Yes, and that is her reason for telling people to exit the markets. It could just be good vol if you clear with a responsible company during madness. Its 2 am do you know where your clearing firm is? If they are passed out at some horse track better do as she says.
here is a possible example: "She is also rueful that despite all of Poland's sacrifices, and its leading role in triggering change in the revolutionary year of 1989, many people today think mostly of the fall of the Berlin Wall as the watershed moment. "Unfortunately, it is not the flower-decorated Gate 2 of the Gdansk Shipyard in 1980, but the crumbling Berlin Wall in 1989 that has become the symbol of the freedom and unity of Europe," writes. Danuta Walesa"
There is a lot of merit in what she wrote, but bringing Obama in just plain absurd. As if we had republican president MF collapse would not have happened. CFTC should just change the rules, so that customer segregated funds can not be used under any circumstance. Thus will not prevent plain fraud, but that is the risk we all take when we wire money to FCM.
I'm thinking those 99% that are demonstrating in the streets don't know the half of it! It's a very poor letter. Not objective. Not very rational. I wouldn't want to do business with someone like that. I would question their judgement. On the other hand the MF Global thievery is an outrage, and even more so if it turns out to have been legal! If one wants to lay blame anywhere I have a suspicion that these "gentlemen" should be considered "persons of interest." <IMG SRC=http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/49/GrammLeachBliley.jpg/800px-GrammLeachBliley.jpg >
I agree it could happen under any president and there's no direct connection, but Corzine has been the top Wall St. fundraiser for Obama. Imagine if this happened in 2007 and Corzine was that cozy with Bush or Cheney. It would be on the front page of everything. As of now, stories are mostly on Bloomberg and no one in the lamestream press is bringing up politics. It doesn't make it right, but that's probably why she dragged Obama into this.
Agreed. FCMs do not pay any interest on cash in the account, so there is really no reason why they should have to invest the funds.
On her blog she said on Nov. 4th that the is finished paying her federal income taxes because she "refuses to hand her money over to the criminals". She sounds crazy. Maybe she needed to shut down her business because she would not be able to run a brokerage business if she were to wind up in jail for tax evasion?! :eek:
Good points. In addition to that, I'd propose the following principle, which would strongly disincentivize many of the situations that lead to brokerage failure: A brokerage is NOT a bank. Its purpose is to represent its clients in buying and selling of assets, as well as to serve as CUSTODIAN of those assets. As such, all income generated from assets held in the client's account should be passed on directly to the client. This would include: Interest of any kind (this would remove completely the incentive to risk client money in instruments like the debt of failing foreign bonds). Payment for order flow (this would probably wipe out the PFOF scam overnight -- what would be the incentive anymore?). Any profit derived from internalization of the customer's orders (again, this would probably completely eliminate this unfair, anacrhonistic practice, as there would no longer be an incentive to do it). Share lending income (really, the whole shorting system needs to be redone -- maybe using a central database vs. locating -- the status quo is another system from the dark ages that badly needs to be fixed -- make naked shorting impossible, but make shorting for retail clients easier). If brokerages are risking your money, you should receive the payouts, not the brokerage. If that, in turn, makes per-trade/per-contract commissions go up, so be it -- you're going to pay regardless. Far better to pay the true (and, long-term, much lower) cost up front, rather than paying bit-by-bit through hidden costs (such as PFOF), or having to pay big (as MF Global clients have) when you don't expect it.
Wall street has always been institutionalised fraud ,sanctioned by government ,operated only for the interest of the financial industry. If any of you worked out net returns , after inflation and money cost , and made deductions for all frauds and bankruptcies of stock markets plus all stocks deleted from indices , net returns would be minus 20 % over the last hundred years. Go figure it out. -20% returns .Do your maths correctly. MF Global is nothing new , look at the back street handouts to Goldman via tarp and AIG , all done to rob taxpayers on behalf of wall street.
The fact that Corzine took the job shows what a fukn muppet he is. NEVER trust a finance-guy with a beard. A goatee is even worse. Run, don't walk.