Former Merrill Lynch CEO: “I should’ve gone to Ikea”Former Merrill Lynch CEO John Thain now regrets buying a $68,000 antique credenza and $1400 wastebasket for his office after the company lost $15.3b and was bailed out by the government.
Merrill Lynch
Does Ben Bernanke hate the Bank of America?
Bernanke didn’t railroad the Bank of America into buying Merrill Lynch, says Morgan Housel.
newspaper death watch 
The no-news news that’s killing newspapers
Structural factors aren’t the only reason newspapers are in terminal decline.
Fairfax in Merrill upgrade shock
Merrill Lynch’s new found optimism on Fairfax should be taken with a grain of salt.
Australians complacent on economy, analysts warn
Economists warned Australia to brace for the impact of a downturn in demand for its strongly performing export sector.
RuddNet funding in serious doubt, say analysts
Leading broking and investment firms have cast doubt on the ability of the Federal Government to fund the $43 billion NBN, writes Glenn Dyer.
Merrill raids the cookie jar
There been nothing as offensive as the way Merrill Lynch bankers raided their company’s accounts in the days before its takevoer, writes Glenn Dyer.
The murky “truth” behind Satyam
The implications of the Satyam accounting fraud scandal have not been fully appreciated, writes Michael Feller.
CBA petulant, Merrill flips the bird
Investment bank Merrill Lynch has slammed the Commonwealt after yesterday’s capital raising debacle, writes Glenn Dyer.
Kohler: The broker who knew too much
Commonwealth Bank’s shambolic share placement raises two questions of substance, writes Alan Kohler.
CBA capital raising dead and buried
It what could either be a stuff-up or sheer incompetence, the Commonwealth Bank has been forced to dump its latest $2 billion fund raising, writes Glenn Dyer.
Is the US about to lose its AAA credit rating?
Reassurances that the US isn’t about to lose its AAA credit rating have raised about why it is even being discussed, writes Glenn Dyer.
How Merrills dragged NAB into an $830m writedown
National Australia Bank’s hands were tied when it wrote down massive debts last week, writes Glenn Dyer.
Merrill Lynch against the wall, how far will this company fall?
First came the IMF warning, then Merrill Lynch returned another set of ugly numbers, writes Glenn Dyer.
Revealed: The $5 billion share debts of ANZ and Merrill Lynch
Much did ANZ and Merrill Lynch have exposed to securities lending at the peak of the credit bubble last year? Stephen Mayne crunches the numbers.
Does Opes spell unconscionable?
Could another type of legal claim be filed against ANZ? wonders Adam Schwab.
Wall St endgame? S&P drops a $265b bombshell
Just when everyone was wondering if the US Federal Reserve’s 0.50% rate cut would do the trick and start stabilising the crisis-ridden US economy, ratings agency, Standard & Poor’s, delivered a bombshell, writes Glenn Dyer.
$8 billion loser Jerome Kerviel is just a scapegoat
There’s a large dollop of hypocrisy in much of the reporting about the losses at Societe Generale, the big French bank, because of unauthorised trading, writes Glenn Dyer.
The US stockmarket enters bear territory
The US stockmarket is moving rapidly towards bear territory after plunging more than 300 points on the back of big losses from Merrill Lynch and Washington Mutual, writes Glenn Dyer.
Wall St seeks new capital as subprime debt deepens
Even as recently as November any suggestion of a second round of bailouts for some of the biggest name in world banking would have been laughable. And yet that’s exactly what will happen by the end of this week, writes Glenn Dyer.
Christmas cheer short on Wall Street
There is a lot of nervousness around many US investment banks in the run-up to the only reason any one puts up with the hours, the pressure, the compliance and a lack of time with your family – bonus time, writes Matt Marks.
Merrill Lynch hasn’t seen the last of sub-prime carnage
While the US markets leapt overnight on news that the Fed will once again lower interest rates, the stench from the sub-prime fiasco doesn’t seem to be dissipating, writes Adam Schwab.
Interest will rise as credit freezes over
Forget the election result: it will be great for the winning side. The cold reality on Monday morning will be interest rates and the gradual freezing of credit markets around the world, writes Glenn Dyer.
Morning Market Report
The highlights and lowlights of this morning’s sharemarket activity.
Northern Rock bailout runs into the tens of billions
According to London reports, the rescue of the failed mortgage bank, Northern Rock could match or surpass the amount the British Government spends on defence, writes Glenn Dyer.
