Four former Merrill Lynch & Co executives, including an ex-chief of investment banking, were charged with civil fraud by the Securities and Exchange Commission for allegedly helping Enron Corp manipulate its earnings in 1999.
The former executives are Daniel Bayly, 55, a former chairman of investment banking; Thomas Davis, 49, a former vice chairman of private equity and research; Schuyler Tilney, 47, a former energy investment-banking head; and Robert Furst, 41, a former managing director. The SEC said they are contesting the charges.
Merrill Lynch concluded its settlement over the same Enron charges today, agreeing to pay US$80 million without admitting or denying the allegations. The world's biggest securities firm first announced those settlement terms in February.
"This action is a message to all who would help a reporting company commit fraud," SEC Chairman William Donaldson said. "We will bring the full weight of our enforcement arsenal against you.''
JP Morgan Chase & Co and Citigroup Inc also have been the focus of government investigations into loans and other financing they arranged for Enron. Donaldson and SEC Enforcement Director Stephen M. Cutler declined to comment on either bank today.
The Merrill complaint, filed in US District Court in Houston, accuses the firm and the former executives of helping the bankrupt energy trader overstate revenue by creating two fraudulent transactions at the end of 1999. Enron used the transactions to add about US$60 million to its fourth quarter 1999 income and raise its 1999 earnings per share from US$1.09 to US$1.17, the SEC alleged.
"For aiding Enron, Merrill Lynch earned millions of dollars in fees and believed Enron would continue to award it lucrative business in the future," the complaint said.
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