Abstract

The Grubman

The article discusses how megabank Citigroup's well known stock tout, Grubman, manipulated investors into buying the shares of American Telephone & Telegraph (AT&T), not to accumulate more wealth for himself or his firm but to get his 3-year-old twins into the prestigious preschool at the 92nd Street Y in Manhattan, New York City. Quite funny, Grubman confided to a friend, but there are no bounds for what you do for your children. To secure the school's acceptance of his children, Grubman enlists the aid of his boss, Weill, who agrees to give $1 million to the school, not his money but the bank's. In return, Grubman pumps up his valuation of AT&T stock to a strong buy so that Weill may gain favor with Armstrong, AT&T chieftain and a Citigroup director.