Oh Look, MF Global In Europe!
The Market Ticker ® - Commentary on The Capital Markets
Posted 2012-03-19 10:11
by Karl Denninger
in Corruption
Ignore this thread
Oh Look, MF Global In Europe!
 

You knew it was going to happen again, right?

WorldSpreads, an AIM-listed operator of online and phone betting services   based in Dublin, was placed in administration late on Sunday after the Financial Services Authority (FSA) uncovered “accounting irregularities”.

Possible translation: They stole customer money?

It is believed that the company broke the golden rule that client money should   not be “co-mingled” with company money.

Administrators KPMG said the clients were owed £29.7m, which should have been held in a segregated customer account, but that the group’s total cash   balance – including “segregated money” – was just £16.6m. The police have   been alerted over suspected criminal action.

Oops.

Of course we'll probably get treated to yet another dog and pony show about how this sort of thing isn't criminal, and it's just a civil matter (oh, and we have corporate liability shields too since this was an "accident" or "unforeseen circumstances" and not deliberate activity.)

The FSA said: “Clients should be aware that any shortfall in the client money accounts will impact the amount of money that can be returned.”

In other words your money was stolen -- again.

Why is it exactly that the executives of these firms are not held personally responsible for this sort of crap?

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User Info Oh Look, MF Global In Europe! in forum [Market-Ticker]
Themortgagedude
Posts: 8853
Incept: 2007-12-17
Green
saint louis
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I bet these guys are not connected and go down. I bet Corzine never gets **** done to him.

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I'm already visualizing you with duct tape over your mouth.
Trades50
Posts: 4216
Incept: 2007-10-30
Silver
Land of Tax and Spend
Online
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Once the criminals in these firms know they can get away with fraud they keep getting bolder and increasing the amount of money stolen.

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When the people fear the government, there is tyranny. When the government fears the people, there is liberty. - Thomas Jefferson
Genesis
Posts: 130764
Incept: 2007-06-26
Admin A True American Patriot!
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I'd like to see someone go "up".

As in "strung up." I'll settle for lawful ways of doing it, with due process.

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I don't care if it makes sense -- only if it makes money. -- Me
Bank (n): See scam, fraud and theft. Eat a bankster -- they're low-carb.
What part of "shall not be infringed" was unclear?
Antone
Posts: 7672
Incept: 2008-02-03
Green
Seditionia, USSA
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Don't hold your breath.

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As if anything has changed:

Wir sind gefickt.
Uwe
Posts: 6455
Incept: 2009-01-03
Gold A True American Patriot!
19446
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Wait, we're talking about a shortfall of ~$25 million at an online and phone "betting" place, right?

That doesn't strike me as comparable to MFG.

-Uwe-

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“Whenever the legislators endeavor to take away and destroy the property of the people, or to reduce them to slavery under arbitrary power, they put themselves into a state of war with the people, who are thereupon absolved from any further obedience.” - John Locke
Genesis
Posts: 130764
Incept: 2007-06-26
Admin A True American Patriot!
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Spreadbetting is a pretty common thing over in Europe; there are a bunch of places that offer it, must smaller shops (and some very big ones.)

Nonetheless there is a segfunds requirement there just as is here. Is this "big, like MFG"? No, but it's the same problem -- the firm appears to have grabbed the customer money.

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I don't care if it makes sense -- only if it makes money. -- Me
Bank (n): See scam, fraud and theft. Eat a bankster -- they're low-carb.
What part of "shall not be infringed" was unclear?
Flappingeagle
Posts: 1227
Incept: 2011-04-14

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I'm with you Uwe.

What all of this easy money the FED and worldwide equivalents have dumped into the system has done is allow fraud to remain hidden all around the world. There is never just one cockroach, we just have a case where the rest have not been exposed to the light.

Down in my sig the line about 'you can't build a house of cards on a shaking table' refers to you can't build and maintain a pozi scheme (or other fraudulent activity) unless you have stable conditions which allow you to systematically hide your fraud. The periodic recession with its tight money conditions helps to expose the fraudulent activity.

Flap

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Here are my predictions for everyone to see:
S&P 500 at 320, DOW at 2200, Gold $300/oz, and Corn $2/bu.
"You can't build a house of cards on a shaking table." - Tony Johns
The January 2015 AMZN put at $130 (cost $4.25) will be a winner.
Themortgagedude
Posts: 8853
Incept: 2007-12-17
Green
saint louis
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I'm sorry but if it isn't Corzine's head on a pike I'm not going to be satisfied. I truly want Corzine and other top executives of MFG to receive Enron sentences.

I'm beginning to think that Enron executives should have gotten a bank charter and they could have received bailout money and still been in bidness.

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I'm already visualizing you with duct tape over your mouth.
Uwe
Posts: 6455
Incept: 2009-01-03
Gold A True American Patriot!
19446
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TMD wrote..
I'm beginning to think that Enron executives should have gotten a bank charter and they could have received bailout money and still been in bidness.

That's sig-worthy!

-Uwe-

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“Whenever the legislators endeavor to take away and destroy the property of the people, or to reduce them to slavery under arbitrary power, they put themselves into a state of war with the people, who are thereupon absolved from any further obedience.” - John Locke
Jethrodull
Posts: 81
Incept: 2008-02-25

North Texas
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sounds more like the online Poker fiasco than MFG.
J
Mannfm11
Posts: 3545
Incept: 2009-02-28
Gold
DFW, Tx
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Of course we'll probably get treated to yet another dog and pony show about how this sort of thing isn't criminal, and it's just a civil matter (oh, and we have corporate liability shields too since this was an "accident" or "unforeseen circumstances" and not deliberate activity.)

They might do time on this one. Only if they hypothecated the money to the City of London will the missing funds be excused. Of course the haircut looks kind of like the haircut on the Greek debt last week

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The only function of economic forecasting is to make astrology look respectable.---John Kenneth Galbraith
Rickcaird
Posts: 78
Incept: 2009-08-17

Boynton Beach, Fl
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Until we hold the executives criminally and civilly liable, it will just keep happening.
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