tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32841798.post2392778553705795938..comments2024-03-28T09:55:42.123+00:00Comments on Capitalists@Work: Bank Shares - Still toxic in 2013CityUnslickerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15929544047783163175noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32841798.post-32199010330482390122013-07-30T15:52:36.395+01:002013-07-30T15:52:36.395+01:00right to read that "" Back in the early ...right to read that "" Back in the early 2000’s, bank shares were some of the best long bets you could take in the market. They were viewed as de facto defensive utility stocks, when in reality they were leveraging up their balance sheet from 20x to 30x and even 50x in the case of those exotic Icelandic banks<br /><br />Of course, we all know how this ended in 2007-8… the wheels not only came off, but the wreckage careered over the cliff as well and took the poor British tax payer with it! All bank shares were caught up, even the more restrained organisations such as HSBC and which managed to rack up £20 billion in losses on sub-prime mortgages and other exotic CDO and CLO products.<br />"" Agence communicationhttp://www.salisoft.manoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32841798.post-35146898028504584072013-02-04T16:19:34.206+00:002013-02-04T16:19:34.206+00:00O/T but my new found habit of not turning on the T...O/T but my new found habit of not turning on the TV meant I missed the Superbowl. And an absolubte stormer it was too! <br /><br />Damn!Bill Quango MPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14861116614665461655noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32841798.post-44796928001310121532013-02-04T16:18:12.566+00:002013-02-04T16:18:12.566+00:00I guess the critical question is at what level do ...I guess the critical question is at what level do interest raqtes have to rise before the mortagage sector starts to see defaults? UK bank lendings are invariably linked to mortgages...and interest levels have been held down for 5 years. Incomes have not been rising - and loan-income ratios were high just before the crash. Is the level 6% or 8% or 10% before all those loans turn toxic? My first mortgage was at 15% - I remember wondering if interest rates would ever be in single-figures again and it certainly conditioned all my behaviour.Graemehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11007306140530173428noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32841798.post-51035602689839948572013-02-04T12:52:48.814+00:002013-02-04T12:52:48.814+00:00Mis-selling of interest rate swaps was always goin...Mis-selling of interest rate swaps was always going to be the next billion++-pound mess for the banks with big UK corporate exposure. <br /><br />It'll be caveat emptor for the FTSE 350 companies, whose FDs were expected to know what they were doing, but the SMEs...... it's going to be ugly.<br /><br />Sell into strength. Only when the banks have made adequate provision might it be time to buy them cheap again.idlehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09938525768274527540noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32841798.post-989732247230642522013-02-04T12:44:07.850+00:002013-02-04T12:44:07.850+00:00Banks cannot be trusted until there is our own Gla...Banks cannot be trusted until there is our own Glass-Steagall. And in the meantime maybe a few bankers will join Huhne in prison.Budgienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32841798.post-45160054324182873622013-02-04T11:57:44.080+00:002013-02-04T11:57:44.080+00:00Without divulging too much, I was in investments o...Without divulging too much, I was in investments of various kinds which held up under the onslaught but my statutory bank deposit took a real hit in fees etc.<br /><br />Certain investments need to behave themselves but banks are immune from worrying about depositors.James Highamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14525082702330365464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32841798.post-55138891831793621642013-02-04T10:02:30.774+00:002013-02-04T10:02:30.774+00:00Banks have traditionally been seen as defensive st...Banks have traditionally been seen as defensive stocks along with water, electricity and the like.<br /><br />But the fact is, they weren't defensive stocks at all, given the sort of things they were doing. <br /><br />My own personal experience - I invested in a bank, specifically because I thought it was boring and not glamorous. If I'd stopped to consider, I would have had second thoughts. My own fault of course, and thankfully I wasn't too badly burnt.<br /><br />If we were to split these into retail and investment decisions, then of course it would be different.<br /><br />There was an article in the Times a few years ago about Hoare & Co, one of the oldest banks in the City. A small family outfit, that didn't get burnt because, as the Chairman said "We just do boring things like take deposits and lend them out again."<br /><br />If only we had more of these!Malachi Brownhttp://thewonderfulworldofwork.co.uk/noreply@blogger.com