Toothless Watchdogs Not Sure Where TARP Money Went

(NEWSER) - The Obama administration has devised a maybe-legal method of avoiding Congress’ restrictions on companies that accept bailout funds, including limits on executive pay and a requirement that taxpayers get an ownership stake in the firms, the Washington Post reports. To sidestep the restrictions, the administration has created special entities to act as middlemen between the government and the firms it aims to help. More»

Government strikes deal to sell remaining 2.4B shares

(NEWSER) - Taxpayers will wind up making out like bandits on their $45 billion bailout of Citigroup. The Treasury Department has struck a deal to sell its remaining 2.4 billion shares of Citigroup for $4.35 a share, it announced yesterday, bringing the total money made off such sales to $57 billion. Citigroup will pay the underwriting fees on the sale. More»

Bank bailout is highlight of latest accounting

(NEWSER) - So it's not exactly zero, but the $388 billion the feds dumped into bailouts is going to end up with a final price tag of ... $29 billion, reports the New York Times. Most of Treasury's losses are focused in housing rescues ($46 billion) and the Detroit bailout ($17 billion), while other segments of TARP actually reaped profits—like the $22 billion feds expect to pocket when they sell their stake in AIG. More»

Geithner & Co. were afraid to ask Wall Street for concessions

(NEWSER) - Financial officials, “most notably Timothy Geithner,” deservedly lost the public's trust with their no-strings-attached bailout of AIG, Paul Krugman rails in the New York Times . As a damning report from the TARP inspector general points out, the government made no serious attempt to extract concessions from the banks that made bets with AIG, instead paying them back 100¢ on the dollar—with taxpayer money. More»

Number based on 'hypothetical maximum,' Treasury counters

(NEWSER) - The special inspector overseeing Treasury’s TARP program says federal assistance to banks and other financial entities could end up costing taxpayers $23.7 trillion, Bloomberg reports. Aside from the $700 billion bailout, Neil Barofsky says in testimony prepared for told Congress tomorrow, other trillion-dollar federal programs could balloon. “TARP has evolved into a program of unprecedented scope, scale and complexity,” Barofsky says. More»