Goldman Sachs

Emails Show Cozy Ties Between Federal Pension Guarantor And Wall Street Firms He Hired

Zachary Roth | July 29, 2009, 1:57PM

Remember our old friend Charles Millard? He's the former Lehman investment banker who, after taking over the federal agency that guarantees our pension systems, had the genius idea to ignore a host of warnings and switch the agency's investment portfolio from conservative bonds to risky stocks -- just as last year's financial storm was gathering.

We also learned -- thanks to an inquiry by the inspector general for the agency, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation -- that Millard had had extensive contacts with staff at Goldman Sachs, BlackRock Capital, and JP Morgan, during the period that the P.B.G.C. was choosing firms to hire as managers for its fund. And that Millard also raised the issue of getting a job with these firms once he left government. All three firms ended up winning contracts -- which were recently revoked, thanks to concern about those contacts.

Read more »