Archive - Story
February 19th, 2009
Fortress, Tudor and Threadneedle Permit Redemptions Again
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 02/19/2009 19:32 -0500Hedge Fund Alert reports that, as expected, more large hedge funds are following Ken Griffin's example and are reversing the course on suspending redemptions. Some of the larger names that are starting to let investors get their much needed if significantly reduced cash are Fortress, Threadneedle and Tudor.
Roubini Says Government-Backed Bank "May Crack"
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 02/19/2009 19:21 -0500As the Dow drops below the so called November test, Hogan's bottom etc., Nouriel is stoking the fire:
Obama Third Biggest Recipient Of Stanford Campaign Cash
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 02/19/2009 18:38 -0500The Center for Responsive Politics has come out with an insightful list, disclosing Stanford's campaign contributions which shockingly demonstrates that R. Allen Stanford was president Obama's third largest donor.
Turns out Stanford was a big Democrat, giving almost a million to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.
Other politicians have benefited from Stanford's fraud inspired generosity over the years:
Bill Nelson, Florida Democrat: $45,900
The "Santelli Rant"
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 02/19/2009 18:32 -0500Is the president watching?
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bEZB4taSEoA&hl=en&fs=1]
UBS Sued To Disclose 52,000 Secret Swiss Account Holders
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 02/19/2009 18:22 -0500Or Geithner and 51,999 (we jest Timmmmay). The U.S. government has filed suit in Miami alleging that U.S. customers have failed to pay taxes on 32,000 cash accounts and 20,000 securities accounts, which held $14.8 billion of assets in the mid-2000s, according to a Justice department statement.
Smurfit Stone CDS Auction Mid Point Set At 7.875%
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 02/19/2009 18:04 -0500No major surprises in SSCC's ISDA CDS and LCDS auctions. Creditex has determined the inside market mid-point for CDS at 7.875% while the LCDS mid is 68.5. Both points are consistent with recent trading levels of 68-70 for the loans and 7.75 - 9 for the bonds.
Net sell interest into determination of the final price is $128.675 million for the bonds and $40 million for the loans.
Final auction results will be made available around 2 pm and we will give you the full lowdown.
Another Ira Sorkin Client Ponzier-Turned-Chef To Cook For Oscars Before Reporting To Prison
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 02/19/2009 16:06 -0500
Vincent Montagna, who ran hedge-fund Tiburon Partners from 1998 to 2002 before being charged by the SEC for defrauding 70 investors out of $10 million, pled guilty to securities fraud, investment advisor fraud and wire fraud, and who was sentenced to 40 months in jail, is scheduled to start serv
Victory for Einhorn: Allied Capital In Default
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 02/19/2009 15:09 -0500
After seemingly endless years of wrangling back and forth, Einhorn has finally been vindicated: Allied Capital announced in an 8K today that it was notified by its lenders of a default in its credit fa
Antigua Prime Minister Says Stanford Not In Country
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 02/19/2009 15:02 -0500Technically he said "probably not" kinda like Iraq "probably has" weapons of mass destruction.
Someone quickly find the private jet departure logs from Antigua into Mexico over the past 3 days.
Strawberry Farmer Breaks California Capitol Siege
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 02/19/2009 14:38 -0500
After almost a week of not showering, and snoring in a sleeping bag, one California Republican Senator seems to have cracked and will vote against his conscience, but for going home and a fresh change of clothes.
Loans Versus Bonds Relative Value
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 02/19/2009 14:17 -0500A comparable relative value analysis evaluating spreads on most liquid loans and bonds for 30 indicative corporate issuers yields interesting results. The average loan yield is currently at Libor +848 while the average bond spread is at Libor + 1435, a 587 bps differential, and a 230 bps widening to the LTM average of 358 bps.
Early Thursday Headlines
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 02/19/2009 13:25 -0500- GSEs' exponentially growing backing: now at $400 billion (Washington Post)
- The end of anonymous Swiss bank accounts: huge political implications (Reuters)
- European banks agree to CDS clearinghouse (Bloomberg)
- Stock rock stars (
Riverton Debacle Escalates
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 02/19/2009 02:32 -0500Larry Gluck and Stellar LLC who had hoped to auction off the Riverton Harlem housing project on Friday, got some more bad news today, when Wells Fargo announced it is seeking foreclosure on the 1,230 unit apartment complex. The auction has now been cancelled until further notice according to Steve Solomon, a spokesman for Gluck.



