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HomeLower Book Value of Banks Highly Correlates with Smoke and Mirrors
Posted by Larry Doyle on March 10th, 2010 11:05 AM |
Why do some banks seem to trade at cheap, if not depressed, levels?
Investors do not trust the valuations of the assets on the books of these banks. I highlighted this very point the other day in writing, “Where is Wall Street Hiding Hundred Plus Billion in Lo$$es?”
A recently released report from the American Banker addresses this point of questionable asset valuations, or what I define as ‘smoke and mirrors’. (more…)
CAUTION: SIPC Impostor Luring Madoff Investors
Posted by Larry Doyle on March 9th, 2010 2:22 PM |
There is never a lack of scumbags in the world who prey upon those in distress.
As if those crippled by the Madoff scam have not already gone through hell and back, today we learn that an impostor to the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC) has sprouted up targeting the investors victimized by the Madoff scam. The Wall Street Journal exposes this scum in writing, Copy-Cat Web Site Targeting Madoff Victims:
The Securities Investor Protection Corp., a securities industry group formed by Congress to help customers of failed brokerages, warned of an imposter Web site mimicking its own page to target victims of convicted swindler Bernard Madoff. (more…)
Wall Street Journal Book Review Unfairly Slams Harry Markopolos
Posted by Larry Doyle on March 9th, 2010 12:04 PM |
People in glass houses should not throw stones.
That simple piece of wisdom is both timeless and precious. Regrettably, too many in our media fail to uphold it. Where do I see evidence of it today?
The Wall Street Journal today runs a book review of Harry Markopolos’ recently released No One Would Listen. The reviewer is Richard J. Tofel of ProPublica, a nonprofit investigative-journalism newsroom. Tofel does not denigrate Harry’s work, but he emasculates Harry from a personal standpoint. (more…)
Using Derivatives ‘Like Hard Drugs’
Posted by Larry Doyle on March 9th, 2010 9:16 AM |
Prescription drugs can only be accessed through a physician for a reason. When used appropriately under the guidance of an ethical and informed doctor, the powers of prescription drugs can be life-changing and life-saving. When these prescription drugs are marketed by those more interested in their own bottom line than the health and well-being of their ‘patients’, then use often turns to abuse and the effects are crippling.
A similar dynamic plays out in the high and mighty halls of international finance. (more…)
Where is Wall Street Hiding Hundred Plus Billion in Lo$$es?
Posted by Larry Doyle on March 8th, 2010 11:24 AM |
U.S. Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA)
Banks are increasingly healthy, right? Our nation’s accounting rules promote real transparency and integrity in our financial reporting, right? Housing is bottoming, right? No, no, and no!
Why so pessimistic, you may ask? I am not pessimistic at all. I am merely searching for the truth in the midst of the smoke and mirrors on Wall Street and in Washington.
Thank you to our friends at 12th Street Capital for sharing a recently released letter from Congressman Barney Frank imploring the four largest banks involved in mortgage originations to write off second liens they are holding on their books at inflated values.
Why does Congressman Frank believe these loans need to be written off? (more…)
Another Oppenheimer ARS Investor Unloads on New York AG Cuomo
Posted by Larry Doyle on March 8th, 2010 8:12 AM |
Investors defrauded in the distribution of auction-rate securities deserve a voice. Sense on Cents is happy to provide it. Aside from feeling screwed by Wall Street banks and money managers in the distribution of auction-rate securities as a cash surrogate, investors now feel increasingly incensed by the lack of support in the judicial system and in selected attorneys general offices in our country.
The latest AG to feel the wrath of ARS investors is New York AG Andrew Cuomo for his recent settlement with Oppenheimer Holdings. Rather than reading my opinion of Cuomo’s settlement, let’s listen to an investor (who remains nameless for obvious reasons). In my opinion, this individual’s letter speaks volumes and echoes the sentiments of thousands of investors who continue to hold the $150 BILLION in frozen ARS. (more…)
No Quarter Radio’s Sense on Cents with Larry Doyle Welcomes Daryl Montgomery
Posted by Larry Doyle on March 7th, 2010 8:12 AM |
UPDATE: This episode of NQR’s Sense on Cents with Larry Doyle has concluded. You can listen to a recording of the episode in its entirety by clicking the play button on the audio player provided below. Once the audio begins, you can advance or rewind to any portion of the episode by clicking at any point along the play bar.
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Raise your hand if you do not trust Wall Street and Washington.
Raise your other hand if you do not trust the financial media.
Why do I viscerally envision a lot of hands being raised all over America? Because given developments of the last few years, Americans — at an ever increasing rate — are less trusting of Wall Street, Washington, and the media.
What is one to do? Where can one go to embrace honest dialogue focused on real transparency and integrity? You have come to the right place as tonight from 8-9pm ET No Quarter Radio’s Sense on Cents with Larry Doyle Welcomes Daryl Montgomery.
Daryl Montgomery is the organizer of the New York Investing Meetup, a group of 2500 independent investors and traders that provides the public with unbiased economic and market information. (more…)
POGO Podcast Questions FINRA’s Transparency and Integrity
Posted by Larry Doyle on March 6th, 2010 12:24 PM |
Regular readers of Sense on Cents know all too well my questions and concerns about the lack of transparency at the Wall Street self-regulatory organization FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority).
I am a big fan of promoting transparency in order to pursue integrity. Who else is a big fan of the same goals? The Project on Government Oversight (POGO) :
. . . an independent nonprofit that investigates and exposes corruption and other misconduct in order to achieve a more effective, accountable, open, and ethical federal government. (more…)
Barron’s Highlights FINRA’s Stench
Posted by Larry Doyle on March 6th, 2010 8:01 PM |
The stench surrounding FINRA is attracting real attention.
The executives of Wall Street’s self-regulatory organization FINRA should not think that the recent dismissal of one legal complaint is reason for celebration. Why? Those who care for transparency measure success not in terms of judicial victories but to a much greater extent by public pressure and awareness. On that note, at long last real progress in creating transparency into FINRA is occurring.
From the highly regarded government watchdog Project on Government Oversight to now the leading weekend business periodical Barron’s, FINRA’s stench is attracting attention from more than the blogosphere and a few selected journalists (Bloomberg’s Susan Antilla, The Washington Examiner’s and Baltimore Sun’s Marta Mossburg, and also Barron’s Jim McTague).
The news in an article this weekend by Barron’s is not news to regular readers of Sense on Cents, but to most of America FINRA remains a foreign entity. Those days are changing. (more…)
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