Morning Coffee: Disgruntled ex-employee vents at shareholder meeting. Migration rules kill Singaporean finance jobs
Good news! A new forum has emerged in which to publicly humiliate former employers and ensure your grievances are picked up by the financial press.
The Financial Times went along to the Jupiter shareholder meeting in Belgravia, seemingly expecting little more than some canapés and the passing of a few resolutions, only to find that event was hijacked by former top fund manager Philip Gibbs, who ranted about the poor treatment he received at the hands of his former employer. Gibbs, reportedly known for his 'obsessive eye for detail,' managed a fund that under-performed slightly in 2011 and 2012, prompting him to retire. Prior to his self-enforced exit, Gibbs said he was told by the CIO that he was, "“lucky to have a job at Jupiter” at all. Gibbs also complained that he'd been forced to trade using a computer (rather than by phone or email) and implied that Jupiter's democratic voting policy on investment decisions is actually subject to Putinesque central control as everyone's told what to vote for by the powers that be. “Over and out, good night, thank you very much,” he then said before leaving (early).
Separately, as UK voters decide whether to take a vehemently anti-immigration stance in the EU elections, it's worth casting an eye over to the sorry state of affairs in Singapore. Bloomberg reports that the island state's attempts to bolster local employment by limiting immigration have somewhat backfired. Local staff have simply become more expensive and international banks have simply decided that they can't afford locals and are therefore reducing their reliance on Singapore as a hub of (cheap) international expertise altogether. Barclays and Credit Suisse are among those cutting Singaporean office space. “It’s now more of a struggle to find people at the required price points, given current government regulations around import of labor,” declared Chris Archibold, head of markets at Jones Lang LaSalle. In more simple language, Archibold seems to be saying that migration restrictions are a bad idea.
Meanwhile:
James Rowsell, the chief executive of Cantor Fitzgerald in Europe, is leaving. Rowsell joined in 2012 and encouraged Cantor to do a lot of hiring. However, its European business is still making a loss. (Financial News)
Hedge fund hires rates trader in anticipation of a divergence in central bank’s policies. (Bloomberg)
During his eight years as steward of the world’s largest economy, Mr. Bernanke’s salary was about $200,000 a year. Now he makes that in just a few hours speaking to bankers, hedge fund billionaires and leaders of industry. (DealBook)
How Michael Zaoui recovered from his failed teenage dream of conducting an orchestra and became a top M&A banker instead. (Institutional Investor)
Someone senior should lose their job at Credit Suisse, surely. (Financial Times)
Commerzbank fired two traders who tried to manipulate the euro against the Polish zloty. (Financial Times)
Remove these seven things from your resume right away. (The Daily Muse)
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