Taming the High-Speed Traders  | High-frequency trading, which dominates the market in the United States, and has been associated with some high-profile problems in this country, is getting more oversight abroad, in places like Germany, Australia and Canada. As Nathaniel Popper of The New York Times puts it, “countries around the globe are now using America as a model for what they don't want to look like.†Our own Securities and Exchange Commission, though, is taking a look at how high-speed trading glitches are handled, according to The Wall Street Journal. (On Tuesday, the S.E.C. is hosting a meeting in Washington to talk about ways to limit problems.)
A committee of lawmakers in the European Parliament voted on Wednesday to have orders by speedy traders be delayed by at least a half-second - an eternity when time is measured in mill ionths of a second. Those proposed rules, which would need support from individual countries, came right after the German government moved forward with an effort to bring these traders under stricter government control.
All this doesn't sit well with some of the industry's players (although some insiders do support reform). An executive at Deutsche Boerse, the operator of the stock exchange in Frankfurt, told Reuters that the plan by the European Parliament could hurt liquidity and have “corresponding additional costs for investors and the real economy.†The debate over the issue can tend to veer into technicalities, but Business Insider has put together a handy guide in plain English.
RIM Earnings Preview  | Expectations are low as Research in Motion, maker of the BlackBerry, gets ready to report its quarterly results after the market closes on Thursday. Analysts are predi cting the company will report a loss, compared with a profit in the period a year earlier. For a blunt assessment of RIM's outlook, just turn to the chief executive, Thorsten Heins, who said this week, “We have a clear shot at being the No. 3 platform in the market.â€
The company, looking ahead to the upcoming BlackBerry 10, has been using some creative methods of wooing software developers, and it recently pointed to its bigger cash pile as a sign of optimism. Shares rose on Wednesday after the company reported a better-than-expected number of subscribers. But shareholders probably aren't feeling comforted, writes Spencer Jakab in The Wall Street Journal's Heard on the Street column:
“Focusing on cash and cash flow isn't exciting to investors who have, for good reason, discounted the likelihood of a takeover offer. The company may be worth more than the sum of its parts but probably is more trouble than it is worth.â€
The third quarter will be over on Friday, at least as far as stock trading is concerned, and investors are likely to have smiles on their faces after they get their quarterly investment statements. So far the Dow is up more than 6 percent, the S&P 500 is up nearly 8 percent and the Nasdaq is up more than 8 percent for the quarter. Certainly, the last two days could erase some of those gains. Durable goods orders for August are expected to be weak.
The Biggest Democratic Super PAC Donor is James H. Simons, the billionaire hedge fund quant and onetime math professor, reports Nicholas Confessore in The New York Times. Mr. Simons, who is known for keeping a low profile, has given at least $2 million to Priorities USA Action, the super PAC supporting President Obama, and $2 million more to two allied groups that support Democrats in Congress, Mr. Confessore says.
“The fact is that I am not seeking any publicity in this matter,†Mr. Simons said in an e-mail to The Times. “The donations can speak for themselves.â€
Clock Ticking for Glencore and Xstrata  | Monday is the new deadline for Xstrata to decide whether to accept Glencore's sweetened takeover offer. The negotiations are centering on the question of who will run the new company, which will combine Xstrata's mining business with Glencore's trading operations. Under the new terms, Glencore's chief executive, Ivan Glasenberg, would take over from Xstrata's chief, Mick Davis, six months after the merger is complete. Wi lliam MacNamara writes in DealBook:
“An adviser close to Xstrata said he had the ‘strongest possible guidance' that Xstrata executives would leave when Mr. Glasenberg took over. As a result, retention packages have become the leading issue in Xstrata's talks with shareholders before its decision to recommend or reject Glencore's offer, according to an adviser close to the proceedings. More than 60 Xstrata executives would receive bonuses worth more than $200 million if they stayed at the new company for a specified period. Xstrata says it believes these are crucial safeguards for the performance of Glencore-Xstrata's mining-led business. But it may be tough to extract any richer bonuses than those.â€
Cerberus to Sell $2.5 Billion Stake in Japanese Bank  | The private equity firm will start selling its $2.5 billion stake in Japan's struggling Aozora Bank this year in a much-anticipated exit for Cerberus more than a decade after its initial investment.
DealBook '
Mergers and Acquisitions Sink to Post-Crisis Low  | Deals announced in the third quarter amount to $446 billion, the lowest level since the third quarter of 2009, Bloomberg News reports.
BLOOMBERG NEWS
2 Opposite Personalities in Aerospace Merger Talks  | The European aerospace giants EADS and BAE are run by two very different men. According to The Wall Street Journal, the chief executive of the former “has a reputation as a bit of a corporate cowboy,†while the head of the latter is said to avoid “stunts, publicity and most risk.â€
Dean Foods Explores Sale of a Dairy Unit  | Dean Foods announced Wednesday that it was exploring the sale of its Morningstar unit as the company takes steps to reduce its debt.
DealBook '
Cyberattacks Leave American Banks Unharmed  | The Bits blog reports that Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup, U.S. Bancorp and PNC were hit by hacker attacks that caused delays on their sites but were not “technically sophisticated†and did not affect customers' bank accounts.
NEW YORK TIMES BITS
Lloyds Said to Be Selling $416 Million Loan Port folio  | The international unit of the Lloyds Banking Group is looking to offload a portfolio of Australian distressed corporate loans, The Wall Street Journal reports, citing an unidentified person familiar with the matter.
WALL STREET JOURNAL
Nomura Said to Be Cutting Jobs in American Equities  |Â
BLOOMBERG NEWS
Bank of America Merrill Lynch Said to Cut Jobs in Australia  |Â
WALL STREET JOURNAL
Investors Put More Pressure on Private Equity Firms  | Reuters reports: “Pensio n funds and endowments are pressing private equity firms hard to boost returns amid a global economic slowdown, just as buyout executives set off on a new round of multibillion-dollar fundraising. The tension between private equity firms and their institutional investors is rising, with pension funds also wanting more exposure to specialised investments rather than just broadly themed funds. Some buyout bosses believe that may not be such a good idea.â€
REUTERS
Behind K.K.R.'s Success  | Bloomberg News' Jason Kelly, who wrote a new book on private equity, profiles the firm's founders.
BLOOMBERG NEWS
Silver Lake Said to Lower Goal for New Fund  | Bloomberg News reports: “Silver Lake, the largest technology-focused p rivate-equity firm, cut the target amount for the clean-technology fund it set out to raise early last year with the backing of George Soros, according to two people familiar with the situation.â€
BLOOMBERG NEWS
Founders Offer to Take Hotel Chain Private  | The co-chairman and founders of 7 Days Group Holdings, a hotel chain based in China, are working with the Carlyle Group and Sequoia Capital China in a buyout bid of about $635 million, The Wall Street Journal reports.
WALL STREET JOURNAL
Triton Advisers Looks to Raise $3.1 Billion Fund for Europe  |Â
BLOOMBERG NEWS
Former Hedge Fund Chief Pleads Guilty to Fraud  | Michael J. Spak, who formerly ran the New Jersey hedge fund Osiris, pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud investors of more than $4 million, Bloomberg News reports.
BLOOMBERG NEWS
Some Macro Funds Stand Out  | Pivot Capital Management, based in Monaco, is among a handful of macro funds that have done better than investments in stocks and bonds, according to Bloomberg News.
BLOOMBERG NEWS
Deutsche Bank Executive Leaves to Start Hedge Fund  | Hal Lehr, who was global head for cross-commodity trading at the German lender, left with three of his former associates, according to Bloomberg News.
BLOOMBERG NEWS
Mexico Unit of Banco Santander Rises 6% in Debut  | Shares of the unit, Grupo Financiero Santander México, rose 6 percent on its first day of trading to close at $12.91, amid a choppy environment for initial public offerings.
DealBook '
Echoes of Facebook in Japan Airlines' Volatility  | Institutional investors stepped in to buy Japan Airlines stock after it slid as much as 16 percent below the offering price in trading on Wednesday, The Wall Street Journal reports.
WALL STREET JOURNAL
Indian Wind Power Business Looks to Raise Up to $406 Million  |Â
REUTERS
Taylor & Martin Aims to Raise $180 Million in I.P.O. Â |Â
REUTERS
Andreessen Horowitz Taps Former D.C. Mayor as Special Adviser  | On Wednesday, the firm announced that it had tapped Adrian Fenty, a former Washington mayor, adding another Beltway insider to its team.
DealBook '
Which Start-Ups Fared Best? Â |Â According to a ranking from The Wall Street Journal, the most successful young companies were all ones that catered to businesses.
WALL STREET JOURN AL
Former Credit Suisse Banker Arrested in Britain  | Kareem Serageldin, the former global head of Credit Suisse's structured credit trading business, faces criminal charges in the United States, and is the “highest-level Wall Street executive to be charged in a case relating to the 2008 financial meltdown,†The Wall Street Journal reports.
WALL STREET JOURNAL
Top S.E.C. Officials Head for the Exit  | The Wall Street Journal reports that the departures of several advisers to Mary L. Schapiro, the Securities and Exchange Commission chairwoman, suggest that Ms. Schapiro herself might step down before her term is done.
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S.E.C. Looks to Intervene in Fight Between Lehman and Barclays  | The legal spat between Lehman Brothers and Barclays stems from the purchase of Lehman's North American unit during the financial crisis.
BLOOMBERG NEWS
