Bernie Madoff was mad for watches, and 46 of them were sold at yesterday’s fire sale of his possessions. Check out all of them here — including his suite of Rolexes, a favourite brand — plus their estimated price and what they actually fetched.
Business / Players
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Warren Buffett’s $40 billion investment empire
Following Warren Buffett’s $34 billion buy-out of America’s second-biggest railway, this great infographic charts the history and breadth of the investor extraordinaire’s business empire and investments.
David Coe’s mystifying board election
The likes of the Business Council of Australia and Australian Institute of Company Directors need not be too concerned about the “two strikes” rule — David Coe and RHG just proved as much.
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Charting Nouriel Roubini’s horrible stockmarket calls
Nouriel Roubini is usually credited with predicting the Global Financial Crisis. However, the rest of his prognostications have been all over the place, as this handy graph shows.
Andrew Ross-Sorkin: the journalist king of Wall Street
Andrew Ross-Sorkin has built a business journalism empire around his New York Times column, but many of his colleagues think his reputation is undeserved. New York Magazine meets the man behind the column inches.
The most powerful people in the world
Forbes has launched a new annual list, ranking the world’s most powerful people. Obama at number one is a pretty safe choice, but names like Google’s Sergey Brin and Larry Page at number five and Putin as number three are sure to stir up debate.
Top executive earners: pay for performance a myth
The Financial Review today produced its annual salary review for 2009 and it appears that despite claims to the contrary, there is a significant disconnect between executive remuneration and shareholder return, writes Adam Schwab.
PHOTO GALLERY: Bernie Madoff’s garage sale
Convicted Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff’s personal affects are going on the auction block next week in an effort to repay his victims some of their financial losses. Check out the catalogue of crap you can bid on, including boogie boards, golf umbrellas and a life bouy.
Great Gatsby! The inside story on F. Scott’s Fitzgerald’s finances
Great Gatsby author F. Scott Fitzgerald didn’t just write about the lives of the rich, he lived it. From the age of 23, he was in the top 1% earning percentile of taxpayers, earning today’s equivalent of $US500,000.
Murdoch visits, spends a week talking to himself
Why do we keep listening to Rupert Murdoch? Is it because he doesn’t let us stop, with all interviews conducted by either employees or employees of an arm of News, directly or indirectly.
Murdoch is a Marxist
A spectre is haunting the internet… Rupert Murdoch may be the pin-up boy of the bourgeoisie, but his news site paywall plans — based on the idea that if it costs money to produce something, it intrinsically has value — are decidedly Marxist, says Ian Douglas
Wal’s still the King of the heap when it comes to pay
Wal King recently gave a spray about the ridiculously high salaries received by CEOs. Maybe he should be looking at his own pay packet — $29 million since 2008, nearly all cash — before casting stones.
With Roger Corbett, it’s a question of character
Roger Corbett’s Christian values didn’t appear to count for much when the opportunity presented for Woolies to leap into the pokies business. Why is the anti-gambling Salvation Army associated with someone who actively supports pokies?
FBI wiretaps expose Wall Street’s seedy underbelly
Details uncovered from FBI wire-taps of Wall St insider trading rings are like The Sopranos, The Wire and Gordon Gekko’s Wall Street all rolled into one, complete with secret tips, kickbacks and disposable mobile phones.
Westpac’s Gail Kelly gives the inside story on banking
Westpac CEO Gail Kelly sits down with Alan Kohler, Robert Gottliebsen and Stephen Bartholomeusz for an in-depth discussion on post-GFC banking, repricing business customers’ loans, and financial regulation.
Steve Jobs named CEO of the Decade
Fortune has named Apple honcho Steve Jobs as its CEO of the Decade, and has gone all-out in its celebration of all-thing-Steve. Here’s the interactive timeline, celebrity tributes and the obligatory photo gallery.
All-American hero Buffett has a $26.6b rails bet
Warren Buffett has revealed a deal that defines his optimism in America’s future, spending $26.6b to buy out America’s second biggest railroad.
A look behind the detour of Transurban
Transurban is destined to join the worldwide queue of over-valued toll roads mired in debt and based on misleading financial models, writes John Goldberg.
Crikey Says: From WA premier to Wesfarmers lobbyist?
Former WA premier Alan Carpenter joining Wesfarmers as its chief spinner and lobbyist is, in a word, a disgrace.
Talking the Town: Harry M, superstar
Not everyone in this town is wild about Harry M Miller, but he can really pull a crowd, with Lindy Chamberlain, Stuart Diver, Michael Kirby, Marcia Hines, Stuart Wagstaff and many more turning up to a Kings Cross nightclub for the launch of his autobiography last night.
Expansive James Packer goes the full half hour
The man who used to like two-minute chairman addresses went on for half-an-hour at yesterday’s Crown AGM, boasting of PBL’s recent performance and making some pre-emptive attacks against the anti-pokies lobby.
Which dead celebs earn the most from beyond the grave?
Too bad you can’t spend it when you’re dead, because Forbes have released their annual top earning dead celebs list. It’s a surprise number one this year with Yves Saint Laurent beating out the likely favourite Michael Jackson. Well, Le Smoking, is a classic.
Kiernan empire continues to bemuse
The intrigue around the empire of mining entrepreneur Michael Kiernan continues to bemuse, with the cornucopia of companies with which Kiernan associates appearing to spend more time in administration than US-based airlines.
How an Aussie billionaire got entangled in Berlusconi’s tax fraud
It’s a big year for Bruce Gordon of WIN Corporation. His magic touch helped WIN survive the GFC intact, but his business associations with Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi may see him embroiled in legal issues. How will the year pan out?
Chairman of Australian Press Council calls for accountability
Ken McKinnon, the departing boss of the Press Council, is criticising the media for failing to live up to its own rhetoric on ethics, privacy and independence. Namely, the Utegate scandal and fake Pauline Hanson nude photos.
