Maybe the merger wasn't a great idea
From Investment News
After the Scudder Kemper Investments merger investors took out $2.02 billion more than they put in during the first six months of this year, according to Financial Research Corp. Of every dollar that left the company through June, 33 cents went out Scudder's doors and 67 cents went out Kemper's. The reason why, according to industry experts -- uncompetitive performance, an overhaul of its stock-picking process, a rash of executive defections and a difficult reorganization.
Up close and personal
From TheStreet.com
As reported yesterday in the Wall Street Journal, OpenFund has opened the magic curtain taking disclosure to new levels. The fund is posting the details of its trades on its website at as soon as they're completed and encouraging investors to discuss holdings with the fund's managers on discussion boards. Investors can even see the firm's traders and portfolio managers at work via a trading room Web-cam. Critics believe market-timers will bring down the curtain or the fund's gimmicky disclosure policy could lead investors to overlook its risks.
Putting your money where your mouth is
From The Wall Street Journal
Investors feel that the managers of their funds should eat their own cooking. Bridgeway Capital Management Inc. of Houston is doing just that. The fund company is disclosing the salary and holdings of Bridgeway majority owner and fund manager John Montgomery. The Bridgeway disclosure provides a look at the economics of the fund business and also shows that Montgomery has put a lot of capital into the small firm. Bridgeway has only taken out modest cash, in hopes of building a business that could be worth far more later.
First Union abuses 401(k) plan
From The New York Times
In a lawsuit filed yesterday, employees of First Union Corp., owner of the nation's sixth-largest bank, accuse their employer of operating its 401(k) plan to earn "monopolistic profits" at the expense of its workers. The suit contends the company charged higher fees for its workers than it charged much smaller 401(k) plans it manages. The suit also contends that as First Union considered entering the recordkeeping business it experimented using its 401(k) plan and then charged these costs to its workers.
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