Another AFR article, page-414

The simple explanation is that they were blindsided as well. Not blindsided innocently, but because they didn’t think they were about to get caught. They thought they had a fool-proof system and when it started to unwind it all happened too fast and they were stuck. Odds are they also had investments that depended on these shares so it wasn’t as easy as just dump it.

Perhaps a bit of unlikely thanks can go Trump’s way. His unpredictable crazy talk has had the market bouncing around like a ping pong ball lately. The margin accounts for these guys would have been hell to look at because you know they were margined right to the last penny.