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Hedge Funds Cash In on Collapse of Bear

Wagering the securities firm stock would fall paid off millions

By Jim O'Neill,  Newser User

Posted Mar 20, 2008 9:25 AM CDT

(Newser) – The epic collapse of Bear Stearns didn't mean bad news for everyone on Wall Street—several big hedge funds made a mint off it, the Wall Street Journal reports. The funds essentially placed bets that Bear would stumble, then raked in millions when the security firm's shares took a nosedive. The SEC is investigating to make sure profiteers did not have insider knowledge of the coming collapse.

Most of the profits came through a process known as short-selling, and about 25% of Bear Stearns shares were sold that way—the seventh-most of any S&P 500 issue. Some of the big winners, including Harbinger, Greenlight, and Tremblant, had as long ago as last summer began placing their bets. A Tremblant investor said the firm had no special knowledge about Bear but began looking last year for "an insurance trade in case the world got ugly."

The headquarters for JP Morgan Chase, right, and Bear Stearns, left, are shown on Monday, March 17, 2008 in New York.
The headquarters for JP Morgan Chase, right, and Bear Stearns, left, are shown on Monday, March 17, 2008 in New York.   (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)
Steven Raphael, a broker with Bear Stearns, enters the company headquarters on Monday, March 17, 2008 in New York.
Steven Raphael, a broker with Bear Stearns, enters the company headquarters on Monday, March 17, 2008 in New York.   (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)
A sign of above the entrance to Bear Stearns headquarters is seen in New York.
A sign of above the entrance to Bear Stearns headquarters is seen in New York.   (AP Photo/Jin Lee)
Graphic shows daily trading and timeline of events for Bear Stearns since June 2007.
Graphic shows daily trading and timeline of events for Bear Stearns since June 2007.   (AP Photo)
A businessman runs past Bear Stearns in New York on Friday, March 14, 2008.
A businessman runs past Bear Stearns in New York on Friday, March 14, 2008.   (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)
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