Word: jedi
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
There is nothing inherently sinister about special-purpose entities, and Enron's initial investors did well because the deals were straightforward. CalPERS, the California state pension system and one of the nation's largest institutional investors, put $250 million into an spe called jedi i, which invested in natural gas projects. CalPERS got back $433 million, a spiffy 73% return over four years...
...watchdog for the state, she uncovered more than $1 billion worth of Medi-Cal fraud in 1999 and more recently, refused to pick up $2,600 in expenses for takeout sushi and pizza ordered by state employees working late during the energy crisis. At the time CalPERS was considering JEDI II, Connell was the only one on the board with an investment banking background. An investment banker for a decade, she had run her own investment banking firm and served as a vice president and director at the Chemical Bank of New York. And she had a lot of questions...
...members voted 10-1 to invest $500 million of pensioners' retirements in JEDI II, with one lone dissenter: California's state controller, Kathleen Connell. "I didn't feel comfortable about the deal," she told TIME. "It didn't pass the smell test...
...closed door session with investment advisers before the arrival of Enron's go-go salesman that day - Jeff Skilling himself - committee members were similarly confused about the structure of Enron and puzzled over the lack of transparency in the JEDI setups. Only after repeated questioning did the outside advisers who brought CalPERS the deal - Pacific Corporate Group of LaJolla, Calif. - admit that Enron was offering stock, instead of cash, as a maneuver to improve their debt-to-equity ratio and keep their credit rating up. Connell was offended. "We were going to put cash in, they were going...
...California's pensioners got out unhurt. In what Connell says was a normal rotation of funds, CalPERS eventually liquidated its eventual $175.5 million investment in Jedi II in 2000 and received $171 million as of Oct. 31, 2001 - "a wash," according to spokeswoman Pat Macht. (The deal was actually tougher on Enron - CalPERS' exit forced the company to cover the funds by setting up the flawed Chewco partnership that would eventually start Enron's financial dominoes falling.) By then, says Connell, "We were just happy to get our money...