Fall-Out From Spying Scandal

Mayor Mike's company takes a hit:

A number of Wall Street firms are hoping to cut back on at least some of the popular features offered by Bloomberg LP — moves that could crimp the data distributor’s bottom line.

The firms, Citigroup, Barclays, Goldman Sachs and at least one other, are making the move after The Post broke the news that Bloomberg reporters had access to some proprietary client information.

They are looking to pull back on features such as chat and instant messaging in favor of their own more secure, proprietary services.

Barclays is considering creating its own Bloomberg-like products, such as messaging, sources tell The Post.

A Barclays spokesman wasn’t able to comment.


One major bulge-bracket New York-based bank, which declined to be identified because its plans are in the formative stage, also is exploring creating similar features for its staffers.

The moves by the banks are aimed at lowering the $20,000-a-year per terminal rental fee — or, in some cases, cut the number of terminals they rent.

Citigroup plans on rolling out both an instant messaging and an internal newsfeed known as CitiFX Wire for its foreign exchange traders and clients.

Citi’s wire service is internally created but also aggregates some news through an agreement with Dow Jones, a person familiar with the situation told The Post.

Both Dow Jones and The Post are owned by News Corp.

Depending on how well the product is received, the bank might roll it out more broadly and be able to offer it to new staff members instead of turning to Bloomberg.

Citi hopes it can introduce the products to new employees or those who don’t have Bloomberg terminals, a source familiar with the situation said.

A Citi spokesman said that the bank’s plans, in the works for the past two years, aren’t related to Bloomberg’s recent SpyGate.

Criminal banks and Wall Street firms moving their scummy business from one company engaged in spying and hacking owned by an oligarch (Bloomberg) to another company engaged in spying and hacking owned by an oligarch (Murdoch).   Well, at the very least Mayor Mikey will lose some money from this.   That means less money for his PAC to throw around post-City Hall.