US regulators presented evidence that 12 of the largest securities firms pressured analysts to promote investment-banking clients, people familiar with the situation said.
Citigroup Inc, US Bancorp Piper Jaffray and Credit Suisse First Boston are among firms from which e-mail and other internal documents were cited at a meeting at the Securities and Exchange Commission Tuesday.
The findings increase the likelihood that major securities firms may face fines to head off charges that they misled investors.
When that might happen was clouded last night by the resignation of SEC Chairman Harvey Pitt.
"We hope we can conduct any transactions with firms even without a chairman," said New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, who more than a year ago began the investigations that were later joined by the SEC and other regulators. "We'll have to wait to see how this unfolds," he said in an interview.
Representatives of the SEC, NASD, New York Stock Exchange and regulatory agencies from about a dozen states shared the material among themselves as they sought to build their conflict-of-interest cases, the people said.
"The more smoking guns they have, the more bargaining chips they have," said James Angel, a Georgetown University finance professor and former visiting academic at the NASD. "It reflects on the basic credibility of the firms. The firms may want to settle quickly to keep this from dragging on any longer." SEC spokeswoman Christi Harlan declined to comment, as did Securities Industry Association spokeswoman Margaret Draper.
Spokeswomen for Citigroup, Piper Jaffray and CSFB also declined to comment.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source