Credit Suisse...From Marc Rich to Frank Quattrone

Credit Suisse, banker to the Nazis, the Mafia, drug cartel lords, corrupt dictators and some really bad actors, hit a double this month. First, Credit Suisse agreed to buy Glencore, formerly known as Marc Rich & Co. before the fugitive financier sold his interest in the firm. In the same way that water finds its own level, Credit Suisse found a suitable business partner in a firm tainted by fraud from its inception and today run by Marc Rich's associates. In short, birds of a feather flock together.

Next, Credit Suisse "capo" Frank Quattrone has apparently successfully avoided a third trial on federal criminal charges of obstruction of justice. The NASD previously dropped its charges against "Quatro" and so it appears that this slimy crook is going to get a pass from the feds in a deal. Quattrone was never charged for his IPO aftermarket manipulations despite massive documentary evidence that he directed the unlawful conduct of Credit Suisse, including VA Linux, which was manipulated from $30 to $300 on its first day of trading, making fortunes for the "Friends of Frank."

So the Bush Administration, with its Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson fresh from Goldman Sachs, a co-conspirator with Credit Suisse in the 1999-2000 IPO manipulations, is giving Quatronne a pass. The previous President, Bill Clinton, pardoned Marc Rich, the first and only fugitive to ever be pardoned by an American President, and Marc Rich continues his billionaire lifestyle in Switzerland, the home of Credit Suisse. I'd bet dollars to doughnuts that Credit Suisse is a banker for Marc Rich and his criminal associates like Pinky Green to the present day.

Frank Quattrone and Credit Suisse have again restored my faith in cynicism, with help from the SEC, NASD, and the U.S. Department of Justice. And they say that crime doesn't pay. Maybe if you're a black kid who mugged a white person, but whether you're Marc Rich or Frank Quattrone or Ken Lay, crime does pay, and in telephone-book numbers.

Credit Suisse provided excellent service to the Nazis, but only paid back the Holocaust survivors' deposits after litigation in America forced Credit Suisse to honor its obligations to the Jewish victims of Credit Suisse's "best" customer, Adolph Hitler and the Nazis. Today Credit Suisse continues its long traditions of money laundering for organized crime, avoiding criminal charges, and doing business with established crooks.

"Plus la change, plus la meme chose."