Goldman Sachs has clawed back some $174million in executive pay to dozens of current and former senior bankers after it agreed to pay nearly $3billion in fines to the Department of Justice for its role in a Malaysian bribery scandal.
Goldman Sachs Chief Executive David Solomon’s annual pay fell by $10million, or 36 per cent, in 2020, according to regulatory disclosures filed Tuesday, reflecting the bank’s role in Malaysia’s 1MDB scandal.
Solomon will receive $17.5million for his work during the year, compared with $27.5million the year before, the bank said. Goldman previously announced it would reduce Solomon’s pay, along with that of Chief Financial Officer Stephen Scherr and Chief Operating Officer John Waldron, in light of the findings of investigations into the bank’s role in the affair.
Waldron will receive $18.5million for his work last year, down 24 per cent, or $6million, from 2019.Scherr will be paid $15.5million, down 31 per cent, or $7million, from the previous year, during which he earned $22.5million.
Goldman said in October it is clawing back the money from a dozen current and former executives, including Solomon and his predecessor, Lloyd Blankfein.
The bank has not revealed exactly how much it clawed back from Blankfein and other top former honchos.
174,000,000 is 5.8% of 3,000,000,000
[October 23 2020 Goldman $2.9 billion a “coordinated resolution” ]
The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (Goldman Sachs or the Company) have admitted to conspiring to violate the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that Goldman had agreed to pay more than $2.9 billion for its participation in the 1mdb offences. That penalty is a component of a “coordinated resolution,” in the DOJ’s words, with financial and law enforcement authorities in several countries, including the U.S., the U.K., and Singapore.
https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/goldman-sachs-charged-foreign-bribery-case-and-agrees-pay-over-29-billion
[February 4 2020
Andrea Vella, the former co-head of investment banking at Goldman Sachs Asia, has been banned from the banking industry for life by the Fe deral Reserve Board. Vella’s former colleagues Tim Leissner and Roger Ng were similarly banned last year. The bank facilitated the 1MDB fraud, earning almost $600 million in fees on three bond deals from the deeply corrupt Malaysian fund. That’s about 200 times more than the normal amount a sovereign issuer would pay. Each time, as soon as Goldman provided the money to 1MDB, Low would steal it.
[September 20 2019 Plaut v. The Goldman Sachs Group Inc., SDNY ]
A Swedish pension fund will control a class action against Goldman Sachs Group Inc. over the 1MDB scandal, a federal judge in New York ruled.
Sjunde AP-Fonden was named on Thursday as lead plantiff in the suit, which accuses the bank of misleading investors about its work with the Malaysian state fund. The law firm Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check LLP was named as lead counsel.
U.S. District Judge Vernon S. Broderick’s ruling means that Sjunde AP-Fonden’s legal team will map strategy, oversee legal motions, manage settlement talks and divvy up the work among collaborating firms.
Plaut v. The Goldman Sachs Group Inc. et al., 1:18-cv-12084, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Alexander Schuetz/Markus Braun emails
19 January, 2021
Wirecard’s former CEO Markus Braun was advised by a Deutsche Bank board member to “finish” the Financial Times for its critique over the German payment firm’s accounts.
Alexander Schuetz, the board member, is said to have exchanged a set of controversial emails with then CEO Braun in 2019. Schuetz apologized for his comments and said he believed the FT’s accusations against Wirecard were unsubstantiated at the time. He does not currently plan to resign. Schuetz is one of the 15 biggest investors in the bank, owning 17.4 million shares.
[August 6 2020 Philippines: Wirecard guy dead? ]
Philippine Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra on Thursday said his office was trying to secure a certificate for the death of “Christopher Reinhard Bauer”, which he said had been recorded in a civil registry in the capital Manila last month.
“Bauer is part of an ongoing NBI/AMLC investigation, and these agencies have an interest to know if he is still alive,” Guevarra told Reuters, referring to the National Bureau of Investigation and the Anti-Money Laundering Council.
Tiger Woods: HBO documentary
17 January, 2021
“It’s not like he killed someone, he cheated. A lot of people cheat in their lifetime.”Tiger Woods was defended by former golfer and social media sensation Paige Spiranac ahead of the release of a blockbuster HBO documentary.
[ August 15 2009 Boho Chic ]
flowy cardigan
boho drew barrymore
Boho Woodstock
A second Disney line based on the show “Wizards of Waverly Place” is being billed as a “boho chic” collection including tunic-length tops with print scarves and miniskirts that draw inspiration from the show’s Alex Russo character, who happens to be played by Selena Gomez, the newly named Teen Choice red-carpet fashion icon. They’re selling at J.C. Penney, Kmart, Sears, Wal-Mart and Target.
Peaker Plant follies: GE v Siemens
14 January, 2021
GE alleges that Siemens Energy used trade secrets improperly received from a Dominion employee in part to win contracts that would boost the price of its initial public offering that took place in September.
a senior Dominion employee started sending to a Siemens account manager confidential business information GE had submitted. The information also included Dominion’s analysis of all bids, giving Siemens a “blueprint” to win contracts worth up to $340 million with the utility for the business, known as the Peakers Project.
The United States relies on more than 1,000 natural gas- and oil-fired peaker power plants across the country to meet infrequent peaks in electricity demand. These peaker plants tend to be more expensive and inefficient to run for every megawatt-hour generated than baseload natural gas plants and emit higher rates of carbon dioxide and health-harming criteria air pollutants.
General Electric Co. v. Siemens Energy Inc., 21-25, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia (Richmond).
New Senate: public administered accounts
14 January, 2021
Democrats are looking to give the U.S. financial system a progressive overhaul, incoming Senate Banking Chairman Sherrod Brown in the new Congress says.
Public banking would create a system of government-administered bank accounts that are not profit-driven.
Bank accounts could also start being provided by the government, possibly via the Post Office. Postal banking has long been a dream of progressive legislators — and a nightmare of commercial banks, who fear the reach and convenience that a postal bank would be able to provide.
The accounts would be similar to those provided by the Federal Reserve for large banking institutions.
Deutsche Bank: bribing public officials – DOJ settlement
8 January, 2021
“Deutsche Bank engaged in a criminal scheme to conceal payments to so-called consultants worldwide who served as conduits for bribes to foreign officials and others,” in order to win and retain “lucrative business projects,” Almost all of the payout relates to charges Deutsche Bank violated the federal Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) over its dealings in Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, China and Italy, court papers show. Nearly two-thirds of the payout is a criminal fine.
The settlements were made public on Friday at a hearing in the federal court in Brooklyn, New York.
[September 26 2020
The insistence that Deutsche Bank is a reformed institution is starting to fall on deaf ears, especially with the latest revelations. It now transpires that its opaque deals with Russian clients may have continued after these reforms. https://www.dw.com/en/opinion-witnessing-deutsche-banks-tailspin/a-55000107
Deutsche Bank accounts for 62% of all Suspicious Activities Reports (SARs) filed to FinCEN in the leaked documents.
$1.3 trillion (€1.09 trillion) worth of transactions passed through Deutsche Bank, which reported the activities to FinCEN. https://www.dw.com/en/deutsche-bank-suspicious-transactions-fincen-files/a-54997201
All too often the banks file their SARs long after the criminals have moved on. The main reason for doing so is just that it’s almost impossible to prosecute a bank for abetting money laundering if it has filed a SAR on the activity in question. Felix Salmon https://www.axios.com/why-money-laundering-persists-9bfac91b-9b06-4886-9e80-f46d0f21b296.html
[September 24 2020 Indian gold ]
Indian banks mentioned in the SARs include: state-owned Punjab National Bank (290 transactions); State Bank of India (102); Bank of Baroda (93); Union Bank of India (99) and Canara Bank (190), HDFC Bank (253 transactions); ICICI Bank (57); Kotak Mahindra Bank (268); Axis Bank (41) and IndusInd Bank (117) among others. https://indianexpress.com/article/express-exclusive/fincen-files-44-indian-banks-transactions-of-1-billion-flagged-to-us-regulator-6608181/
as many as 152 transactions of Indian companies with Dubai gold merchant Kaloti were red-flagged as suspicious. https://indianexpress.com/article/express-exclusive/fincen-files-on-us-radar-india-transactions-with-dubai-gold-major-indicted-by-us-anti-drugs-task-force-6605442/
[September 23 2020 in Kazakhstan’s former oligarchs ]
Kazakhstan’s former oligarchs: $89 million passed through Victor Khrapunov and $666 million through Mukhtar Ablyazov and were flagged with SARs. https://thediplomat.com/2020/09/the-fincen-files-show-suspicious-activities-of-kazakhstans-former-oligarchs/
[September 22 2020 DBS & CIMB Banks ]
In Singapore, DBS Bank was listed as having sent US$596.8 million and received US$228.3 million in 461 suspicious transactions between 2000 and 2017.
CIMB Bank was noted to have sent US$250.4 million and received US$34.3 million in 294 suspicious transactions, while Deutsche Bank sent US$224.3 million and received US$62 million in 19 suspicious transactions within the same period. https://www.straitstimes.com/business/banking/banks-in-singapore-handled-about-us45-billion-in-suspicious-transactions-fincen
[September 21 2020 18,153 transactions from Fincen ]
HSBC said “all of the information provided by the ICIJ is historical.” Deutsche Bank said the ICIJ had “reported on a number of historic issues.” More than $2 trillion worth of transactions between 1999 and 2017, which were flagged by internal compliance departments of financial institutions as suspicious.
Leaked suspicious activity reports (SARs) filed by banks and other financial firms with the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCen) are on Buzzfeed. https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/icij/fincen-files-global-transactions-map
The files were obtained by BuzzFeed News which shared them with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and 400 journalists around the world.
JPMorgan moved money for people and companies tied to the massive looting of public funds in Malaysia, Venezuela and the Ukraine. The bank also processed more than $50 million in payments over a decade for Paul Manafort, the former campaign manager for President Donald Trump, https://apnews.com/7a2579c1eac8a1300de258f25504e8e9
Germany’s biggest lender Deutsche Bank was especially neck deep in this murky business, facilitating more than half the $2 trillion of suspicious transactions made between 1999 and 2017, as revealed by the FinCEN files. https://www.dw.com/en/fincen-files-bringing-the-big-banks-to-justice/a-55008838
The FinCEN Files represent less than 0.02% of the more than 12 million suspicious activity reports that financial institutions filed with FinCEN between 2011 and 2017. https://www.icij.org/investigations/fincen-files/global-banks-defy-u-s-crackdowns-by-serving-oligarchs-criminals-and-terrorists/
. (A source familiar with the matter told BuzzFeed News that FinCEN’s database did not contain SARs on either Trump or the Trump Organization.) “Even if it’s bad wealth, it buys buildings,” he said. “It puts money into bank accounts. It enriches the nation.” https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/jasonleopold/fincen-files-financial-scandal-criminal-networks?origin=shp
Bank compliance officers are not deputized agents of law enforcement. The way the system works is they alert law enforcement and let law enforcement investigate. BuzzFeed has accused bank compliance officers filing SARs but not shutting down fraud as being complicit with the potential crimes being committed—rather than as witnesses to the crime. https://www.complianceweek.com/opinion/fincen-files-report-casts-compliance-officers-in-unfair-light/29494.article
Hue and Cri 
