Comments on: Investment Banks Sold Auction Rate Securities While Warning Issuers

By: Francois

Francois — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 19:46:00 +0000

"Of course they did if it had any real value, why in the hell would they sell it to you? People are stupid."

No...the IBs are stupid. Do you seriously think ANY business can last by selling inferior products that never profit their customers? By persisting in their duplicity, wtf do you think will happen?

The natives will become very restless and have viril exchanges with their representatives. Exchanges like: "Do something!!...or else, your keister shall be separated from this plush office of yours. Got that??"

Caught between their donors and their voters, Congress will have no choice. What good are contributions if you've been voted out of office and can't get said contributions anymore?

IBs are going to be squeezed out of existence in their present form, OR, regulations shall be their biggest bitch ever.

And they'll have only themselves to blame.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 18:42:00 +0000

Of course they did if it had any real value, why in the hell would they sell it to you? People are stupid.

By: Melancholy Korean

Melancholy Korean — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 16:19:00 +0000

How much longer before UBS gets out of the investment banking business? As a former employee there, I can tell you our managers weren’t exactly Street superstars (more like GS rejects). Stories like this (almost every day now) are killing the private banking franchise.

As Paul Tudor Jones would say, losers average down. Cut your losses, UBS! Get out of the biz and focus on what you’re good at. Your shareholders are begging you.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 14:01:00 +0000

Yves:

What's the solution to the ARPS situation? People got screwed!

Thanks for your great site...

anon

By: Lilguy

Lilguy — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 13:44:00 +0000

Hmmmm! Isn’t this the same kind of activity that led to the arrest of the two BSC hedge fund managers?? Could be that a LOT of WS-types will be going to jail, not just a couple.

The hard part will be deciding when such activity is fraudulent (knowing one thing, saying another) when that’s what salesmen in EVERY industry do all the time.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 13:41:00 +0000

Historically, burst Bubbles produce social anger and a desire for payback. Thus, not only is the financial industry scrambling to raise capital, but also at the same time it faces a serious threat of devastating legal judgments for abuses committed during the Bubble era.

And so overshooting on the upside is succeeded by overshooting to the downside. Let it bleed …