Recent HeadlinesSeveral months ago I was having lunch with an associate in the business who works for another firm, who asked, “How many banks and brokerage firms do we really need?” He was suggesting that there would be a consolidation in our industry. He was right! Every industry goes through stages and our industry is no different. Often the changes come, not as a welcome friend, but as an uninvited guest.
What a rollercoaster ride this has been! As you are acutely aware, the markets have been quite dysfunctional. Only those very close to the situation can actually say how close we were to a collapse of some magnitude. The actions taken by the government were unprecedented and the initial reaction was very favorable. Questions remain, though. Did the markets rise because of the temporary demise of short selling (through Oct 2) or was it euphoria due to the massive liquidity infusion? Only time will tell.
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The past few weeks have been a whirlwind since Hurricane Gustav paid a visit to Louisiana, where I work and practice. Gustav turned out to be the worst storm in Baton Rouge’s long history with winds gusting up to 91 m.p.h. Oak trees which had been standing for hundreds of years decided to lay down, roots and all. The power went out on the day of the storm (Monday, September 1) around mid afternoon and remained out until the following Saturday, September 6. Many are still without power in the area. Area banks didn’t begin to come back online until Thursday and then only a few branches were open. Many employees couldn’t get to work because of fallen trees and other personal struggles such as cleaning up from the storm and waiting in long lines to get gas to run their generators. All in all, commerce came to a screeching halt. In short, it looked like a war zone. (more…)
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