SI Jinx? How about the Risk Magazine Jinx?

Many of you may have heard about the Sports Illustrated Jinx. I've discovered the possibility of the Risk Magazine Jinx:

The news that a rogue trader at Société Générale, the French bank, somehow ran up a 4.9 billion euro ($7.2 billion) loss in stock index futures without management noticing is provoking incredulity at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Bankers, speaking anonymously, were amazed and dismayed. One worried this would further damage the reputation of banks for being able to manage their risks.

The news may also be provoking a little embarrassment at Risk Magazine in London. In this month’s issue, it name Soc Gen the “equity derivatives house of the year.” — Floyd Norris

Another 2007 winner was Merrill Lynch. This run extends back to the mid-Nineties when they named UBS the Derivatives House of the Year back in 1996, only to see that bank blow up in 1997.

My full post on Jerome Kerviel, the SocGen trader, is here.