By Patrick Clark 9/13/12 8:51am

Morning Read

Standard Chartered Nears New Settlement Over Iran; Criminal Charges Unlikely in MF Global Probe: Roundup

Standard Chartered, the British bank that agreed to pay a New York State regulator $340 million to settle charges that it violated U.S. sanctions with Iran, is nearing a settlement with the U.S. Treasury and Manhattan district attorney, according to The New York Times. The anticipated deal will likely cost Standard Chartered less than its settlement with New York’s Department of Financial Services, because the federal and local authorities view the banks actions less severely than did the state regulator.

A Department of Justice probe into the collapse of MF Global is going nowhere fast, according to The Wall Street Journal, which reports that former CEO Jon Corzine met with federal investigators for the first time last week. Meanwhile, sources tell The Journal that it’s looking more unlikely criminal charges will be filed.

“Many people on Main Street distrust Wall Street right now, yet few can put their finger on why,” said Jamie Raab, publisher of Grand Central, according to The Times.Which is an overwrought explanation for giving former Goldman Sachs executive Greg Smith $1.5 million for his book, Why ILeft Goldman Sachs. A simpler reason: People want the dirt. Read More

By Patrick Clark 8/08/12 3:03pm

no u-turns

Is this man a rogue?

Rogue Herring: Leave Ben Lawsky Alone

When we left for the day yesterday, we thought that the notion that Benjamin Lawsky—the New York State Department of Financial Services chief whose agency had filed an order alleging Standard Chartered Bank had conducted $250 billion in illicit business with Iran—was a regulator gone rogue had been more or less attended to.

At Alphaville, Read More

By Patrick Clark 8/08/12 7:55am

Morning Read

Ben Lawsky Gains ‘Rogue Regulator’ Moniker After Standard Chartered; Hedge Funds’ Fight Over Madoff Claims: Roundup

Rogue bank or rogue regulator? That was the subject of some debate yesterday, after New York’s top banking regulator, Ben “long-arm-of-the” Lawsky, filed an order alleging that Standard Chartered Bank had conducted $250 billion in off-limits business with Iranian banks. According to The New York Times, the Department of Justice, Federal Reserve and the Treasury, among other authorities, had been debating the extent of Standard Chartered’s wrongdoing. In April, Mr. Lawsky’s deputies told federal authorities that DFS planned to move forward with the case, but it wasn’t until Monday morning that the state agency alerted the Feds that it was about to file the explosive order.  Read More