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The Goldman Diary
We are led to believe that the world is in recession but these bailed out bankers are still able to make huge profits and pay themselves vast sums of money.
You know a long time ago well maybe not so long the old Imperial powers looted their colonies without showing a drop of remorse.
Today the Imperial powers are dormant and have been overhauled by the financial institutions. These dragons of fiscal matters are today’s new colonists. These people care not a whit for countries or international borders they will rob and plunder wherever the treasure lies.
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Goldman Sachs’s Jon Corzine –8th April
Corzine’s spokesman prefers to blame everyone else except the guy in charge. Meanwhile, the wreckage of the economy and the bad faith in justice continues apace.
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THURSDAY, APRIL 11, 2013
How Many Ways Does Goldman Sachs Get Preferential Treatment?
Goldman Sachs paid its chief executive, Lloyd Blankfein, $21m last year – and granted him a further $5m in bonus shares in January.
The Wall Street bank handed Blankfein $13.3m (£8.7m) in restricted shares and a $5.7m cash bonus on top of his $2m annual salary last year.
His total 2012 pay was $9m more than in 2011, and the highest since the $68m he received in 2007, before the financial crisis struck.
The payout, disclosed in a filing with the US regulator the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), makes Blankfein, 58, the world’s best paid banker.
On top of his annual pay Goldman granted him long-term incentive plan (LTIP) shares worth an additional $5m at today’s share price. But he will have to meet performance targets in order to collect the full amount, and the value of the shares could go up or down.
Blankfein’s top four lieutenants collected a total of $72m in annual pay, bonuses and share options last year.
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More Preferential Treatment for Goldman Sachs
Posted: 12 Apr 2013 09:20 AM PDT
When Goldman Sachs became a commercial bank in 2008 (in order to save itself from insolvency), it apparently came under commercial bank regulations. However, in 2010 Goldman bought warehouses of aluminum products as an investment even though “[u]nder US banking regulations, banks are barred from owning the physical commodity assets that they operate.”
But, of course, the Federal Reserve gave Goldman 5 years of grace (until autumn 2013) while it decides if Goldman is exempt from the rules. This is another instance of the two-tier system of justice in the US–one for banks and the other for the rest of us.
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Payments
Goldman Sachs bankers to reward themselves a staggering £8.3billion in bonuses- jan 2013
The bank will be first to unveil its rewards – an average of £250,000 a person
Increase, up from £230,000 last year, comes as families are struggling to make ends meet
Calls for restraint by politicians, who used taxpayers’ money to bail banks out, have fallen on deaf ears
Goldman Sachs paid its chief executive, Lloyd Blankfein, $21m last year – and granted him a further $5m in bonus shares in January. -April 2013
The Wall Street bank handed Blankfein $13.3m (£8.7m) in restricted shares and a $5.7m cash bonus on top of his $2m annual salary last year.
His total 2012 pay was $9m more than in 2011, and the highest since the $68m he received in 2007, before the financial crisis struck.
Cash bonanza anticipated for Goldmans workers as firm sets aside £2.75bn pay and bonus pot- April 3013
Bankers at Goldman Sachs – including its 6,000 London staff – are in line for another bumper year as results this week are forecast to show average pay packets of £85,000 for the first quarter alone.
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Goldman Sachs is Caught In Its Own Web of Deceit 18 Apr 2013
A federal judge, District Judge Susan Wigenton, has upheld Prudential’s $270 million lawsuit against Goldman for fraudulent RMBS it sold to them.
A little bit of justice goes a long way when complete justice is denied.
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What Is Goldman Sachs Really Like?
19 Apr 2013
First, Goldman Sachs has paid its latest fine for RMBS fraud to Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP and according to the Bloomberg’s article:
“ABP sued New York-based Goldman Sachs in New York State Supreme Court in January 2012. The company alleged that it purchased certain mortgage-backed securities in reliance on false and misleading statements and that the securities were riskier than had been represented, backed by mortgage loansworth significantly less than had been represented.”
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Second, Professor Jeffrey Sachs calls the banks what they really are in an audio/video recoding posted at Market-Ticker. He is talking by telephone to a conference of academics discussing ending the fractional reserve lending system in order to repair the financial system by taking liquidity away from bankers who treat their banks as casinos for gambling. He calls the bankers cynical and full of conflicts of interest. Here is a partial transcript of what he thinks the banking system is:
“Prima facie, [it is] criminal behavior. It’s financial fraud on a very large [scale]; there’s a tremendous amount of insider trading…. [John] “Paulson worked together with Goldman Sachs to defraud massively many European banks which bought the toxic mortgages that Paulson had put together…. Goldman ended up paying a small fine and the chair of Goldman, of course, continued in his position and continued [to attend] White house State dinners.”
Other descriptors that Sachs uses for bankers and banking include:
“lawlessness,” “collapse of decency,” “a lot of them are crooks,” “nefarious behavior,”
Goldman Sachs should not be a commercial banking unit. That [it is] is sad.
The banking system is dysfunctional; there is a crisis of values that is extremely deep. Legal structures and regulators need reform. “I regard the moral environment of Wall Street people as pathological.” They bear no responsibility to others; they are tough, greedy, aggressive and out of control and have “gamed the system.” Regulators and the White House remain docile. Politics is corrupt to the core.
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Fraud*
According to the Collins English Dictionary 10th Edition fraud can be defined as: “deceit, trickery, sharp practice, or breach of confidence, perpetrated for profit or to gain some unfair or dishonest advantage”.[1] In the broadest sense, a fraud is an intentional deception made for personal gain or to damage another individual; the related adjective is fraudulent. The specific legal definition varies by legal jurisdiction. Fraud is a crime, and also a civil law violation. Defrauding people or entities of money or valuables is a common purpose of fraud, but there have also been fraudulent “discoveries”, e.g. in science, to gain prestige rather than immediate monetary gain
*As defined in Wikipedia
The Cypriot Options
Bank Depositor “Haircuts”: Grand “Financial Theft” is the Money Market’s “New Normal”
On March 29, Cyprus Mail said banks opened Thursday. They did so amid calm.
Long lines queued. People waited patiently. A feared stampede didn’t materialize. Whether it’s the calm before the storm remains to be seen.
Looting Cypriot bank accounts reflects the new normal. It set a precedent. It did so for Europe. More on that below.
Wall Street banks operate the same way. So did MF Global.
Grand theft reflects official policy. Money is made the old-fashioned way. It’s stolen. Nothing’s done to stop it. Corrupt politicians and regulators permit it. They do so for benefits they derive.
Scamming investors is commonplace. Goldman Sachs derisively calls them “muppets.”
MF Global’s CEO Jon Corzine formerly headed Goldman Sachs. He looted customer accounts. He did so brazenly.
He used client money to speculate. More went for internal purposes. Much went to cover debt obligations and losses. Top firm executives made millions. They did so at customers’ expense.
Financial reform accomplished nothing. Grand theft is institutionalized. Europe’s no different from America. Anything goes is policy.
Banks deposits were considered safe. No longer. Eurocrats changed things. Euro Group head Jeroen Dijsselbloem explained.
Expect more wealth extracted from depositors. Cyprus established a template. Bank accounts in other troubled economies aren’t safe.
“If there is a risk in a bank, our first question should be ‘Okay, what are you in the bank going to do about that,” he asked? “What can you do to recapitalize yourself?’ ”
“If the bank can’t do it, then we’ll talk to the shareholders and the bondholders. We’ll ask them to contribute in recapitalizing the bank, and if necessary the uninsured deposit holders.”
“The consequences may be that it’s the end of story, and that is an approach that I think, now that we are out of the heat of the crisis, we should take.”
In late February, ECB Executive Board member Benoit Coeure suggested raiding depositor accounts for bail-ins, saying:
“There needs to be an appropriate burden-sharing….because we need to achieve debt sustainability.”
At the time, he suggested not doing it across the board. Whether he meant it isn’t clear.
He added that he doesn’t “pre-judge any instruments because the vocabulary matters, and there are many ways to achieve burden-sharing.”
It bears repeating. Grand theft is official policy. Even bank accounts aren’t safe.
Market analyst Marc Faber believes “governments one day (will) take away 20 – 30% of (his) wealth.” There’s no place to hide.
German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble proposed a 40% haircut on all deposits. So does IMF head Christine Lagarde.
Cypriot Finance Minister Michalis Sarris said large uninsured Laiki Bank depositors could lose up to 80% of their money. Other European depositors race similar risks. So do people elsewhere.
Some may lose everything. It’s the new normal. Personal savings are up for grabs. Bank bailouts will be borne on the backs of ordinary people.
Think it can’t happen here? Think again. There’s no place to hide. Ellen Brown explained. Banks legally own depositor funds, she said.
“Our money becomes the bank’s, and we become unsecured creditors holding IOUs or promises to pay.”
Banks once repaid depositors on demand. A joint December 10, 2012 FDIC-Bank of England (BOE) paper changed things. Plans to loot customer accounts were made earlier.
The Bank for International Settlements originated them. It’s the privately owned central bank for central bankers. Major ones have final say.
Looting depositor accounts is policy. Cyprus isn’t a one-off. Guaranteed insured deposits don’t matter. They’re up for grabs like all others. It’ll be done clever ways or outright.
Brown said the FCIC-BOE plan involves converting deposits (IOU promises to pay) into bank equity. They get our money. We get bank stock.
Ready cash on demand is gone. Whether it’s ever returned, who knows. Take the money and run looks more than ever like policy. Depositors anywhere may be hung out to dry.
Even gold and silver in safety deposit boxes aren’t safe. Not in America. Homeland Security told banks in writing. It may inspect their contents on demand.
Under Patriot Act provisions, it may seize them with no warrant. It can do so anywhere. Banco de Mattress isn’t safe.
Investor Jim Rogers said “run for the hills now. I’m doing it.” Cyprus is no one-off.
“I want to make sure that I don’t get trapped,” he said. “Think of all the poor souls that just thought they had a simple bank account.”
“Now they find out that they are making a ‘contribution’ to the stability of Cyprus. The gall of these politicians.”
“If you’re going to listen to government, you’re going to go bankrupt very quickly.”
“I, for one, am making sure I don’t have too much money in any one specific bank account anywhere in the world, because now there is a precedent,”
“The IMF has said ‘sure, loot the bank accounts. The EU has said ‘loot the bank accounts, so you can be sure that other countries when problems come, are going to say, ‘Well, it’s condoned by the EU. It’s condoned by the IMF. So let’s do it too.’ ”
The Daily Bell asked “What Is The REAL Euro End Game? It is time to apply the free-market to bank depositors.”
Strategy involves shifting responsibility from taxpayers to depositors. Things ahead won’t be the same. Eurocrats’ policy is wrongheaded. They’re deepening crisis conditions, not alleviating them.
They believe achieving “full-on political union” depends on it. Their well-documented comments reflect it.
“….Cyprus shock and subsequent statements are not only deliberate, but have contributed to spreading uncertainty throughout Europe.”
“Now people no longer trust their banks, contributing to their destabilization.”
“If you have a bank crisis, the last thing you want to do is further destabilize trust and confidence in the system. But Brussels Eurocrats have done just that.”
“Don’t think it was a mistake. If one accepts that line of thinking, the ramifications are serious and deep from a sociopolitical, political and investment standpoint.”
The Economic Collapse blog said global elites plan to loot bank accounts. Don’t be surprised when they steal yours.
“They are already very clearly telling you that they are going to do it.” Your money is theirs. It’s up for grabs on demand.
People put money in banks for safety. Removing it “jeopardize(s) the entire system.” Cyprus is a tip of a giant iceberg. Major global banks are highly leveraged. Many are insolvent.
When their bets pay off, they win. When they don’t, we pay. Wealth confiscation is now policy. Commerzbank chief economist Joerg Kraemer urges a “tax rate of 15 percent on (Italian) financial assets.”
It’s “probably enough to push (government) debt below the critical level of 100 percent of gross domestic product,” he said.
New Zealand Finance Minister Bill English proposed across the board depositor “haircut(s)” in case of major bank failures.
Britain’s Daily Mail headlined “One of the nastiest and most immoral political acts in modern times,” saying:
“People who rob old ladies in the street, or hold up security vans, are branded as thieves.”
“Yet when Germany presides over a heist of billions of pounds from private savers’ Cyprus bank accounts, to ‘save the euro’ for the hundredth time, this is claimed as high statesmanship.”
“It is nothing of the sort….It has struck fear into the hearts of hundreds of millions of European citizens, because it establishes a dire precedent.
If Eurocrats can loot Cyprus, why not anywhere.
“This is the most brutal display since 2008 of how far the euro-committed nations are willing to go to save the tottering single currency.”
“It shows that the zone’s crisis will run and run to the grievous disadvantage” of most everyone.
“Surely the euro cannot long survive by such anti-democratic means. It certainly does not deserve to.”
Graham Summers says “Europe is out of options and out of money.” It’s “totally and completely bust.”
It’s banks are highly leveraged. They can’t raise capital “because no one in their right mind wants to invest in them….”
“European nations are bankrupt because AGAIN no one in their right mind wants to buy their bonds UNLESS they believe they can dump their investments on the ECB at a later date. Who is the greater fool there?”
Europe isn’t fixed because enough capital isn’t there to do it. “Europe and its alleged backstops are out of money. This includes Germany, the ECB, and the mega-bailout funds such as the ESM (European Stability Mechanism).”
The ECB is “chock full of garbage debts.” It’s insolvent. It can print money, “but once the BIG collateral call hits, (it’s) useless because (what’s needed) would implode the system.”
“What could go wrong?” Virtually anything. “It’s only a matter of time before (crisis conditions reach) hyperdrive, and we have an event even worse than 2008.”
Zero Hedge says Russia’s “next in line to restrict cash transactions. (They’re) taking a page from the Europeans’ book.”
Russia Beyond the Headlines said “Russia to ban cash transactions over $10,000.” It plans to “slash the amount of cash in domestic trade.”
It may do so by 2015. It’s “expected to boost” bank reserves “and put a damper on (its) shadow economy. However, the middle class will most likely end up having to pay the price for the scheme.”
According to Zero Hedge, leaders realize that “limits of fiscal and monetary policy have been reached.”
They’re “now changing rules, limiting freedom, and (instituting) outright confiscation (as) the only way to maintain a status quo.”
Doing so reflects predatory capitalism’s failure. It’s a house of cards. It’s heading perhaps for eventual collapse. At risk is whether it takes humanity with it when it does.
Stephen Lendman lives in Chicago. He can be reached at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.
His new book is titled “Banker Occupation: Waging Financial War on Humanity.”
http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanII.html
By Stephen Lendman
http://sjlendman.blogspot.com
His new book is titled “How Wall Street Fleeces America: Privatized Banking, Government Collusion and Class War”
Goldman Sachs Guy, Jon Corzine, Whacked with a Wet Noodle
When the CEO of the broker-dealer MF Global misuses customers’ funds, he should be prosecuted for criminal activity. But corruption in government and in finance now run so deep and wide that financial crimes are just ignored. Conflicts of interest no longer seem to matter.
Two directors of the oxymoronically described “self-regulatory” National Futures Association have recommended that Jon Corzine be banned from trading futures. Is that all the public gets for regulatory reform of rogue financiers? Shame!
Jon Corzine: Sounds like Mafia to me
