Rogue Trader Blamed for Huge Swings in Wheat Market
MF Global takes loss of $141.5 million after trades unwound
Bryce Knorr
Published: Feb 28, 2008
A rogue trader is being blamed for wild swings in the wheat market on Wednesday, creating historic volatility that caused prices to move almost $2 a bushel in just two minutes.
MF Global, a big player in the futures and derivatives industry, announced it unwound several thousand contracts of Chicago wheat put on by one of its trader that were unauthorized. The trader, out of the firm's Memphis office, was fired, according to the company. As a result, the firm said it incurred a loss of $141.5 million dollars.
MF Global, formerly known as Mann Financial, said the trader put on the positions early in the morning on Wednesday, trading in his personal account and substantially exceeding his authorized trading limits. A failure in the company's order entry systems apparently allowed the trader to greatly exceed his position limits. No client funds were affect, the company said.
Rumors swirled around the flood yesterday trying to explain the big move. One story had an order entry being made, with a clerk pressing 5,000 instead of 500 on a buy order.
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Tagged: wheat, Bushel
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