STOCK MARKET WATCH -- Thursday, 15 November 2012

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16. House report blames Corzine for collapse of MF Global

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/house-report-blames-corzine-for-collapse-of-mf-global/2012/11/14/a22c7c24-2ea1-11e2-beb2-4b4cf5087636_story.html

A congressional report that deconstructs the collapse of MF Global concludes that the brokerage firm’s former head, Jon S. Corzine, sank the company by making risky investments and sidelining senior executives who challenged his strategies.

The report, scheduled for release Thursday, details the findings of a year-long investigation by Republican staffers on the House Financial Services oversight subcommittee. But it omits any mention of criminal wrongdoing by Corzine, punting that issue to the prosecutors and regulators who have launched their own probes into the matter.

Instead, it skewers Corzine for his “authoritarian” management style and reckless business strategies, many of which were carried out without the full knowledge of the company’s board of directors — assertions that Corzine’s legal team denied on Wednesday.

“At all times, Mr. Corzine acted in good faith and did what he believed was necessary to turn around MF Global,” his spokesman, Steven Goldberg, said in a statement. He added that Corzine has not yet reviewed the full report, excerpts of which were released on Wednesday.