Jon Corzine
More on Jon Corzine's MF Global firm which filed for bankruptcy yesterday. The New York Times reports that hundreds of millions of dollars in customer money has gone missing in recent days. That scuttled at the 11th hour an agreement to sell a major part of New York- based MF Global to a rival brokerage firm. Regulators are examining whether MF Global diverted some customer funds to support its own trades as the firm teetered on the brink of collapse. The paper said the discovery that money could not be located might simply reflect sloppy internal controls at MF Global. It is still unclear where the estimated $700 million went. Customers’ funds must be kept separate from company money. One of the basic duties of any brokerage firm is to keep track of customer accounts on a daily basis. Neither MF Global nor Corzine has been accused of any wrongdoing.
Joe Nocera wrote an op ed column for The Times blasting New Jersey's former governor:
'The idea that Corzine, who single-handedly destroyed MF Global Holdings, was in a position to command so much as a penny in severance is horrifying. It suggests two things. The first is the extent to which “heads-I-win-tails-you-lose” remains the operative concept for Wall Street compensation. The second is that one’s politics doesn’t much matter when it comes to lining one’s pockets. Corzine is an avowed liberal who has decried income inequality and Wall Street pay — but right up until the end, he had his hand out for millions he didn’t deserve."
The deal Corzine had been negotiating fell through.
Read the entire column here.