Questions Swirl About When MF Global Client Funds Disappeared

MFGLOBAL

Hundreds of millions of dollars of missing client funds at bankrupt MF Global may have disappeared earlier than investigators and executives previously suggested, according to a published report.

Citing people familiar with the situation, The Wall Street Journal reported the shortfall  -- then estimated at some $200 million -- may have occurred as early as October 27.

However, MF Global execs didn’t notify the CME Group (NYSE:CME) until October 28 or regulators until hours before the October 31 bankruptcy, the paper reported.

Since MF Global’s implosion, regulators and investigators have been scouring MF Global’s books in an effort to find an estimated $600 million in missing client funds. Had they known of the issue earlier, they may have intervened to prevent the problem from worsening, the Journal reported.

Led by former Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) CEO Jon Corzine, MF Global collapsed as customers and counterparties lost confidence in its ability to survive after it disclosed more than $6 billion in net exposure to the debt of euro-zone nations like Italy and Portugal.

Corzine, a former governor and U.S. Senator, resigned earlier this month and hired a prominent defense attorney amid questions about the missing client funds and whether or not management misled investors about the company’s financial health.