(Reuters) - Former MF Global Holdings Ltd chief Jon Corzine received more than $8 million in pay and stock options from the futures brokerage in the year before it went bankrupt.
Corzine's pay along with that of other former MF Global executives was listed in a court document filed on Friday by Louis Freeh, the trustee unwinding the company's bankrupt estate.
Corzine, a former Goldman Sachs chief and New Jersey governor, was paid $3 million in cash, the filing showed, as well as $5.35 million in stock options, which are likely now worthless. The filing showed his pay between November 2010 and October 28, 2011.
MF Global declared bankruptcy on October 31, 2011, amid a liquidity crunch prompted by worries over the company's $6.3 billion bet on European sovereign debt.
A coalition of former MF Global customers last week asked that the case be streamlined and sped up to cut down on fees charged by the legal team winding down the estate so that the customers receive more.
It took more than six months for Freeh to file Friday's MF Global financial data containing Corzine's pay.
The bankruptcy is In re MF Global Holdings Ltd, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of New York, No. 11-15059
The broker-dealer liquidation is In re MF Global Inc, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of New York, No. 11-2790.
(Reporting by Basil Katz; Editing by Ryan Woo)
See below for the entire MF Global saga:
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Lost Customer Funds Found
James Giddens, the trustee overseeing the liquidation of MF Global, told the Senate Banking Committee in April that $1.6 billion worth of lost customer funds had been found and his analysis <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/25/mf-global-missing-customer-money-accounted-for_n_1452128.html?ref=business" target="_hplink">"is substantially concluded,"</a> CNNMoney reports.
Jon Corzine Takes the Reins at MF Global
In a big turning point for the brokerage firm, in 2010 MF Global Holdings hired Jon Corzine, a former chief executive at Goldman Sachs, former U.S. senator and former Governor of New Jersey. Corzine returned to the financial industry after losing his gubernatorial reelection bid to Chris Christie in 2009.
Leveraged Bets on European Debt
Jon Corzine made risky moves in his mission to turn MF Global into a big Wall Street player. After a period of aggressive trading didn't earn the profits Corzine had hoped for, the firm delved into the foreign debt market, making $6.3 billion worth of large and heavily leveraged bets on distressed sovereign debt in troubled European countries like Spain and Italy.
Bankruptcy
Europe's economy continued to melt. MF Global investors panicked when they caught wind of the billions in leveraged bets, and on Oct. 31 MF Global filed for bankruptcy. It was called the first American financial casualty of the European debt crisis.
Federal Investigation
During the firm's collapse, federal regulators discovered that $630 million in customer money couldn't be accounted for. A federal investigation ensued, and forensic accountants found the amount was actually closer to $1.2 billion. Experts suspected the client money was used inappropriately for company purposes.
Lobbying
The investigation shed light on Jon Corzine using his personal influence in Washington to lobby against restrictions on how firms can invest customer money.
Corzine Resigns
On Nov. 4, four days after the firm filed for bankruptcy, Jon Corzine voluntarily stepped down. He had not been accused of any wrongdoing.
'MF Global Rule'
In early December federal regulators adopted the 'MF Global rule' to prevent other firms from using client funds to buy sovereign debt. Regulators restricted the transaction that allowed MF Global to borrow money from its own customers.
Corzine Testifies Before Congress
On Dec. 8 Jon Corzine testified before Congress on the missing money. Speaking to his former colleagues in the Senate, Corzine said he was "stunned" by the missing client funds. He offered an apology but said, "I simply do not know where the money is."
Developing Case
Corzine testified that he didn't know any customer money was missing until the day before the firm filed for bankruptcy. But a financial executive<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/13/jon-corzine-testimony-_n_1146192.html?ref=business
" target="_hplink"> claimed</a> Crozine "was aware" of a $175 million transfer from customer accounts to a European affiliate of the firm.
$200 Million Transfer Of Customer Funds
Ex-CEO Jon Corzine allegedly authorized the transfer of around $200 million in customer funds to pay down an overdraft just days before the firm collapsed, <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-03-24/mf-global-s-corzine-ordered-funds-moved-to-jp-morgan-memo-says.html" target="_hplink"><em>Bloomberg</em></a> reported in February.
Pleading The Fifth
MF Global executives <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/28/mf-global-hearing-executives-millions-customer-funds_n_1386701.html" target="_hplink">denied having significant knowledge of an authorized transfer of around $200 million</a> in customer funds to avoid an overdraft. Edith O'Brien, an executive who wrote an email about the transfer at the time, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/28/former-mf-global-executive-edith-obrien-5th-amendment_n_1386210.html" target="_hplink">invoked the Fifth Amendment</a>.
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Reuters | Posted: 05/22/2012 10:57 am Updated: 05/22/2012 10:59 am