Current

prescription for a solid recovery – stress test the system

04.20.2009

TOKYO (Reuters) – U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner does not see a second wave of banking collapses and the government is ready to support capital-raising when needed, a Japanese newspaper said on Sunday.

In an interview with the Asahi Shimbun newspaper, Geithner was quoted as saying U.S. authorities were making sure there was steady funding and that banks were able to meet commitments.

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regulation and policy – having the desired effect?

04.17.2009

This is hot off the press from my friends at Bob’s Guide (a great daily newsletter). It would appear that some US institutions are willing to do almost anything to get the government out of their board rooms – well, it was only a matter of time – particularly after the government created legislation to limit remuneration in that same board room…
Press Release
Banks ‘rush to repay Tarp funds’ as rates investigation looms

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do-it-yourself cash

04.16.2009

Utah County officers bust counterfeit money operation
April 14th, 2009 @ 10:00pm
By Sarah Dallof
UTAH COUNTY — Investigators in Utah County have broken up a counterfeit money ring; one they believe has been printing fake bills for as long as six months.

Take a hair dryer, a flat iron, green ink and a printer, and what do you have? According to Lt. Phil Murphy of the Utah County Major Crimes Task force, “You’ve got somebody that was attempting to print $50 bills using cheap, inexpensive methods.”

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will government policy bring us through the crisis?

04.15.2009

This morning I came across a speech given by Mr. Donald Kohn, Vice Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (US). He was speaking at a college forum, which was held to discuss “Great Decisions in the Economic Crisis” – (ed: aren’t those concepts mutually exclusive in the same context?)…

The reason I bring this to your attention is that Mr. Kohn’s speech is another clear indicator that the road to the future for the financial industry and others, is paved with the bricks of regulation and policy.

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when you don’t have it, print your own!

04.14.2009

Task Force Arrests 5, Seizes Printing Presses Used To Print Fake U.S. Currency

WASHINGTON, D.C., April 14, 2009

(CBS) The U.S. Secret Service announced the arrest of five people and the seizure of $8.4 million in counterfeit U.S. currency, as part of a bilateral effort to combat a rise in the spread of fake $100 bills.

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Responding to a Crisis

04.13.2009

Fueled by my last post on this topic, I have been scouring the net for sources of ideas to fix the problem. Of course everyone is watching the US, so why not start with the current Chairman of the Federal Reserve System… First, a little visual preamble…   Ben S Bernanke: The Federal Reserve’s balance [...]

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how nationalized should US banking be?

04.12.2009

For years I have been the brunt of many a joke while in the company of US bankers and others in the industry. You see as rumor would have it Canada only has a handful of financial institutions as proportionately compared with it’s neighbor, because the Canadian government controls all Canadian banks!

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Could Retail “Cash Back” Scheme Be The End of Retail Bank Deposits?

04.12.2009

cashback For quite a few years I have been enjoying the benefits of retailers offering “cash-back” whenever I use my debit card. The benefits to the consumer are obvious as it reduces the number of times I need to visit an ATM machine on a monthly basis. I am sure that the concept of cash-back is [...]

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printing for hyperinflation

04.11.2009

HARARE – Reserve Bank governor, Gideon Gono has admitted the central bank money printing machines have become overwhelmed by the persistent demand for new bank notes.
Gono said Fidelity Printers, government’s minting company, can only churn out two million notes per day and was thus unable to print lower denomination notes, which are in short supply in Zimbabwe.

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