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The ABCP black box explodes

BOYD ERMAN , JACQUIE MCNISH and TARA PERKINS AND HEATHER SCOFFIELD

From Saturday's Globe and Mail

Latest comment posted at 1:25 AM EDT 19/11/07

For three days in August, an obscure but massive investment class teetered on the brink of a meltdown, rescued only by the ingenuity of a small group of bankers and lawyers. The aftershocks have shaken the markets, destroyed reputations and frayed friendships ...Read the full article

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  1. wynden wetuntdark from Katmandu, Tuvalu writes: Brilliant..Kudos to the Globe and Mail
  2. John Doe from Halifax, Canada writes: The analogy of the Black Box is most interesting.

    Remember Enron ? That company presented itself as a black box to investors. And many major institutional investors poured money into that black box without asking any deep questions.

    One of the very few analysts who was skeptical of Enron was John Olson, with Merrill Lynch, who kept asking pesky accounting questions. Enron pressured Merrill Lynch and he was fired. Ultimately, as we know, Enron was exposed as little more than an elaborate pyramid scheme. Investors lost upwards of $70 billion when Enron collapsed. Enron had fooled almost everyone with their black box presentation.

    Now we have another black box fiasco. The credit market crunch is likely going to eclipse the Enron loss. Investors failed to learn the lesson of Enron. Will they fail to learn the lesson here ? Probably. Greed blinds.
  3. Henry Egan from Cyberland, Canada writes: Great investigative reporting, so rarely seen. Thanks and kudos to the team.

    The little guy is finally getting some information on what has been going on, and it looks like the little guy is the one who will be paying the price if these collapse

    When no one knows or cares what the nature or quality of the underlying assets are, what was to prevent the lenders from deliberately creating, securitising and ejecting all of their junk onto the marketplace as high yielding ABCP's? And making big bucks on it. Though the article does not specifiy allege that, with the conditions that they were operating under, we have to know that they did.

    The OSC needs to provide an explanation as to why they stood aside. Regulations were obviously needed to mandate that these securities provide full and open disclosure as to loan quality as well as guarantees. These securities should have been made eligible for a decent quality rating system like bonds.

    The magic black box analogy with Enron (and the Canadian equivalent Nortel) is telling. They too said "trust us", this is something too new and too complex for your pretty little head to understand... and we seem to keep falling for it.

    Hope it is not too late, these things seem to have infiltrated every vein of our financial system.
  4. Balboa R. from Toronto, Canada writes: The banks go around and claim they hire the brightest people with MBA's and PHd's. So, if these people are so smart, why did they not see this happening? Easy, it does not matter what degree or level of education you have, it is just a reason to sell people more crap because they fall into the trap. What a joke. I encourge more companies to hire mba's to solve all their problems.
  5. John E7 from Saltspring Island, Canada writes: Financial alchemy indeed. The banks and other big financial corps. bought and sold this stuff despite the black box aspects? And when it came time to stand up in their 'insurers' roles the big banks balked? And then they go running to the BoC? And are still trying to off-load to unwary investors? God's teeth!
  6. Jimmy Delf from Canada writes: National Bank is the ONLY bank that has not come CLEAN with its writedown concerning ABCP fiasco! Why? Cause they don't only have $2 billion, instead they have $4billion of ABCP with participations with "shell companies" called:

    1-Quanto Financial inc.

    2-Meclaf and Mansfield inc.

    These 2 shell companies package ABCP and were started by "chums" of Louis Vachon, the CEO of National Bank. Remember this Louis Vachon guy was the CEO of National Bank Financial. Too bad we are not in the USA cause some serious jail time would be given with this pyramid scheme the National bank has created. I hope the stock goes to $40!
  7. Jimmy Delf from Canada writes: Another questionable character at the National Bank is the COO, called Michel Tremblay, who is the 2nd largest shareholder of Natcan (Institutional Investment wing of National Bank) by owning 12 % stake in Natcan. While the National Bank owns 75% stake and the balance 13% is owned by all the different portfolio managers of Natcan. Thus Michel Tremblay owns 12% of Natcan and apparently pushes his sales forece to sell Natcan managed products. Why? Cause for every $100 management fees Natcan charges clients, Michel Tremblay earns $12!!!! WOW! WOW! WOW! I smell conflict of interest when this pushes his sales people so he can earn big $$$$$ for his own pocket!!! The authorities that monitor the industry should go pay this Tremblay guy a visit!!!

    It is not only the ABCP fiasco but i smell conflict of interest all the way at the National Bank!
  8. Clark Edwins from Canada writes: $500 million writedown will not be enough for the National bank as they have $2 billion which they bought back from clients, mainly retail customers.

    National bank has other partnerships with commercial paper packagers such as, Coventree, Quanto Financial & Metcalf and Mansfield. They probably have another $2 - $3 billion worth of ABCP.

    Natioanl Bank has sold perhaps another $1 billion of ABCP to corporate clients ( ex: Jean Coutu, Air Transat, Societe Generale de Financement ...etc). National should also make a provision for lawsuits called a "Contingent liability". Thus a $ 600 million writedown is more accurate!!! I think that Jean Douville (Chairman), Louis Vachon (CEO) and Michel tremblay (COO) should resign without any compensation. No golder Parachute either!! Cause these so called executives should go to jail!
  9. John H from Canada writes: While this problem still is not sorted out it continues to affect the real estate market here. A large majority of lenders have walked away from making loans, both residential and commercial as the money is just no longer there to lend.
    This reminds me of the other markets like gold where there truly is not a free market. GATA is a good example. While the pros continue to play with fire, they will get burned and 3 months later the general public will see another good article like this. Anyone who doesn't take possession of their certificates is just asking for trouble. We see time and time again the market makers are lying about what is really going on.
    Add in all the lying to the PO problem and the perfect storm is brewing.
  10. Clark Edwins from Canada writes: Market should be free to float based on supply and demand. DOES ANYONE THINK IT IS FAIR THAT THE NATIONAL BANK & THE CAISSE DE DEPOT FROZE THE MARKET IN REGARD TO ABCP?

    The National bank and the Caisse de Depot should be sued becaus they froze the market to serve their own purposes. They were scared to lose their shirts if they would not freeze the ABCP market!! I see lawsuits further down the road!! Boy i wish i was a corporate lawyer!! lol
  11. George Stefanapolous from Canada writes: "rescued only by the ingenuity of a small group of bankers"

    I disagree with the above statement by the author!!! The group of bankers were only trying to save their butts!!! National Bank was onlt trying to save its Butt and reputation. National bank has always been a bank that is very deceptive/ cover upper!
  12. K barkley from Toronto, Canada writes: Thank you G&M reporters for this investigative piece. This is a very important story that had to be told.

    Who says Canada doesn't have a junk bond market? It seems now that ABCP should never have been packaged and sold off around the world. Who knew they had it in the first place -- not pension funds, not individual investors, maybe not even the bankers, but I'm not convinced bankers didn't just wish to pass on the 'Old Maid to the unwary'.

    Is the question now, how do you unwind the process? Or is the question how can this be repackaged and remarketed again to keep everything from being priced properly? Hmmm...I wonder.
  13. David Cyrus from Gatineau, Canada writes: I am a National bank customer and i am very disappointed in their lies and deceptions. They bought packaged commercial paper to make more basis points (bp). They made as much as 1% and more without having to do anything. All the product packaging was being done by a 3rd party( ie: Coventree). The executives at the National in Montreal thought they were smarter than all the rest of the banks in Canada, as the National loaded up on this ABCP by the truckloads. Actually the National bank as per total balancesheet assets has the highest % of ABCP of all the canadian chartered banks. By far more! Actually the National is the BLACK SHEEP of financial institutions, even dumber than the Caisse Desjardins! Now that is DUMB! A previous poster above mentionned Michel Tremblay, COO, being in conflict of interest. That would not surprise me. It is time the Quebec financial markets investigators send a few folks over to 600 De la Gauchetiere. The least is the Chairman and CEO should resign. It would be unfair that the poor working class cashier gets fired for the lack of insight by senior executives. The cashier is only trying to make ends meet while guys like Michel Tremblay are probably "on the take" by pushing sales of products that give him a higher annual income from the Natcan division. I think the Quebec financial markets watchdogs should ensure that there is no conflict of interest by the executives of the National bank. Even the present CEO, who is doing business with Quanto Financial, and Metcalf & Mansfield , is questionable. Apparently the executives of these 2 packaging firms are former chums of his at NBF! Just a rumor i've heard. It is a Rumor, yet the official watchdogs should do something about it.
  14. George Stefanapolous from Gatineau, Canada writes: David, i agree with you 100%. The National should disclose its writedown immediately. The Quebec financial markets watchdog should ensure that there is no executive that pushes particular products so as to increase his personal annual bonus. Excellent point. If it is the case, Jail is the right sentence for those executives regardless the bank involved. Amen.
  15. The Wet One from Canada writes: Very good article.

    Kinda scary too.

    Considering this is a purely man made market, dreamed up by humans with more variables than humans were able to control, one only wonders how well humans will do with a system, not of human ingenuity, likely with more variables than are known to humans, of which humans are twisting dials, pushing buttons and otherwise messing around with things.

    I predict that we will live in interesting times going forward, just as we've had some interesting times in the market.

    Thankfully, this too shall pass.

    The Wet One
  16. George Stefanapolous from Gatineau, Canada writes: David, i just realized that you are a fellow Gatineau citizen. Casino anytime soon?
  17. garlick toast from Canada writes: to david cyrus,i think the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec is a different entity than the caisse desjardins,which is a well run credit union system.
    i don't think the fat lady has sung on this yet.
  18. John Tan from mississauga, Canada writes: An excellent piece of journalism. Chapter 10 raises some eerie questions begging for more transparency that is overdue to the investing public in particular and all Canadians in general. Firstly is the imminent sequel to the persistent problems that do not seem to have a solution yet when the truce comes due in mid December. What then ? Secondly, was the caution raised by the journalists that investors "can no longer rely on banks, which are offloading their risks". In its context the article was referring to ABCP, but it does raise a moot point relating to the fiduciary duty of banks towards their customers regardless of the types of investments banks offer to their customers and depositors. The Federal Finance Ministry, the Central Bank of Canada and the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) would have no other better time than now to come up with clearer rules of governance to protect the public. If they do not do the goal-tending, who will?
  19. John Stanton from Canada writes: The desperation to make more and more money is powerful enough for these financial wizards to invent vehicles and mechanisms which are obviously failed schemes. It is frightening that this goes on unchecked.
  20. Andree T. from Canada writes: Excellent journalism! Yet i am compelled to understand why these bankers call themselves experts and yet fail at doing their jobs.

    Why is the National bank not disclosing their writedown like all the other chartered banks? Are they hiding something?
  21. Jedburgh Abbey from Canada writes: Reading this (excellent) piece was like reading about the Cuban missile crisis: you feel like looking in the mirror to make sure you're still alive.
  22. Andree T. from Canada writes: Speaking of Cuba, some of these bankers would be "jailed" in Cuba for having failed to do their jobs and El Lider Maximo (Fidel) would ensure it would not happen again. Too bad the CEO'S are free to do what they want in Canada. We need Fidel Castro to straighten out our crooked bankers!
  23. S Lucht from Canada writes: I think it's telling that many rating services refused to rate the various kinds of ABCP. What's equally important is the free rein given to financial institutions to package debt or assets of all types, regardless of quality. Specifically, the packaging of sub-prime mortgages--in hindsight, we see all the different ways in which the sub-prime market could have been pressured. Yet, from what I understand, no attempt has been made to regulate it. Although the market for sub-prime loans is primarily a US phenomenon, the financial fallout has been wide-reaching.
  24. w sykora from Kingston, Canada writes: This superb article restores my faith in your newspaper's ability to investigate and present a complex story clearly and honestly.

    I hope one day the Globe & Mail will make a similar effort in investigating Mr. Harper's income trust betrayal and its unintended consequences on foreign takeovers and consequential effects on the strength of the looney.

    After all, most of the $25 billion in trust valuations were not lost by supposedly sophisticated bankers and investors, but by powerless seniors that were bamboozled by their own government.

    After this newspaper's full throated support of Mr. Flaherty's unsupported assertions about tax leakage that continues to this day, this may be too much to hope for.
  25. Luke R from Toronto, Canada writes: Balboa R. from Toronto, Canada writes: The banks go around and claim they hire the brightest people with MBA's and PHd's. So, if these people are so smart, why did they not see this happening? Easy, it does not matter what degree or level of education you have, it is just a reason to sell people more crap because they fall into the trap. What a joke. I encourge more companies to hire mba's to solve all their problems.
    ***********************
    Balboa, you got it all backwards. The MBAs and PhDs are very smart. The problem is that they are also greedy, evil blood suckers.
  26. Andree T. from Canada writes: Actually the MBA's and PHD's are forced to follow the protocol of the banks. You are either with the "senior management farts" or against them. Do you honestly think that because people have degrees that the Executive V.P., the CEO, the Chairman will allow "carte blanche"? NOPE!

    For instance, at the National Bank the COO calls the operational shots, do you think he cares what an MBA has to say? NOPE! It is pretty tough to work around executives who are Lider Maximo wannabes, no MBA would dare interject!
  27. Andree T. from Canada writes: Don't forget that the senior executives of banks are mainly interested in their bonuses and the exercising of their stock options. National Bank stock has been down 20% since june 1st when the CEO took office. The stock is at $51 and it was at $66.80 in june 2007.

    This years stock options were probably issued at $60 as the stock has been "clinically dead" at $60 to $65 range for 18 months. Now that the stock is probably going to $40, there is no way the senior executives will be able to benefit from the stock option program. MY QUESTION IS: WHO IS TO BLAME?

    The executives themselves as they made all the decisions. So this year, NO BONUSES! NO STOCK OPTIONS! Actually with a potential writedown of $500 million, they should restitute the bonuses of the past 3 to 4 years instead of firing poor clerical staff for managements stupid errors.
  28. Joachim Zucker from Toronto, ON, Canada writes: Only gold and silver denominated hard assets will allow
    people to save their skins, at the end of the day.
  29. larry hallatt from Canada writes: The product was defective, the management and expertist of highly paid bank and financial officers is suspect, greed is so evident and gross stupidity is the under pinning factor. Unless heads are severed in these institutions and complete departments closed that trade and package manure, the market will smell for years and trust will continue to be eroded. This still is the tip of an iceberg, more titanics are about to collide. Many financial products have so much marketing and wrappings that one has problems finding any underlying value for a purchaser. Many vendors are as trust worthy as your 649 lottery outlet. Purchasers bought the products like one buying a lottery ticket expecting to fulfill a dream based upon greed. A few people are winners eating from the top while the odds and statistics indicate a pyrimid based upon losers.
  30. quinn carter from Toronto, Canada writes: "That is, until someone stops paying their mortgage."
    Huh? When someone stops paying their mortgage, the bank steps in, seizes the property and sells it. So this would not cause a crisis. What would cause a crisis is a home price bubble, caused by excess liquidity, that gets burst causing a housing price collapse and rise in defaults.
    The former explanation is easier to swallow because it can be blamed on 'subprime borrowers' and limited to that category of mortgages.
    The latter can only be blamed on the Federal Reserved and affects all categories of mortgages.
    Where's the Globe article that explains the magnitude of the mess and explores what other categories of mortgages are going to go sour?
    And why did the Globe take until November to explain this crisis, which occurred three months ago? Not exactly timely reporting for the newspaper's business readers.
  31. John Stanton from Canada writes: larry - greed as you call it, or capitalism, is what makes the markets and the economy grow. What these executives and financial wizards practice is the arcane art of applying too much risk trying to squeeze another basis point out of an already questionable investment. Fear is really the only check and balance - fear of losing all your money, your job, your bonus, going to jail, etc. but for these personality types where winning is all that matters, these are risks people are willing to take. Coupled with the fact that none of the above happens except to lose their job where someone else pays them more quietly applauding their aggressive behaviour and hoping they will do it in their institution (without getting caught of course). Then they too can collect their multi million dollar Christmas bonus and show up to a United Way soup kitchen and write a $ 10,000 TAX donation (which they need anyhow to try to shelter some of their money that isnt hidden in a trust), get their photo in the paper, and everyone thinks they are wonder children. Next life, I am going to get a finance and law degree and be amongst the blue bloods!
  32. R Rrr from dartmouth, Canada writes: The article is well written. After twenty years of profit making by the big banks they have decided to run for cover. The fault lies with the OSFI. The artilce states that ' "According to OSFI, the only way Canadian banks could sidestep capital reserves for liquidity loans was if they inserted a clause stating that the emergency funds could be drawn only if there was a general market
    disruption" '. The OSFI must have reasoned that banks can get through a general market melt down. It seems that this is not the case since the banks have denied the conduits money to get out of this trouble. This reminds me of junk bonds with high interest rates. In the article it states ABCP "offering they offered some of the highest interest rates going". Looks like greed got the better of everybody.
  33. Matthew in DC from currently Washington, United States writes: Very nice reporting giving some good context! Nice job G&M!

    For those wondering why this kind of "surprise" unwinding of a seemingly good business situation happens both as a surprise and without apparent learning by the actors involved, I highly recommend the book The Black Swan by Nassim Taleb. You have to get past the aggressive (and frankly occasionally aggravating) writing style, but the book does a great job of illustrating why human psychology leads to a consistently repeated type of bias in examining the risks of low-probability / high-consequence events.

    Our brains just aren't very good at rationally assessing these types of risks and we're not inclined naturally to be as continually skeptical as we need to be. Because of that we tend to focus on confirming the positives of a plan ("ooh... shiny and regular stock price increases for FS institutions") rather than looking for evidence that may disprove our operating hypotheses ("hmm... isn't there alot of unclearly mapped risk floating around in these right now?").

    Again... good job G&M. Can we see more of this level of in-depth reporting?
  34. John Stanton from Canada writes: Matthew, sounds like an interesting book - thanks for sharing!

    For my money, these people know exactly what the ramifications are. They just dont care and why dont they care? Because there are zero ramifications - they cant lose so why wouldnt they try until accountability is put in place?
  35. Jimmy Delf from Canada writes: The leaders of these financial institutions have got nothing to lose because its not their money.

    The money being lost belongs to: pension funds of future retirees, shareholders, simple folks being misled to invest in something secure, governments etc....

    The executives loading up on tainted products want to increase risk to increase profit so they can get a huge bonus$$$$$ and stock options$$$$.
  36. Jimmy Delf from Canada writes: Why can't shareholders unite and fire some of these executives immediately. There is such abuse even with perks they get.

    John E. Cleghorn former CEO of Royal Bank use to take the subway and train in Toronto. He retired with honor in 2001!!! Good man too.

    Yet i have read an article recently where at the National Bank, the smallest of all the chartered banks, gives a perks chauffeured limosine service to its CEO, Louis Vachon. As well the COO, Michel Tremblay has a full time chauffeur driven limousine. WHAT IS GOING ON???

    Then we hear the National bank must fire people because they wrotdown $500 million? WHAT IS GOING ON? Shareholders please unite!!!
  37. Howard Beale from Canada writes: Since the beginning of time there have been strong and or smart people whose sole goal in life is to separate the weak and or dumb people from their assets. While governments may be useful in fighting the past abuse to make them more difficult to use again, the predators are always one step ahead. It is therefore necessary for "investors" to approach all new investments with skepticism. How often has it been said that if you don't understand something, avoid it until you do. Even if you use a so called advisor, if you can't understand something and the risks associated with it, don't buy it.
  38. Jimmy Delf from Canada writes: In all this ABCP, i refuse to believe that the everyday bank employee working for his family must pay for the errors of senior management. I read this week that the National bank is preparing to make massive layoffs of its workforce to compensate for the writedown of aprrox. $500 million.

    Why should the struggling father, mother, have to lose their job when they get to work on time. This simple folks have to endure criticism from management to save money here, money there. BUT WHY IS IT THE EXECUTIVES WHO MADE SERIOUS ERRORS GET AWAY WITHOUT CONSEQUENCES?

    These guys actualy will get huge bonuses while the simple employees get "canned". WHY? Shareholders please open your eyes, i beg you. There are families who need their jobs to make ends meet. Because of the errors of the executives, these clerical staff people will lose their jobs. we are entering the age of accountability and the senior executives must pay for their choices and errors not the staff who accomplish thir work on a daily basis with effort and determination.. We need to rise up and question the executives about their mistakes and FIRE them.
  39. tom harris from Canada writes: These morons are in charge of the money that drives Canadian and world business... I still don't understand why anyone would get involved with instruments they don't understand and could manage themselves if they had to. We got screwed because it was "easy money" No such thing. No matter how many layers there are you have to have something to get something. Trading on the stability of something in the future with someone else's money is just plain wrong and greedy. I'm not getting super rich super fast but I watch what I buy and am well off and stable for it.
  40. tom harris from Canada writes: As an aside we need to seriously reconsider how we measure a stable and or booming economy, no matter how you look at it everyone relies on the worker spending his money and saving for his future. Business trading with business is the exact opposite measurement. Stop messing with his savings and trickle down will go away.
  41. bruno tomassini from Canada writes: Fear of the UNKNOWN...a natural human behaviour...that stopped the purchase of the ABCP by lemming investors.

    The psychology of investors can affect financial markets more than real risk...

    The market is irrational driven by greed and fear like the escape from the ABCP demostrates.

    Can PHD, MBA,CEO deal with irrationality? hardly.

    cheers!
  42. John Doe from Canada writes: "Credit losses from the mortgage market alone could total as much as $400 billion, according to Jan Hatzius, chief United States economist at Goldman Sachs. In a report last week, he noted that if half those losses were borne by financial institutions, lending could be reduced going forward by about $2 trillion, or about 7 percent of all nonfinancial debt in the American economy. That would not only hurt the financial sector; it could lead to a recession." - New York Times, Sunday, Nov 18.
  43. Sam G from Toronto, Canada writes: Excellent article! I would like to know more about the "peg" between Canadian dollar and the US dollar. US dollar decline has clearly shown that there is a strong "peg"; rise in CAD is disproportionaly higher than demand for Canadian resources, which can mean only one thing: it is powered by US dollar decline, which means that there is a strong "peg." Bank of Canada is now suggesting that rates will be lowered in short term to prevent deeper economic impact to Canada. Again, if credit market crisis is "contained" (previous stance) in Canada, why worry about the decline? Is it the currency peg or the US economy peg that drives such action?
  44. Andrea Loretto from Toronto, Canada writes: As a client of the National Bank in Toronto, i am appauled at the "opulence" and "excess" that the CEO and COO are using as corporate perks. If it is true that they both benefit from chauffeur driven limo service, these two men should be ashamed! They messed up with the money of the National Bank and failed to do a good job. The National will most likely writedown $400 - $500 million yet these execs go around in limo service.

    The National bank is a small time bank yet it gives incompetent senior executives very expensive perks? These losers should take the example of the previous CEO of RBC, Mr John E. Cleghorn, a subway user! Wow that is humbleness! I am closing my accounts at the National Bank.
  45. Marvin Chin from Canada writes: Andrea, I can confirm to you and the rest that Mr Cleghorn of the Royal Bank did use the Toronto subway system as did most of the other emplyees. When he retired in 2001, the Royal Bank gave him a Chrysler as a gift! Mr Cleghorn was more disappointed than anything cause he still wanted to use the public transportation system. You are right in calling him humble too. The National bank executives with their limo drivers is totally wrong and out of reason. There is definately a problem with the board of directors at the National bank!
  46. Marvin Chin from Canada writes: BTW excellent article G&M!!!
  47. wysi wig from Canada writes: Can pretty much be summed-up as follows - Incompetent management (MBA's, investment bankers and/or good old boys relying on younger spreadsheet "geniuses" with little real experience) powered by greed, typical financial institution herd mentality, high-end expensed lunches and less than vigilant board members.
  48. andree Tremblay from Canada writes: I hope that some serious questions will be asked at the shareholders annual meeting (March 2008) concerning the abusive perks given to the senior executives of the National Bank. They don't deseved these perks cause they "burnt" $500 million dollars in writedowns due to their gross incompetence. Teach these National bank bums a lesson at the shareholders annual meeting.
  49. The Great Gazoo from Toronto, Canada writes:

    Believe It or Not

    After the never ending loop of "Britney's In/Out of Rehab", and "Lot's of Jobs in Alberta!", G&M finally does some journalism.

  50. Clark Edwins from Canada writes: Globe & Mail excellent journalism! As for the beginning of this "thriller" with the National bank person rushing down the stairs, i can see his concerns lol.

    The National Bank stock took a hit and will tank even further. The present CEO took office June 1st, 2007 when the stock (NA) was at $66.50. It closed friday November 16th, 2007 at $51.03. Basically, a free fall of 22%. Watch the stock go to the mid $40 range when they announce their writedown. The boys in Montreal will be assuming the "fetal position" and crying themselves to sleep. Ahhh, how i wish i was there to see them cry like babies lol.
  51. Carl Hansen from Canada writes: What's wrong with having chauffeur driven limo service?
    The heads of the banks have to be on the phone and reading papers all day. They don't have time to drive to work.

    If you read about the US housing market you might come to the conclusion that nothing will save the world from this credit crunch. There will be little further lending and more and more people will walk away from bad mortgages.
  52. Glen Murtz from Vancouver - Point Grey, writes: So a bunch of bankers and "friends of finance" get together in secret and agree to do something that benefits all of them in the short term.
    Wow.
    Can someone please explain why "Financial Institution" isn't a prejorative, but "conspiracy theorist" is?

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