss says, "Can I have a word with you in private?", it's never a good thing. Here are nine other things you never want to hear him say, either.
6) LinkedIn: Busting 8 Damaging Myths About What It Can Do For Your Career (Forbes) - While we're on the subject of careers, if you're hoping LinkedIn will put you on the map you're doing it wrong. Here are 8 common myths about the power of the networking juggernaut. LinkedIn pro tip: Don't be a dick.
7) What NFL Coaches and Investors Share (Smart Money) - If your Fantasy Football performance is a mirror image of the misery in your investment portfolio, it's not a coincidence. The likely cause is that you're not taking enough risk. And neither are most NFL coaches.
8) Police will take no action over cage fighting bouts involving children aged just 8 and 9 (Daily Mail) - Call me twisted, but part of me thinks 8-year olds cage fighting is just awesome. My own 8-year old is a sweet kid who doesn't like to fight, but his 6-year old brother is a straight psycho who throws down like a rabid badger. I wonder if he could pass for 8...
9) 1740s Tavern Becomes Victim of Recession (NBC) - I always hate to see a bar close, but this one has been open since 1740, and now the one-two punch of the recession and a bunch of food spoilage from Hurricane Irene have driven the Marlborough Tavern to the brink of bankruptcy. If a new owner doesn't step in by tomorrow, this historical landmark that has hosted US Presidents will shut down.
*NOTE* Don't open the next one at work. It's not porn or anything NSFW, but one WSO user had his work Internet filter block it, so wait till you get home:
10) Hilarious Homeless Signs (COED Magazine) - There's no doubt that this recession has created a lot of desperate people. But finding yourself homeless is no reason to lose your sense of humor. Here are 90 of the funniest "Will Work For Food" signs spotted around the US. Some of these guys could find work writing ad copy.
I'm pretty excited about the Video of the Week this week, because I know we have a lot of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo fans on the site. I have to be honest, when I heard they were making an English language version of the film I was pretty skeptical. But after seeing the following trailer, I think the movie is going to be pretty solid. Enjoy:
Let me know what you think of this week's bananas, guys. And have a great weekend!
10) got blocked my my firms internet filters, avoid if you're anal about that sort of thing.
Shit, sorry dude. Had no idea. I'll update it with a note.
double post
Great posts man
1 kills me because the banking side is making the government's case against them. I hate when Marx's posit that 'capitalism is unstable and will destroy itself left unchecked' gets anecdotal evidence.
Speaking of anecdotal case busters, the allegations that he used his back office experience to help conceal the losses being used as ammo against moving BO ppl to FO bothers me. I spent the first few months working in an ops role and a LOT of good people get their start there, so I'd like to add this to the conversation. One anecdotal case does not a good argument make: * BO -> FO guy loses $2.3BB, and honestly, I'm blaming UBS for not keeping track of its own money. * pedigreed FO people collectively lose TRILLIONS, causing a blowout requiring a government takeover of the industry and a global crackdown on banks
Who fucked up worse?
Come on, you're better than that.
People who say it's a pedigree issue have no argument, but there is a reasonable basis for any BO to FO to be a liability to the bank related to unsolicited trading. People with "pedigree" have risk (however good that function is is up for debate) to keep them within a certain VaR. But in some circumstances it can be proposed that BO have a greater ability to bypass risk functions.
It's not the losing money which is the issue here, it's how it is lost, illegally or legaly.
I see what you're saying, I'm just sticking up for the BO people who didn't get FO right out of the gate...I'm not one to forget where I came from. Also, the 'pedigreed' comment was a low blow from me, so I apologize. The UBS trader was the son of a diplomat, so if anything, pedigreed people who start in the back office are suspect......for real, the guy couldn't have daddy pull some strings at the bank he's laundering money through? WTF??
Lots of entertainment today. Perhaps due to the free falling markets? I did need some good laugh.
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