Business week in review

Dirty farmers, dodgy bankers, faulty cars and Telecom's customer service have dominated the business section this week.

The trifecta of sex, booze and fraud proved the most tempting for Stuff.co.nz’s business readers this week, with the sentencing of a disgraced banker who had a liking for spending other people’s money on prostitutes topping the most popular list.

Stephen Gerard Versalko, was jailed for six years for siphoning nearly $18 million off 30 wealthy clients from ASB Bank, where he worked. He spent over $3.3 million of his ill-gotten gains on prostitutes.

Versalko’s antics had people likening him to American fraudster Bernard Madoff, who was also in the news this week for being the victim of a jailhouse bashing. Madoff, who is serving a 150 year sentence after conning investors out of US$65 billion, reportedly had his ribs cracked and nose broken by a fellow inmate.

Meanwhile, in other dodgy finance news,  failed finance company Capital + Merchant is the subject of an investigation by the Serious Fraud Office while four of its directors face criminal charges.

Telecom was in the headlines again, after it complained the Government's plans to rollout high speed broadband in rural areas and reform the Telecommunications Service Obligations could cost it $56 million a year.

Telecom's share price sank to fresh lows on the news, prompting the government to say its plans weren't  ‘anti-Telecom’

One of the telco’s customers is anti-Telecom though. Dorothy Bagnuda is refusing to pay her bill until the quality of her phone connection improves.

Faulty cars were also in the headlines again. Holden NZ had to issue a car recall this week due to faulty fuel hoses. Just 500 Holden Cruze sedans being recalled for what the company described as a 'simple fix'.

Meanwhile, speaking of faulty cars, Toyota somehow managed to rank highly in a US survey of reliable cars – despite the fact it's had to recall millions of cars due to safety concerns.

Dirty dairy farmers raised also concerns this week. Research showed dairy farmers' compliance with effluent rules deteriorated for the second year in a row in 2009, prompting Fonterra to institute annual farm checks.

In other dairy farming news, businessmen pushing the idea of cubicle farms have shelved their plans – for now – citing a campaign of misinformation.

In international news, US banking behemoth Lehman Brothers announced plans to drag itself out of bankruptcy and create a new asset management company.

Things are not looking as bright for the bank's auditors, Ernst & Young, who have been asked to explain how they audited Lehman’s books, amid claims they acted negligently.

Around four million jobs disappeared from the European Union in 2009 as the region struggled through the worst recession in decades

Things are looking up in 2010 though, with the OECD issuing a revised economic outlook which says the global recovery is likely to be stronger than previously expected.

- © Fairfax NZ News