Tip of the hat to Red County/OC Blog for the latest episode of
Treasurer-Tax Collector Chriss Street’s roller-coaster ride continues.
The County of Orange has $80 million in a structured investment vehicle called Whistlejacket Capital.
Unfortunately, Whistlejacket is in trouble.
According to today’s Times of London:
Standard Chartered has dropped attempts to rescue its $7.1 billion (£3.6 billion) structured investment vehicle (SIV), Whistlejacket, a week after it went into receivership.
Standard Chartered said that it had pulled its offers, which included taking all of Whistlejacket’s assets on to its balance sheet, because of the “pact of continuing deterioration in the market for certain asset classes and the impracticality of completing any proposal within the confines of the receivership”.
Deloitte, the receiver appointed to Whistlejacket, said that it was now seeking other solutions, including talks with other banks that might like to buy the vehicle.
One upshot is the county was receive the interest payment it is due next month, because Whistlejacket has suspended payments of principal and interest. Click here for the Treasurer-Tax Collector’s “Investment Inventory (as of January 31, 2008). Whistlejacket is on pages 4 and 5.
Whistlejacket went into receivership last week because the value of its assets dropped to less than half the value of the start-up capital.
Looks like Treasurer Street is going to have some ‘splainin to do at the next Board of Supervisors
meeting.
Here are some past articles on the troubles of Whistlejacket from last week and December 2007
Please note: Chris Prevatt is feeling a little poorly today. Please send kind thoughts his way. As soon as he can, he will update, expand, or otherwise repair this post, presented at his request. Thanks for your indulgence.