Archive - Aug 9, 2009

Could the relatively new real-time limit order book development in financial markets be what is driving Goldman et al's high trading profits?

Clunkers is a big success. But that depends on how you define success. A lot of cars will be sold, but most of this consumption will be financed by the private sector. As an economic stimulus it does very little for us.

With the ban of Flash orders in equity markets now practically a done deal, politicians, and hopefully regulators, will start focusing their attention on Flash derivative products which facilitate not only a two tiered market but potential market abuse by the priliged few who have access to advance looks in assorted securities classes.

Dozens of frenzied calls between Hank Paulson and Lloyd Blankfein in September 2008 probably just mean the two Goldmanites were in love.

• Paulson's calls to Goldman tested ethics during crisis (NYT)
• Satyajit Das: Mixed Metaphors (Evro Intelligence Part 1, Part 2 h/t Paul)
• Rio Tinto spying cost China steelmakers $102 billion (Bloomberg)
• IMF puts total cost of crisis at $11.9 trillion (Telegraph)
• Economic bottom calls: willful ignorance (Market Ticker)
• For private equity, a very public disaster (NYT)

Many of you have asked us about the purpose of "Radio Zero." All of us have avoided answering. What is true, is that there are some surprises in store for our readers down the line. Unfortunately, revealing them at this point would do definitional violence to the word "surprise." We can, however, reveal to you that a fully-functioning sound studio and streaming audio server is a key component of our plans.

To wit: Studio Zero.