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Strategies & Market Trends : Rande Is . . . HOME -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Rande Is who wrote (47823)	2/22/2001 2:16:35 PM
From: Tradelite	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 57584

re:Arthur Levitt writing for investors.... ____ Levitt to Pen Investing Book By Kathleen Day and Linton Weeks Washington Post Staff Writers Wednesday, February 21, 2001; Page E03 Former Securities and Exchange Commission chairman Arthur Levitt Jr. said yesterday he plans to write a book to help consumers understand the pitfalls of the stock market. Levitt, 69, who was the longest-reigning head of the SEC when he stepped down two weeks ago, said he wants the book to be a guide for investors. It will suggest key questions to ask stockbrokers and explain how mutual funds work, why analysts have an incentive to promote -- rather than shun -- many stocks, and how to spot financial fraud. Levitt follows many other Clinton administration officials who are cashing in on their years in government by writing books. He is being represented by Washington lawyer Robert Barnett, who also handles the literary dealings of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.), the former first lady, and former secretary of state Madeleine K. Albright. Levitt said in an interview that he has no contract yet for the book, which so far is untitled, but several publishing houses have expressed interest. "There is no effective lobbying group for personal investors," he said. "It's something I would like to see happen." Levitt said last month that when he left the SEC he planned to help create a scorecard that investors could use to monitor how their representatives and senators vote on shareholder-protection issues. He said yesterday that he has no plans to launch a Web site or start a foundation to promote such a scorecard but hopes his book will motivate others to pursue that and other pro-consumer ideas. He said the book will highlight, among other issues, some of the hidden costs and other market policies that work against the individual investor. "I hope this book will help tantalize investors to recognize the power they have not yet recognized," said Levitt, who worked on Wall Street for years before coming to the SEC in 1993. During his tenure at the SEC, Levitt pushed companies to disclose more financial information to individual investors and to do so in easy-to-understand language. "I don't think politicians understand the power of investors," he said. "Most members of Congress care much more about institutional interests than personal investors. They care about stock exchanges, brokerage firms, banks, accountants and lawyers." © 2001 The Washington Post Company