Topic: U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission

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Facebook IPO: Six key dates in its debacle

Facebook's first week as a publicly traded company will go down as a terribly botched corporate launch, perhaps one of the worst in recent history for such a highly visible entity. Eight days ago, it was the tech world's most highly anticipated initial public offering in eight years. Now, the social media company faces mounting legal woes and serves as an embarrassing example of how not to run an IPO. Despite rising insider pessimism about its growth prospects, Facebook kept boosting its asking price and the number of shares it would sell. The result: billions of dollars in losses; investigations by two congressional committees, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), an industry watchdog, and the state of Massachusetts; at least 13 class-action lawsuits; and thousands of resentful shareholders who days later still were unsure how many Facebook shares they had or at what price. Here are six key dates in Facebook's unfolding IPO disaster.
What does the JOBS Act actually do? Six questions answered.

A bipartisan bill known as the JOBS Act, for 'Jumpstart Our Business Startups,' is among the GOP's priorities in Congress. It is targeted at small-business owners, but what would the bill actually do?
Photos of the Day: Photos of the Day 12/06

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Facebook IPO: Six key dates in its debacle

Facebook's first week as a publicly traded company will go down as a terribly botched corporate launch, perhaps one of the worst in recent history for such a highly visible entity. Eight days ago, it was the tech world's most highly anticipated initial public offering in eight years. Now, the social media company faces mounting legal woes and serves as an embarrassing example of how not to run an IPO. Despite rising insider pessimism about its growth prospects, Facebook kept boosting its asking price and the number of shares it would sell. The result: billions of dollars in losses; investigations by two congressional committees, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), an industry watchdog, and the state of Massachusetts; at least 13 class-action lawsuits; and thousands of resentful shareholders who days later still were unsure how many Facebook shares they had or at what price. Here are six key dates in Facebook's unfolding IPO disaster.
Horizons
$75 million? Apple CEO Tim Cook says, 'No thanks'

Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, has said he won't take the quarterly $75 million payments he would earn under a new Apple employee policy. 
Facebook stock: Once hot IPO now a tale of lawsuits, glitches, and overreach (+video)

Facebook stock is trading well below its initial offering price. The IPO is being viewed as a debacle for the firm and its investment backers, and the lawsuits have already begun.
Tech stocks exchange to change IPO auctions after Facebook glitches

Tech stocks IPO auctions will be revamped, Nasdaq CEO says, after delays plagued Facebook's first day of trading. SEC investigating to see if delays hurt trading in the tech stock's underwhelming IPO.
Facebook IPO: Can it survive a downbeat market? (+video)

Facebook IPO likely to do well on its first day of trading. But Facebook IPO would do much better in a stronger stock market.
Companies question whether Facebook ads pay

General Motors has withdrawn ads ahead of the social giant's IPO, and others are asking if Facebook can really monetize its users.
JP Morgan chief apologizes for $2 billion loss

Jamie Dimon, the CEO of the bank, told shareholders that the loss should have never happened.
JPMorgan Chase's Dimon survives pay, chairmanship votes (+video)

JPMorgan Chase shareholders voted Tuesday at the bank's annual meeting to keep CEO Jamie Dimon in his role as chairman of the board, in addition to his pay package.
Ina Drew retiring after JPMorgan losses. Will she get $14.7 million?

Ina Drew, at the center of JPMorgan's stunning loss, was among its highest-paid executives. Proxy statement says Ina Drew would be entitled to nearly $14.7 million if she met 'full-career eligibility.'
Yahoo CEO’s exit: debacle for company, and a warning for resume padders

Scott Thompson was hired as Yahoo CEO – the embattled company's fourth in five years – for his record as an executive, not the degrees on his resume. But the fabrication was costly.
How Green Mountain stock plunge triggered chairman's ouster

Green Mountain Coffee ousted its founder as chairman after he sold company stock during a blackout period. Founder says he was blindsided by sudden fall of Green Mountain Coffee stock.
Private Empire

Pulitzer Prize-winner Steve Coll takes a close look at secretive behemoth that is Exxon Mobil.
Innocence abroad for Wal-Mart, Apple, and all Americans

A federal probe of alleged bribery in Mexico by Wal-Mart, along with Apple's lax workplace standards in China, indicate a need for Americans to take their ethical standards with them when operating overseas.
Facebook expected to hold off on IPO

Analysts envisioned that Facebook would start trading on Nasdaq by mid-May. Now it looks like Mark Zuckerberg has other business to deal with, which could prompt a delay in the much-anticipated initial public offering.
The Reformed Broker
Groupon woes continue with lawsuit, low earnings

Groupon's stock hit an all-time low last week, and the company has been hit with a lawsuit from shareholders for dishonest business practices.
Robert Reich
We're turning America into a giant casino

Organized gambling is a scam. And it particularly preys upon people with lower incomes – who assume they can’t make it big any other way, who often find it hardest to assess the odds, and whose families can least afford to lose the money. Yet with new, relaxed gambling laws, America is now opening the floodgates.
Groupon stock dives with new case of 'spotty accounting'

Groupon stock slips as shareholder lawyers start to see the company as a juicy target. Will a lawsuit further depress the Groupon stock?
JOBS Act: Why are Democrats suddenly raising red flags?

No one wants to vote against jobs, but a wide swath of critics – ranging from the SEC, the AFL-CIO, and pension funds – worry that features in the proposed JOBS Act could hurt investors.
Goldman resignation tip of iceberg

While Greg Smith's public resignation has attracted media attention, regulators and Wall Street insiders say Goldman Sachs' problems come as no surprise.
Goldman Sachs culture 'toxic'? Letter confirms suspicions about Wall Street.

Polls show that Americans hold a very low opinion of Wall Street, and a damning public letter of resignation from a Goldman Sachs executive could only amplify that perception.
Goldman Sachs executive resigns from 'toxic' bank

Goldman Sachs executive director offers his resignation in a scathing op-ed. He says Goldman Sachs' business culture is 'toxic and destructive.'
Robert Reich
The GOP is confused about public morality

The real threat to American morality is what's happening in corporate board rooms, not people's private lives.
What does the JOBS Act actually do? Six questions answered.

A bipartisan bill known as the JOBS Act, for 'Jumpstart Our Business Startups,' is among the GOP's priorities in Congress. It is targeted at small-business owners, but what would the bill actually do?
Eric Holder: Corporate fraud criminal cases coming soon

Eric Holder, the US attorney general, says his federal department continues to pursue individuals involved in corporate fraud. Eric Holder told states attorneys general fines alone aren't working.
Stanford found guilty in $7 billion Ponzi scheme

The Texas financier was convicted Tuesday on 13 counts of fraud and other charges.