Traci Gregory, Financier

Ethics in the world of working "other peoples' money"? ABOUT TIME

In the AIG debacle, where AIG has officially estimated a discount of 20% to 50% for clients who have been offered the opportunity to redeem half the fund; and while they can redeem residual income, due to mature in 2012, now, it appears that will be at 30% lower than face value.

Finally, some Ethics are being exercised in the world of  working "other peoples' money"

While I don't lately think of ethics and Wall Street banks in the same sentence, Barclays Wealth says they will "step up to the plate" to offer their clients support in recovering from AIG.

An unnamed  Barclays spokeswoman confirmed the bank's earlier comment: “We have a dedicated team working with AIG to determine the best way to achieve the return of all funds to our clients. This team is working closely with other private banks. We are focusing our efforts on representing the interests of our clients in these discussions.

You may recall that Sallie Krawcheck (known as one of the most powerful women on Wall Street)  resigned from Citigroup's wealth division in September, "after failing to persuade her former employer that it should compensate clients for investment losses" according to the Wall Street Journal. (Read the article, it wasn't the only reason she left, but it makes her a hero in my book.)

Maybe the Universe will right itself . . . maybe.

Should you take Cramer's advice and quit the Market?

“Whatever money you may need for the next five years,” Jim Cramer told the legions of Cramericans yesterday, “please take it out of the stock market right now.”

From Agora Financial's 5 minute forecast:

"Mr. There’s always a bull market somewhere” officially checked out of the current market, suggesting that a the current drama could cause “as much as a 20% decrease in the stock market.”

You don't have to run screaming from the market and take losses today because Cramer said to.  You can take a loan against your portfolio to hedge against losses; non-recourse loans mean that if your stock tanks, you can walk away.

I don't recommend making any decision on the emotions we're experiencing now.  Check out your options, take a deep breath, then sleep on it. 

If you'd like a quote on a particular stock, I can give it to you  via e mail.  I'll need:

• symbol
• value
• state of your residence
• whether or not you are associated with the company

I'll get a quote for you as fast as I possibly can.  Loans tend to close in ten days or less, unless they exceed the ten million mark.

Common shareholders, non-affiliates and insiders who are holding stock that trades at least $25K a day in volume can access millions in cash simply using their stock as collateral.

Manage the risk of owing stock in this market by taking out a stock loan.  If you have $1 million in stock you can borrow $500,000.00 now and if the stock drops in value during the loan you can walk away from the loan without any negative impact on your credit.

If the stock increases in value you can capture that appreciation. There is NO fall-back position to selling your stock.

Done is done.

Use a stock loan to hedge your position instead of abandoning it.

“Whatever money you may need for the next five years,” Jim Cramer told the legions of Cramericans yesterday, “please take it out of the stock market right now.”

From Agora Financial's 5 minute forecast:

"Mr. There’s always a bull market somewhere” officially checked out of the current market, suggesting that a the current drama could cause “as much as a 20% decrease in the stock market.”

You don't have to run screaming from the market and take losses today because Cramer said to.  You can take a loan against your portfolio to hedge against losses; non-recourse loans mean that if your stock tanks, you can walk away.

I don't recommend making any decision on the emotions we're experiencing now.  Check out your options, take a deep breath, then sleep on it. 

If you'd like a quote on a particular stock, I can give it to you  via e mail.  I'll need:

• symbol
• value
• state of your residence
• whether or not you are associated with the company

I'll get a quote for you as fast as I possibly can.  Loans tend to close in ten days or less, unless they exceed the ten million mark.

Common shareholders, non-affiliates and insiders who are holding stock that trades at least $25K a day in volume can access millions in cash simply using their stock as collateral.

Manage the risk of owing stock in this market by taking out a stock loan.  If you have $1 million in stock you can borrow $500,000.00 now and if the stock drops in value during the loan you can walk away from the loan without any negative impact on your credit.

If the stock increases in value you can capture that appreciation. There is NO fall-back position to selling your stock.

Done is done.

Use a stock loan to hedge your position instead of abandoning it.

I.O.U.S.A. the Movie

Feds move up from originators, go for IndyMac, Countrywide and New Century Mortgage

I've just heard today that those three, IndyMac, C'Wide and New Century have been issued subpoenas as the subject of a federal grand jury investigation. The Justice Department was focusing primarily on smaller operators thought to be defrauding homeowners and mortgage lenders . . . as if there could have been a coordinated effort across the country large enough to create the mess we're in. . . Now they've decided that it was fraud on the part of large sub prime lenders. According to Los Angeles Times, they have asked for e-mails, phone bills, financial records and other information. The Times said this is part of an investigation into whether fraud and other crimes contributed to the mortgage crisis.

I find this stuff small time compared to the creation of the programs that required a heartbeat and a signature to get a loan, but I'm just a loan officer . . . They didn't need fraud to lose money on those programs! There were such minimal requirements for loans an enterprising 12 year old could have made them work.

You already know about Countrywide and Angelo Mozilo, with the "friends of Angelo" mortgage program . . . interesting that the only "friends of Angelo" that we know about are politicians . . . who probably can't repay the favor for him now . . . too much daylight shining on their relationships . . . and you probably know by now that Countrywide is being sued in Illinois, Florida and California. I'm sure Cuomo will jump in there soon. After his win with Fannie Mae, he couldprobably take on any lender and win.

Countrywide and all its memories will fade though, except maybe for Angelo and anyone else who actually attends a trial. BOA bought it, and they'll swallow it whole. . . they're already changing the names of the divisions to "Anything But Countrywide".

I was surprised to hear that a court-appointed examiner has determined that New Century was involved in inappropriate accounting practices that inflated its profit and gave top executives the ability to acquire millions of dollars in undeserved or inflated bonuses. I guess I was surprised that I had not heard it sooner . . . I'm certainly not surprised at the charges.

They were not a lender that I sold loans to . . . they were quick to change program details, interest rates, etc, at the closing table and they only had to embarrass me once for me to take them completely off my list of possibilities. They filed Chapter 11 in April of 07 . . . and I felt almost the same way when I heard that news as I did when I heard Greenpoint had "bitten the dust." (What goes around comes around doesn't it? Couldn't have happened to anyone who deserved it more.)

The FBI is up to 21 cases against corporate and other large companies relative to subprime market defaults. They've inferred they want brokers, lenders, and now securities firms, hedge fund operators and credit rating agencies. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is reportedly working closely with the fibbies to find and charge anyone who may have contributed to the credit crises . . .but because of deregulation they're struggling with making criminal cases about the subprime debacle.

I've recently thought of two youtube videos I think I'd like to make . . . Bear Stearns indictees, set to the tune of Dirty Laundry, by Don Henley

You may listen to it in the next post

News from all over, again . . . indymac, bear stearns, fannie, freddie, and the beat goes on and on and on

New Yorker editor David Remnick said the provocative cartoon was intended to satirize those [Obama's religion and other] rumors and those who traffic in them. In fact, the New Yorker is a publication that would be inclined to support Obama. New York Gov. David Peterson, the state's first black governor, condemned the cover as "one of the most malignant, vicious" magazine covers he's ever seen. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People called it "tasteless, Islam-a-phobic, mean-spirited and racially offensive." The Obama campaign early on called the cartoon "tasteless" and "offensive" and even Republican presidential candidate John McCain referred to the cover as "inappropriate." Judge for yourself - I don't care for it at all.
Lehman Brothers' CEO Dick Fuld is seriously mulling a way to take itself private and out of the public eye
	Back in the news, Indicted former Bear Stearns hedge-fund manager Ralph Cioffi has hocked houses in New Jersey and Naples, Fla. to secure a $4 million bond, but saved the Southampton digs for the family. According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Sinclair the government is considering further criminal charges against two former Bear Stearns executives indicted last month related to the collapse of two hedge funds they oversaw.  In a court hearing in U.S. District Court in Brooklyn, Sinclair said "the government is indeed contemplating additional charges." Reuters for full story And, check this out!! According to the New York Post, Cioffi would like to start an independent hedge fund and may have some investors lined up . . . wonder if they'll still be there in 20 years . . . .
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac . . . End of Illusions.  The Econonmist has a series of articles detailing the problems at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.  Now that we've jumped to trillions of dollars at their behest, surely the American Public will sit up and pay attention to what the federal reserve is doing to us by printing more and more money. Highly detailed, easy to understand . . . you should read every word. Hank Paulson, America’s treasury secretary, unveiled the emergency plan to save Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, two mortgage giants that owe or guarantee $5.2 trillion.  He wants you to know how imortant it is so you won't mind paying for it . . . this isn't capitalization or free markets as we know them, this is nationalization and it will only create problems for the people who pay the bills.  That would be me and you . . .
The FBI had launched an investigation of IndyMac Bank for possible mortgage fraud shortly before the thrift was closed by regulators and placed into receivership, according to news reports. Fraud and they failed . . . they couldn't do anything right then could they?
Even though mortgage fraud for housing "doesn't seem quite as violent" as mortgage fraud for profit, it has its own consequences, according to a representative of the Florida Office of Financial Regulation's Bureau of Financial Investigations. Fraud for Housing is when a borrower commits fraud to get housing, as opposed to fraud for monetary gain. And that, my dears is life in my lane . . . I'm seriously thinking of Montana . . . horse, bedroll, rifle.  Sounds like the place to be to me!

INNOVATIVE FINANCING

In the days where one only hears about the credit crisis and lack of liquidity, people are stymied on where to turn to finance their latest projects. While the reality is there has been a huge change in residential financing (probably for the better, and probably forever!) commercial lending programs have not been affected as much, although lately commercial lenders are finding it harder to sell their paper because of lack of liquidity in the market in general.

As it is harder to get the money to get projects off the ground, we’ve tried to stay ahead of the curve and maintain as many options for our borrowers as possible. While there are still straightforward choices like SBA loans and commercial loans for expansion, purchases and refinances, and Church loans based on tithing, we’ve found there are other forms of financing that aren’t as complicated or time consuming and for the most part also aren’t as costly as traditional financing.

I’ve added stockloans from Hedgelender to my portfolio of products and capital advances against credit cards.

The beauty of both programs is they are not based on applications, financial statements, tax returns or credit criteria. And they both fund VERY quickly.

Stock Loans can be used for any number of things, and can be made through a myriad of choices. Here are some highlights:

• Finance your real estate with interest-only repayment while still retaining participation in your stock portfolio;

• Refinance your MARGIN LOAN to remove the possibility of a call;

• Expand Your Business with interest-only repayment while still retaining participation in your stock portfolio;

• Diversity Your Investments while retaining beneficial ownership of your portfolio;

• Roll your Employee Stock Options into cash while continuing to participate in your stock.

Ironically, these loans run to the millions and sometimes tens of millions, and take 1/10th the time to process and fund. And, they are strictly based on the worth of the stock and the amount of shares traded; the ONLY collateral is the stock and . . . credit is NOT a criteria. Neither is purpose, as long as it is legal!

Capital Advances against credit cards is NOT a loan program - but is a purchase of future sales.

Like the stock loan, there is NO long application, financial statement requirement OR tax return requirement; Funds immediately based on credit card sales; factors ALL credit cards receivables - Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover.

Clients are using the money for expansion and renovation; Marketing and Advertising; purchase of new locations; Increases to inventory; purchasing much needed equipment Repairs and upgrades; buying out an existing partner; recapture of investment capital; even to pay bills and taxes.

Finer explanations and details are listed on my website PallasFinancier.Com.

Brad Inman on the collapse of the secondary housing market

Brad Inman is founder and publisher of Inman News.

In the afternath of the news about fannie mae, freddie mac and the NEW IndyMac FEDERAL BANK, Brad Inman made ten predictions about the collapse of the secondary housing market.

"...Those that do lend will revert to back-to-basics underwriting: perfect credit, large down payments, proof of income, personal character and good family upbringing.

"...Housing industry lobbyists will make the mortgage liquidity problem their number one policy issue in the next two years. They will argue that the sky is falling and it is.

"...Like so many parts of our American culture, the accessibility to unlimited and poorly scrutinized debt helped turn Americans into a sloppy group of consumers, which spawned greedy Wall Streeters, out of control lenders and starry-eyed investors."

Read all ten, and the rest of his article at Imagine housing without a secondary market

Staggering Arrogance the Judge Rules

Former Refco chief executive Phillip R. Bennett, was sentenced to 16 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to 20 crimes, including securities fraud.

District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald lambasted Bennett, and others: "You and others like you play a truly high-stakes poker game."

White-collar defendants are often staggeringly arrogant, and just don't think they'll get caught."

Refco, at the time the biggest independent U.S. futures trader, led by Bennett did a $670 million initial public offering in August 2005 AND filed for bankruptcy two months later.

Apparently, Bennett controlled a company who owed Refco more than $400 million as he was using that company to conceal his investor's losses.

His sentence is set to begin 9/4/08; and he goes home to Britain via deportation when he gets out.

~~~~~~~

And so the mighty fall . . .

2 Former Bear Stearns Executives Arrested

Staggering Arrogance??

Update to Bear Stearns indictments

July 6 2008 Update to Bear Stearns indictments

Dan Slater writes in the Wall Street Journal LAW BLOG: Bear Fund Managers Get Good Draw, Sizing Up Judge Block

So, Justice Carries a Swift Sword?  We'll See - Curiously, a poster named "Anonymous", says "the sub-prime mess  . . . has plenty of people who deserve fines and jail time . . . BUT these guys are not the scapegoats we need."

Well, gee, they thought up the hedge funds, created them, bought the mortgage backed securities, and then (!) CIOFFI was charged with insider trading for moving TWO MILLION DOLLARS OF HIS MONEY out of the fund . . . leaving institutional investors in the fund with no warning . . . when they knew the fund was in danger.

They may not be the scapegoats we NEED, but it certainly appears they need to be in front of a judge for the way they ran the funds!