Looks like Lehman is heading for liquidation..talks fail

[RDMcG]

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/15/business/15lehma...

Barclays has withdrawn.
The world of banking is looking increasingly grim these days. Wonder who is next.......

[Fittster]

The taxpayer when he runs out of cash to bail them out?

[RDMcG]

Looks like it will be over in hours..before midnight EST tonight. This is a big one.http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aNMh_8NRE6QM&refer=home

[Durruti]

Fittster said:

The taxpayer when he runs out of cash to bail them out?

Well that's the joy of the current impasse. On the one hand, letting Lehmans collapse puts all the financial pain where it properly belongs - with the institutions that would've (and did) happily take the profits. The problem is that no-one is sure how big the ripples of dropping this particular stone will be and the bankers are screaming that it would cause such a tsunami throughout the financial system that the US government should pony up and swallow the cost as the lesser of two evils.

The US government, having spent a shedload of future taxpayers money last weekend propping up Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae are running scared of what the taxpayer may say if they casually throw another $500million plus into the bankers pockets to dig them out of a hole that they created. Plus, if they back Lehman today what about WaMu and AIG next week, both being rumoured to be having problems. How much money are they going to throw at private risk.

Breaking......

Bank of America now out of talks too according to Bloomberg.

Asian markets open in a couple of hours - NY preparing for Lehman to file for Bankruptcy before midnight NY Time - Bloomberg.

If Lehmans goes, and that's looking extremely likely now, tomorrow will be one hell of a ride for the exchanges and will be a definitive day for a lot of the wrong reasons.

[Chrisgr31]

The unspoken problem of course is that this is actually a cost to all of us! The financial institutions have effectively ripped us all of over the years, investing our pensions and endowments so half the time they are worth less than we put in, whilst claiming huge bonuses for their successes. However the chickens really have come home to roost about those successes now!

[Fivepercent]

That is 26,000 financial services people out of a job tomorrow.
And 911 prices are already in free fall.

[audidoody]

How many jobs in the UK? (unemployed .. not 911's)

Edited by audidoody on Sunday 14th September 21:00

[Fittster]

Fivepercent said:

That is 26,000 financial services people out of a job tomorrow.
And 911 prices are already in free fall.

A) How many of them will be in a new job by the end of the week?

B) How many have made enough to have got through the 'fk You' barrier where it doesn't really matter if the work again.

[RDMcG]

Durruti said:

Fittster said:

The taxpayer when he runs out of cash to bail them out?

Well that's the joy of the current impasse. On the one hand, letting Lehmans collapse puts all the financial pain where it properly belongs - with the institutions that would've (and did) happily take the profits. The problem is that no-one is sure how big the ripples of dropping this particular stone will be and the bankers are screaming that it would cause such a tsunami throughout the financial system that the US government should pony up and swallow the cost as the lesser of two evils.

The US government, having spent a shedload of future taxpayers money last weekend propping up Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae are running scared of what the taxpayer may say if they casually throw another $500million plus into the bankers pockets to dig them out of a hole that they created. Plus, if they back Lehman today what about WaMu and AIG next week, both being rumoured to be having problems. How much money are they going to throw at private risk.

Breaking......

Bank of America now out of talks too according to Bloomberg.

Asian markets open in a couple of hours - NY preparing for Lehman to file for Bankruptcy before midnight NY Time - Bloomberg.

If Lehmans goes, and that's looking extremely likely now, tomorrow will be one hell of a ride for the exchanges and will be a definitive day for a lot of the wrong reasons.

Yep agree. Also, the US government is politically up against the wall with the auto industry. if Delphi goes into liquidation it will start the whole GM house of cars to begin to fall. I think they may well be trying to balance their options across some very ugly alternatives.

[Fivepercent]

Here are their current UK job vacancies: http://jobs.efinancialcareers.com/company-Lehman_B...

[audidoody]

Greenspan saying this is the worst once-in-a-lifetime economic situation in a Century and has some way to go.

[Durruti]

Fivepercent said:

That is 26,000 financial services people out of a job tomorrow.
And 911 prices are already in free fall.

Your postings seem slightly narrow in their perspective if you don't mind me saying.

26,000 individual tragedies are just the tip of this iceberg, but as long as you can have a snide dig at our porker driving brethren that's ok.

Piss off you lightweight tt.

[fido]

RDMcG said:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/15/business/15lehma...

Barclays has withdrawn.
The world of banking is looking increasingly grim these days. Wonder who is next.......

Thank goodness Barclays didn't buy them - things are looking alot brighter now. If they haven't learnt from the ABN episode, then they haven't learnt anything. I don't see Goldmans in a rush to bid for them [who seem to be in the know].

Edited by fido on Sunday 14th September 21:05

[Simpo Two]

Chrisgr31 said:

The unspoken problem of course is that this is actually a cost to all of us! The financial institutions have effectively ripped us all of over the years, investing our pensions and endowments so half the time they are worth less than we put in, whilst claiming huge bonuses for their successes. However the chickens really have come home to roost about those successes now!

All the money they've made has come from the investor - us. I'm pretty sure my pension fund would be just as big if I'd stuffed it all in the B/Soc.

[H_Kan]

Somewhat optimistically fired of an application for a grad scheme with them and was expectedly turned down. Looks like that one was certainly a blessing in disguise!

This is deffo going to have massive consequences Imo.

[Durruti]

Simpo Two said:

Chrisgr31 said:

The unspoken problem of course is that this is actually a cost to all of us! The financial institutions have effectively ripped us all of over the years, investing our pensions and endowments so half the time they are worth less than we put in, whilst claiming huge bonuses for their successes. However the chickens really have come home to roost about those successes now!

All the money they've made has come from the investor - us. I'm pretty sure my pension fund would be just as big if I'd stuffed it all in the B/Soc.

Well if even a dyed in the wool free market capitalist like you is starting to question the validity of the current banking system then who knows where all this will end....

[Fittster]

audidoody said:

Greenspan saying this is the worst once-in-a-lifetime economic situation in a Century and has some way to go.

Is he also saying the boom in property prices caused by lots of cheap money being made available has nothing to do with him?

[Fittster]

H_Kan said:

This is deffo going to have massive consequences Imo.

Such as?

[thinfourth2]

Durruti said:

Fivepercent said:

That is 26,000 financial services people out of a job tomorrow.
And 911 prices are already in free fall.

Your postings seem slightly narrow in their perspective if you don't mind me saying.

26,000 individual tragedies are just the tip of this iceberg, but as long as you can have a snide dig at our porker driving brethren that's ok.

Piss off you lightweight tt.

Sorry to say but i want a cheap 911

And lets be honest companies in financial services would happily screw over the man in the street for a pound profit

So sorry not much sympathy for the city boys

[Fivepercent]

Durruti said:

Fivepercent said:

That is 26,000 financial services people out of a job tomorrow.
And 911 prices are already in free fall.

Your postings seem slightly narrow in their perspective if you don't mind me saying.

26,000 individual tragedies are just the tip of this iceberg, but as long as you can have a snide dig at our porker driving brethren that's ok.

Piss off you lightweight tt.

So they earn billions telling other people how to manage their businesses and their money. Yet they cannot manage their own. Now the chickens come home to roost.

I have plenty of experience of my money being managed by others and the fees that they charge. So I am not exactly crying at this news.

Notice I am not so lightweight that I cannot get my point over without profanities.