ZICAM, Banks, and the Illusion of Safety
Two days ago I remarked on the new, improved regulatory structure the Obama administration proposes for the financial services industry. On the same day, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) ordered a company called Matrixx Initiatives (MTXX) to stop selling its popular Zicam Cold Remedy. ...
New Financial Cops On The Way
On Wednesday President Obama is supposed to unveil his plan to overhaul the regulatory structure for banks and other financial institutions. Clearly such an overhaul is sorely needed. The SEC, CFTC, OCC, OTS, and assorted other agencies have been asleep for years. The question is whether the president...
Ten Banks Escape From TARP: Reason To Celebrate?
Today ten of the large banks that received money last year from Hank Paulson’s horribly-misnamed Troubled Asset Relief Program repaid the government a total of $68 billion. Combined with repayments by smaller banks and dividends paid to the Treasury, taxpayers will have recovered almost $75 billion...
Ron Paul: Why The Fed Must Be Audited
The history of the American banking system is a fascinating subject. Filled with intrigue, late-night Congressional approvals, and Presidential populism, our country’s official banks are not without scandal. Before the Federal Reserve Act of 1913, there were two other successful attempts to monopolize...
Fix Health Care, Fix The Economy
Earlier this week President Obama launched his campaign to reform the American health care system. He is not off to a good start. His White House appearance with representatives of various industry groups promised nothing more than baby steps toward cost-cutting. It won’t be enough. People...
Stress Tests Reveal: Banks Need More Money!
We at Invest With An Edge have been dubious about the Treasury’s so-called ’stress tests” on the country’s 19 largest banks. The testing is now complete and the banks have been informed of the results. The public has not – though some details are leaking out. As expected,...
How To Avoid Black Swans
Nassim Taleb, author of the eerily prescient books Fooled By Randomness and The Black Swan, has a very interesting column in the Financial Times. We have referenced Taleb before here at Invest With An Edge, and with good reason. He sees things most people miss. Black swans are the rare, almost unknown...
No Way Out For Banks
Recently scientists observed the collapse of a star 50 times bigger than our own sun. After exploding into a massive supernova, the star collapsed upon itself and became a black hole whose intense gravity inexorably draws in anything that comes close – even light itself. This is also an apt description...
Fed Printing Dollars – Short the Greenback (UDN)
In case you missed it, last Friday was the first day of spring in the Northern Hemisphere. Happy people planted gardens, expecting a harvest in a few months. Meanwhile, Obama and company were planting their own seeds in our nation’s capital. However, these seeds won’t turn into cauliflower...
Long On Liquidity and Short On Profitability
Bonehead move of the 1st Quarter goes to the FDIC. They placed a negative rating on a bank located in Massachusetts due to the fact that it was not lending enough. You heard that right, the FDIC slapped East Bridgewater Savings with a rare “needs to improve” rating after evaluating the bank under...
