Category Archives: Investment management

Harry Markopolos Scores Again: State Street Settles for $382 Million on Foreign Exchange Fraud

Harry Markopolos exposed cheating of pension funds and mutual funds in foreign exchange trades,, with State Street the latest settlement.

California Treasurer John Chiang’s Peculiar Letter to the New York Times on His Sham Private Equity Transparency Bill

Treasurer John Chiang tries to defend his bill, AB 2833, against an article by Gretchen Morgenson, but only digs his hole deeper.

Meet CalPERS Board Member Bill Slaton, Who Puts Kow-Towing to Private Equity Over Beneficiaries and California Taxpayers

CalPERS Investment Committee vice chairman Bill Slaton exemplifies many of the pathologies of the board.

How Much Do Shady Financial Practices Cost You, Exactly?

The average U.S. household loses over $100,000 to destructives activities of bankers and financiers

After Supporting Treasurer Chiang’s Private Equity Transparency Bill in Public, CalPERS Gutted It Behind the Scenes

Yet more evidence of CalPERS’ chicanery on behalf of the private equity industry.

CalPERS Reported That It Made Less in Private Equity Than Its General Partners Did (Updated: As Did CalSTRS)

CalPERS clearly made less on its private equity investments last year than its so-called partners did.

CalPERS Announces Preliminary Returns of 0.6% When Target is 7.5% (Updated)

CalPERS posts crappy results and its disclosure isn’t too hot either.

How Finance Costs Too Much and Fails to Deliver

The costs of looting by the financial services industry are even more staggering than you probably imagined.

How Treasurer Chiang’s Designee Grant Boyken Duped CalPERS’ Board to the Detriment of Taxpayers and Beneficiaries

How California Treasurer John Chiang’s deputy, Grant Bokyen, snookered CalPERS’ board to facilitate gutting a private equity reform bill.

Private Equity Industry Offers Intelligence-Insulting Defenses for Long-Standing Grifting Due to Refusal to Register as Broker-Dealers

Private equity firms insist that they continue to violate broker-dealer requirements. Why? So they can carry on looting.

How Private Credit Rating Agencies Reinforce Global Economic Instability—and What We Can Do About It

A look at a fundamental point of failure in our financial system, rating agencies, and potential remedies.

OC Register: CalPERS Expected to Show Multi-Billion Loss for Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 2016

CalPERS at best laid a big goose egg for its 2015-2016 results. It remains in denial about its return prospects, to the detriment of beneficiaries and taxpayers.

Why Private Equity Does Not Outperform

A new article gives a concise and readable debunking of the myth of private equity outperformance.

California Treasurer Chiang’s Private Equity Transparency Three Card Monte

California Treasurer John Chiang promised landmark private equity transparency but instead acted as a stooge of the private equity industry and failed to stand up to captured public pension funds.

Kentucky Pension Fund: “Like a 3rd World Country with 2 Different Governments Claiming Power”

Kentucky is now practicing pension fund governance at the barrel of a gun.