Month: July 2019

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Article: Massive Russian Financial Flows Through Moldova Show Small Jurisdictions Matter

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Massive Russian Financial Flows Through Moldova Show Small Jurisdictions Matter

Joshua Kirschenbaum, 30 July 2019

In 2014 the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) revealed a staggering Russian money-laundering operation perpetrated through Moldindconbank in Moldova, alternatively dubbed the Russian Laundromat1 or the Global Laundromat.2 Financial facilitators allegedly moved $20 billion from Russian banks to Moldindconbank over five years, where they “cleaned” the money using Moldovan court orders backing fraudulent claims that borrowers had defaulted on promissory notes. They then moved the proceeds to banks in Latvia and around the world. According to the OCCRP, Moldindconbank received $20 billion in potentially illicit inflows—a truly colossal sum for one small institution in one small country. Continue reading “Article: Massive Russian Financial Flows Through Moldova Show Small Jurisdictions Matter”

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Article: Lawyers Line Up to Sue Merrill Lynch for Alleged Deceptive Trading Practices in Commodities

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Lawyers Line Up to Sue Merrill Lynch for Alleged Deceptive Trading Practices in Commodities

Miriam Rozen

29 July 2019

Join the queue if you are a plaintiff lawyer considering filing a proposed class action lawsuit against Merrill Lynch’s parent company, Bank of America, related to allegations of deceptive trading practices in the commodities markets.

Multiple plaintiff lawyers filed at least three such lawsuits in recent weeks after federal prosecutors secured a June 25 deal with another BofA unit, Merrill Lynch Commodities, to pay $25 million to resolve their investigation into alleged deceptive trading practices.

Read full article.

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Article: Barclays, RBS and other banks face £1bn forex rigging lawsuit

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Barclays, RBS and other banks face £1bn forex rigging lawsuit

Sean Farrell, 29 July 2019

Barclays, Royal Bank of Scotland and three other banks are being sued by investors for at least £1bn over rigging of the foreign exchange market in a test case for US-style class actions in the UK.

A US law firm that specialises in stock market litigation has filed the claim at the Competition Appeal Tribunal. The claim also targets US investment banks JP Morgan and Citigroup, and Switzerland’s UBS. The legal action follows the European commission’s decision in May to fine five banks more than €1bn (£910m) for colluding to reduce competition in markets for 11 currencies, including the US dollar, the euro and the pound.

Cartels of traders with names such as the “Three-Way Banana Split” operated on chatrooms to rig the multitrillion-dollar foreign exchange market. UBS, which informed the commission about the collusion, was not fined but Japan’s MUFG received a penalty. Continue reading “Article: Barclays, RBS and other banks face £1bn forex rigging lawsuit”

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Article: JPMorgan, UBS among five banks facing £1 billion FX-rigging suit

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JPMorgan, UBS among five banks facing £1 billion FX-rigging suit

Bloomberg, 29 July 2019

London: JPMorgan Chase & Co and UBS Group AG are among five banks being sued over allegations of foreign-exchange rigging in a class-action lawsuit seeking more than £1 billion ($1.2 billion, Dh4.4 billion).

Barclays Plc, Citigroup Inc and Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc are also among the targets of the UK suit that will say pension funds, asset managers, hedge funds and corporations lost out because of market manipulation between 2007 and 2013 and should be compensated.

The lawsuit centres on collusion on foreign-exchange trading strategies, for which the European Commission fined Barclays, RBS, Citigroup, JPMorgan and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Inc a total of €1.07 billion ($1.2 billion) in May. UBS escaped a fine because it was the first to tell regulators about the collusion. Continue reading “Article: JPMorgan, UBS among five banks facing £1 billion FX-rigging suit”

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Article: Bank of Russia establishes facts of market manipulation by clients of market makers in certain eurobonds

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5 History-Making Wall Street Crooks

CHRIS SEABURY, 25 July 2019

Over the years, Wall Street has had its share of scandals, many of which left despair and loss in their wakes. These include everything from insider trading to fraud that cost investors millions of dollars. To fully understand the impact these crooked individuals had on financial history, we must examine the people themselves, what they did and the legacy their misdeeds left behind. While no two are alike, what these men share is the lasting effects of their crimes, which are still felt by Main Street many years later. This article will examine four of the most famous and unscrupulous Wall Streeters: Michael de Guzman, Richard Whitney, Ivan Boesky, Michael Milken, and Bernard Ebbers. Continue reading “Article: Bank of Russia establishes facts of market manipulation by clients of market makers in certain eurobonds”

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Article: Part 10 of Illegal Naked Shorting Series: Legal Shorting of Stocks is a Loser’s Game but Illegal Naked Shorting Transforms It into a Winner’s Game

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Part 10 of Illegal Naked Shorting Series: Legal Shorting of Stocks is a Loser’s Game but Illegal Naked Shorting Transforms It into a Winner’s Game

Larry Smith

Smith On Stocks, 24 July 2019

When I launched my research on stock manipulation and the prominent role played by illegal naked shorting, I believed that I had a fair understanding of the subject and could knock out comprehensive research in just a few blogs. However, as I dug in I was taken aback at how complex and widespread this subject is. I think that a team of hundreds of experts with unlimited resources would have difficulty ferreting out all of the details on a scam that Wall Street has been perpetrating and perfecting for over 40 years.

Read full article.

See All Larry Smith Posts @ SNSS

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Article: FT calls in law firm to review its reporting on Wirecard of alleged accounting fraud at Singapore office

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FT calls in law firm to review its reporting on Wirecard of alleged accounting fraud at Singapore office

Straits Times (Singapore), 24 July 2019

Editor Lionel Barber called in London-based law firm RPC after the Handelsblatt daily reported at the weekend that Wirecard had given evidence to German prosecutors alleging collusion between short sellers and employees of the Financial Times.

Comment: Use the tag cloud to see other stories featuring Dan McCrum, the journalists alleged to be in collusion with naked short sellers.

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Article: FT calls in law firm to review reporting on Wirecard

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FT calls in law firm to review reporting on Wirecard

Reuters, 23 July 2019

FRANKFURT (Reuters) – The Financial Times has hired a law firm to review its investigations into German payments company Wirecard (WDIG.DE), which has sued the newspaper over a series of reports alleging accounting irregularities.

The FT’s reporting, citing a whistleblower’s claims of fraud and creative accounting at Wirecard’s Singapore office, wiped up to $10 billion off Wirecard’s market value and triggered a police investigation in the Asian state.

Wirecard denies the allegations and has filed a suit at the Munich regional court against both the FT and its lead reporter on the stories, Dan McCrum, seeking a ruling on the merits of its case. If successful, the company would then press for financial redress.

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Article: NY DA Morgenthau wanted to end offshore bank & corporate secrecy

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NY DA Morgenthau wanted to end offshore bank & corporate secrecy

Lucy Komisar

The Komisar Scoop, 22 July 2019

Robert Morgenthau, who was the District Attorney of Manhattan for 33 years, died today at 99. He was a mortal enemy of the corrupt offshore bank and corporate secrecy system and used the fact of dollars settling in Manhattan banks to go after money-launderers throughout the world.

Read full article.

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Article: BofA Merrill Lynch Branch in Seoul Fined for High-frequency Trading

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BofA Merrill Lynch Branch in Seoul Fined for High-frequency Trading

Yoon Young-sil

Business Korea, 17 July 2019

Korea Exchange (KRX) has decided to impose a 175 million won (US$148,495) fine on Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s South Korean unit for violating its trading rules. Merrill Lynch’s Seoul branch reportedly served as a trading channel for U.S.-based Citadel Securities and has been suspected of disrupting the market through high-frequency algorithm trading on the KOSDAQ market.

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Article: Merrill Lynch fined by Seoul authority for profiteering from spoofing

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Merrill Lynch fined by Seoul authority for profiteering from spoofing

Chung Seung-hwan, Choi Mira

Pulse, 17 July 2019

South Korea’s stock exchange authority Korea Exchange (KRX) slapped a fine of 175 million won ($148,242) on U.S. brokerage Bank of America Merrill Lynch for violating domestic rules and distorting market through algorithmic high-frequency spoofing.

Merrill Lynch has been accused of abetting 6,200 spoofing activities while handling 80 trillion won worth deals commissioned by American hedge fund Citadel Securities from October 2017 to May 2018. Over the period, Citadel was found to have profiteered about 220 billion won, according to KRX.

Read full article.

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Fined: Merrimac Corporate Securities, Inc. Fined by FINRA

Fined

Merrimac Corporate Securities, Inc. Fined by FINRA

17 July 2019

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued a
decision in which the firm was suspended from FINRA® membership in all
capacities for 30 business days, suspended from receiving and liquidating
penny stocks for one year, fined $225,000 and required to retain an expert
to evaluate and approve its written supervisory procedures (WSPs).

Read full report.

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Article: Chat room messages are ‘smoking gun’ in $25 million Merrill CFTC spoofing penalty

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Chat room messages are ‘smoking gun’ in $25 million Merrill CFTC spoofing penalty

Todd Ehret

Reuters, 17 July 2019

The U.S. Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) last month chalked up another impressive settlement over the market manipulation tactic known as “spoofing.” The $25 million penalty for Merrill Lynch Commodities in the case is the second largest related to spoofing.

Like many of the prior cases, where the firms cooperated with the investigations and were given credit for doing so, the proverbial “smoking gun” in the case was the record of online chat rooms where traders discussed markets, prices, and their strategies and actions.

Read full article.

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Fined: Western International Securities, Inc. Fined by FINRA

Fined

Western International Securities, Inc. Fined by FINRA

16 July 2019

An AWC was issued in which the firm was censured, fined $75,000 and required to provide remediation to eligible customers who qualified for, but did not receive, the applicable mutual fund sales charge waivers. As part of this settlement, the firm agrees to pay restitution to eligible customers, which is estimated to total $375,000 (i.e., the amount eligible customers were overcharged, inclusive of interest).

Read full article.

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Article: Vistra wraps up Crius Energy acquisition

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Vistra wraps up Crius Energy acquisition

Renewables Now, 16 July 2019

Texas-based company Vistra Energy Corp (NYSE:VST) has completed the acquisition of electricity and gas retailer Crius Energy Trust (TSE:KWH.UN), which will be delisted from the Toronto Stock Exchange tomorrow.

The parties announced the closing of the transaction on Monday. Crius Energy’s unitholders will receive CAD 8.8 (USD 6.75/EUR 6) per unit this week. In addition, holders of record on March 26, 2019 are also getting a distribution of CAD 0.209 per unit, a previously declared by Crius.

The company is expected to be wound-up following the redemption of the trust units on July 18.

Crius Energy is an independent energy marketer of retail electricity, natural gas and solar products to residential and commercial customers. In its report for the first quarter of 2019, it noted that it was in the advanced stages of winding down its solar installation business known as Verengo. Total revenues for the quarter amounted to USD 296.4 million (EUR 263m), including USD 240 million in electricity revenue, USD 54.5 million from natural gas, and just USD 1.9 million from the solar business.
Continue reading “Article: Vistra wraps up Crius Energy acquisition”

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