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credit crisis
 

China: To short or not to short?

Jorgé's picture
(Neanderthal, 2,182
 
Points)
 on 11/8/10 at 8:56pm
Chinaball

China; the birthplace of Kung Fu, fireworks, hot asian women, and fake Louis Vuittons. It's meteoric rise in power is unparalleled throughout history.

Though largely hated in the old world, some say that it’s the future, the new frontier, the place where dreams come true and fortunes are to be made.

I absolutely agree, I think it's a great short.

Inside the Meltdown: PBS Program

WallStreetOasis.com's picture
EN
(Human, 12,067
 
Points)
 on 9/21/09 at 12:34am

This is a bit old but in case you haven't seen it here you go:

BB Dreams, MM Nightmares

Whats Next's picture
IB
(Chimp, 7
 
Points)
 on 7/29/09 at 10:10pm

My question in summary: Can I get to a BB from a dwindling MM firm?

Sorry. I had to edit this. I distorted some of the facts in my original post to conceal my identity, but I still think I put out too much information.

Thanks for your responses. It's really appreciated.

Credit Crisis Question

darkmatter's picture
IB
 
Points)
 on 7/24/09 at 10:28am

I have a question regarding the credit crisis that I am hoping you guys can help me answer.

What was the reason large commercial banks like UBS, Bank of America, and JP Morgan invested so heavily into CDOs and other "toxic assets?"

If the whole purpose of securitization is to get rid off risk by packaging different debt obligations and selling them off to other investors, why did these large banks end up buying other CDOs and exposing themselves to the same kind of risk they were trying to diversify away?

If anything, I would have expected the banks to be the least affected because they should have used these derivatives to get rid off risk and not put it back on their balance sheet?

Troubled Assets Relief Program Summary, 2008 TARP Legislation Guide

tarp.jpg

The Guide to Understanding TARP

Want to impress your colleagues and interviewers with how much you know about this $700 Billion (and counting) behemoth of legislation? Curious where all your tax dollars are going? Then this troubled assets relief program guide is for you. This guide is a concise but thorough TARP legislation summary. Check out the Free Sample Chapter.

In order to foster intelligent debate on the relative merits of the Troubled Asset Relief Program, it is first necessary to present an unbiased overview of the plan in plain English. To that end, we have endeavored to present the facts in an orderly, understandable format.

This guide is a primer on the genesis and execution of the Troubled Assets Relief Program as it is set forth in Public Law 110-343 approved on October 3, 2008. The program falls under the authority of the more commonly known Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008. This guide will highlight the salient points of the plan, how it has been implemented thus far, and what can be expected from this authority in the future. In short, it is a TARP legislation summary.

Get The Guide to Understanding TARP to Your Inbox Now

It is our hope that this Troubled Asset Relief Program guide will leave you with a greater understanding of the mechanisms of the government that were allowed to intervene when the mechanisms of the market appeared to be on the verge of failure. This guide was painstakingly researched over a period of almost five months, and it presents the facts, the hard figures, and the expert projections contained within the well over 1,000 pages of documentation and interviews that were compiled to produce it.

This 50+ page guide includes the following sections:
1. Introduction
2. Background on the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP)
3. Housing Bubble
4. A TARP is Born
5. The Evolution of the Troubled Asset Relief Program
6. Participation
7. Repayment
8. Oversight
9. Stressed Out
10. Controversy
11. Who’s Who of TARP
12. Confessions of a TARP Intern
13. Appendix: TARP Recipient List

Buy Now

Goldman Sachs Hate Blog, Unreal

trade4size's picture
ST
(Neanderthal, 2,085
 
Points)
 on 4/13/09 at 6:50pm

http://www.goldmansachs666.com/

Absolutely unreal what some people will do to get attention.

BUY & HOLD ..... A SCAM

trade4size's picture
ST
(Neanderthal, 2,085
 
Points)
 on 3/24/09 at 10:19am

Just did a search on the topic of buy and hold and there is no thread on it and really wanted to start an in depth discussion on what I feel is the biggest scam in wall street. The myth that buy and hold is the most superior investment strategy.

Every day as I watch CNBC I have to listen to these so called experts that basically repeat the same garbage that Buy and hold is the best long term strategy. As the current financial crisis certainly shows that may not be the case.

Before I begin I am not in any way advocating that the polar opposite of buy and hold (daytrading) is the best strategy. I think they are extremes and my thoughts on extremes are that they are rarely optimal.

Credit Crisis Explained

Edmundo Braverman's picture
ST
(Human, 14,365
 
Points)
 on 3/4/09 at 5:43am
Tf8nSrEu.jpg

CRISIS OF CONFIDENCE?

Hephaestus's picture
O
(Baboon, 129
 
Points)
 on 3/2/09 at 9:28pm

I've been wondering what effect this crisis will have on this/the next generation of bankers/traders/businespeople. Are we going to be wiser and more humble, or just more risk-averse and paranoid?

Do you feel as if we've been had by a system we only thought we understood?

Will we ever recover our swagger, and do we deserve to?

Are we going to be better off or worse off for having experienced the crisis?

"It Was You"

Alphaholic's picture
CO
 
Points)
 on 2/3/09 at 2:34pm
"It Was You"

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Dimon-Dont-paint-all...

Some great words by Jamie Dimon. Just when I thought all the eloquence and smarts on Wall Street were being drowned out by the incompetence, there's still proof out there that there is smart money still breathing in New York. I agree with a lot of the sentiments that not all "bankers" are to blame (ie trying to get people to understand the difference between M&A and a subprime trading desk, etc.). Dimon puts things in terms the American public can hopefully understand a little bit better. Curious what you guys think of his talk today.

I don't think anyone else has concisely put the way myself (and I think many others) feel about people's perceptions of finance and the money culture in general.

Banks have lost more in last 12 months in made in previous 25 years

trade4size's picture
ST
(Neanderthal, 2,085
 
Points)
 on 2/2/09 at 5:09pm

So today on the radio I heard the most bizarre fact about the extent of this financial crisis. This comes from Putin's speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

"I just want to remind you that, just a year ago, American delegates speaking from this rostrum emphasised the US economy's fundamental stability and its cloudless prospects. Today, investment banks, the pride of Wall Street, have virtually ceased to exist. In just 12 months, they have posted losses exceeding the profits they made in the last 25 years. This example alone reflects the real situation better than any criticism."

For his full speech see the link below.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123317069332125243...

Looks like the bears have moved into town.

trade4size's picture
ST
(Neanderthal, 2,085
 
Points)
 on 10/24/08 at 2:11am

EDIT: sorry i forgot to post the link.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AsfQsUYZ5Y8

More Expensive Than Expected?

Angus Austin's picture
CO
(Baboon, 152
 
Points)
 on 10/11/08 at 7:56pm
logoBIG_CRISIS.gif

Have you ever had a professional give you an estimate on a home or car repair? I always assume that the final bill will be at least 10-20% higher. Whenever the final bill is lower I am always shocked and surprised. Well it turns out the bailout’s are going to be significantly more costly than anyone was told.

What I find shocking is how this is unfolding. Normally when taxpayers are duped, it takes years for the public to find out how horribly we’ve been misled. The trick with this one is that anyone with an excellent sense of economics and a calculator can predict the numbers. Only two weeks ago the current years U.S. federal deficit was being calculated at being almost $1.5 trillion dollars. That in itself is staggering. Two weeks later the current deficit for this single year is expected to be closer to $2 trillion. Expect it to be more.

How are the big funds doing?

trade4size's picture
ST
(Neanderthal, 2,085
 
Points)
 on 10/2/08 at 3:53pm

So I am wondering how the big hedge funds out there are doing in this environment. I have heard rumors some some of the big names SAC Citadel are getting pounded pretty hard. Im looking for more to read on the subject. All the people that made ridiculous returns while applying leverage are now being slapped in the face. Every major strategy that was working has blown up during this deleveraging. Equity markets have collapsed, risk arb spreads have dramatically widened, commodity markets have collapsed, credit trading is frozen, even the major currency pairs against the dollar have collapsed. Basically every trade that was working has blew up. It seems that the only trade out there that is working is long VOL.

Who has benefited? My guess is the short term traders that trade small enough size to get in and out of positions at a moments notice and anyone who had the courage to fade the dominate strategies of the past few years.

What are everyone thoughts?

How does all of this affect IBD?

oasising's picture
IB
 
Points)
 on 10/2/08 at 4:56am

I've been reading many articles, such as the following, that spell death for the investment banking industry.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/ccc6d456-8fd7-11dd-9890-...

Yet, it is really S&T that they are talking about. After all, M&A only boutiques and middle market firms seem to be doing alright. So what does that really mean for IBD's outlook? Is Corp Fin going to regain its position in the forefront? How will the banking industry as a whole recover and regain its luster?

This Too Shall Pass...(part 1)

Edmundo Braverman's picture
ST
(Human, 14,365
 
Points)
 on 9/29/08 at 12:42am
remain_calm.jpg

We will all remember today as the beginning of the new market. Congress has apparently come to terms on a bailout plan and, barring any last minute shenanigans in the House or Senate, it will be voted on and passed this week. We all have a new managing partner in D.C., whether we like it or not.

It is times like these that require perspective, and I assure you that the cooler heads will not only prevail, they will profit. I've been around awhile, and I managed to make enough money during the last major crisis to step back and casually observe the current mayhem. The lesson I took away from the Long Term Capital Management debacle and the Asian Flu (and, for that matter, the bear market following Black Monday ten years before that) is that the market is the market, and always will be.

A look at the brighter side of life!

Angus Austin's picture
CO
(Baboon, 152
 
Points)
 on 9/15/08 at 4:00pm
yinyang.jpg

Well, Lehman’s is going chapter 11, Merrill Lynch was lucky enough to get bought by BofA. Oh, not to forget that Morgan and Goldman are looking at a potential meltdown as well, in desperate need to shore up stable deposits. Oh, right, and AIG looking down the barrel as well.

Well, the good news is, that we’re in the middle of the mess finally. It’s taken it’s time to get around to it, the mess that is. It’s little consolation to the thousands of people who can expect pink slips in the next few weeks, but we are finally here.

How is that the bright side? Well once this finalizes and a few more banks fail or get bought for pennies on the dollar, then and only then can we breath easier. For that my friends will mean that we’re on our way to a true recovery. Not one bolstered and touted by the Fed as the bottom, but the real bottom means there is only one way to go and that will finally be UP!