Jon Corzine gets third congressional subpoena
A third congressional panel on Wednesday voted to subpoena Jon Corzine, the former Democratic senator and former New Jersey governor, about his role in the failure of MF Global, where he served as chief executive.
The House Financial Services Committee announced today that Corzine will be called to testify before the subcommittee on oversight and investigations on December 15. The subcommittee voted unanimously to subpoena Corzine after he refused an invitation to the hearing through his attorney.
The subcommittee intends to explore the causes and consequences of the brokerage firm's collapse, as well as the level of coordination between the firm's regulators.
"Mr. Corzine's testimony, along with that of other witnesses, will help the Subcommittee to properly and thoroughly examine MF Global's corporate behavior and will assist in identifying potential regulatory failures," subcommittee chairman Rep. Randy Neugebauer, R-Texas, said in a statement.
Financial Services Committee Chairman Spencer Bachus, R-Ala., said it was important for the panel to examine the company's meltdown, since its customers lost millions of dollars without a trace.
Corzine served as MF Global's chairman and CEO from March 2010 until shortly after the firm filed for bankruptcy on October 31, following a bad bet on European debt. With nearly $1.2 billion estimated to be missing from customer accounts, regulators are investigating whether the firm used that money as its financial situation worsened. The FBI is also investigating whether the firm violated criminal laws.
Corzine is already slated to testify before the House Agriculture Committee on Thursday after receiving a subpoena from that panel, and he will also be forced to testify before the Senate Agriculture Committee on December 13.
Before joining MF Global, Corzine was a politician representing New Jersey for nearly a decade. He served in the Senate from 2001 to 2005 and as governor from 2006 to 2010. Before joining the Senate, he served as CEO of Goldman Sachs.
