Trader charged with spreading rumors

You might think that rumor mongering is a grand Wall Street tradition. You may be right. But the stakes are much higher these days. The SEC just announced a settlement with Paul Berliner, a trader formerly associated with the Schottenfeld Group; he was alleged to have spread rumors that the Blackstone Group would renegotiate its offer for Alliance Data. He used to instant messages to get the word out to other traders and hedge funds. The Alliance stock dropped 17 percent in 30 minutes, notes the AP. This serves as a notice the SEC takes rumor-mongering seriously. Recall that it is looking into whether traders spread rumors about Bear Stearns, hoping to tank the stock, if not the entire company. Is the Berliner action an intended omen?  

For more:
- here's the AP article