The Brian Hunter Instant Messages

Date: Thursday, July 26, 2007
Author: FINalternatives

The following excerpts of instant-message conversations between former Amaranth Advisors energy trader Brian Hunter, fellow ex-Amaranth trader Matthew Donohoe, other Amaranth chief energy risk manager David Chasman and a trader at another firm were included in the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s complaint against Hunter and Amaranth, filed in New York federal court yesterday.

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Feb. 24, 2006 (expiry day for the March 2006 New York Mercantile Exchange natural gas futures contract), between Hunter and a natural gas trader at another firm, from 1:31 p.m. (Eastern time) and 1:35 p.m.:

Hunter: We have 4000 to sell MoC [market on close]
Hunter: shhhh
gloverb: come on
Hunter: y
gloverb: unless you are huge bearish
gloverb: position
gloverb: why the f would yo do that
Hunter: all from options yesterday
Hunter: so we ll see what the floor has
Hunter: bit of an experiment mainly
gloverb: what the f
gloverb: that is huge
Hunter: I think John [Arnold] and Sempra [Energy] are sellers too

A few minutes after the start of the closing range, “gloverb” asked Hunter, “arent you done”? Hunter replied, “no…have a lot more to sell…waiting until 2:20.”

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On Feb. 24, in the middle of the closing range, Hunter IMed Donohoe to say “today came together quite nicely.” Later, immediately after the closing range at 2:30 p.m.:

Donohoe: h [March contract] will settle lower
Donohoe: and h/j wider
Donohoe: nice
Hunter: I am flexing here
Donohoe: looking preety bang on
Donohoe: we already mimicked
Dohohoe: lol
Donohoe: rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
Hunter: hahahahaha
Donohoe: 2nd best…sept/oct last year still the best
Donohoe: oh yeag

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April 26, 2006, between Hunter and Amaranth energy risk manager David Chasman, from 12:48 p.m. to 12:56 p.m.:

Hunter: FYI [John] Arnold is getting scary short into the [Energy Information Agency gas storage] number tomorrow
…
Chasman: what u think arnold has?
Hunter: we are rolling size into may
Hunter: and I am worrie that Anold has taken the other side of everything
Hunter: so either he runs it up to the close today and gets short tomorrow
Hunter: or has a HUGE view on the number tomorrow
…
Chasman: other side of everything meaning buying from everyone else selling – or buying from [you]
Hunter: no buying may and selling June…with me
Chasman: does he know what [you are] up [to] [with respect to] rolling off length?... sorry rolling off short
Hunter: probably
…
Hunter: I think it is more that he thinks its going to get [f…d] tomorrow
…
Hunter: me may try to help it by running the market up on the close
…
Chasman: kinda hard to do when selling – no?
Hunter: Arnold is the master of moving the close?