Who Is Adam Storch and Is Mary Schapiro Really the Right Person to Head the SEC?
By Larry Doyle on October 17, 2009 at 10:30 AM in Economy, SEC, Sense on Cents (Larry Doyle blog)
You must be kidding me.
Our financial regulators, both the SEC and FINRA, certainly failed American investors. The structural failures of these regulators have been highlighted by their own internal reviews authored by David Kotz for the SEC and Charles Bowsher for FINRA.
Over and above the structural failures of these regulators, both the SEC and FINRA have major image problems. What is at the core of those image problems? The following:
> A strong perception that their relationships with Wall Street are far too cozy. Additionally, Uncle Sam has gotten slammed for the depth of relationships and number of hires specifically from Goldman Sachs.
> A strong perception of a general lack of experience throughout these organizations.
Against these widely held perceptions, I am left dumbstruck by news of a very senior hire by the SEC. The SEC announced this morning the hiring of Adam Storch as Chief Operating Officer for its Enforcement Division. I do not know Adam Storch nor would I besmirch his capabilities. That said, for SEC Head Mary Schapiro and SEC Director of Enforcement Robert Khuzami to hire Mr. Storch as COO within this division raises serious questions that deserve to be addressed. What are those questions?
1. If the SEC is in need of experienced people, how does a 29 year old fit that bill?
2. If Uncle Sam in general has been tainted by a perceived cozy relationship with Goldman Sachs, how is it that one of the first key senior hires at the SEC comes from Goldman Sachs?
Bloomberg sheds light on Mr. Storch’s hiring in writing, SEC Said to Hire Goldman’s Storch for Enforcement Job:
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission hired Adam Storch, a 29-year-old former employee in Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s business intelligence unit, as the enforcement division’s first chief operating officer, according to people familiar with the decision.
The COO, who started Oct. 13, has “a great deal of background” in technology and managing processes and the pace of work, Robert Khuzami, head of enforcement, said yesterday in Washington. Storch, who worked since 2004 in a unit at Goldman Sachs that reviewed contracts and transactions for signs of fraud, will be charged with making the unit more efficient. Storch, reached by telephone at the SEC, declined to comment.
I would ask Mr. Khuzami when five years became generally accepted as ‘a great deal’ of experience. What has Mr. Storch done to distinguish himself? His experience includes:
Storch holds degrees in accounting and finance from the State University of New York at Buffalo and studied at New York University’s Leonard N. Stern School of Business. He has certifications in accounting, fraud examination and auditing.
Prior to joining Goldman Sachs, Storch was a senior analyst at accounting firm Deloitte & Touche and an intern at Neuberger Berman LLC, a New York-based asset management firm.
I could understand if Mr. Storch were hired as an examiner or perhaps even a senior examiner if he is particularly strong. But COO? Are you kidding?
A COO is not a rank and file examiner. A COO is one of the senior most individuals in any organization. I have a very hard time believing that Mr. Storch is the ABSOLUTE best candidate for this role. What does his hiring indicate about Mary Schapiro’s and Robert Khuzami’s understanding and appreciation of the SEC’s problems?
The question has been asked previously whether Mary Schapiro is the right person to run the SEC. With all due respect to Mr. Storch, his hiring should increase the intensity of those questioning Ms. Schapiro’s capabilities.
LD
(Release: November 13)
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I would suggest adding a third question: As Fred Rogers would have said, “can you say “Conflict of Interest?”
We, the lowly people, are railing against the wind with these robbers.
I am sorry, but I do remember when many of the people of my generation used to say that you couldn’t trust anyone older than 30.
I was definitely NOT one who thought that way, having grown up with 34 cousins and the large number of aunts and uncles to parent those cousins, and the very wise and kind grandparents I had. I even had many older relatives who were great aunts and uncles, etc. I admired my many very mature, intelligent, knowledgeable teachers. These were all people I trusted, so I never understood that saying.
But, once I got to a certain age at work, I did start noticing that there is now among younger workers a total lack of respect for people with “old fashioned” ideas.
The last place I worked, an after retirement job to earn extra money, was the worst place I worked. Not one of them could have handled the job I had, I am sure. It didn’t allow for playing games in the hallway or putting on costumes for special business meetings. They got offended because I would ask them to be quiet around my desk as I took calls from clients and couldn’t hear over their loud talking and laughing.
I paid for the extras I wanted to help my children with, and I left. That place, with a department of management trainers and coaches, is the worst example I could give for that kind of attitude. These people who “trained the trainers” and coached the managers often acted like some of my ex-middle school students at work.
This is a generation that does not at all value knowledge gained from experience. They think they know everything that they need to know already.
I am not surprised this is now happening in our government offices.
It’s truly frightening. They must have all believed the Doogie Houser television series. Yes, truly, a teenager could become a doctor, so why can’t someone with five years’ experience handle this important job?
Here’s his pix. Looks like Doogie COO material to me.
http://www.huliq.com/8682/87734/sec-taps-adam-storch-first-ever-chief-operating-officer
Oooooo–what a handsome young fellow! Put him in a Goldman-Sachs cheerleader outfit and give him some pom-poms! You can tell by the fierce expression on his face that he’ll strike fear into the hearts of all those guilty of financial malfeasance!
What do you know of life at 29? Some do know a great deal they learned on the front line in Irak, but most do not know S@#%t.
It is unconceivable that this administration has not had a kneejerk reaction to that nomination. Shapiro is NOT up to the job because either Storch was imposed on her and she therefore does not have the backbone and power necessary to push back such insanity, OR she selected him herself and that proves how much she is out of touch/part of the problem/corrupted.
Why not hire the guy, forget his name, that uncovered the Madoff scandal? He has more than five years experience and obviously knows where and how to look.
Oh, that’s right. They don’t really want to clean up anything. They just want it to look as though they are.
That’s been my experience in the 25 years I’ve worked for government contractors. Government “officials” don’t want to clean anything up because that would mean they would have to find another job either within or without government. No, they want a job to last a lifetime even if it means more expense for us all collectively down the road. And government bureaucrats aren’t the only ones. I can’t count the number of the same types comprising the upper-level positions in the organization charts of many a big business.
We lost our way collectively when concern for the common good was replaced by the I-got-mine-you-get-yours mentality prevalent today. With a collective effort, as demonstrated by our defeat of Fascism in WWII, we can’t be beaten. As a collection of self-absorbed individuals only in it for ourselves, we can’t even find a bin Laden. How much this country has changed in 65+ years and not to the better.
Individualism is what made America great and unique. We don’t want your ‘collectivism’ here, you dink.
You can go to Cuba or North Korea, let’s see how long you like your collectivism, dummy.
Wow, are you ever stupid. We didn’t win WWII by expecting others to do the work. I’m a Goldwater conservative (a centrist in today’s jargon) who believes in both individualism and the “We” used in the Preamble to the Constitution. You should read it sometime, dumbass.
You can go to hell for all I care, you silly little snip.
A ‘Goldwater conservative’??
Don’t make me laugh! Here’s Goldwater in 1964 (you should read it before invoking, dumbo!):
“The good Lord raised this mighty Republic to be a home for the brave and to flourish as the land of the free -not to stagnate in the swampland of collectivism, not to cringe before the bully of communism.”
I’ve seen your ilk before, Pinko Freddy.
Pinko Freddie? LMAO.
You confuse the words collectivism, which must bounce around that empty cavern you call a mind, with “We the People”. That you don’t understand the difference is your cross to bear, toadie.
And when did you serve, patriot-in-name-only and self-centered taker? You haven’t and it is self-evident from your diatribe. Read the preamble before you post again.
Dry up.
Yay Ferd!
The time is over for the tired old perjoratives of “Socialism”, Communism” and “Liberalism” which are just words used to frighten people.
Ferd is dead right. “We the people” means that collectively we are strong. It didn’t say,”Me, and maybe you and perhaps him”. If my country, collectively, isn’t strong it diminishes me individually - that’s why I care about other people.
I am, too. There is a hell of a lot of real estate between “We the People”, which I was discussing in my original post, and a Stalinist collective. That this is self-evidently true is lost on bots of every persuasion.
I suppose if I resume my former take-no-prisoner method of dealing with bots using utter derision sprinkled liberally with ad hominem abusives directed their way rather than take the high road with rational commentary, I’ll get a whole lot less guff from the rabble. I suppose that is their choice.
OMG!!
Ferdie got a TASTE OF HIS OWN MEDICINE!
And surprise-surprise, he doesn’t like it at all!
This is TOO FUNNY!!!
HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!
Spurious George Soros–another alias for Prime Obot. Well, you’re quite the little coward, aren’t you, troll? Why don’t you go pollute another website with your hogwash? Or better yet, go back to your double-wide and make your significant other nauseous.
Actually I take it back you are not new to the site, you are just using a different name, like a coward would; the words you used gave you away. Next time be a little smarter and choose vocabulary that didn’t originate with the person you are attacking.
As for going to Cuba or North Korea, I’ll put my service to this country on the table against your egocentric me-me-me attitude any day of the week. You’re just another extremist troll who doesn’t care a tinker’s cuss for this country but will take advantage of its benefits without lifting a finger in its defense. You’re no patriot–you’re just a taker.
Begone, m o r o n.
Pinko Freddie!!! Hahahaha. That’s about the last moniker in the world that belongs to Ferd.
I suggest you stick around, Bria, and do a little reading. Trust me, this is not Collective Central, certainly not the way you’re defining it.
Pinko Freddie! Oh yikes!
Thanks, Peggy Sue.
Being a Centrist has its drawbacks as I have to fight both set of bots. I also stand by my Goldwater comment. In today’s upside-down world, Barry would be a centrist. Hell he even said that every good Christian should kick Jerry Falwell in the arse. No shrinking violet, that Barry.
You must be new to the site
Adam Stench…Oh the smell! And why would we be suspicious? DISGUSTING BEYOND WORDS. He stinks and this 0bama’s administration smell just like Bush’s. And that is as bad as it gets!
Good point, candymarl. But the young fellow from Goldman-Sachs knows exactly where NOT to look, and that, I think, is really the “purpose” of his appointment.
So, the incest continues. This should seal the deal for anyone thinking real regulatory reform is in the works. It’s a joke at best.
And yes, I agree with candymarl. Why not someone of Harry Markopolos’ caliber and experience, someone who’s had his eyes open from the start?
But then, he would probably uncover the unpleasant truth: we’re being had.
I agree!
Or even the x-governor of NY.
Why can’t we demand either of them be given that position - after all we are the biggest stake holders in this show.
Yes, Elliot Spitzer would be good, too. In fact, my gut tells me that Spitzer was hot “on the trail,” when his prostitution entanglement was uncovered.
Strange how these things happen!
But I’ve read Spitzer’s columns and he definitely seems to have a handle on how these institutions are spinning nonsense and covering their behinds.
First so no one is confused as to where I stand: I believe the sec.gov claim that Goldman Sachs and Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac et.al. were ‘naked shorted’ posted on the SEC website by outgoing SEC Chair Christopher Cox in 2008 is a fraudulent lie.
The question is just who was-is he covering up for and where are their offshore accounts ? Had they been ‘naked shorted’ or counterfeted shareholders holding counterfeit shares would have come forward to complain of not receiving dividends because they bought phony shares ! This did not happen and Adam Stork should not be near the SEC if he continues to let the lie on sec.gov board that Goldman Sachs was ‘naked shorted’ go unchallenged.
Are you sure that Goldman Sachs’ Adam Storch hasn’t been brought to the
SEC for the express purpose of tracking down the evil naked shorting
‘Sith Lord’ that has caused not only Goldman Sachs but also AIG and
Daiwa Securities Group Inc and BNP Paribas Securities Corp. and Bank
of America Corporation and Barclays PLC and Citigroup Inc. and Credit
Suisse Group and Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and Merrill Lynch &
Co., Inc. and Mizuho Financial Group and …. well just see the list(as it was posted by ex Securities Exchange Commisioner Christopher Naked Shorts Cox on the official sec.gov stock fraud tout board below shortly before he slipped out the back door without so much as a goodbye). How did he forget to mention the UK’s Northern Rock on that list which may have been the first UK stock in history whose collapse was blamed on ‘naked short selling’ !? (If they mentioned all the penny
stocks listed or claiming to be ‘naked shorted’ since James Dale Davidson founded NAANSS or National Association Against Naked Short Selling in 2002 the list
would be as long as the Bible’s who begat who list !)
Did you know even 9/11 ‘heroe’ Bernie Kerick’s and the other good folks at Taser
Stun Gun Corp had their shares ‘naked shorted’ by the Sith Lord as well ? And Carl Icahn’s and Paul Singer’s and Saudi arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi’s GenesisIntermedia appear to have been among the first victims of this wave of naked shorting on or around 9/11 !(At least according to naked short conspiracy theorist David Patch of investigatethesec.con who has personal private consultations with Inspector General H.David Kotz as if he is a VIP like Bernie Madoff although victims of their naked shorting’ lie such as myself never get a hearing !)
As ex SEC Chairman Christopher ‘Naked Shorts’ Cox has already
explained in 2008 on the sec.gov penny stock tout board poor
Goldman Sachs was the victim of a vicious naked shorting attack last
year presumably by the ‘Sith Lord’ already identified by
Overstock.con’s Patrick Byrne years ago.The good Utah Moron Senators
Orin Hatch and Bob Bennett have been on the case ever since and now
AIPAC Senators Carl Levin,Arlen ‘Magic Bullet’ Specter,
Jon Tester,Chuck Grassley,et.al. have all joined in the hunt and Mary
Schapiro has already promised to give the search for the naked short
selling ‘Sith Lord’ her priority over everything else including ‘black
trading pools’ (that like illegal pump and dump and insider trading and manipulation the SEC never prosecutes can look precisely like what is often erroneously blamed
on ‘naked short selling’),that she found emanating from Bernie Madoff’s old and now the Dubai Sheikh Mohamed Al Rashid’s ‘new’ NASDAQ,etc..
Does anyone know if this Sith Lord is connected to Osama bin Laden’s
Al Qaeda ? Nonetheless I believe the selection of Mr. Storch by Mary
Schapiro and no doubt endorsed by Chris Cox’s hand picked IG H.David
Kotz who has also dedicated his SEC career to the search of the evil
Naked Short Selling Sith Lord is all part of the plan to bring Him to
justice and recoup to grave financial losses he inflicted on Goldman
Sachs,et.al. last year. Don’t you ?
Those who do not question the naked short selling lie and cover up of international collusion of shares fraudulently clamed below as victims of ‘naked shorting’ that made Goldman Sachs insiders richer than ever and James Dale Davidson’s and Patrick Byrne’s role though their NAANSS and NCANS websites and the National Tapayers Union of James Davidson and Steve Forbes and the Agora Inc penny stock holding and dumping company of Jim Davidson,Bill Bonner and the great American patriot Lord William Rees-Mogg of England will never uncover what really
caused the syphoning of perhaps trillions of dollars out of the U.S.economy to anonymous offshore accounts.
Pity poor Goldman Sachs and Adam Storch whose shares were ‘naked shorted’ by the ‘Sith Lord’ according to the SEC and now Storch IS THE SEC but will he ever find that ‘Sith Lord’ who ‘naked shorted’ Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac ? Why does Rahm Emanuel remain silent as the SEC lies about ‘naked short selling’ ?
http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2008/2008-143.htm
Washington, D.C., July 15, 2008 – The Securities and Exchange
Commission today issued an emergency order to enhance investor
protections against “naked” short selling in the securities of Fannie
Mae, Freddie Mac, and primary dealers at commercial and investment
banks.
“The SEC’s mission to protect investors, maintain orderly markets, and
promote capital formation is more important now than it has ever
been,” said SEC Chairman Christopher Cox. “Today’s Commission action
aims to stop unlawful manipulation through ‘naked’ short selling that
threatens the stability of financial institutions….’
The securities identified in the Commission’s order:
Company Ticker Symbol(s)
BNP Paribas Securities Corp. BNPQF or BNPQY
Bank of America Corporation BAC
Barclays PLC BCS
Citigroup Inc. C
Credit Suisse Group CS
Daiwa Securities Group Inc. DSECY
Deutsche Bank Group AG DB
Allianz SE AZ
Goldman, Sachs Group Inc GS
Royal Bank ADS RBS
HSBC Holdings PLC ADS HBC and HSI
J. P. Morgan Chase & Co. JPM
Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. LEH
Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. MER
Mizuho Financial Group, Inc. MFG
Morgan Stanley MS
UBS AG UBS
Freddie Mac FRE
Fannie Mae FNM
………………………………………..
As ex SEC Chairman Christopher ‘Naked Shorts’ Cox has already explained in 2008 on the sec.gov penny stock tout board poor
Goldman Sachs was the victim of a vicious naked shorting attack last
year presumably by the ‘Sith Lord’ already identified by
Overstock.con’s Patrick Byrne years ago.The good Utah Moron Senators
Orin Hatch and Bob Bennett have been on the case ever since and now
AIPAC Senators Carl Levin,Arlen ‘Magic Bullet’ Specter,
Jon Tester,Chuck Grassley,et.al. have all joined in the hunt and Mary
Schapiro has already promised to give the search for the naked short
selling ‘Sith Lord’ her priority over everything else including ‘black
trading pools’ (that like illegal pump and dump and insider trading and manipulation the SEC never prosecutes can look precisely like what is often erroneously blamed
on ‘naked short selling’),that she found emanating from Bernie Madoff’s old and now the Dubai Sheikh Mohamed Al Rashid’s ‘new’ NASDAQ,etc..
Are you sure that Goldman Sachs’ Adam Storch hasn’t been brought to the
SEC for the express purpose of tracking down the evil naked shorting
‘Sith Lord’ that has caused not only Goldman Sachs but also AIG and
Daiwa Securities Group Inc and BNP Paribas Securities Corp. and Bank
of America Corporation and Barclays PLC and Citigroup Inc. and Credit
Suisse Group and Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and Merrill Lynch &
Co., Inc. and Mizuho Financial Group and …. well just see the list(as it was posted by ex Securities Exchange Commisioner Christopher Naked Shorts Cox on the official sec.gov stock fraud tout board below shortly before he slipped out the back door without so much as a goodbye). How did he forget to mention the UK’s Northern Rock on that list which may have been the first UK stock in history whose collapse was blamed on ‘naked short selling’ !? (If they mentioned all the penny
stocks listed or claiming to be ‘naked shorted’ since James Dale Davidson founded NAANSS or National Association Against Naked Short Selling in 2002 the list
would be as long as the Bible’s who begat who list !)
Did you know even 9/11 ‘heroe’ Bernie Kerick’s and the other good folks at Taser
Stun Gun Corp had their shares ‘naked shorted’ by the Sith Lord as well ? And Carl Icahn’s and Paul Singer’s and Saudi arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi’s GenesisIntermedia appear to have been among the first victims of this wave of naked shorting on or around 9/11 !(At least according to naked short conspiracy theorist David Patch of investigatethesec.con who has personal private consultations with Inspector General H.David Kotz as if he is a VIP like Bernie Madoff although victims of their naked shorting’ lie such as myself never get a hearing !)
Does anyone know if this Sith Lord is connected to Osama bin Laden’s
Al Qaeda ? Nonetheless I believe the selection of Mr. Storch by Mary
Schapiro and no doubt endorsed by Chris Cox’s hand picked IG H.David
Kotz who has also dedicated his SEC career to the search of the evil
Naked Short Selling Sith Lord is all part of the plan to bring Him to
justice and recoup to grave financial losses he inflicted on Goldman
Sachs,et.al. last year. Don’t you ?
Those who do not question the naked short selling lie and cover up of international collusion of shares fraudulently clamed below as victims of ‘naked shorting’ that made Goldman Sachs insiders richer than ever and James Dale Davidson’s and Patrick Byrne’s role though their NAANSS and NCANS websites and the National Tapayers Union of James Davidson and Steve Forbes and the Agora Inc penny stock holding and dumping company of Jim Davidson,Bill Bonner and the great American patriot Lord William Rees-Mogg of England will never uncover what really
caused the syphoning of perhaps trillions of dollars out of the U.S.economy to anonymous offshore accounts.
Pity poor Goldman Sachs and Adam Storch whose shares were ‘naked shorted’ by the ‘Sith Lord’ according to the SEC and now Storch IS THE SEC but will he ever find that ‘Sith Lord’ who ‘naked shorted’ Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac ? Why does Rahm Emanuel remain silent as the SEC lies about ‘naked short selling’ ?
http://www.sec.gov/news/press/2008/2008-143.htm
Washington, D.C., July 15, 2008 – The Securities and Exchange
Commission today issued an emergency order to enhance investor
protections against “naked” short selling in the securities of Fannie
Mae, Freddie Mac, and primary dealers at commercial and investment
banks.
“The SEC’s mission to protect investors, maintain orderly markets, and
promote capital formation is more important now than it has ever
been,” said SEC Chairman Christopher Cox. “Today’s Commission action
aims to stop unlawful manipulation through ‘naked’ short selling that
threatens the stability of financial institutions….’
The securities identified in the Commission’s order:
Company Ticker Symbol(s)
BNP Paribas Securities Corp. BNPQF or BNPQY
Bank of America Corporation BAC
Barclays PLC BCS
Citigroup Inc. C
Credit Suisse Group CS
Daiwa Securities Group Inc. DSECY
Deutsche Bank Group AG DB
Allianz SE AZ
Goldman, Sachs Group Inc GS
Royal Bank ADS RBS
HSBC Holdings PLC ADS HBC and HSI
J. P. Morgan Chase & Co. JPM
Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. LEH
Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. MER
Mizuho Financial Group, Inc. MFG
Morgan Stanley MS
UBS AG UBS
Freddie Mac FRE
Fannie Mae FNM
Perhaps he took acting lessons form that other famous Storch named Larry.
Elliot Spitzer?? Don’t think so. Not only is he a proven hypocrite I don’t think he ever won a corruption case against Wall Street. He’d just dog folks into copping pleas, they’d pay their fines & go back to biz as usual, guess they figured it was just the cost of doing biz. The one time someone called his bluff & Spitzer litigated Spitzer lost.
In the world of recycled names: Jim Cramer has offered to head up the SEC. Yeah, how about Cramer, at least it’d get him off TV
Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize. So, a 29-year-old Goldman Sachs made-man is perfect for COO of the Securities and Exchange Commission!
[snark]
I’m so disgusted, I can’t even raise the energy to get angry at these criminals anymore. Wake me up when the REVOLUTION starts, ok?
By the way, Top Producer is great!
I’m in the middle of it now. It’s hard to put down, so thanks for that rec. 
Glad you like the book. Entertaining..which we need in the midst of this madness.
LD, I’ve read whenever someone purchases more than 5% of a publicly traded company they have to register with the SEC, where does one look for that info?
I’m stunned.
Does anyone still think the present government is salvageable?