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Mystery of terror 'insider dealers'
Key Excerpts from Article on Website of The Independent (One of the UK's leading newspapers)
Posted: December 6th, 2011
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/mystery-of-t...
Share speculators have failed to collect $2.5m (1.7m) in profits made from the fall in the share price of United Airlines after the 11 September World Trade Centre attacks. Further details of the futures trades that netted such huge gains in the wake of the hijackings have been disclosed. To the embarrassment of investigators, it has also emerged that the firm used to buy many of the "put" options where a trader, in effect, bets on a share price fall on United Airlines stock was headed until 1998 by "Buzzy" Krongard, now executive director of the CIA. Until 1997, Mr Krongard was chairman of Alex Brown Inc, America's oldest investment banking firm. Alex Brown was acquired by Bankers Trust, which in turn was bought by Deutsche Bank. His last post before resigning to take his senior role in the CIA was to head Bankers Trust Alex Brown's private client business, dealing with the accounts and investments of wealthy customers around the world. Between 6 and 7 September, the Chicago Board Options Exchange saw purchases of 4,744 "put" option contracts in UAL versus 396 call options. Holders of the put options would have netted a profit of $5m (3.3m) once the carrier's share price dived after 11 September. On 10 September, more trading in Chicago saw the purchase of 4,516 put options in American Airlines, the other airline involved in the hijackings. This compares with a mere 748 call options in American purchased that day. Investigators cannot help but notice that no other airlines saw such trading in their put options.
Note: This important article on the CIA connections to the insider trading in put options on key airlines, insurance and financial corporation stocks in the days immediately before 9/11 has been removed from The Independent website. To read the full article, click here.
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