At an appearance in North Carolina, John Mack added that he still doesn't "think the industry gets it," according to Bloomberg News. And that ridiculous pay would continue as banks are scared of losing staff.
Credit where credit's due: Not every Wall Street chieftain is planning to take home home an eight-figure bonus at the end of the year. Outgoing Morgan Stanley CEO John Mack announced today that he is foregoing a bonus in 2009 for the third year in a row. "That makes him the first of the major banking chiefs to do so,…
Goldman Sachs chief Lloyd Blankfein, Morgan Stanley CEO John Mack, and Citigroup chairman Dick Parsons were all supposed to be in Washington yesterday to meet with President Obama at the White House. But then a tiny patch of fog materialized in the skies overhead and they had to retreat to their offices, victims of…
Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein, Citigroup chairman Dick Parsons, and Morgan Stanley CEO John Mack all skipped out on a scheduled dressing-down today from Barack Obama because "inclement weather" made it physically impossible for them to travel to Washington. Convenient!
Change isn't easy. Just ask Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein and Morgan Stanley chief John Mack, both of whom were unable to personally attend a meeting with the president in Washington today after their US Airways flights were delayed because of "fog."
Two men turning 65 today whose glory days have long since passed: Morgan Stanley CEO John Mack, who has announced he'll step down as the firm's chief at the end of the year; and Saturday Night Live co-creator Lorne Michaels, who hasn't produced a season of SNL worth watching in years, but has yet to retire,…
Wall Street CEOs make a fortune, as you're undoubtedly aware. Even the chief executives of banks that have been bailed-out by Washington or have gone bust usually end up doing nicely. But despite the riches and perks these men have accumulated and massive egos they've developed along the way, few of them would do all…
• Jonathan Benno, Per Se's acclaimed chef de cuisine, has confirmed his plans to move on: He'll be part-owner and executive chef at a new (and as-yet unnamed) restaurant under construction in the plaza of Lincoln Center. [NYT]
• Has Minetta Tavern stopped accepting reservations from people who don't happen to be…
John Mack announced plans to step down as Morgan Stanley's CEO at the end of the year. He'll won't be departing the bank entirely: Mack will become Morgan's chairman on January 1, and the chief executive role will be handed over to James Gorman, the former McKinsey consultant and Merrill Lynch exec who joined Morgan…
The movie about the fall of Lehman Brothers aired on the BBC last night. The Financial Times' Alphaville blog wasn't the least bit impressed with the "cringeworthingly hilarious" made-for-TV production. The "failed irony, bad acting and moral superiority," along with "overly earnest analogies to the movie Fight Club"…
• Morgan Stanley CEO John Mack and his wife Christy appear to be the mystery buyers behind last month's purchase of the limestone carriage house at 165 East 70th Street. The 107-year-old home, which was sold to Mack in "distressed condition" for $13.5 million—and which comes with a 12-car garage, believe it or…
• Famed hedge fund manager Art Samberg has announced plans to shut down his firm, Pequot Capital Management, after an investigation into possible insider trading at the firm was revived. [NYT, WSJ]
• One person sweating bullets about Pequot's collapse: Morgan Stanley CEO John Mack, who was tied to the mess when it…
• The Carlyle Group will pay $20 million to end an investigation by Andrew Cuomo into its dealings with pensions and placement agents. [NYT, WSJ]
• Two attorneys at the SEC are under investigation for insider trading. [CBS]
• Hedge fund manager Jim Simons is facing tough questions from angry investors who put money…
So how did that little meeting go today in Washington between the president and the CEOs of the nation's largest banks? "It was very encouraging," said Morgan Stanley's John Mack. "We're all in this together," explained Wells Fargo CEO John Stumpf. "Our interests are very much aligned," said Robert Kelly, the chief…
• Tim Geithner has unveiled his latest plan to deal with the financial crisis. This one involves a partnership between the government and private investors, and could eventually involve buying up to $1 trillion in toxic assets from banks, although it isn't generating unanimous support. "It fills me with a sense of…
You can bet John Mack didn't have a very peaceful weekend. The Morgan Stanley chief was one of two banking execs subjected to a protest yesterday when members of the non-profit Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America turned up in bright yellow t-shirts bearing signs that read "Fix Our Loans, Save Our Homes" and…
As expected, Morgan Stanley took control of Smith Barney this afternoon, paying Citigroup $2.7 billion for a 51 percent stake in the brokerage firm. Even better: It allows John Mack, Morgan Stanley's CEO, to go home to his wife tonight and brag that he controls the largest brokerage firm in America, grabbing the…
• Talks between Citigroup and Morgan Stanley continue as the two banks discuss a plan to combine Citi's Smith Barney unit with Morgan Stanley's brokerage division in a joint venture worth $20 billion. [FT, Bloomberg, WSJ]
• It remains unclear if Vikram Pandit will be able to hang on as Citigroup's CEO, especially amid…
• A judge has yet to decide whether Bernie Madoff can stay at home or if he'll have to report to prison for violating the terms of his bail by handing over $1 million jewelry to his sons on Christmas Eve. [NYT]
• The trustee liquidating Madoff's firm has found $830 million in assets. [BN]
• Merrill brokerage chief Bob…
