Trigger
Just read in the wall street journal “Barclays Files to Dismiss New York Attorney General's Dark-Pool Complaint/Bank Says Investors Were Aware of High-Speed Trading in Dark Pool” (subscription required).
Barclay Bank asked the NY State Supreme Court to dismiss the case saying among other things:
- “Barclays said its clients are sophisticated investors "responsible for investing millions or billions of dollars of assets" who were aware that its dark pool allowed trading by high-speed firms.”
- “The attorney general's complaint "fails to identify any fraud, establishing no material misstatements, no identified victims and no actual harm," the Barclays motion states.”
Are We The People again looking at an egregious waste of taxpayers money! Quite likely!
Is this suit with probably no or little merit already hurting the business of this bank? You bet!
The Great Recession Goes On And On
As long as government officials and politicians think it wise to blame their own faults on businesses, then the Great Recession will eventually rival the Great Depression.
Latest since Eliot Spitzer was the Attorney General, we know that too many of these AGs are zealots with personal agendas and political careers in mind!
I am glad that Barclays Bank is putting up a strong defense so far! To many businesses cave in when government sues! Looser should pay in government versus business cases!
Let’s pray that Barclays Bank has the stamina to fight all the way, if they are innocent!
Martin Law
According to wall street journal, the NY Attorney General used again like Eliot Spitzer, the so called Martin Act of 1921 to come down on Barclays Bank.
From what little I understand, this Act gives wide latitude to AGs to sue for financial fraud. I believe, it is a dubious law that should have been repealed a long time ago by our elected and lazy representatives. Supposedly, this Act was dormant until Eliot Spitzer discovered it, see e.g. here.
According to wall street journal: “The act [Martin Act of 1921], a New York State securities law, only requires that prosecutors prove that fraud took place and doesn't require evidence that a firm intended to defraud investors, giving the attorney general broad powers.”
Dark Pools
Even before this book titled “Flash boys” came out, so called dark pools were convenient targets. Just the name conjures nefarious activity.
According to wall street journal the dark pool operated by Barclays was the second largest in the nation.
If there is something wrong with Dark Pools, then it is the duty of the General Attorney to go after that not individual banks. Full Stop!
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