This strikes me as potentially enormous news. The government is finally taking notice of the blatant market manipulation that has been obvious to any
investor with a pulse for some time.
The question becomes, is this the start of a serious shakeout or another bandaid over a sucking chest wound? I lean gloomily towards the latter but
you never know.
Shenanigans and rigging in the silver market among certain big names
have been noted
elsewhere on ATS as well.
-- More than a dozen banks and investment firms are suspected co-conspirators in a criminal probe by the U.S. Justice Department's Antitrust Division
into alleged bid rigging and price fixing in the municipal derivatives market, according to a court filing.
The list of banks was "inadvertently" filed earlier this week in U.S. District Court in Manhattan as part of a request for a bill of particulars in
a criminal case against three former executives of CDR Financial Products Inc., a California municipal-bond broker. The executives, including CDR
founder David Rubin, were indicted in October on conspiracy and fraud charges. They have denied wrongdoing.
In a letter Thursday, the lawyers asked U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero, who is hearing the criminal case, to strike the inadvertent filing.
More at source:
www.marketwatch.com...
JPMorgan, Lehman, UBS Named in Muni Bid-Rigging Suit
[edit on 3/27/10 by silent thunder]