Malcolm stood in front of a window reading the morning newspaper. Three financial institutions had suspended five of their executives. No specific reasons given. More citizens had given details of what they judged to be clever financial scams. An editor's note stated: "More complaints are being received as the paper is about to go to press. They will be printed in the next issue." Malcolm took the newspaper to his desk to copy the names of the three institutions: 'The Peoples' Helping Hand: Mutual, Loans, and Deposits,' 'The Franco-American Institute for Overseas Investments,' and 'Le Crédit Canadien pour l'Amérique Latine.' Malcolm flipped his pencil between his fingers, staring thoughtfully into space, as Paul entered the office. "I wonder what makes those banks act so quickly," he said, almost to himself.
"Fear," Paul replied, pouring himself a cup of coffee. "Pure, simple old fear."
"But fear of what?"
"I just got some interesting news," Paul replied. "From an unofficial but reliable source. A young chartered accountant who had worked in the past for The Franco-American Institute offered testimony about several scams. Each followed an accurate, sophisticated pattern. The targets were seniors, or people who couldn't take care of their financial affairs, like minors and the handicapped. Often, these people depended on others for their investments, making any control or reaction slower than normal."
"Source?" Malcolm asked.
"I didn't get the source, but I got the name of one of the big fish…Leslie Hadson."
"The super-consultant? He's on the advisory board of a half dozen banks!"
"Right. It isn't official, of course. Money was invested in fake companies, phantom charitable institutions, at a face value of fifteen to twenty per cent interest. These companies-often in foreign countries-would default. The money would disappear." Paul paused. "This accountant resigned when it became clear to him that fraud was being committed."
"How is that possible? There are controls upon controls-" Malcolm asked, puzzled.
"And controllers upon controllers, and several rules and regulations. Apparently the fraud was based on shuffling the accounts from bank to bank, different branches of the same bank, back and forth. It would take months to follow each and every one of the transactions involving different banks and several foreign countries."
Malcolm nodded. "I see."
"Coffee?" Paul asked.
"Yes, please."
"The entire testimony will appear in the evening edition of the 24-Hour Bulletin. They got an exclusive." Paul came back with coffee.