Paulson's Reasons for Delaying Day of Reckoning
Jonathan Weil
Oct 02, 2008
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601039&
refer=columnist_weil&sid=aMaWyNFImi4o
If you think this bailout is expensive, just wait until you see the next one.
The $700 billion rescue plan approved by the U.S. Senate won't fix the core problem with the nation's ailing financial institutions. And it almost guarantees that you and I will have to pony up for an even costlier bailout someday, maybe soon, if the House of Representatives passes it tomorrow.
Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson has correctly identified the quandary: Lots of shaky banks and insurance companies are showing strangely high values for assets that aren't worth squat in the market. Many need more capital and can't raise it. And he's right in saying the outlook is grim if we don't get this fixed.
What's stunning is how little the taxpayers would get in return for their money under Paulson's package, and how illusory much of the banks' newly minted capital would be.
Under the plan, Treasury would buy some companies' troubled assets at above-market values. To boost their capital, Paulson would have to pay the companies more than what their balance sheets say the assets are worth. Then other companies would use the rigged prices to write up, or avoid writing down, the values of similar holdings on their own books.
So, the taxpayers get hosed on the asset purchases. Other banks use the trumped-up prices to cook their books. And investor confidence supposedly is restored.
That brings us to this question: Why would a smart guy like Hank Paulson -- the former boss of Goldman Sachs -- advance such a dumb, shady plan? Let us count the reasons:
No. 1: It delays our national reckoning until after the presidential election.
No. 2: The reckoning will be worse than you can imagine.
No. 3: He's helping his friends.
No. 4: There's an excellent chance the Congress will pass it. Leave someone else to figure out the costs another day.
Showing posts with label mark to market. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mark to market. Show all posts
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Does Wall Street come apart next week?
Does Wall Street come apart next week?
by Stranded Wind
Sun Jul 27, 2008
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/7/27/43457/2825/714/557629
The triggering event for the run on the monoline bond insurers could not come from within the United States; the Federal Reserve, the U.S. Treasury, the Congress, and the White House have all shown a willingness to do whatever was necessary to head off this day of reckoning. It was always obvious the trigger for the meltdown would come from a "mark to market" occurring outside the control of these entities.
National Australia Bank’s decision to value the CDOs it holds at 10% of their face value (this is what got me started on this diary) may very well be the event that will trigger the destruction of the monoline insurers, the revaluing of CDOs from their "mark to model" to "mark to market". If you prefer to be more direct you can call it "mark to meltdown".
These synthetic securities or derivatives (Just call ‘em funny money) were valued via computer models that purported to express the percentage of debtors who’d fail to pay. No one actually sold these things in the open market, they just bought and held them, taking the payments that came and trusting the investment banks that were bundling up and selling these things. Financial innovation, they called it. This was true until two Bear Stearns funds imploded fifty four weeks ago.
Bankers were terrified that this would trigger an overall "mark to market" event.
by Stranded Wind
Sun Jul 27, 2008
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/7/27/43457/2825/714/557629
The triggering event for the run on the monoline bond insurers could not come from within the United States; the Federal Reserve, the U.S. Treasury, the Congress, and the White House have all shown a willingness to do whatever was necessary to head off this day of reckoning. It was always obvious the trigger for the meltdown would come from a "mark to market" occurring outside the control of these entities.
National Australia Bank’s decision to value the CDOs it holds at 10% of their face value (this is what got me started on this diary) may very well be the event that will trigger the destruction of the monoline insurers, the revaluing of CDOs from their "mark to model" to "mark to market". If you prefer to be more direct you can call it "mark to meltdown".
These synthetic securities or derivatives (Just call ‘em funny money) were valued via computer models that purported to express the percentage of debtors who’d fail to pay. No one actually sold these things in the open market, they just bought and held them, taking the payments that came and trusting the investment banks that were bundling up and selling these things. Financial innovation, they called it. This was true until two Bear Stearns funds imploded fifty four weeks ago.
Bankers were terrified that this would trigger an overall "mark to market" event.
Bond insurers are under attack
Bond insurers are under attack
Jul 26th 2007
From The Economist print edition
http://www.economist.com/finance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9552987
The two largest monolines, MBIA and Ambac, both started out in the 1970s as insurers of municipal bonds. In recent years, much of their growth has come in structured products, such as asset-backed bonds and the now infamous collateralised debt obligations (CDOs). The total outstanding amount of paper insured by monolines reached $3.3 trillion last year.
Jul 26th 2007
From The Economist print edition
http://www.economist.com/finance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9552987
The two largest monolines, MBIA and Ambac, both started out in the 1970s as insurers of municipal bonds. In recent years, much of their growth has come in structured products, such as asset-backed bonds and the now infamous collateralised debt obligations (CDOs). The total outstanding amount of paper insured by monolines reached $3.3 trillion last year.
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