Crime

Review: Hubris opens door to white-collar crime

11 Nov 2016

In "Why They Do It," Harvard professor Eugene Soltes seeks to find out what propels executives like Bernie Madoff to do wrong. Each culprit has their own particular story. The clubby and entitled atmosphere of executive culture, however, is a common catalyst for bad behavior.

South Africa is making the worst of a bad job

11 Oct 2016

State prosecutors have told Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan to appear in court on fraud charges, just days after he is supposed to deliver a budget to ease fears about a credit-junking. Such antics needlessly exacerbate Pretoria’s economic problems – including a sliding rand.

Malaysia fiasco undercuts Goldman’s standards push

21 Jul 2016

After the financial crisis, the Wall Street firm overhauled its business practices in an effort to avoid big reputational as well as financial risks. But its dealings with scandal-hit sovereign fund 1MDB, spelled out in new lawsuits, cast doubt on the depth of Goldman's changes.

FX market haunted by past bad behaviour

21 Jul 2016

A senior HSBC manager has been arrested for trading ahead of a big order in 2011. U.S. prosecutors’ case evokes the disregard for clients and flawed incentives that were the hallmark of past market-rigging cases. It compounds pressure on the FX market to show it has changed.

HSBC U.S. fallout will have EU peers biting nails

12 Jul 2016

A Republican-led committee's review of the UK bank’s “Too Big to Jail” uproar is too partisan to land a decisive blow. But it shows how EU lenders can become political footballs. Those awaiting regulatory fines, like Royal Bank of Scotland and Deutsche Bank, have cause to fret.

Britain tests catastrophe bounce back theory

1 Jul 2016

Doom-mongers overestimated how much the U.S. economy would suffer after Lehman's collapse in 2008 or the 9/11 attacks. Gloom about the UK leaving the EU is better judged. As Bank of England Governor Mark Carney acknowledges, policymakers face much tougher challenges this time.