Here’s why this deal sticks in my craw. I mean look at the news. There seems to be so much corruption in the investment industry that we take it for granted. We are not surprised.
And these companies know this. They know there is such apathy that they don’t have to be honest. If they are caught, they simply apologize, they pay their $20 million, keep the rest, and move on to the next scheme.
The illegal payments were not secret. They knew what they were doing. The scheme involved fake expense reimbursement agreements, cold hard cash to "brokers for recommending [company] policies." Company e-mails said "our prices are not competitive in open bidding situations" and the ERAs were "to stimulate business that we could not otherwise get." They knew what they were doing.
Eliot Spitzer, the New York attorney general who led the investigation, said, "the company at the center of the scandal has acknowledged misconduct, provided compensation for those who were harmed, and implemented reforms that will help protect retirees in the future."
How many of you believe that?
» Sorry They Got Caught, Nothing More from CoreCharacter
I work on the fringe of the securities industry, which, as you know, does not have a stellar reputation for ethical behavior. Here is yet another case in point: The headline to a story in USA Today says, "Hartford apologizes... [Read More]
Tracked on: May 11, 2006 7:30 AM | Permalink to Trackback