No, not the one you can see from space. The other kind that supposedly compartmentalize information within an organization preventing conflicts of interest. Apparently when it comes to investment banks, this process doesn't work very well.

While they are not supposed to trade on inside information generated by their own work sometimes investment banks, at the very least, seem to get pretty darn lucky at predicting what the other hand is doing... Lucky enough to attract the attention of regulators, that is.

See also: The Dark Role of Investment Banks in the Market for Corporate Control

--MDT

Labels: chinese walls, insider trading, investment banks, WSJ