MF Global aims for sale by Monday

(Reuters) - MF Global Holdings Ltd is racing to sell all or part of its business this weekend, with its futures brokerage business seen as the most attractive, a source familiar with the situation said on Friday.

MF Global has reached out to major banks including Barclays PLC, Citigroup Inc, Deutsche Bank, Jefferies Group Inc, JPMorgan Chase & Co, Macquarie Group Ltd, State Street Corp and Wells Fargo, according to the source.

This week MF dropped almost 70%
below is an 18-month chart

"If it gets done, it needs to get done by Monday," the source said.

"Whether it gets sold in parts or pieces, they are in good shape to orchestrate this process," the source added.

Barclays, Citigroup, Deutsche, Jefferies and Wells Fargo declined to comment, while other banks could not be reached immediately for comment.

Corzine Slashing Staff at MF Global Amid Losses

By Reuters
URL: http://www.wallstreetandtech.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=224900505

* Workforce to be cut 10-15 percent

* Adj Q4 loss 17 cents/share vs Street view profit 1 cent

* Q4 net revenue $240.5 mln vs year-ago $257.1 mln

* Shares up 1 pct in morning trading

NEW YORK - Jon Corzine, the new chief executive of MF Global Holdings Ltd , said the futures and options broker would cut its workforce by up to 15 percent as it looks to stem five straight quarters of losses.

Corzine's cost-cutting goal came as MF Global reported quarterly results that fell short of analysts' expectations. The company's shares fell sharply in premarket trading before rebounding.

In a series of moves to rein in costs, MF Global said it would reduce staff by 10 percent to 15 percent in the current quarter, freeze new hiring, reduce compensation, and eliminate or postpone initiatives that are not central to the company's direction. MF Global has a workforce of about 3,200.

"We are taking decisive action to fundamentally improve the earnings profile of this company," Corzine, a former New Jersey governor and a one-time Goldman Sachs Group Inc chief executive, said in a statement.

MF Global could see net benefits of $59 million to $75 million, or 22 cents to 28 cents per share, from cost-cutting in 2011, according to an analyst note from Ticonderoga Securities.

Corzine was named chief executive in March, succeeding Bernard Dan, who the company said resigned for personal reasons after holding the job for less than two years.

Corzine said financial regulatory reform efforts could be a boon to MF Global, especially as they zero in on the importance of exchange-traded clearing arrangements -- one of MF Global's strengths.

The company's shares were up 8 cents, or 1 percent, to $8.20 in morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange.


RESULTS

Corzine, who initiated a broad review of MF Global's businesses when he took over seven weeks ago, called the company's fourth-quarter results "completely unacceptable."

For the quarter, ended March 31, New York-based MF Global on Thursday posted net losses to common shareholders of $96.5 million, or 78 cents per share, compared with a loss of $119.3 million, or 98 cents per share, a year earlier.

Net revenue fell to $240.5 million from $257.1 million.

The adjusted loss per share was 17 cents, missing analysts' average forecast of a profit of 1 cent, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

"Going forward, these are not the kind of results that MF Global management will tolerate, nor should its shareholders," Corzine said during a call for investors.

Analyst Ed Ditmire of Macquarie Capital said in a research note that MF Global was "the only company in our market structure coverage universe which is unprofitable."

Ditmire did say there was hope ahead, noting the revenue outlook for the current quarter appears to be "very strong" in light of "surging global futures volumes ... and a doubling of our key spread indicator for MF's principal trading business."

Corzine said that as profitability returns, the company will look to engage in more principal risk-taking.

MF Global's results have been hampered in recent quarters by declines in interest income and higher interest expenses.

Bernard Dan replaced by former NJ Gov. Corzine at MF Global

Former New Jersey Governor Jon S. Corzine will take the helm of futures and options brokerage MF Global Holdings Ltd., returning to the private sector after nearly a decade in government.

Effective immediately, the 63-year-old takes over from Bernard Dan, who has resigned as CEO for personal reasons but will remain through May 16 to help with the transition.

Alison J. Carnwath is stepping down as chairman in August, after completing her three-year commitment to the company.

A former chairman of Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Corzine served as state senator from 2001 to 2006 before becoming governor of New Jersey. He recently lost his bid for re-election to Republican Chris Christie and had been rumored to be a candidate to replace Ken Lewis as CEO of Bank of America Corp.

The news sent shares of MF Global up nearly 10 percent in aftermarket trading to $8.16.

The company has faced a turbulent couple of years, after a 2008 scandal involving a rogue trader sent its stock plunging more than 80 percent, slashing hundreds of millions from MF's market value. CEO Kevin Davis stepped down later that year and was succeeded by Dan, a former president and CEO of the Chicago Board of Trade.

The brokerage, which in January moved its official residence to the U.S. from the tax haven of Bermuda, recently reported a fiscal third-quarter loss as revenue fell 17 percent due to lower interest rates and other economic factors. MF also shook up its U.S. equity business, expanding its derivatives, portfolio trading and electronic trading services teams and agreeing to sell its interdealer broker business.

"I see a substantial opportunity for the firm to expand its leadership position in serving clients globally in cash and derivatives markets," Corzine said in a statement. "We will continue to provide the highest level of service to our clients, create new opportunities for employees and grow shareholder value. Profitability and responsibility must go hand in hand with growing our franchise."

In taking the CEO post, Corzine also was appointed operating partner at private equity firm J.C. Flowers & Co., which owns a stake in MF Global. He also plans to teach at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.

MF Global said it expects to report fiscal fourth-quarter revenue between $235 million and $245 million, slightly below the average $261 million estimate of analysts polled by Thomson Reuters for the period ending in March. MF Global intends to release its full earnings report in mid-May.