Me Media: Nice comments in Barron’s this weekend by Alan Abelson, quoting David Rosenberg, Chris Whalen, Albert Edwards, Philippa Dunne, Doug Henwood, oh, and yours truly:
“While gratification at what the stress tests showed evoked widespread relief, touching on giddiness, not everyone was satisfied, much less elated. Ah well; there are always some chronic doubters in every crowd, we suppose.
Just by way of example, Barry Ritholtz, chief of [Fusion IQ] seems more than a tad aghast at the idea that Messrs. Geithner and Bernanke, after duly weighing the results of their not-exactly-stressful tests, have concluded that banks will be fine in the future with 25-to-l leverage (Tier 1 capital equal to 4% of risk-weighted assets).
And while 25-to-l leverage may have been appropriate for depository banks in the relatively sedate days before the Glass-Steagall Act was dismantled, it seems more than a little much to Barry in “today’s toxic-asset-laden banks.” As to the cause of the seemingly generous standard, he suggests it may have something to do with the Treasury’s new role as “shareholder and cheerleader for bank profitability.” That explains at least why Tim and Ben never leave home without their pom-poms.”
I first stated doing these media excerpts years ago to keep track of them for compliance dept.
Now, well its just for fun . . .
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Source:
A Surge in Botanists
ALAN ABELSON
UP AND DOWN WALL STREET
Barrons May 11, 2009
http://online.barrons.com/article/SB124182262250602213.html
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