29-Year-Old SEC Honcho Came From Goldman

'New York Times' analysis finds 350 instances of banks getting free passes

(NEWSER) - The Securities and Exchange Commission has repeatedly allowed Wall Street's biggest banks to avoid penalties specifically intended to punish and deter fraud, a New York Times analysis of SEC records reveals. Over the past decade, the SEC has on almost 350 occasions granted waivers exempting big financial companies from sanctions, allowing banks like Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan to continue to enjoy advantages, like protection from shareholder lawsuits, that are supposed to be reserved for the most dependable companies. More»

Daniel Ruettiger, 12 others accused of 'pump-and-dump' scheme

(NEWSER) - Daniel Ruettiger—the man who inspired the 1993 movie Rudy, about an undersized student who earned a spot on Notre Dame's football team—is paying a full-sized $382,866 to settle fraud charges with the SEC, reports the Wall Street Journal . Ruettiger and 12 accomplices were charged with a "pump-and-dump" stock scheme that generated $11 million in allegedly illegitimate profits in energy drink company Rudy Nutrition. More»

Agency examines rules for private financing after Goldman investment

(NEWSER) - Goldman Sachs’ deal with Facebook might bring the SEC down on all manner of privately held stock purchases. The regulatory body has begun an investigation to see whether it needs to rewrite disclosure rules for privately held firms, and the very line dividing public and private firms, sources tell the Wall Street Journal . They’ll also look into the Facebook deal, and others like it, to see if they’re designed to skirt the 500-shareholder rule. More»

$500M penalty amounts to just 2 weeks of profits

(NEWSER) - The SEC is boasting that the $550 million settlement it agreed to with Goldman Sachs is the "largest-ever penalty paid by a Wall Street firm." That may be true, but that doesn't mean it's actually going to chasten Goldman. Top put things in perspective, Pro Publica notes that the fine is...

• ... less than Goldman gave away to small businesses as a PR move in November.
• ... less than one-tenth of the value Goldman stock gained yesterday on news of a settlement.

Prosecutors looking into mortgage deals

(NEWSER) - Looks like Goldman Sachs might have some company. Federal prosecutors have launched a criminal investigation into some of Morgan Stanley's mortgage derivative deals, the Wall Street Journal reports. Morgan Stanley created several mortgage-backed CDOs that it then bet against. Some it marketed itself, while others were sold by Citigroup and UBS. Investigators are trying to determine whether Morgan properly disclosed its role in the deals. More»