Topic: Wall Street

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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.
4 noteworthy new novels: What happens when a past love reappears?

These four new novels all feature the specter of a past relationship.
Gas prices fact check: Six ideas in Congress, but can they work?

Soaring gas prices have also shown a consistent and significant ability to push members of Congress over the deep end. Here's the experts' take on 6 ideas floating through Congress.
Top 10 richest US presidents

Mitt Romney earned nearly $22 million in 2010. If elected, he would be in the Top 3 most wealthiest presidents. You may be surprised by who ranks among the Top 10 wealthiest US presidents.
8 ways to find common ground

Gridlock plagues Washington. Polarizing soundbytes get constant play in the 24/7 news cycle. The culture wars rage on. But these Monitor op-ed writers suggest there’s more common ground than meets the eye. Here are eight powerful perspectives on the possibilities for meeting in the middle.

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The New Economy
Top 40 richest list: Zuckerburg flames out as super-billionaire. Does it matter?

Top 40 richest list from Bloomberg drops Facebook CEO Zuckerberg as his company's valuation ebbs. But making the Top 40 richest list is probably not Zuckerberg's big concern right now. 
As fears about Europe's future worsen, the Dow closes down

Fearing a financial rupture in Europe, investors around the world fled from risk Wednesday. They punished stocks and the euro, and the yield on a benchmark US bond hit its lowest point since World War II. The Dow closed down 161 points to land at 12419.
Facebook opens office in Dubai

Facebook established an office in the Middle East for the first time on Wednesday, in Dubai's Internet City.
Tax VOX
How the debt limit delay will affect US fiscal policy

What if hitting the statutory debt limit does not happen until sometime in the first quarter of 2013? That is increasingly likely, say the folks who watch this sort of thing. And it would completely change the politics of the coming train wreck.
Robert Reich
Obama and Cory Booker: Fairness is essential to growth

Fairness isn’t inconsistent with growth; it’s essential to it. The only way the economy can grow and create more jobs is if prosperity is more widely shared.
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.
Brown calls on Harvard to 'correct record' on Elizabeth Warren's heritage

Sen. Scott Brown wants to know why Harvard listed his rival, Elizabeth Warren, as a native American professor. The issue has not tipped the race yet, but it could, the Brown camp says.
The Daily Reckoning
Facebook IPO: The end of an era

The failure of Facebook's public debut may signal the end of the pie-in-the-sky tech start up, as well as the possibility that the post-crisis recovery rally is screeching to a halt.
Federal Reserve official: If Congress dawdles, economy will fall 3 percent

Congress must sort out a raft of fiscal issues before Jan. 1, or it will cost the US economy dearly, said New York Federal Reserve President William Dudley.
Despite ancestry controversy, Elizabeth Warren tied with Sen. Scott Brown

The US Senate race in Massachusetts is among the closest in the battle over Senate control after the November elections. In a new poll, Elizabeth Warren has 47 percent of the vote and Scott Brown 48 percent.
Stocks rally to erase steep losses

Stocks closed mixed Wednesday after a late rally erased steep losses. The Dow lost seven points to close at 12496
Decoder Wire
Has Cory Booker hurt his own political career? (+video)

Don't look for a prime time speaking slot at the Democratic National Convention for Cory Booker, but his defense of Wall Street – and criticism of the Obama campaign – won't hurt his standing with moderates or Wall Street donors.
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.
4 noteworthy new novels: What happens when a past love reappears?

These four new novels all feature the specter of a past relationship.
Decoder Wire
Paul Ryan goes into Obama attack mode at the Reagan library

Rep. Paul Ryan on Tuesday was the third Republican with vice-presidential buzz to speak at the Reagan library this election season. But his speech had a different purpose.
Romney still finding his legs on Bain attacks

He has yet to develop a coherent, consistent response to the President's attacks.
Mitt Romney's Bain problem: private equity has bad rap with public

Mitt Romney is using his record as a job creator at Bain Capital as a selling point, but – even before President Obama's attack ads – the public isn't inclined to buy it, polls suggest.
Stocks mixed after Greek worries resurface

After gaining for most of the day, the Dow only finished up 2 points at 12503 Tuesday, as news out of Greece yanked indexes lower shortly before the closing bell.
The Daily Reckoning
Leave Facebook's Eduardo Saverin alone

Eduardo Saverin's timely renunciation of his American citizenship is no reason to keep him out of the US. People should be able to move where they want, when they want, for any reason.
Chamber of Commerce president: don't overreact to JPMorgan losses

US Chamber of Commerce president Thomas Donohue, at a Monitor breakfast Monday, advised a wait-and-see approach after JPMorgan's $2 billion in trading losses.
Mark Zuckerberg: Facebook status updated to 'married' (+video)

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg married long-time girlfriend Priscilla Chan Saturday in a small, surprise wedding. Less than 100 guests arrived at Zuckerberg's home for what they would be a party to celebrate Chan's graduation from medical school. Zuckerberg did not wear a hoodie.
Robert Reich
Mitt Romney's skewed praise of Bill Clinton

Mitt Romney has been praising Bill Clinton even as he heaps scorn on Obama, trying to associate himself with someone more popular and court the white male vote. It might backfire.
Obama, G-8: Recovery takes both growth and cutting

Confronting an economic crisis that threatens them all, President Obama and leaders of other world powers on Saturday declared that their governments must both spark growth and cut the debt that has crippled the European continent and put investors worldwide on edge.
As Facebook millionaires party, what future for new shareholders?

An expected 'pop' in share prices never came as Facebook went public this week. But Facebook's IPO was a measured affair, lacking in irrational exuberance, and laying the groundwork for the network's main challenge: Turning 'friends' into consumers.
Facebook IPO stumbles: Why didn't it wow investors? (+video)

The Facebook IPO underwhelmed Friday, closing up only 23 cents. Investors are still debating Facebook's worth: Is it must-own stock or a company with limited growth potential?