No you're not jaded, jusr speaking the truth. Shame the politicians can't do the same.

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The way these so called "traders" in investment banks have behaved is an insult on the word "trader". A real market trader looks to see what is selling, what he stands a reasonable chance of making a profit on, and buys that out of his own money. And then he goes to the market with his goods. He knows his costs (fuel, storage rent, pitch rent and so on), he also knows how much his exposure is to having bought at the wrong price, or the wrong item. But in the main he has only spent his money, out of his pocket (or at least the fund that will go to his next holiday - if he takes one that is).

Bank "traders" on the other hand don't go out and buy with their own money, they buy with money that not even the bank has. They then take this thing they've not bought to the market, pass it off as "theirs"', or "the bank's" and sell it to someone else, who doesn't have the money, but has invented a pseudo pot of gold... And so the circle goes on, until someone sneezes. Now all their hopes of getting away with it for another cycle are in doubt, they panic, and so the panic spreads faster and faster. These so called "traders" are nothing more than a combination of con-merchant and gambler. They con their bosses into thinking they can never loose, and then gamble with the bank's money in that false belief. of course the day of reckoning comes round every so often and they cry the tears of a con man...

Give me a good honest market trader any day. He knows the price and the value of everything on his stall, and will strike you a fair deal - today he might make a loss, but he wants you to come back, then (eventually) he will make a profit, but not a huge one.

Do I sounded jaded to you? I probably am, I've met both, one I respect, the other I find no respect for, only pity that they are so shallow and full of themselves they can't see it collapsing around them even when the rubble is up to their armpits....

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Bob Smith
Member of Seti PIPPS (Pluto is a Planet Protest Society)
Somewhere in the (un)known Universe?

I don't particularly like the guy as I think he's a "Yuppie throwback", but in this case, he's right (then again, even a broken clock is correct twice a day).

Inter-bank lending to be reviewed

"Nobody has confidence that the current plans of this Government or the industry will be sufficient.

Nobody believes either that the scandals of the last week are the end of the story. So we need a full, open and independent inquiry which the public can trust."

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King attacks banks

"He slams 'excessive levels of compensation', 'shoddy customer treatment' and 'deceitful manipulation'

Had this been one of us, we would be looking at a conviction & possibly 5/10 years in prison! Instead, we get.....



..plenty of finger wagging......

"You naughty boys, don't worry friends, we'll reject any calls for prosecution"

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I would agree. I expect the international banking world is monitoring the UK situation with great attention, and not least some trepidation, as I suspect existing tax havens are.

The same ought to be said for International banking.

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Following an extraordinary week of scandal and disgrace, senior politicians and church leaders called for a financial equivalent of Lord Leveson’s Press inquiry. Labour leader Ed Miliband wants the Prime Minister to set up a judicial investigation into the banking world that would lead to a standards board and code of conduct.

UK Banking

I think we are starting to see the beginning of the end of maverick banking as we have known it. The financial sector has been warned time and again that if they can't or won't self regulate, then it will be imposed upon them. The public have had enough and are taking action at Annual General Meetings by blocking Executive bonuses, and now Senior Politicians are demanding action, as are also other major public figures.

But the downside may be that if they are forced to abide by a code of practice, it will likely mean that their profits will drop, and might cause large shareholders like Pension Funds to invest elsewhere. We don't want to be bailing out any more ailing banks.

It could be said that if they didn't have pushy shareholders demanding high rates of return for their investment, then the banks wouldn't be tempted to behave as they do. But a Pension Fund has to maintain the growth of its assets to cater for an ever growing aging population. It's all a vicious circle with many knock-on effects.

Bank of England Governor Sir Mervyn King admitted ‘something went very wrong’ in the finance industry, criticising ‘excessive’ salaries and bonuses, ‘shoddy’ treatment of customers and ‘deceitful’ manipulation. He said the latest abuses by UK lenders reinforced the need to press on with the sweeping reforms recommended by the Independent Commission on Banking, rather than a Judicial Enquiry.

Any way you look at it the Banks are under heavy scrutiny and won't get away with it any more. I think they knew it was always going to happen one day and they just made hay while the sun shone, unfortunately, it's come over all cloudy for them.