The Wild Wild World of Wealth |
"My job is the occupation formerly known as 'stockbroker.' But it has been years since anyone called me that. Stockbroker sounds oily. Glengarry Glen Ross. The word makes clients twitch..."
Norb Vonnegut | March 3, 2010
In case you missed Matt Lauer’s interview with Harry Markopolis, here it is. Markopolis is the money manager from Boston who met with SEC four times and tried to expose Madoff’s Ponzi scheme. He said some terrific things during the interview and some that give my pause:
“If you don’t understand the strategy, don’t invest in [...]
Norb Vonnegut | February 19, 2010
Uneven regulation. Here’s what I don’t understand. For years, I worked for brokerage firms on Wall Street. I was subject to licensing and ongoing education. You could do a background check on me by going to FINRA’s website. Then, I joined a Registered Investment Adviser (“RIA”) and became a “fiduciary,” I think. I did the same job, but my licenses were no longer necessary. I disappeared on FINRA’s website, because the SEC monitors RIAs. But the SEC only provides information on companies, not individuals. It became more difficult to check me out because FINRA dropped my information two years later. What’s with that?
Norb Vonnegut | February 17, 2010
Hint: Mary Schapiro chairs the SEC. FINRA, where she was the boss before taking her current job, reports to her. Now there are allegations of bad behavior during her reign at FINRA. The SEC is the right organization to investigate, but Schapiro would be investigating herself.
