Warren Buffett spoke with CNBC about the U.S. economy and the banking system in an interview televised this morning. His basic message was that the economy cannot function without confidence in the banking system. The FDIC can work its magic with smaller institutions and that is a good thing. However, some banks are too big for the FDIC. Citigroup is one of them. This led to his statement that all debt liabilities of a large institution like Citigroup need to be met to ensure confidence.
Shareholders can be wiped out, but Buffett believes debt holders are a different story.
Watch the videos below. Buffett’s comments on Citi are in the bottom video.