As more information emerges about the stunning fraud perpetrated by Bernard Madoff, we have begun to hear about some of his bigger victims.
It is important to note that while Madoff's "fund" had a relatively small number of investors, many of these investors were hedge funds, who in turn had many investors. It seems that thousands of people were caught up in this scam.
Looking at the list of prominent investors who lost money, one name in particular stands out: Fred Wilpon, the owner of the New York Mets. It has been reported that Wilpon's real estate company, Sterling Equities, might have lost hundreds of millions of dollars in Madoff's fraud.
What makes the Wilpon case interesting is that this hardly represents the first time that he has been duped. My preliminary analysis has revealed that over the past ten years alone, Wilpon has invested tens of millions of dollars with certain individuals, and has little to show for his expenditures. Some of the people who have taken millions from Wilpon, and left him "holding the bag" include:
* Mo Vaughn
* Mike Hampton
* Carlos Baerga
* Pedro Martinez
* Luis Castillo
Perhaps most sad is the fact that Mr. Wilpon continues to throw his money at investments with a less-than-certain future. Earlier this month, he committed to pay a certain Francisco Rodriguez, of Caracas, Venezuela, $37 million over the next three years. Mets fans are surely hoping that Wilpon doesn't get Madoffed again in regards to this investment.
Wilpon's losses in the Madoff scam prove yet again that the New York Mets are at the epicenter of the current financial earthquake. (An earlier post detailed how the Mets brought Citigroup down).
It's bad enough that this team has now choked away a division title in each of the past two Septembers. Must they also destroy everything in their wake?
At this point, it wouldn't surprise me to learn that Mr. Met was running the credit default swap (CDS) desk at AIG. I imagine that the hiring decision-making process went a little something like this:
Trading manager: "Thanks for coming in today, Mr. Met. It was nice meeting with you. We'll be in touch."
Mr. Met leaves, and walks two blocks to the parking garage where he left his extra-large golf cart with the Mets cap on top. Upon paying the cashier, he is dismayed to learn that he has been charged an extra $20 for an "oversized vehicle." He decides then and there that he will not tip the garage attendant who retrieves his car.
Trading manager (to the head of derivatives trading): "Well, what did you think of the guy?
Head of Derivatives Trading: "I'm not sure. He gave me a funny vibe. What do you think?"
Trading manager: "I thought he was great. He's a genius. We should hire him."
Head of Derivatives Trading: "A genius? Why do you say that? Is he a Phd.?"
Trading Manager: "No. But he must be a genius. Just look at the size of his head."
Head of Derivatives Trading: "You're right. He's our guy."
1 comment:
okay, you just hate the Mets.
but I agree; at a front row baseball game (compliments of complimentary box seats, thanks, bro-in-law), I, with my complete lack of knowledge regarding the players, their statistics, their vitals, their incomes, their foibles, strengths, and weaknesses, could see that MO VAUGH COULD NOT RUN. The guy was practically bent over snorting and huffing and puffing to get to first base. It was painful to watch.
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