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HomeFINRA Enforcement Chief Brad Bennett on HFT, “Better To Be Silent and Thought a Fool . . .”
Posted by Larry Doyle on April 28th, 2014 9:27 AM |
In today’s version of “You Can’t Make This Stuff Up,” we hear from Brad Bennett, the Head of Enforcement at Wall Street’s self-regulatory organization FINRA. Bennett and others spoke on a panel this past Friday at a conference sponsored by the Practicing Law Institute.
On the hot button topic of high frequency trading, Bennett weighed in with a comparison that is so dismissive as to defy credulity. Let’s navigate as the folks at Wealth Management were there to cover and reported:
Benefiting from faster access to the markets is akin to buying a first-class plane ticket, and doesn’t sound unfair, said the top cop at Wall Street regulator FINRA. (more…)
5 Years Later: Banks Still Too Leveraged
Posted by Larry Doyle on September 12th, 2013 9:09 AM |
Do you think there is a reason why bank balance sheets are so convoluted and opaque? Of course there is.
The lack of meaningful transparency allows the banks to continue to employ excessive degrees of leverage across a widely disparate array of businesses and with a paucity of competition all in the hope of generating outsized returns. But who do you think bears the ultimate risk?
They pursue these paths with the support of the Federal Reserve’s zero interest rate policy and a regulatory system that belies meaningful oversight despite those who might want us to believe that Dodd-Frank brought reform to the system.
Former FDIC chair Sheila Bair does not leave much to interpretation on these topics. (more…)
Forbes’ Emily Lambert Slams FINRA
Posted by Larry Doyle on October 21st, 2011 7:00 AM |
“Justice is truth in action.” ~ Benjamin Disraeli
Regular readers are very aware of my strong concerns about the lack of transparency emanating from Wall Street’s self-regulatory organization FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority). Having first written about FINRA in January 2009, I have highlighted my concerns extensively over the better part of the last three years. (To reference my writing, go here, Sense on Cents/FINRA).
For a period of time, I thought I was shouting into the darkness regarding FINRA. I still maintain that FINRA specifically and Wall Street regulation as a whole remain great unknowns to an overwhelming percentage of our population including those involved in the markets. To this end, I am heartened when broadly distributed public periodicals address concerns I have held about FINRA for the last few years.
The widely respected financial magazine Forbes weighs in on FINRA just yesterday. (more…)
FINRA Immunity Without Transparency Is “A License to Steal”
Posted by Larry Doyle on March 2nd, 2010 10:40 AM |
Judge Jed Rakoff’s ruling to dismiss the complaint by Standard Investment Chartered v FINRA based on the regulator having absolute immunity generated a consistent response from readers and colleagues. What is the theme of that response?
A comment by Bill, a loyal Sense on Cents reader, seems to sum it up best:
Interesting that FINRA has the benefit of a quasi governmental entity, i. e. immunity, but not the customary burden of a governmental entity–transparency. Otherwise known as a license to steal. (more…)
