Goldman, Merrill Almost `Junk,' Their Own Traders Say
- Thread starter JayS
- Start date
Guys,
Before you blast all these companies just ask yourself honestly. If you were in their shoes, would you take all these bonuses and do what they did, or would you quit to protest over leveraging and mortgage securitization.
Majority is just too envious of all $ that these guys made. Anyone can get in Ivy league schools with enough brain and good grades. Not everyone wants to take a chance and make an effort though. Ivy league is the shortest route to these places.
Yes, it is a bad thing what these guys did, but great majority of us would do the same if our huge bonuses were on the line. After all, it is not like they were murdering or torturing people.
Regards,
redduke
Before you blast all these companies just ask yourself honestly. If you were in their shoes, would you take all these bonuses and do what they did, or would you quit to protest over leveraging and mortgage securitization.
Majority is just too envious of all $ that these guys made. Anyone can get in Ivy league schools with enough brain and good grades. Not everyone wants to take a chance and make an effort though. Ivy league is the shortest route to these places.
Yes, it is a bad thing what these guys did, but great majority of us would do the same if our huge bonuses were on the line. After all, it is not like they were murdering or torturing people.
Regards,
redduke
Not at all. I just get a laugh when the top three flaming a*sholes in this busines get back what they've given. Mother Merrill, GS, and MS are certainly on my list of the top three. I had an inside view, and it wasn't a pretty site.
Conversely, I have a few friends still at Mother Merrill, and they're good guys, with intentions of making their Clients money with the least amount of risk possible. They're the exception, and they know it. In fact, they have more jokes about Merrill than I do. They feel that they've been there so long, that they really don't want to try a transition out, as yes, Mother Merrill will have Brokers in the office calling their Clients within ten minutes of the announcement they're leaving.
I've seen 15 year guys leave Merrill for Independence and within that Broker walking out the door, all the "top producers" are given his book to cherry pick his top Clients to call first. You'll hear stuff like, "he's going to churn your account Mr./Mrs. Client." Or, "he left for something you've never heard of. Here at Merrill Lynch, you have our proud name to fall back on. I would be scared Mr./Mrs. Client to follow him, that's why our Manager has assigned your account to me." That made me ill to hear, as it was a way to manipulate/scare the Clients into staying with "the dark side." Glad I left. I'm actually learning to smile again, and maybe tell a joke once a year. LOL!!
So no, I don't want anyone fired. For me, it's like watching the movie "Christmas Story," where the bully (Merrill!) finally gets punched square in the mouth for all of the crap he's been pulling on people for years.
Last, I shorted MER close the end of April. I'm really enjoying the ride! I know they're up about 250bps today, but I'm not covering. I know... I'm probably leaning into this trade with a little too much emotion. Can't help it.
My Wife and I be having dinner this weekend with one of the Merrill guys (a rare nice one), and some other friends and their spouses in the Financial World. I'm going to show him how much $$$ I made on the short, and that should be a riot! Of course, he will put GME in my face as I... Well, nevermind.
The brokerage jokes are like all the attorney jokes... right?
There are SOME good attorneys who actually work for the good of their client.
Q:What's brown and looks good on an attorney?
A: a pit bull!
LOL
I can only imagine some of your stories from the inside musclemoney.
It is encouraging, really, to hear there are some good apples in the bunch.
There are SOME good attorneys who actually work for the good of their client.
Q:What's brown and looks good on an attorney?
A: a pit bull!
LOL
I can only imagine some of your stories from the inside musclemoney.
It is encouraging, really, to hear there are some good apples in the bunch.
Muscle, I can appreciate a lot of what you said, and don't doubt you.
The truth of the matter is that the retail wings (and other wings) of places like MER are full of incompetent people, doing a suck ass job of managing funds of people whose best interests they really don't have at heart - because they don't have to.
There are so many laws, binding arbitration clauses, and other one-sided protections these 'investment advisors' and 'stockbrokers' have, it is absolutely impossible for even the most incompetent and/or unethical ones to be taken out to the woodshed, nor those who employ them.
And that is damn unfortunate for their clients.
The truth of the matter is that the retail wings (and other wings) of places like MER are full of incompetent people, doing a suck ass job of managing funds of people whose best interests they really don't have at heart - because they don't have to.
There are so many laws, binding arbitration clauses, and other one-sided protections these 'investment advisors' and 'stockbrokers' have, it is absolutely impossible for even the most incompetent and/or unethical ones to be taken out to the woodshed, nor those who employ them.
And that is damn unfortunate for their clients.
So true. I want my Clients to make money and prsoper. I could care less about Merrill back then. It's really sad that "the big boys" have been allowed to get away with so much due to their sheer size, and "power." (look at what GS has been able to do in loading up the Govt. with their cronies.)
We (Independent Brokers and RIA's) are struggling right now due to the news "the big boys" make every day. I don't even want to mention some of the comments I've heard in the last Month from would-be Clients...:eek:
The average Client sadly lumps every Financial Advisor in the same category (it's not their fault. They don't know who's who...), and that's far from what is reality in 2008 with performance-based Independent Advisors vs. the big firms with an adjenda to make money on the backs of their clients.
When my Clients make money, I make money. I'm performance based, and that's a vast difference in the mentality of the big boys selling prop fund (loaded funds) garbage that pays a big commission up front, causing the "Advisor" (LOL!!! Basically a sales dog-far, far from Advisor) to never call them again as they're looking for the next commission. It's a viscious cycle... I feel for the retail investor who's simply wanting good advice, and performance so they can get where they want to go. NOT where the Broker wants to (financially) be...
I'm venturing to guess that the old school Broker is going to become a dinosaur in the next few years. And, they should if they're putting their interest IN FRONT of their trusting Clients!
After all, who's money is it??????? It's the Clients!!! They earned it!! It's THEIR'S!!!!! The big boys forgot that years ago. Sad...What's the point of buying CDO insurance on Goldman's debt with Morgan as your counter party? It doesn't matter if it's Goldman or Morgan that fails, if one of the big investment banks fail you'll end up standing in line with the other creditors anyway.
Quote from daybyday:
The brokerage jokes are like all the attorney jokes... right?
There are SOME good attorneys who actually work for the good of their client.
Q:What's brown and looks good on an attorney?
A: a pit bull!
LOL
I can only imagine some of your stories from the inside musclemoney.
It is encouraging, really, to hear there are some good apples in the bunch.
Ok, here you go:
When I was a rookie (even though My Step Dad got in the business in 1961, and me trading contracts, and some equities in my own account for over 14 years), I was getting paid $36,000/year at Merrill, and had to give EVERY Client I brought in for the first 6 Months to my "mentor" to keep forever. I was told, "DO NOT call them once you're in 100% production! You got them here, but that's the "montor program here. If you call them, you'll be out of here in fifteen minutes."
My "mentor" (which I had no choice over) made over $80,000/Month, and was the meanest, most arrogant, evil guy I've met in years. He used to steal my leads out of my drawer and call on them. I had a guy with 3.5M that I was speaking with actually in my "mentor's" office within two weeks of my leads being stolen.
I have a Wife and three Sons, and was making $36,000/year back then (early 2000's), only to have a millionaire "Advisor" steal my leads out of my desk, and take 100% credit for the deals. A little over two years of that mess, and that was it for me.
Can you imagine a millionaire broker stealing leads from a guy who's basically one step away from food stamps in the dream of making it as an Advisor?
I could go on, but I would need to do some heavy squats, and mix bourbon in my protein shake tonight to keep from harboring anger...