The audience was primarily internal auditors at my presentation this week at the 11th Annual Fraud Summit, held at the University of Texas at Dallas, where I teach, sponsored by the Institute of Internal Auditors, the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, and Information Systems Audit and Control Association. I talked about fraud and how as… [Read More]
Now We Know — The DOJ Ignored Two FCIC Citi Criminal Referrals!
Several items have recently hit the press regarding the financial crisis of 2008 which could lead to further investigation of what actually happened and who is responsible. One that has me excited is the National Archives releasing the first of many documents of the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission (FCIC) which have been sealed for five… [Read More]
Is Fraud in the Eye of the Beholder? Andy Fastow Explains
I spoke recently to a Dallas Society of CPAS conference focusing on fraud, speaking on ethics and fraud and the financial crisis. However, the speaker after me addressed the audience on Rules vs. Principles, and his presentation is worthy of some discussion. He started his presentation by holding up two items, in his right hand a trophy… [Read More]
Damn the Evidence! No Prosecutions for Citi
On several occasions, my colleagues and I have stated that the payment of the large bank settlements that were the outcome of the 2008 financial crisis were merely payments of extortion to the Department of Justice. The motive we believe was to lock up the evidence they had discovered so Americans and the world would… [Read More]
New Fed President Kashkari…Gone Rogue on Goldman or Smokescreen?
Interesting times we live in. And we need to ask whether the recent unprecedented comments by Neel Kashkari, the newly appointed President of the Minneapolis Federal Reserve, to break up the big banks is genuine or too good to be true and a political smokescreen. Former Goldman Sacks vice president Kashkari is a Republican and a… [Read More]
Campaign Contributions and Politicians’ “Promises”
This post is not about conspiracy theory nor is it a political statement. Just an ironic commentary on the influence peddling that goes on between politicians and big companies, which unfortunately hurts the economy, the taxpayer and small business. Recently my colleagues, Gary Aguirre, William Black, Michael Winston and I formed a probono group and policy… [Read More]
Goldman Sachs aka The Great Vampire Squid Rides Again!
As my friend William D. Cohan said in a recent New York Times post, “nearly eight years after the onset of the financial crisis; its unintended consequences continue to startle and amaze.” The latest in a long saga of TBTF bank settlements, Goldman Sachs, one of the more recent banks to resolve settlements charges for the… [Read More]
We Need To Speak Up, Loud and Clear!
Over 450 educators were in my audience this last weekend when I addressed the members of the American Accounting Association Auditors Section, the largest community of accountants and auditors in academia, So what happened, I asked them? In the financial crisis, how was it possible that all of the large financial institutions that either failed or were bailed out… [Read More]
It’s a New Year With Hope for the Large Banks! (?)
It’s a brand new year! And, this means new beginnings and hope for us all personally and perhaps for the direction our country is moving towards. After all, a new year and new beginnings does signify hope so being optimistic is a good thing, isn’t it? I was feeling hopeful the financial services industry was… [Read More]
The Goldman Sachs Takeover of the Fed!
With the Fed’s latest hiring of Neel Kashkari as President of the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank, Goldman Sach’s former executives will now hold 4 of the 5 Fed President’s seats on the very powerful Federal Open Markets Committee, which is responsible for the formulation of U.S. monetary policy. Before discussing concerns about these appointments, it would… [Read More]
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