Bill Murphy (GATA chairman)
Encyclopedia
Bill Murphy is a former American
professional football
player, financial commentator, and the chairman and director of the Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee
(GATA), which was founded as a result of Murphy's essays on collusion among large financial institutions to suppress the price of precious metal
s. Murphy believes the price of gold is artificially low and has spent years lobbying the U.S. government to investigate market manipulation
in the gold market. Earlier disregarded as a conspiracy theorist, his arguments were strengthened by a London precious metals trader who became a whistleblower and an American commodities trader, who inadvertently revealed that gold was leveraged 100 times physical.
and graduated from Cornell University
in 1968. While in college, he played American football
and went on to become a starting wide receiver
for the Boston Patriots. He then went to work at Merrill Lynch
as a trainee learning the commodities markets. He later worked at Shearson Hayden Stone and Drexel Burnham, eventually starting his own brokerage firm
. From 1993 to 1996, Murphy lived in Miami, Florida, where he was an entrepreneur
Murphy is now a financial commentator and operates a financial website for investors of gold.
On March 25, 2010, Murphy spoke at a hearing of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission
(CFTC) on position limits in precious metals markets. Murphy identified Andrew Maguire
as the source of information on market manipulation in the silver market. Maguire had contacted Adrian Douglas, a member of GATA's board, after Maguire was not invited to speak at the CFTC hearing. The day after Murphy revealed Maguire as the informant who sent e-mails about fraud to the CFTC, Maguire and his wife were victims of a hit-and-run accident in London.
Murphy's claims were also buttressed by an inadvertent admission by Jeffrey Christian, a former Goldman Sachs
trader, who revealed that London bullion market over-the-counter
trades of gold were 100 times the holdings of physical gold, meaning that each ounce of gold was being sold 100 times. Murphy and GATA have long claimed that the gold market was using fractional reserve practices.
On April 29, 2011, Murphy appeared at an event hosted by the Deutsche Edelmetall-Gesellschaft in Munich
, Germany. Billed as "An Evening with Bill Murphy", it was attended by 200 people from 15 countries.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
professional football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
player, financial commentator, and the chairman and director of the Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee
Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee
The Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee is an organization dedicated to investigating and proving its allegation that the quantity of gold held and traded by the world's central banks, international bullion banks and futures exchanges is significantly overstated and that a scheme analogous to the...
(GATA), which was founded as a result of Murphy's essays on collusion among large financial institutions to suppress the price of precious metal
Precious metal
A precious metal is a rare, naturally occurring metallic chemical element of high economic value.Chemically, the precious metals are less reactive than most elements, have high lustre, are softer or more ductile, and have higher melting points than other metals...
s. Murphy believes the price of gold is artificially low and has spent years lobbying the U.S. government to investigate market manipulation
Market manipulation
Market manipulation describes a deliberate attempt to interfere with the free and fair operation of the market and create artificial, false or misleading appearances with respect to the price of, or market for, a security, commodity or currency...
in the gold market. Earlier disregarded as a conspiracy theorist, his arguments were strengthened by a London precious metals trader who became a whistleblower and an American commodities trader, who inadvertently revealed that gold was leveraged 100 times physical.
Biographical details
Born William J. Murphy III, he grew up in Glen Ridge, New JerseyGlen Ridge, New Jersey
Glen Ridge is a borough in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the borough population was 7,527. In 2010, Glen Ridge was ranked as the 38th Best Place to live by New Jersey Monthly magazine....
and graduated from Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
in 1968. While in college, he played American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
and went on to become a starting wide receiver
Wide receiver
A wide receiver is an offensive position in American and Canadian football, and is the key player in most of the passing plays. Only players in the backfield or the ends on the line are eligible to catch a forward pass. The two players who begin play at the ends of the offensive line are eligible...
for the Boston Patriots. He then went to work at Merrill Lynch
Merrill Lynch
Merrill Lynch is the wealth management division of Bank of America. With over 15,000 financial advisors and $2.2 trillion in client assets it is the world's largest brokerage. Formerly known as Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc., prior to 2009 the firm was publicly owned and traded on the New York...
as a trainee learning the commodities markets. He later worked at Shearson Hayden Stone and Drexel Burnham, eventually starting his own brokerage firm
Brokerage firm
A brokerage firm, or simply brokerage or broker in context, is a financial institution that facilitates the buying and selling of financial derivatives between a buyer and a seller...
. From 1993 to 1996, Murphy lived in Miami, Florida, where he was an entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
Murphy is now a financial commentator and operates a financial website for investors of gold.
Fighting gold market manipulation
Murphy began compiling evidence and writing about manipulation of the gold market in the mid-1990s. His claims about a gold cartel and market suppression were initially ridiculed as conspiracy theories and discounted. In 2008, the CFTC released a report in which they acknowledged that since the 1980s, they had received "numerous letters, e-mails and phone calls" alleging that prices in the silver market were being suppressed. Murphy and GATA have gained recognition, but still have difficulty being covered by the mainstream media.On March 25, 2010, Murphy spoke at a hearing of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission
Commodity Futures Trading Commission
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission is an independent agency of the United States government that regulates futures and option markets....
(CFTC) on position limits in precious metals markets. Murphy identified Andrew Maguire
Andrew Maguire (whistleblower)
Andrew Maguire is an independent bullion trader and a whistleblower. He notified United States regulators that fraud had been committed, manipulating prices in the international gold and silver markets...
as the source of information on market manipulation in the silver market. Maguire had contacted Adrian Douglas, a member of GATA's board, after Maguire was not invited to speak at the CFTC hearing. The day after Murphy revealed Maguire as the informant who sent e-mails about fraud to the CFTC, Maguire and his wife were victims of a hit-and-run accident in London.
Murphy's claims were also buttressed by an inadvertent admission by Jeffrey Christian, a former Goldman Sachs
Goldman Sachs
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is an American multinational bulge bracket investment banking and securities firm that engages in global investment banking, securities, investment management, and other financial services primarily with institutional clients...
trader, who revealed that London bullion market over-the-counter
Over-the-counter (finance)
Within the derivatives markets, many products are traded through exchanges. An exchange has the benefit of facilitating liquidity and also mitigates all credit risk concerning the default of a member of the exchange. Products traded on the exchange must be well standardised to transparent trading....
trades of gold were 100 times the holdings of physical gold, meaning that each ounce of gold was being sold 100 times. Murphy and GATA have long claimed that the gold market was using fractional reserve practices.
On April 29, 2011, Murphy appeared at an event hosted by the Deutsche Edelmetall-Gesellschaft in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, Germany. Billed as "An Evening with Bill Murphy", it was attended by 200 people from 15 countries.
External links
- Le Métropole Café, website for gold investors
- Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee official website
- Bill Murphy speaking at the CFTC hearing YouTube (March 25, 2010). Retrieved May 8, 2011