Let’s start the bidding at £3,000. Who’ll give me £3,000? £3,000? £2,000,£2,000, £1000. £1,000, thank you sir, from the Daily Telegraph, £1,000 gets us going, £1,200 from Associated Press, thank you madam, thank you, £1,400, from Reuters, who’ll give me £1,600, £1,600, bidding still at £1,400 with Reuters, two lots for sale today, two lots, two unmissable opportunities to speak to someone who really knows what they’re talking about when it comes to rogue trading, £1,400, £1,400, still with Reuters, £1,600! Thank you to that representative from Thompson Financial! £1,600. Hopefully you do understand you’ve just outbid your own media partner…
They don’t come along too regularly - mega bank scandals where a rogue trader has secretly built up huge losses by hiding position - just as Nick Leeson did at Barings 13 years ago.
His bank went bust, but Leeson is still drawing an occasional fee from the mess - a speech here, a newspaper column there.
On Thursday, with a holiday to Paris already booked and due to commence tomorrow, Leeson had agreed to offer just two interviews where he will offer his views on the mysterious €5bn loss at Societe Generale.
His agent, Neil Martin, is now taking bids, quoting an indicative price of “upwards of £1,000.”
Here on FT Alphaville we don’t get paid until tomorrow and, what, with Christmas, New Year, mortgage-resets…
But drop us a mail if you do want to bid and we will forward details.
