Hedge Fund as Pirate, Seizes Argentine Navy Ship

Hedge Fund as Pirate, Seizes Argentine Navy Ship

By The Banker | Blog Posts

Earlier this week hedge fund Elliott Associates seized the ARA Libertad, a tall ship from the Argentine Navy in a Ghanean harbor, as partial payment for unpaid sovereign debt dating back to 2001. I love this story, because I’ve got some history with both sides of this dispute. Argentina’s debt default, of course, is why

Cracker Barrel Amateur Hour

Cracker Barrel Amateur Hour

By The Banker | Blog Posts

The San Antonio Express-News reported that San Antonio-based Biglari Holdings failed last summer to notify the Justice Department of its intent to initiate an activist approach to investing in Cracker Barrel Old Country Store Inc, as required by law. Sardar Biglari operates in the exceedingly small financial sandbox of San Antonio, where his firm’s $850,000

My Front Row Seat For The AIG Debacle - SIGTARP V

My Front Row Seat For The AIG Debacle – SIGTARP V

By The Banker | Blog Posts

The bailout of AIG stands out as the largest commitment of public funds for a single private company in financial history.  How did the world’s biggest insurance company become the largest corporate ward of the government, of all time? For the curious, I recommend pages 2-4 of SIGTARP’s latest AIG report as it reports on

SIGTARP, Part IV – What Small Banks Are Going Under Next?

SIGTARP, Part IV – What Small Banks Are Going Under Next?

By The Banker | Blog Posts

Ok, so it’s no secret I’m pretty sweet on SIGTARP, the Norse God of Financial Accountability. There’s the pleasure of calling a fellow US Treasury colleague a liar. There’s the feistiness of a government official pointing out that through our failure to rein in TBTF banks, we’ve laid the groundwork for the next crisis There’s