Posts
Unaudited! Not Just A China Problem So How Do We Address It?
/4 Comments/in Pure Content, The Big 4 And GlobalizationIt’s sexier for the media to focus on audit failures by inscrutable China-based Big Four audit firms than the general failure of auditors all over the world to protect investors from fraud.
Ernst & Young’s Leftover Lehman Liability
/5 Comments/in Pure Content, The Case Against The AuditorsErnst & Young gets a little bit of good news about Lehman liabilities but… Is it just me or are the auditor defense lawyers losing their touch?
Housing Problems: Where To Get Help
/in Food for ThoughtI asked Alys Cohen of the National Consumer Law Center what I can say when people ask me what to do about their foreclosure or mortgage modification nightmare.
Deutsche Bank Fair Value Fakeout Didn’t Prevent Backdoor Fed Bailout
/2 Comments/in Food for Thought, LatestDeutsche Bank may have avoided a bailout by the German government but borrowed billions from the US Federal Reserve and various programs during this period. So much for avoiding a bailout by pretending there was no risk of catastrophic losses during the financial crisis.
My Big Fat Overrated CEO: McKenna On Dimon On The Keiser Report
/6 Comments/in Food for Thought, LatestI taped an episode of the Keiser Report last week while in New York. The focus was Jamie Dimon with a bit of MF Global thrown in for heat. Max Keiser, the host, asked me this question: Why does Jamie Dimon of JP Morgan Chase still have a job?
FDIC Piles On To PwC For Colonial Bank Failure
/3 Comments/in The Case Against The AuditorsI wonder how PwC GRC Advisory partners feel knowing their multimillion dollar profits from the OCC/Fed foreclosure reviews will be used to pay three big settlements for audit failures at Colonial Bank and MF Global?
re: The Auditors Is Six Years Old
/16 Comments/in Pure Content, You Can Quote Me On ThatThe blog is meant to highlight, for you the reader, the broad-based influence the Big 4 have in business, politics and social policy. Their reach is only exceeded by their constant grasp.
Former FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair On Foreclosure Lookback Reviews
/1 Comment/in Food for Thought, Pure ContentChapter 21 of Sheila Bair’s book, “Bull By The Horns,” is a blow-by-blow account of the wrangling and dealmaking that resulted in two settlements that satisfy neither consumer advocates nor the borrowers that were harmed by abusive mortgage servicer activities.
The Bailout of AIG: Mission Accomplished?
/1 Comment/in Latest, Pure Content, You Can Quote Me On ThatDid the government make a profit on its sale of AIG shares last week? Is that even the right question to ask? The former Special Inspector General of TARP Neil Barofsky and I think it’s not.
At American Banker: Auditors Give Banks a Pass on Reserves
/4 Comments/in Fair Value, PCAOB, Pure Content, Regulators, Laws, Standards, Regulations, Sarbanes-Oxley, SEC, The Case Against The AuditorsMy column at American Banker last week focused on the latest PCAOB inspection report for KPMG. We’ve got three more “Big Four” inspections reports to come – Ernst & Young, Deloitte and PwC. Don’t be surprised if you see the same focus on loan loss and repurchase reserves and the same kinds of auditor deficiencies.
Jeff Connaughton’s “The Payoff: Why Wall Street Always Wins” – A Book Review
/1 Comment/in Regulators, Laws, Standards, Regulations, Writing for OthersJeff Connaughton’s new book, “The Payoff: Why Wall Street Always Wins”, is a must read during the Presidential election season.