Credit Crunch Rocks LBOs

Proposal would raise tax rate for private-equity profits from 15% to 35%

(NEWSER) - Wall Street stormed Washington yesterday, as more than 70 lobbyists for financial firms met with GOP lawmakers to organize opposition to a bill that would raise the tax rate on private-equity partners. The proposal would require managers at private partnerships to pay the normal income tax rate of up to $35% on their cut of profits, rather than the 15% rate they now enjoy. More»

It would be funny, if it weren't so 'shameful': Paul Krugman

(NEWSER) - Paul Krugman has some choice words today for the titans of Wall Street, who can't seem to take a little criticism from the president. "It has, in a way, been funny to see how childish and thin-skinned the Masters of the Universe turn out to be," he writes in the New York Times . But given the mess that these bailed-out "spoiled brats" have caused, it's actually "shameful" that they're more concerned about their reputations than solutions. More»

(USER SUBMITTED) - Seems the titans of Wall Street, and here we mean the private equity buyout shops including Warburg Pincus, Carlyle, TPG, and KKR, have amassed $500 billion to buy companies. Their problem? Not enough to buy and rising prices for what is out there. Plus it's a lot harder to leverage deals with debt in a post-bank-meltdown world. Read the full article . More»

More than ever, experienced insiders are scooping news organizations

(NEWSER) - Many high finance blogs just “stink,” David Weidner writes, but discerning “Wall Street junkies” can depend on a few that engage top talent and often scoop major news organizations. He runs down 10 of the best news and analysis sites in the Wall Street Journal , “skipping the stockpickers or pure investing sites.”

• The Big Picture: Fund manager Barry Ritholz's site is "beautiful," "updated frequently," "written in plain English," and counts Nouriel Roubini and the Fed as readers.

Bill passes 223-202, with Senate to act next year

(AP) - The House today passed a sweeping overhaul of financial regulations that would govern Wall Street and reconfigure the power of the agencies overseeing the banking system. The vote was 223-202, with nearly all Republicans in opposition because of fears over too much government intrusion. The bill is designed to address the shortfalls that led to last year's calamitous financial meltdown. More»