Should the SEC adopt the proposal to require all shareholder nominees to be included on the proxy card of a company along with its slate of director nominees? Or does the Healthsouth approach go far enough?
Too Big to Fail or Too Big to Save? Fixing the System [CNBC]
A year ago this week, when the world seemed to be falling apart, the US government took the bold and unusual step of pumping hundreds of billions of dollars into some of the country’s biggest banks in an effort to save them – and the global economy.
Now a year later, we’re still trying to figure out if it was the right decision, how will we pay for it and how should we handle such a crisis in the future.
Book Review “Too Big To Save? How to Fix the U.S. Financial System,” By Robert Pozen [Hedge Fund Law Report]
Review By Alisa Greenstein
“Robert Pozen, Chairman of MFS Investment Management, offers an insightful examination of the causes of the current global financial crisis in his new book “Too Big To Save? How to Fix the U.S. Financial System.” Pozen’s text provides a detailed framework to analyze the abundance of information about the financial crisis, to avoid repeating the mistakes of the past and to create an effective plan for fixing the financial system in the future. In part one of his book, Pozen lays blame for the collapse of the financial system on the bursting of the U.S. housing bubble. The bubble, he explains, resulted from excessive debt spread globally by mortgage securitization, which allowed lenders to easily obtain cash to make more loans. When the mortgages underlying these securities began to default and later reached record highs, even the most conservative investors in mortgage-backed securities suffered heavy losses. After describing the origins of the financial crisis, Pozen’s book explains in parts two through four: (1) the government’s correct and incorrect decisions in responding to this financial crisis; and (2) the actions it still must take to resolve the financial crisis and prevent its recurrence. With regard to the latter, he recommends that the least burdensome regulatory strategy would be the government’s best chance of success. In particular, he suggests that Congress should focus on encouraging financial innovation and on coping with systemic risks, specifically with regard to regulating hedge funds. We offer a detailed summary and review of Pozen’s book.”
Pro-American Mood Clouds Convergence [CFO.com]
by Tim Reason.
Only the biggest U.S. companies should bother adopting the international financial reporting standards written by International Accounting Standards Board, the former chair of the SEC’s advisory committee on financial reporting says. By Tim Reason, CFO.com | US
October 29, 2009
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Can We Break the Tyranny of Quarterly Results? [HBR]
Is the U.S. Killing Its Innovation Machine?
If we want corporate America to avoid short-termism, we need to help free portfolio managers and company executives from the tyranny of quarterly results.
Flurry of new books explain the financial crisis [McClatchy Newspapers]
“Too Big to Save?” — As the chairman of MFS Investment Management, author Robert Pozen has a keen sense of global finance. The subtitle explains his mission, “How to Fix the U.S. Financial System.” Tackles all things technical, from insurance-like credit default swaps to money markets and short selling of stocks … A tough but valuable read for anyone who’s interested in how America gets out of its financial mess. Should be required reading on Capitol Hill.
Want to fix Wall Street? If you’re Pozen, write a book [McClatchy Newspapers]
The last time that America heard from Robert Pozen, he was proposing a novel fix for Social Security that attracted bipartisan support in Congress, though it eventually fell short of enactment. Now, he has a plan for setting the financial system right.
By Kevin G. Hall.
Is It Fair to Blame Fair Value Accounting for the Financial Crisis? [HBR]
After explaining the controversy, Pozen proposes a solution: new, transparent practices that would draw on the best of both historical cost and fair value accounting. If adopted, they could balance the banks’ desire to present assets in a good light with investors’ need to understand the banks’ exposures – and perhaps make everyone happy.