[Cid_Yama]

pup,

The Fed totally realizes the minimal true value of these assets. I believe the sale price for Bear Strearns is indicitive of the true value of all the banks if they were forced to mark-to-market these derivitives. That's why they don't want these assets to hit the market, because it would price them and force the banks to mark-to-market and suffer fatal writedowns.

[Ferretlover]

B of A bought Countrywide.
JPMorgan buys Bear Stesrns.
Who's left who can afford to buyout anyone?

[Ayoob]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Ferretlover', 'B') of A bought Countrywide.
JPMorgan buys Bear Stesrns.
Who's left who can afford to buyout anyone?

[dohboi]

Quote: "In effect, the Fed has taken on the risk that these assets might be less valuable than anyone currently realizes."

That's been the name of the game all along, in spite of what self professed economic conservatives may tell you--as Noam Chomsky pointed out long ago, they "socialize the risks, and privatize the profits."

emersonb, that's quite a chart. I noticed that Citi bank is right behind them with $34 trillion in derivatives. Oddly, BearStearns didn't even make the chart!

With Lehmann Bro.s collapsing before us, it looks like it's the Citibanks and the JP Morgans that will be deemed too big to fail.

And I thought hundred of billions was a lot of cash. This is looking like it could be a collapse of hundreds of TRILLIONS of ("notional"?) dollars. Isn't world annual GDP only in the tens of trillions? (Yikes, did I just say
"only tens of trillions'?!)

[pup55]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'T')he Fed totally realizes the minimal true value of these assets

[americandream]

The Dow's being manipulated....the GBP/Yen which shadows the Dow shows no desire to replicate the Dow's retracement.

[mmasters]

The Bear takedown was orchestrated for a JP Morgan consolidation. Lehman getting sold off is just fear and speculation. It will recover in tomorrow's rally when their earnings are released.

[mmasters]

The failure of Citi will be the climax of this thing.

[Ferretlover]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Ayoob', 'J')PM couldn't afford to buy B/S. The "merger" was backed by the Federal Reserve.

[xerces]

This is kind of messed up, but I heard from a college buddy of mine who now works as a broker with JP Morgan. We were talking earlier tonight about the Bear Stearns collapse, and he mentioned that large numbers of BS employees were asked today to pack up their belongings and leave the building. Of course, he also mentioned that the Bear Stearns people were incompetent cl*ster f**Ks who got what they deserved.

This is a massacre out there, 50% of all Bear employees were given the slip today, potentially 90% to 100% of all Bear employees will be laid off.

[Cid_Yama]

<i>I am not sure anyone, even the Fed, knows the true value of these so-called assets.</i>

Give me a break. I know what their value is and so do you.

Squat.

[mmasters]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('xerces', 'T')his is kind of messed up, but I heard from a college buddy of mine who now works as a broker with JP Morgan. We were talking earlier tonight about the Bear Stearns collapse, and he mentioned that large numbers of BS employees were asked today to pack up their belongings and leave the building. Of course, he also mentioned that the Bear Stearns people were incompetent cl*ster f**Ks who got what they deserved.

This is a massacre out there, 50% of all Bear employees were given the slip today, potentially 90% to 100% of all Bear employees will be laid off.

[Tyler_JC]

The whole thing is incredible.

I have friends who went to the HQ of Bear Stearns back in October in order to learn about the business from the "experts". I even do my philosophy problem sets with a pen from that company. I guess I should hang on to it, in a year it will be a collector's item.

When Bear Stearns went public in 1985, the company's shares sold for $6 per share. They are currently trading for around $4.

It's sad, in a way.

On the other hand, that's exactly what those greedy bastards deserve. They gambled, they lost, screw'em. I hope the executives get sued in bankruptcy court and forced to return their excessive bonuses.

Don't get me wrong, I'm no socialist. But if your company loses 16 billion in a year (and subsequently collapses under your watch), you shouldn't be entitled to a multi million dollar bonus and I'll bet the shareholders would agree.

[pup55]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'T')he failure of Citi will be the climax of this thing.

[Starvid]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Cid_Yama', 'I')f you owned Bear Stearns, or your investments were managed by them, you woke up this morning to find you've lost everything.(and of course, if you worked there, you don't.)

[Magus]

So...anyone care to predict when they will start jumping out of the windows...?

[benzoil]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Magus', 'S')o...anyone care to predict when they will start jumping out of the windows...?

[dinopello]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('pup55', '
')I think it will be much more interesting to watch GE.

GE financials

30% of their revenues are from their financial services division, and they have borrowed $500B (half a trillion dollars) for this activity.

[dinopello]

Damn, I'm good!

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('dinopello', 'I') thought $10 a share was possible

[Tyler_JC]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('dinopello', '[')url=http://www.peakoil.com/post619568.html#619568]Damn, I'm good![/url]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('dinopello', 'I') thought $10 a share was possible