Latest Commentary

Questions remain for funds of hedge funds

The headline news out of Preqin's recent Hedge Fund Spotlight was that long/short hedge funds are faring well, outperforming all other strategies in the first quarter and finding favor with more institutional investors.

In JPMorgan battle, board must contend with small governance firm

All eyes are on the May 21 annual meeting of JPMorgan (NYSE:JPM) shareholders, especially the vote on whether to split the chairman and CEO positions, both of which are currently held by Jamie Dimon, who serves as president as well. The vote will hinge on big institutions, and none loom larger than BlackRock, which holds a whopping 6.5 percent of the bank's common stock.

Middle ground in swaps regulation controversy?

The issue of cross-border regulation of the swaps markets has generated controversy since the 2010 passage of Dodd-Frank.

U.S., U.K. face off in subsidiarization controversy

The idea of ring-fencing and "subsidiarization" has generated a lot of controversy over the past few years, as regulators around the world ponder steps to make the their home banking...

Is a Golden Whale behind the selloff in gold?

What can be made of gold right now? The sell-off in the commodity has been powerful, and it wouldn't surprise many if it were to continue. The precious metal perhaps is due for a massive...

Promontory Financial facing criticism after banking settlement

Promontory Financial is not well known -- not even in the banking industry. But it is no stranger to controversy.

Too early to gauge JOBS Act success

When it comes to delayed rulemaking required by highly touted new laws, Dodd-Frank reigns as the granddaddy of them all. It took years for government agencies, notably the SEC, to implement key...

Morgan Stanley unit to invest in companies with women directors

Many people will be tempted to applaud the news that Morgan Stanley's wealth management division is starting a new fund that will target companies with women on their boards.

SAC Capital settles insider trading charges

In stunning news, SAC Capital has been charged with insider trading and has settled for a record fine.

"Too big to prosecute" debate rears up again

The notion that banks are "too big to prosecute"--as well as too big to fail--has been percolating around the industry for a while now. But the issue rocketed right back to the top of the...