- The Fed’s Exit Strategy
- Big Estimate, Worth Little, on Bailout
- Obama hits out at unrepentant Wall Street banks
- Deutsche Bank Fires Two in Spying Probe
- Morgan Stanley Picks DiMaio for Interest-Rate Unit
- Credit Suisse Reverses Preference for Bonds, Favors Equities
- Stanford asks appeals court to free him on bail
- Citigroup seizes resort where AIG held retreat
- Buyout funds shortlisted for AIG Taiwan unit: sources
- Wynn Plans Fourth-Quarter Listing of Macau Assets in Hong Kong
- New Barnes & Noble multi-format e-books dog Amazon
Ben Bernanke Op Ed: The Fed’s Exit Strategy – Wall Street Journal
The depth and breadth of the global recession has required a highly accommodative monetary policy. Since the onset of the financial crisis nearly two years ago, the Federal Reserve has reduced the interest-rate target for overnight lending between banks (the federal-funds rate) nearly to zero. We have also greatly expanded the size of the Fed’s balance sheet through purchases of longer-term securities and through targeted lending programs aimed at restarting the flow of credit.
These actions have softened the economic impact of the financial crisis. They have also improved the functioning of key credit markets, including the markets for interbank lending, commercial paper, consumer and small-business credit, and residential mortgages.
My colleagues and I believe that accommodative policies will likely be warranted for an extended period. At some point, however, as economic recovery takes hold, we will need to tighten monetary policy to prevent the emergence of an inflation problem down the road……
Big Estimate, Worth Little, on Bailout – NY Times
Just how much could the bailout of the financial system end up costing American taxpayers?
Neil M. Barofsky, the special inspector general for the Troubled Asset Relief Program set up by the Treasury Department, came up with the largest number yet in testimony prepared for delivery Tuesday to a House committee. “The total potential federal government support could reach up to $23.7 trillion,” he stated.
But in the report accompanying his testimony, Mr. Barofsky conceded the number was vastly overblown. It includes estimates of the maximum cost of programs that have already been canceled or that never got under way…..
Obama hits out at unrepentant Wall Street banks – Reuters
U.S. President Barack Obama said on Monday that Wall Street banks had not shown enough remorse or change since the financial meltdown that helped spur a U.S. recession.
“The problem that I’ve seen, at least, is you don’t get a sense that folks on Wall Street feel any remorse for taking all these risks,” Obama said in an interview with PBS television…..
Deutsche Bank Fires Two in Spying Probe – Wall Street Journal
Germany’s Deutsche Bank AG has dismissed two top executives following an internal investigation into whether the company conducted surveillance on a board member and others, people familiar with the matter said. The case is raising concerns in a society still coming to terms with East Germany’s legacy of spying on citizens.
The dismissals come as prosecutors in Frankfurt have opened a preliminary probe into whether Deutsche Bank or its senior officials may have violated a set of civil and criminal laws that protect individual privacy by spying on an activist shareholder. Germany’s financial regulators and the state’s Data Protection Authority are also examining the incidents….
Morgan Stanley Picks DiMaio for Interest-Rate Unit - Bloomberg
Morgan Stanley, the sixth-largest U.S. bank by assets, hired Jack DiMaio to replace Roberto Hoornweg as head of fixed-income trading two days before the bank reports second-quarter earnings.
DiMaio, previously head of fixed income at Credit Suisse Group AG, will join Morgan Stanley as global head of interest rate, credit and currency trading, the New York-based firm said today in a statement. Hoornweg, 41, is leaving the firm, according to a person familiar with the situation. He declined to comment….
Credit Suisse Reverses Preference for Bonds, Favors Equities – Bloomberg
Credit Suisse Group AG advised investors to trim their holdings in government bonds and buy equities, reversing a recommendation from June.
Credit Suisse raised its estimate for the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index</a> by 14 percent to 1,050 by the end of the year, citing improving economic indicators and earnings. …
Stanford asks appeals court to free him on bail – Houston Chronicle
Fallen financier R. Allen Stanford asked an appeals court Monday to free him on bail, saying that prosecutors misled a Houston trial judge and that the judge made numerous false assumptions about how serious a flight risk Stanford would be
. In a 46-page memorandum with about 600 pages of exhibits, Houston lawyer Dick DeGuerin told the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that Senior U.S. District Judge David Hittner made unsubstantiated findings about Stanford’s residence, family ties to Houston, passports, access to money and ability to travel…..
Citigroup seizes resort where AIG held retreat – AP
A Southern California resort where American International Group Inc. sponsored a luxury retreat after receiving federal bailout money has been seized by Citigroup.
The owners of the St. Regis Monarch Beach in Dana Point were in default on a $70 million loan from a real estate unit of Citigroup Inc., resulting in the takeover…..
Buyout funds shortlisted for AIG Taiwan unit: sources – Reuters
Global buyout funds including Bain Capital and Carlyle, which are shortlisted for second-round bids for AIG’s Taiwan unit, are in talks with local firms to form rival consortiums to acquire Nan Shan Life, in a deal estimated to be worth over $2 billion, sources said.
Primus Financial, a new investment firm led by Robert Morse, a former top Citigroup (C.N) banker for Asia, and MBK Partners, a buyout fund founded by former Carlyle dealmakers, have been shortlisted for second-round bids for AIG’s (AIG.N) Nan Shan Life, said the sources who were briefed on the progress of the bidding…
Wynn Plans Fourth-Quarter Listing of Macau Assets in Hong Kong – Wall Street Journal
Wynn Resorts Ltd. plans to publicly list its Macau assets in Hong Kong in the fourth quarter to raise between $1 billion and $2 billion, a person familiar with the situation said Tuesday.
Investment banks Morgan Stanley, J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and UBS AG have been appointed to handle the initial public offering, the person said…..
New Barnes & Noble multi-format e-books dog Amazon – AP via Mercury News
Barnes & Noble on Monday stepped up its fight in the small but highly competitive market for electronic books with the launch of a new e-bookstore offering titles to be read on a variety of devices.
Barnes & Noble will sell books that shoppers can read on the iPhone, iPod touch, BlackBerry and most personal computers, whereas competitors have sold devices designed solely for reading electronic books, such as Amazon.com’s Kindle or Sony’s Sony Reader….
Tags: AIG, Allen Stanford, Amazon, bailout, Barack Obama, Ben Bernanke, Citigroup, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, Fed, Morgan Stanley, TARP
