Published: Monday, Nov. 23, 2009

Updated: Monday, Nov. 23, 2009

Broker wonders: Where were the regulators?

MIAMI — Muriel “Mickie” Siebert’s firm has been in business since 1967 — she likes to describe herself as the first discount brokerage.

Since then, except for a five-year stint as New York state’s superintendent of banks, Siebert has immersed herself in the brokerage world. Her company, Muriel Siebert & Co., has its headquarters in Manhattan, but it also has offices in California and South Florida.

Siebert says the key question of this current economic crisis is “Where were the regulators?” But she also believes that financial literacy among the general population was part of the problem.

“Older people would not have signed those mortgages if they had known two or three simple questions to ask,” said Siebert, who has developed a curriculum currently being taught in more than 100 schools in New York and being tested in almost 20 more schools in Palm Beach County.

Siebert was the first woman to hold a seat on the New York Stock Exchange. We sat down with her to talk about the markets, where the jobs will be in the future and what she thinks needs to happen before companies will start hiring again.

It’s been about a year since the economic crash. Where are the markets?

I am very concerned about the unemployment. If we go back, in the 1990s, every new technological development was by a U.S. firm. Look at the millions of jobs that were created by Microsoft. Not directly, but because there are suppliers.

We have the best higher education in the world, but we don’t allow those young people from other countries to stay here. They get their education here, and they go back.

I’d like to say, “We’re delighted to educate you. You have to stay two or three years.”

You’re most concerned about our technology problem?

Yes. Staying on the top. We were on top — look at the way we develop most of the new drugs, look at the way most of the electronics are developed. I want to see this country stay at the forefront.

What advice would you give the average investor right now?

I happen to have faith in common stocks. And I believe that the markets will turn — they have turned, they have made up some of the drop.

When we see some of our big companies, they’re very well spread around the world. They’re in China, they’re making money in India, they’re making money. Your Pfizers, your Mercks, they’re going to be around five years from now; they’re going to be in business. I cannot say the same thing for a smaller company, because I don’t know. But if you look at some of the larger companies, General Electric’s got problems now, but they’re going to get over their problems. You might have to hold the stock.

Do you think enough is being done to relieve the credit crunch?

There are still people who say they can’t get loans. That’s why we made these loans to banks, to free up capital. We’ve got to make sure that there is credit available for smaller companies because they need it. They’re the ones that take a chance, and they need to take that chance. And we need them to take the chance and use the energy they put in. When you start a company, you work hard.

Where do you think the growth is in the U.S. economy right now? Where do you think it will be?

I would say probably the continuation of computers and everything associated with it. Probably communications will be there. We are now a nation of service industries. Our manufacturing is way down. I think we would keep our lead in drugs and pharmaceuticals, which will grow as the population ages.

When are American companies going to hire more workers?

It’s a hard problem. I can’t give you a date. The first thing I would look for is for unemployment to stop climbing. We expect it to hit 10 percent, and that 10 percent is really low, because there are people who have stopped looking for jobs. They just extended unemployment again. I think they have to give tax credits if you increase your employment. If companies hire additional employees, they should be entitled to a tax break. I think we should give people a tax break by encouraging them to start a company.

What do you think will happen with the markets for the rest of the year and 2010?

Look, I think we’re rebuilding faith in the markets. What I think when they talk about changing new regulations is that they have to be way more proactive on new products. They should have said, “the mortgage brokers aren’t regulated.” They should have done something.