SIFMA again

It's that time of the year again, and the second week of June usually means the annual SIFMA conference in at the Hilton in New York. June 10th is the first day of the conference, and the one that features the good parties. I will be walking around the show that day, most likely with my badge in my pocket so that I don't get accosted by vendors.

It will be interesting to hear how vendors are coping with the IT spending slowdown in Capital Markets. You cannot turn around without hearing of another round of layoffs or budget cuts at some financial firm. There will be 7000 less people in the financial sector in a few weeks, as JPM severs the tie with half of Bear Stearns. Lehman and Morgan Stanley have been having stealth layoffs. (I am quite amazed at some of the people who have been laid off from Morgan Stanley in the past few weeks, including a few Executive Directors). HereIsTheCity.com is reporting that most IB's have cut consulting rates from 10 to 20%.

However, I am hoping for a good show, and a chance to reconnect with former colleagues and friends. I am most interested in cool data visualizations and analysis tools, new products in the CEP space, and most of all, T-Shirts !!!


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