You scratch my back I'll scratch your back or in more clear terms he pays for his information. He met his wife through a dating service, boy did she luck out. ozzy
Some will call me naiive, but based on my experience with traditional buy-side firms and sell-side firms (but not hedge funds), I can't imagine that anyone with such a successful franchise as SAC would jeopardize the huge money by doing some stupid violations of securities laws. Cohen is truly talented; he does not need to violate rules, regulations, or laws to make money. (A "reverse desk" sounds close though.) Also remember that the SEC has already investigated one of SAC's traders, for a possible infraction before he was at SAC, but did not press charges. Who needs an SEC investigation? Here is a link to the BW article from 2003: http://businessweek.com/magazine/content/03_29/b3842001_mz001.htm
He pays premium prices for information. That's his main "edge". I'm sure he's a super trader to boot. ------------------- Excerpt: "Stevie," as he's known on Wall Street, is one of the few to pay full freight. He hands over about $150 million a year in commissions to Wall Street, making him one of its 10-largest customers. The payments grease the superpowerful information machine that Cohen has built at SAC. The firm's credo, says a former SAC trader, is to "try to get the information before anyone else." The torrent of commissions wins Cohen the clout that often makes him privy to trading and analyst information ahead of rivals. Says one analyst: