By Patrick Clark 10/31/12 9:41am

back to business

U.S. Stock Exchanges Open for First Time Since the Storm

U.S. markets opened this morning after halting trading on Monday and Tuesday due to the raging storm.

At the Nasdaq, Times Square Alliance President Tim Tompkins was scheduled to ring the opening bell, signaling the resumption of business as usual—we hope. The New York Stock Exchange, which hadn’t closed for two consecutive days due to weather since 1888, was also set to open.

“Our building and systems were not damaged and our people have been working diligently to ensure that we have a smooth opening,” NYSE Euronext CEO Duncan Niederauer said in a statement.

But good intentions are no guarantee of positive results. The Times reported yesterday that the New York Stock Exchange was experiencing “connectivity problems,” while the Journal reported criticisms of the exchanges inadequate preparations for extreme events such as severe weather or terrorist attacks. Read More

By Patrick Clark 10/22/12 4:10pm

opening up

robertbenmoscheenjoyingtheview

AIG CEO Bob Benmosche Possibly Open to Some (Tax-Neutral) Female Companionship

Ladies, please meet our friend Bob. The CEO of a major insurance company, in his late-60s, some might say bullheaded, certainly outspoken, but there’s a kindness to his eyes, and he summers in the palatial estate built for the treasurer of a Yugoslavian king, which is nice. On the other hand, possibly a cheapskate, and probably not marriage material, which is to say, he’s married, but maybe open to the idea of a little additional companionship.

From Jess Pressler’s New York magazine profile of American Insurance Group CEO Robert Benmosche: Read More

By Mike Taylor 9/27/10 1:04pm

Payback

Treasury Getting Ready To Pull Out Of AIG

Bloomberg reports that a specific timetable is emerging for a Treasury exit from AIG, the insurer that nearly blew up in the fall 2008 but was systemically important and hence bailed out. Citing three people with knowledge of the talks, Bloomberg says Treasury could announce a plan to get taxpayer money out of Read More