By Scott Sipprelle 1/23 12:37pm

A Humbled Wall Street

Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman

The End of the Bully Market: Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman is Right

In 1987, I began my rookie assignment on the stock sales and trading desk for Morgan Stanley. A few weeks later the stock market crashed, and I learned my first important lesson about the pecking order on the Street. As a newcomer, my senses were on high alert. Across the floor, a trader named Chuck stood with a phone pressed hard against his ear as he barked out ear-piercing commands. Closer by, I found an island of serenity as the carnival of capital plunged into chaos. His name was Lou, and he was a smooth-talking senior salesman with a magnificent collection of suspenders. Read More

By Patrick Clark 10/19/12 8:32am

Morning Read

Black Monday Crash, 25 Years Later; Pay Realist Gorman Likely to Lose Shares on Missed Targets: Roundup

Twenty-five years after the Black Monday stock market crash of 1987, the potential for a catastrophic plunge remains, says Bloomberg. The Wall Street Journal looks back at the articles it published on the week of Oct. 19, 1987.

It seems the Times has also seen a “bootleg” copy of Greg Smith’s Why I Left Goldman Sachs, and its take is in line with what we’ve read of the book so far: “Long on Mr. Smith’s reminiscences of the pleasures of the job—handmade suits, sashimi at 30,000 feet, strawberries at Wimbledon—the former Goldman salesman’s book does not break much new ground on illegal or questionable financial practices at the firm.” Read More

By Patrick Clark 10/15/12 7:41am

Morning Read

Bill Gates, Kofi Annan Beg Mercy for Rajat Gupta; Caxton Associates Trims Fees: Roundup

Bill Gates and former United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan are among the friends of Rajat Gupta who have penned letters to Judge Jed Rakoff seeking leniency when the convicted insider trader is sentenced later this month.

A lobbying group backed by Elliott Management’s Paul Singer enlisted the American Agriculture Movement, the American Association Read More

By Patrick Clark 6/01/12 7:25am

Morning Read

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Morgan Stanley Boss Gorman Has No Sympathy for You or Anyone Else Looking for a Facebook Pop: Wall Street Roundup

Naive! Morgan Stanley CEO James Gorman has no sympathy for Facebook investors who expected to profit from a first-day spike in share prices. “People who thought they were buying this stock so they could get an enormous pop were both naive and ordered under the wrong pretenses,” Mr. Gorman said yesterday in an interview with CNBC. To which he might have added: “Didn’t they read Devitt’s research?” Mr. Gorman, of course, had this to say in January to investment bankers upset over Morgan Stanley pay cuts: “You’re naive, read the newspaper.“ Read More

By Patrick Clark 5/24/12 7:30am

Morning Read

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NYSE Courts Facebook, Plaintiffs Circle IPO, Buffett’s Goldman Banker: Wall Street Roundup

While Facebook dominated the news, Warren Buffett’s secretive investment banker slipped into a New York courthouse. That and more in today’s Wall Street roundup.

Falling out? NYSE Euronext approached Facebook yesterday about listing the company’s stock on the New York Stock Exchange, a move which would be a bigger blow to Nasdaq than any punishment regulators dole out for bungling the first day in Facebook trading. Read More

By Mike Taylor 1/04/11 5:41pm

New Beginnings

Jim Rosenthal Bumped to COO Spot at Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley has a new chief operating officer. His name is Jim Rosenthal, and he is the former head of firmwide technology operations and the integrator of Smith Barney at Morgan Stanley. Mr. Rosenthal succeeds Tom Nides, who is leaving to work for Hillary Clinton at the State Department. An expository memo from Morgan Stanley Read More