Unstructured Finance

So there’s this election this Sunday in Greece and everyone–who follows the markets–is all excited. But at the end of the day, the main reason people in the markets are all up in arms is because they want to know who will get paid, in what order and most important–how much. Sadly, there’s too little focus on whether the right people/institutions are getting paid; let alone issues of social dignity and the quality of human existence. Guess that’s what the markets are all about, right?

But don’t let any of that stop you from saying thanks to your dad tomorrow. And for all of you dads out there—A Happy Father’s Day. Here then is Sam Forgione’s weekend reads:

From The New Republic:

Dierdre N. McCloskey spans the efforts of economists to gauge happiness.

From Foreign Affairs:

Layna Mosley offers a level analysis of euro zone government debt and how markets view it.

From The New York Times:

Paul Sullivan writes about how investors might not want to get too attached.

From Fortune:

Mina Kimes profiles a stock picker who has taken an unusual shine to Europe.

From The Nation:

Gar Alperovitz and Thomas M. Hanna argue that the government should step in and tame our corporate juggernauts.

Here’s to getting out exclusive stories fast when need be. This week, pay close attention to Jamie Dimon, who will be on the congressional hot seat as he deals with questions over JPM’s $2 billion plus trading loss. And without further ado, here’s Sam Forgione’s weekend reads:

From Fortune:

Peter Elkind and Doris Burke add more arc to the “human drama” of MF Global’s collapse.

From The New York Times:

Ron Lieber has some tips to resolve the fear of falling behind on finances.

From Institutional Investor:

JP MorganChase’s trading loss could signal big changes for investment banks, writes Charles Wallace.

By Matthew Goldstein and Jennifer Ablan

The state of Alaska is looking to cash in on the growing demand for renting out foreclosed single-family homes.

A spokeswoman for the $40 billion Alaska Permanent Fund recently approved a $400 million investment with a California-based company that specializes in buying foreclosed homes and renting them out. Laura Achee said the fund is still negotiating the terms of the deal with American Homes 4 Rent LLC.

The Alaska fund, which is managed by a state-owned corporation, is believed to be one of the first public investment arms to sink money into the market for foreclosed homes.

A dreary looking day in the NYC environs today, but that won’t overshadow birthday celebrations and other good news too cheer! A big shout to all UF members today. Oh, and fight for your right to party. Here then is Sam Forgione’s suggested readings.

From The New York Times:

A former managing director of Bain Capital has a telling beef with art-history majors.

From AR:

Hedge fund managers are still leaving their safety zones for emerging markets, even as John Paulson is recovering from his Sino-Forest bet, writes Jan Alexander.

Nice weather today in NYC. Enjoy it today before Sunday’s deluge. Here’s Sam Forgione’s picks. You can now follow Sam on twitter @samuelforgione

From The New Yorker:

Nicholas Lemann explores new books that illustrate the ties between politics and the economy.

From BusinessWeek:

Lazard’s Michele Lamarche takes on the tough task of courting debt-strapped nations.

A beautiful spring day in the NYC metro area. Let’s Go Mets! Here’s this weekend’s stories courtesy of Sam Forgione.

From The New York Times: 

Jennifer Medina reports that California’s economy is either booming and busting, depending on which city you’re in.

From The Nation: 

William Greider has some suggestions on how the Federal Reserve can work with politicians to improve the housing crisis.

Don’t get pranked tomorrow. Remember, it’s April Fool’s Day. Here are the latest Weekend Reads as selected by Sam Forgione.

From Fortune:

Hedge fund manager Paul Singer’s hardball approach has benefited Republican candidates as his fund battles in court with nation’s that have defaulted on their debt.

From The Guardian:

Zoe Williams writes about how Stephanie Flanders, the BBC economics editor and a former speechwriter for Tim Geithner, relishes bad news.

By Matthew Goldstein

The shooting death of Trayvon Martin, an unarmed black teen in Florida, has evoked a lot of debate about race in America and the nation’s attitudes to what it means to be a minority.

There’s been a good deal written that major media organizations were slow to react to this tragic story, in part because there simply aren’t enough minority voices on staff. This point was highlighted recently in a  story in The New York Times

That said, minorities also are underrepresented in the industry I spend most of my time writing about—Wall Street. And while it’s no secret that there are few minorities in the executives suites on Wall Street—there are not that many women, either—it’s worth taking look at some disturbing statistics.

Here is Sam Forgione’s suggested weekend reads. Happy St. Patrick’s Day everyone. The calendar says March but it feels like mid-May in NYC.

From Dealbook:

Recent graduates are becoming disenchanted with Wall Street careers. Kevin Roose interviews a college grad, a recruiter, professor, and former Goldman employee support to make his point.

From Fortune:

Mina Kimes takes a look at James J. Wang, the head of the small and wildly successful OceanStone Fund, who she describes as being spectrally mysterious.

Virtual offices can be a great cost-saver for a solo attorney, a lone accountant or any other professional who can’t afford the expense  of maintaining a separate support staff to run a business. But these outfits, in which a solo professional gets to essentially rent the services of a receptionist, a secretary and conference space, also can provide cover for bad guys bent on doing mischief.

A case in point is Robert Sucarato, a New Jersey man, who was sentenced Friday to 11 years in a federal prison for using a virtual office as a front for an alleged multi-billion hedge fund that bilked investors out of $1.6 million. A few years ago, when I was at BusinessWeek, I wrote about Sucarato long before federal prosecutors were on his trail. The BW story was called “Suite Scams” and it focused on much more than Sucarato and showed how virtual offices were proving to be a useful tool for Wall Street fraudsters with a slick website and a good marketing pitch.

Former federal prosecutors, back when I talked to them, said they were well aware of how  virtual offices were becoming the hallmarks of scams. But they said there was little  they could do to stop it since the due diligence requirements for virtual office operators are minimal.