Did John Thain Really Say That?
John Thain, the CEO of CIT Group, recently was honored by a Manhattan charity and had some interesting things to say about public perceptions of the financial sector.
Never Blame the Risk Model
Federal regulators released a report about what caused the San Onofre nuclear power plant in California to leak radioactive steam in January. It said excessive wear caused steam tubes at the plant to rupture – an event that “had never been seen before,” according to a federal official, and hadn’t been anticipated by the manufacturer’s […]
Charlie Sheen’s Rules for Scandal-Tainted Directors
The New York Times has a story on the return of Charlie Sheen, the actor and renowned Hollywood bad boy. Sheen’s run on a hit TV series collapsed spectacularly, but he quickly pivoted to other projects without any regrets. It’s a pattern followed by directors at financial firms who crashed their institutions but kept lucrative […]
Withholding Judgment on Kleiner Perkins
Allegations in a lawsuit are not facts, but they still can dent a company’s reputation. So Kleiner Perkins likely has suffered from the media attention around the sex-discrimination suit filed by Ellen Pao, a partner at the firm. But its bad press is not a fatal blow.
Three Lessons from Jamie Dimon and Bob Greifeld
Jamie Dimon of J.P. Morgan and Bob Greifeld of Nasdaq OMX share several things in common. Both presided over colossal blunders at their firms – a multi-billion-dollar trading loss at J.P. Morgan for Dimon, and a systems breakdown on the closely watched Facebook IPO for Greifeld. Both Dimon and Greifeld have thus far offered only […]
Merrill Lynch Brings Back the Bull
The bull – the iconic image long associated with Merrill Lynch – reappeared in advertisements for the firm over the past week. It is a widely recognized symbol associated with values that hold appeal in troubled times – growth, strength, optimism.
Volatility in Unexpected Places
In case you missed it, the FT’s Gillian Tett had a great piece yesterday on the emergence (or perhaps the re-emergence) of risks that are hard to quantify but have a very powerful effect on the markets:
Crowdfunding Loses its Appeal after the Facebook IPO
As Facebook’s shares continue to slump, recriminations over its busted IPO continue with no end in sight. It might also prompt fresh concern about the JOBS Act, which loosens the rules on capital raising.
Disclosure is an Attitude
I recently had lunch with a senior executive from a big accounting firm who complained about the criticism his firm was facing over audits it conducted at big companies that later were found to have big problems. In all these cases, the executive said, there was a “well established body of accounting practice” that permitted […]
I’m Starting to Worry about Goldman Sachs
The outlines of Goldman’s new public relations strategy are becoming clearer. It involves more television appearances by CEO Lloyd Blankfein, investments in trendy green-tech companies and a new twitter account, unveiled at yesterday’s annual shareholder meeting. It is part of an effort to create a “more open and friendly” firm, according to news reports. Lloyd […]