The Libor scandal has taken over the headlines recently and is said to be the biggest fraud in history. The LIBOR is the interest rate used by banks to lend to each other. Not only is it used for inter-bank lending, it is also used as an underlying rate for derivatives and as a benchmark for just about every type of loan someone can get. It has been estimated that the Libor rate is used as an index for upwards of $350 Trillion dollars in loans.
Banks themselves are being investigated for fraudulently affecting yields to their advantage to seem as if their unique balance sheets were actually healthier and stronger than they claimed, and to generate profits on interest rate spreads relating to their own financial investments at the expense of ordinary consumers. There is already discussion of building legal cases against the perpetrating enterprises and legislators are really looking at exactly what they could do to be able to insist upon accountability.
There is an incentive to guarantee that there are safety measures in place to make sure that this does not happen again. There is also an incentive to fine those banking companies which may have taken part in any possible deception, nevertheless the governments around the globe are unlikely to move as far as placing regulations in place that would destroy the actual banks. Putting in laws that could damage the banks might further deteriorate economic systems throughout the world that are already regarded as being fragile. Banking institutions implicated by the fraudulent activity have been classified as the same exact banking institutions which seem to have been labeled as "too large to fail" in the past, so it is not likely that those businesses won't remain as being thought of as crucial parts of the fabric of the marketplace.
So what will this really mean for individual investors? As a rule, we know that it is time for us to stay attuned to the banking niche. There'll almost certainly end up being legal cases raised against the banks, as well as perhaps a wave of brand new polices. Anytime there are law suits and also considerable legislative changes, traders establish a perspective and then do business based on those values. It really is at this juncture in time where industries can be unproductive and instead of stock trading on fundamentals, people trade on irrational market psychology.
There is no getting around the point that the actual financial segment is critical to each element of the economy. Be it loans for buying a vehicle, finding a loan to finance someone's education or purchase of a home, or for a company to fund their business and pay out their staff members. Banking institutions are an absolute key component that affects all of those things and are essential for them to function normally. With that said we expect to have some volatility inside of the banking segment, however, it will in the end emerge from this specific scandal in a healthier position in the long term.
The positioning from a value investor standpoint would be to assess the health of banks, and note those that have a relatively strong balance sheet. It is likely that some of those banks will begin trading at discounted prices. The best investments may come from banks that were not named in the Libor scandal but are oversold for the mere fact that they are banks.
Banks themselves are being investigated for fraudulently affecting yields to their advantage to seem as if their unique balance sheets were actually healthier and stronger than they claimed, and to generate profits on interest rate spreads relating to their own financial investments at the expense of ordinary consumers. There is already discussion of building legal cases against the perpetrating enterprises and legislators are really looking at exactly what they could do to be able to insist upon accountability.
There is an incentive to guarantee that there are safety measures in place to make sure that this does not happen again. There is also an incentive to fine those banking companies which may have taken part in any possible deception, nevertheless the governments around the globe are unlikely to move as far as placing regulations in place that would destroy the actual banks. Putting in laws that could damage the banks might further deteriorate economic systems throughout the world that are already regarded as being fragile. Banking institutions implicated by the fraudulent activity have been classified as the same exact banking institutions which seem to have been labeled as "too large to fail" in the past, so it is not likely that those businesses won't remain as being thought of as crucial parts of the fabric of the marketplace.
So what will this really mean for individual investors? As a rule, we know that it is time for us to stay attuned to the banking niche. There'll almost certainly end up being legal cases raised against the banks, as well as perhaps a wave of brand new polices. Anytime there are law suits and also considerable legislative changes, traders establish a perspective and then do business based on those values. It really is at this juncture in time where industries can be unproductive and instead of stock trading on fundamentals, people trade on irrational market psychology.
There is no getting around the point that the actual financial segment is critical to each element of the economy. Be it loans for buying a vehicle, finding a loan to finance someone's education or purchase of a home, or for a company to fund their business and pay out their staff members. Banking institutions are an absolute key component that affects all of those things and are essential for them to function normally. With that said we expect to have some volatility inside of the banking segment, however, it will in the end emerge from this specific scandal in a healthier position in the long term.
The positioning from a value investor standpoint would be to assess the health of banks, and note those that have a relatively strong balance sheet. It is likely that some of those banks will begin trading at discounted prices. The best investments may come from banks that were not named in the Libor scandal but are oversold for the mere fact that they are banks.
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