The Secret Club That Runs the World: Inside the Fraternity of Commodity Traders (32 page)

BOOK: The Secret Club That Runs the World: Inside the Fraternity of Commodity Traders
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like walking in front of a steamroller
:
Bruno J. Navarro, “Leon Cooperman’s Top Stocks for 2013,” CNBC, January 2, 2013, http://www.cnbc.com/id/100349212.

8 percent of it per year
:
Ianthe Jeanne Dugan, “Pension Funds Cut Back on Commodity Indexes,”
Wall Street Journal
, February 5, 2013, http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424127887324761004578286172166045096.

the Iowa futures brokerage that
: Jacqueline Palank, “Court Approves Distribution to Peregrine Customers,”
Wall Street Journal
, December 18, 2013, http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304866904579266440192687088?KEYWORDS=peregrine+financial.

of MF Global
:
James O’Toole, “MF Global Ordered to Repay Customers $1.2B,”
CNNMoney
, November 18, 2013, http://money.cnn.com/2013/11/18/investing/mf-global/.

The bank was fined $410 million
:
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, “FERC, JP Morgan Unit Agree to $410 Million in Penalties, Disgorgement to Rate Payers,” news release, July 30, 2013, http://www.ferc.gov/media/news-releases/2013/2013-3/07-30-13.asp#.Uunhg_lkSSo.

possible criminal actions
:
Emily Flitter, “JPMorgan Subject of Obstruction Probe in Energy Case,”
Reuters,
September 4, 2013, http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/04/us-jpm-ferc-doj-idUSBRE9830QM20130904. By the end of 2013, JP Morgan had disclosed that they were in fact the subject of eight on-going investigations by the Department of Justice, including the investigation into criminal activity related to the case brought against them by
FERC. See Dawn Kopecki and Hugh Son, “JPMorgan Discloses Eight DOJ Probes From Asia to Madoff,” Bloomberg, November 1, 2013, http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-11-01/jpmorgan-discloses-eight-doj-probes-from-asia-to-madoff.html.

JP Morgan announced plans
:
Kate Kelly, “Big Banks Are Looking to Dump Commodities Units,”
CNBC,
November 1, 2013, http://www.cnbc.com/id/101160422.

“Stealing Africa”
:
Stealing Africa
, a film directed by Christoffer Guldbrandsen (STEPS, 2013). http://www.whypoverty.net/en/all-about/stealing-africa/.

BBC documentary
:
John Sweeney, “Billionaires Behaving Badly?,”
BBC Panorama
, April 23, 2012, in the absence of a working BBC link, the program can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSr_RgAPQ1M. Glencore’s response can be found here: http://www.glencorexstrata.com/assets/Uploads/201204160800-Response-to=Panorama.pdf.

Arbalet Capital
 . . . She was thirty:
Barani Krishnan, “Former Head of Arbalet Commodities Fund Joins Millennium,” Reuters, February 5, 2014, http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/05/us-hedgefund-commodities-fan-idUSBREA1421N20140205.

INDEX

The page numbers in this index refer to the printed version of this book. The link provided will take you to the beginning of that print page. You may need to scroll forward from that location to find the corresponding reference on your e-reader.

Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum,
79
,
81

airlines.
See also
Delta Air Lines

Emirates Airline hedge,
77
–83,
106

hedging needs of,
106
,
107
–8

jet fuel price hedging of,
67
,
78
–79

mixed trading reputation of,
106

Al Thani, Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber.
See also
Qatar Holding

Glencore-Xstrata merger negotiations and,
177
,
178

meetings with Davis,
173

pre-IPO Glencore investment offer of,
161
,
176

al-Sayed, Ahmad.
See also
Qatar Holding

demands for Glencore-Xstrata merger terms and,
173
–74,
175

Glencore-Xstrata merger negotiations and,
178

intrigued by Glencore IPO,
161

intrigued by Xstrata investment,
169

meetings with Davis,
173

relationship with Glasenberg,
173

aluminum

Cohn’s experience with warehousing,
144
–49

cornering versus warehousing, defined,
149

Detroit as destination of,
150
–51

legal inside information of,
142
–43

Marc Rich & Co. dealings and,
147

market contango in 1992 and,
146
–47

Midwest premium on,
142
,
152
,
153
,
155

minimum load-out rate of,
144
,
152
,
155

in
New York Times
story on warehousing,
154
–55

ownership control game of,
152

price increases of, due to warehousing,
142

price rally of, prompted by Goldman hoarding,
149

profitability of warehousing,
143
–44,
146

revenue generated by rental fees of,
152

Senate Banking Committee hearing and,
155

stockpiling complaints of,
141
,
142
,
144
,
151
,
155

Anderson, Richard.
See also
Delta Air Lines

character of,
109
–10

Delta hedging decisions and,
113
,
208

Delta profitability returned by,
110

Delta refinery purchase and,
120
–21,
210
–11

named Delta CEO,
109

physical oil asset considered by,
108

Ruggles interviewed by,
107
,
108

Andurand Capital,
228
–29

Andurand, Danielle,
134

Andurand, Pierre.
See also
BlueGold Capital Management; Slyusarenko, Evgenia

Andurand Capital opened by,
228
–29

anxiety of, about oil price spiral,
127
–33

autonomy sought at Vitol,
34
–35

with Bank of America,
27
–29

BlueGold closed by,
136
–37

BlueGold reflecting style of,
38

Bourlot’s deal with,
31
–32

Bourlot’s falling out with,
32
–33,
78

Brent market bet and,
39
–41

character of,
12
,
18
–20,
21
,
23
,
28
–29,
30
–31

competitiveness of,
21

Crema’s proposal to join in BlueGold and,
35
–36

Crema’s style compared with,
134
–35

crude oil high and low in 2008 called by,
2
,
41
–44

crude oil position for $8 billion of,
1
–4,
16
,
127
–32

education of,
21
,
22
,
23
–24

on factors affecting oil market,
139

family bias of, against rich,
24

gall bladder surgery of,
40
–41

with Goldman Sachs,
25
–27

health habits of,
23
,
27
,
126

impatience with oil market of,
126
–27

interview with Goldman Sachs,
24
–25

investor letters by,
39
,
124
,
134

legal inside information for,
30

lifestyle of,
19
,
27
–28

London relocation with Vitol and,
33

longer-term view learned by,
30

new hedge fund launched by,
139
–40

oil contracts purchased in 2011,
126

options after closing BlueGold,
137
–38

physical oil business dislike of,
12

sabbatical after Vitol,
35

settlement with Crema,
228

skills honed at Vitol,
30
,
34

split with Crema,
135
–36

success of,
11
,
124
,
228
–29

swimming ambitions of,
21
–22

trade gain during surgery,
2

trading missed after BlueGold,
139

vacation in southern France,
138
–39

with Vitol Group,
29
–30,
31
–35

Antakly, Michel,
177

Arab Spring,
16
,
112
–13,
125

Arbalet Capital,
229

Arcadia crude-oil case,
192
–93

Armajaro Holdings Ltd.,
102
–3

Arnold, John,
10
–11

Aviva, resignation of chief insurer for,
171

backwardation, defined,
33

Bagley, William,
88
–89

Balzac, Honoré de,
24

Bank of America

Andurand’s work for,
27
–29

Merrill Lynch sold to,
43

Ruggles with Merrill commodities and,
105
–6,
120

banks.
See also
specific organizations

commodities hedging for companies,
66
–68

commodities trading and,
13

house trading stopped by Dodd-Frank and,
226

physical assets ownership of,
68

proprietary trading and,
68
–70

speculation by,
69

Barclays Bank and shareholder spring,
171

Barings Bank scandal,
93
–94

Barnett, Gary,
194

Bastian, Edward.
See also
Delta Air Lines

Delta hedging decisions and,
113
,
208
,
213

Ruggles interviewed by,
107
,
108

Ruggles permitted to trade for profit by,
122

Bean, Elise,
86

Beard, Alex.
See also
Glencore International

calling oil market in 2008,
50
–51

early oil experience of,
47
–48

as football (soccer) fan,
50

as former BP employee,
46

Glencore’s marketing arm handled by,
49

IPO for Glencore favored by,
63
–64

long hours worked by,
48

low profile sought by,
50

made billionaire by Glencore IPO,
159

meeting with Trapp in 2008,
52
–54

named head of Glencore oil division,
49

pep talk in 2008 by,
46
–47

Qatar’s merger demands and,
174

Becker, David,
117

Bergum, Ben,
113
,
204
,
207

Berkovitz, Dan

Gensler coached by, for hearing,
95

at Levin’s meeting with Gensler,
86

as participant in formulating Dodd-Frank Act,
101

as position limits advocate,
185
–86

Better Markets think tank,
186

Blair, Tony,
175
,
177
,
178

Blankfein, Lloyd,
148

BlueGold Capital Management.
See also
Andurand, Pierre; Crema, Dennis

Andurand’s style reflected in,
38

Brent purchases of,
37
–38

cash and borrowed money managed (2011) of,
126

closing of,
136
–37

competitors of,
10
–12

crude oil high and low in 2008 called by,
41
–44

crude oil position of $8 billion of,
1
–4,
16
,
127
–32

execution traders hired by,
127

founding of,
36

investor letters of,
38
,
39
,
124
,
134

losses in 2011 of,
133
,
134

split of partnership of,
135
–36

success in 2011 of,
124

work of placing a big market wager of,
127

Bourlot, Jean

deal with Andurand and,
31
–32

Emirates Airline jet fuel hedge set up by,
77
–78

falling out with Andurand of,
32
–33,
78

Higgs Capital closed by,
229

BP, fears about Glencore by,
46

Brent crude-oil futures

all-time-high market of,
41
–42

Andurand’s $8 billion position of,
1
–4,
16
,
127
–32

BlueGold purchases of,
37
–38

market bet well by Andurand of,
39
–41

pricing in summer of 2008 of,
39

Cable, Vince,
170
–71

California Public Employees’ Retirement System (Calpers),
225

cap-swap double-down extendable trade,
79
,
114

CDS.
See
credit default swap

Centaurus Energy,
10
–11

CFTC.
See
Commodity Futures Trading Commission

Chilton, Bart.
See also
Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC)

attacks on commodity speculators of,
185

blasting Wall Street lobbying of,
202

cattle-auction anecdote of,
91

on CFTC position limit curbs,
202

The Ed Show
appearance of,
188

Gensler coached by, for hearing,
95

as hard man to pin down,
187

homespun language of,
187
–88

MF Global scandal and,
197
–98

as position limits advocate,
185

rebuking Sherrod at CFTC meeting of,
103
–4

skepticism about commodity market of,
91
–92

China, crude oil needed by,
36
–37

Chocfinger scandal,
102
–3,
227

Citi

Glencore-Xstrata merger and,
168
,
172

Ruggles’s work with,
115
,
117

client flow business

explained,
68

money made through,
72

position limits and,
99

prop trading versus,
68
–69

Volcker Rule and,
153

Clinton, Bill,
94

Clinton, Hillary,
203

Coca-Cola Company, The,
141
,
144
,
151

cocoa market scandal,
102
–3

Cohn, Gary.
See also
Goldman Sachs

aluminum complaints handled by,
155
–56

cattle positions inspected by,
145

on commodities’ volatility,
9
–10

LME board seat secured by,
148

making partner at Goldman,
149

prior experience with aluminum warehousing trade of,
144
–49

road to the top at Goldman of,
150

Commodities.
See also
specific kinds

commonly known examples of,
5

corporate investors of,
13
–14

defined,
5

drop after mid-2008 of,
8
–9

earliest bets on,
6

end of boom of,
222
–25

factors driving prices of,
8
,
20
–21

fundamentals affecting prices of,
5
,
20
–21

growth in London after U.S. regulation of,
65

history of trading of,
6
–7

indexes ruined by embedded costs of,
225

individual investors and,
7
–8,
13
–14

legal inside information on,
30
,
142
–43

overtaken by stocks of,
223
–24

policing in 2013 of,
226
–27

rise from 2000 to mid-2008 of,
6
–8

rout of 2008 of,
58

volatility of,
9
–10,
16
–17

Volcker Rule stopping house trading and,
153
,
169

Commodity Futures Modernization Act (2000),
94

Commodity Futures Trading Commission Act (1974),
88

Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
See also
Chilton, Bart; Gensler, Gary; Regulation and legal issues

backlash against, in 2008,
90

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