Monetary System

It looks like the BofA-Countrywide deal is still on. In fact, BofA is making room for some of the Countrywide executives in its own executive suite. I reckon we will look back on this deal as a very bad call by BofA.Bank of America Corp.…

This is an important question, because our central banks are the ones behind the rise in inflation, not OPEC, oil companies, or greedy corporations. If one must point the finger, point it at central bankers. "Inflation is always and…

McClatchy has an article out today showing that the credit crunch is hitting all sorts of consumer credit now. The crisis that began as one 'contained' to subprime, now has branched out into auto loans, credit card debt, student loans,…

Michael Panzner has a good post on his site about regional banks being the next front in the Credit Crisis. He mentions home equity lines (HELOCs) as a crucial piece there, referring to an article in the Financial Times. His blog entry…

The Telegraph reported that UBS, the giant Swiss Bank, had its shares suspended twice yesterday as it tried to mount a share rights issue while its shares plummeted to a 52-week low. UBS is trying to raise 16 billion Swiss Francs (about $16…

My blog title comes from the title of an article, "Bank failures to surge in coming years" by MarketWatch on 23 May 2008. I highly recommend reading the full article. It mentions that only 3 banks have actually failed so far in…

RBS failed to get all the money it needed for its rights issue with 300 million shares still in the hands of its underwriters, reports the FT. These shares are to be sold today. This massive $24 billion (£ 12 billion) shows the limits of…

This sounds a lot like Bradford and Bingley in the UK. Lehman is really on the edge of collapsing. They need the money....NOW! One must believe the second leg down in bank credit write-offs and the credit crunch has started.By Steve…

I have posted a few times on the problem surrounding an imminent writedown wave for commercial real estate (CRE) and construction loans in the US. A few days back, I had intended to post more about regionals. The Wall Street Journal had a…

The Sunday Telegraph is reporting yet another major Western bank is going cap in hand to sovereign wealth funds in order to stave off the inevitable crisis. This time its Barclays, Britain's third largest bank. At a time when RBS is…