Bear bet that netted £141m throws fresh suspicion on collapse

It seems that Wall St. are trying to blame the straw for breaking the camel’s back. As The Independent report today:

Suspicion over the collapse of Bear Stearns is centring on a massive options trade, less than two weeks before the historic investment bank went under in March, by which a single investor made a profit of more than $270m (£141m) on a bet against the company’s share price.

In a “whodunnit” that has gripped Wall Street for months, many traders and senior executives at Bear Stearns have become convinced the firm was brought down by a conspiracy of rivals and hedge funds, who spread malicious rumours and ultimately triggered a collapse in confidence among its trading partners.

These conspiracy theorists received new evidence yesterday, with news of an extraordinary bet placed in the derivatives market on 11 March, near the start of the week when rumours of Bear’s financial problems snowballed. By 14 March, the Federal Reserve was having to extend emergency funding as Bear’s customers deserted. On 16 March it was sold at a fraction of the previous share price to JPMorgan Chase.

Wait a second, isn’t that the same day that Helicopter Ben lunched with a who’s who of Wall Street bigwigs?

The chairman’s March 11 lunch with financial-industry executives was held at the New York Fed, with Geithner also attending. Bernanke and Geithner told Congress last month that they were informed of Bear Stearns’s troubles on March 13.

I wonder whether the trade was made before or after this meeting?

Mark OByrne

Also on news-goldcore-com

Videos

Patrick Karim, Charts and Gold’s Next Breakout

Gold Down $100? This Really Shouldn’t Be A Surprise

Expect $2,500 – $3,000 Gold In Next 12 Months

Blog posts

Gold Hits Record High: Is This A New Era?

Overnight gold stunned markets by obliterating resistance levels and rocketing up to a new all-time high of $2,148.99.  As well as a new level we might also have seen a new standard in volatility being set as the yellow metal experienced $100 intraday swings.  This morning gold has calmed itself down a bit. But make […]

READ MORE

Will The Gold Price Shift As Two Great Titans Leave Us?

For much of November gold has been on a tear and this week investors have sent it way up, punching past $2000. Will these giddy heights of over $2,000 be how gold chooses to see out month-end? At the time of writing we cannot be sure.  Yesterday prices did soften ever so slightly but the […]

READ MORE

Gold, a seasonal rally and the future of money

Happy Thanksgiving to all of our readers. For anyone celebrating we hope you have a wonderful day and we thank you for your support this past year.  Big news this week – gold hit $2,030 in intra-day trading on Tue, it didn’t hang on but it did close the day with a hefty $20 gain […]

READ MORE

Featured

The King and Queen will be Gold and Silver

READ MORE
Newsletter
Category
Archives
Popular

No posts available

Videos

Patrick Karim, Charts and Gold’s Next Breakout

Gold Down $100? This Really Shouldn’t Be A Surprise

Expect $2,500 – $3,000 Gold In Next 12 Months

Blog posts

Gold Hits Record High: Is This A New Era?

Overnight gold stunned markets by obliterating resistance levels and rocketing up to a new all-time high of $2,148.99.  As well as a new level we might also have seen a new standard in volatility being set as the yellow metal experienced $100 intraday swings.  This morning gold has calmed itself down a bit. But make […]

READ MORE

Will The Gold Price Shift As Two Great Titans Leave Us?

For much of November gold has been on a tear and this week investors have sent it way up, punching past $2000. Will these giddy heights of over $2,000 be how gold chooses to see out month-end? At the time of writing we cannot be sure.  Yesterday prices did soften ever so slightly but the […]

READ MORE

Gold, a seasonal rally and the future of money

Happy Thanksgiving to all of our readers. For anyone celebrating we hope you have a wonderful day and we thank you for your support this past year.  Big news this week – gold hit $2,030 in intra-day trading on Tue, it didn’t hang on but it did close the day with a hefty $20 gain […]

READ MORE

Featured

The King and Queen will be Gold and Silver

READ MORE