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Ever heard of Jerome Kerviel? Me neither, but he's apparently the rogue trader behind Société Générale's $7.4 billion trading loss. That's more than Amaranth ($6.6 billion) and Nick Leeson ($1.4 billion).

The trades first came to management's attention on the evening of Jan. 18, when a compliance officer found a trade that exceeded the bank's limits, Mustier said. When Societe Generale called the counterparty, they were told the trade didn't exist.

The employee, who moved to the trading floor from the back office in 2006, helped with the investigations throughout the weekend, said Mustier. He said he doesn't know where the trader is now.

"He is in his thirties, very quiet and a loner," said Yves Messarovitch, an external spokesman for Societe Generale. "He had made his dream of becoming a trader come true."

Great, he sounds like a serial murderer. According to Bess Levin, he's hot (w/pic). I report, you decide.

Posted by edelfenbein at January 24, 2008 11:44 AM