If You Don't Tell the Public, Maybe We'll Reform

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"Embarrassing public disclosures about Citigroup threaten to complicate final negotiations aimed at cleaning up tainted Wall Street research and stock-offering practices," reports Thor Valdmanis. "Top lawyers from Wall Street investment banks are under orders to demand that securities regulators give firm assurances that the industry will be spared further damaging revelations in return for signing on to a sweeping reform package being discussed this afternoon at the New York Stock Exchange." The latest damaging revelation suggests that Citigroup chairman Sanford Weill overestimated the value of AT&T stock for reasons that "appear to have been self-interested." Small investors who relied on AT&T's inflated valuation lost billions of dollars.