November 21, 2008
Dear Mr. Cox,
We manage money for clients that are trying to make long term investments, but the idea of an orderly and fair market is nothing but a joke. The SEC has allowed, if not helped, this market to become a casino in which only day traders, hedge funds, and short sellers are represented. It appears as though it is your intent to let the market/economy be manipulated into another great depression. Your actions, or lack of action, have been ineffective and nonsensical especially considering a couple of immediate and cheap alternatives would have solved many of the markets issues instead of putting a band-aid on the problems. The ban on short selling of the financials was an embarrassment because it was totally ineffective and temporary in nature. There are two regulations, the uptick rule and mark-to-market, that need to be addressed that would have an immediate and profound impact on the stock market.
There have been many proponents for the reinstatement of the Uptick Rule. On November 20th Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz, a law firm that represents the “Who’s Who” of corporate America, put out a memo urging for the reinstatement of the Uptick Rule and stressed that this cannot wait until the new administration takes office. In the November 18th Wall Street Journal there was an article “There’s a Better Way to Prevent ‘Bear Raids’”, which focused on the flaws and misinterpretations they found in the study the SEC used to justify the elimination of the Uptick Rule. Jim Cramer has been very outspoken, and the NYSE did a survey of CEO’s, CFO’s, and Investor Relations professionals that overwhelmingly support the reinstatement of the Uptick Rule. It seems as though everyone is in support of the Uptick Rule except you. I believe the reason you haven’t put the Uptick Rule back into effect is because it would show the amount of damage you did to the market by eliminating the rule. If the Uptick rule was ineffective then why not put the rule back into effect as a cheap and immediate fix for the markets, if your right then no harm has been done but if you’re wrong the market will return to a more normal trading pattern. We believe that the market would cheer and go positive in a major way. I have attached several documents. The “HR 6517” attachment is a bill that would require the SEC to reinstate the Uptick Rule, which was introduced on July 16, 2008. The “ShortSellingStudy” attachment shows the results of a study that the NYSE did that shows how much executive are in favor of the reinstatement of the Uptick Rule. Finally, the “UptickTechReport” attachment shows how the results of the SEC study actually demonstrates the need for the Uptick Rule.
Mark-to-Market is another major problem in this market. It’s painfully obvious that this rule is causing damage to the financials. The idea of mark-to-market in a frozen market is totally insane, and it should not take a roundtable to see what is blatantly obvious. While time is wasted the markets continue to make new lows as we circle the drain waiting for someone to act. Congress gave you 90 days to research mark-to-market, but I hope that you will not use all 90 days to make this determination.
The reinstatement of the Uptick Rule and the elimination of Mark-to-Market accounting would have a tremendous impact on the market. These would be inexpensive and immediate fixes to a struggling market. I don’t understand how you can let the market get destroyed without stepping in with these rule changes that you know would help. I hope that the Uptick Rule will be a topic of discussion at the IOSCO meeting and that after the meeting and the roundtable you will make the decision to reinstate the Uptick Rule and suspend Mark-to-Market accounting. I beg you to do what is right and what is needed! Thanks for your time!
Please forward this email to Chairman Cox and Commissioners: Kathleen Casey, Elisse Walter, Luis Aguilar, and Troy Paredes.
Thanks,
Ryan Stine
Chlebina Capital Management
Phone: (330) 668-9200
Fax: (330) 668-9201
843 N. Cleveland-Massillon Rd. Ste 12DN
Akron, OH 44333
Attachments:
Copyrighted material redacted. Author cites to "Short Selling Sudy: The views of Corporate Issuers," Conducted for NYSE Euronext & Prepared by Opinion Research Corporation, dated October 17, 2008
Technical Report on SEC Uptick Repeal Pilot