Jan
26
“Banker Bashing” Is Not Always Warranted!
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A popular pasttime has been bashing the bankers as they are seen as the cause of the current global financial meltdown, and not without good reason in my view. However, bankers aren’t all bad and I’ve learnt that the good folks over at Jefferies & Co (a US investment bank) have made a sterling effort to help the poor people of Haiti by donating wads of cash to assist in the relief effort. Well done everybody and a huge thank you from the bottom of my heart.
If you want to help the relief effort go to http://www.dec.org and donate online.
Here’s the full Jefferies press release:
NEW YORK and LONDON, January 19, 2010 – Jefferies announced today a total donation of $7.5 million to organizations providing immediate help to victims of the earthquake in Haiti. The firm’s clients generated $5.5 million through global trading commissions on January 15th, Jefferies donated $1 million, and voluntary elections from the firm’s 2,628 employee-partners and Board of Directors totalled another $1 million. All funds will be wired directly today for immediate relief work.
Contributions will be designated only for relief efforts associated with the recent earthquake in Haiti. The American Red Cross, UNICEF, Save the Children, the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund (CBHF) and the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) will each receive $1 million. Partners in Health, Americares, Shelterbox, HEART 9/11 and SOS Children’s Village will each receive $500,000.
‘On Wednesday, twenty H.E.A.R.T. veteran disaster response experts will be escorted by the FBI to Haiti. We will leverage our hard earned wisdom and the financial support of Jefferies to provide leadership to multiply response effectiveness, and with the skills and empathy born from the WTC mission, we will respectfully recover the Haitian victims and empower the survivors to build again’, said Bill Keegan, President of H.E.A.R.T. 9/11.
‘This extraordinary contribution from Jefferies, as well as their many philanthropic clients, to UNICEF’s emergency relief efforts in Haiti is truly remarkable and will literally save lives; the enthusiasm shown to make a difference by Jefferies’ leadership and employees is encouraging’, commented Edward Lloyd, Chief Financial Officer of the United States Fund for UNICEF. ‘One hundred percent of the funds will go toward our effort to provide items such as water purification tablets, oral rehydration salts, tents, portable toilets, blankets and other basic necessities, insuring that Haiti’s children are getting all that they need now and in the weeks to come, we are truly appreciative’.
‘This gift will go directly to provide emergency medical care for patients in Haiti. Thanks to the generosity of Jefferies and their clients, PIH is sending medical personnel, supplies, food and water that are so desperately needed. We are very grateful’, said Paul Zintl, Chief Operations Officer, Partners In Health.
‘Our 2,628 employee-partners and our amazing clients made this happen. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts’, added Richard B. Handler, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Jefferies.