Merrill Lynch

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Who's Who: The Players Remaking Wall St.

(Newser) - The financial world has been rocked to its foundations in a few short days, with a handful of men making momentous decisions. The Wall Street Journal outlines the key players.
  • Henry Paulson. No Treasury chief has wielded such power. He decides whether big firms live or die via federal bailouts.
...

Thain Made Most of Merrill's Ugly Position
Thain Made
Most of Merrill's Ugly Position
ANALYSIS

Thain Made Most of Merrill's Ugly Position

CEO proved wiser than Wall St. colleagues, has $50B to show for it

(Newser) - As the credit market self-destructed, Merrill Lynch and Lehman Brothers faced similar problems. The difference, Henry Blodget writes in Slate, is that Merrill’s John Thain played his cards right, and Lehman’s Dick Fuld didn’t. Brought in to clean house after Stan O’Neal’s high-risk strategy exploded,...

Denial Exacerbated Meltdown
 Denial Exacerbated Meltdown 
ANALYSIS

Denial Exacerbated Meltdown

Banks, like homeowners, refused to believe how bad things really are

(Newser) - The collapse of Lehman Brothers and the fire sale of Merrill Lynch are stunning developments, Joe Nocera writes in the New York Times, as is the fact Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are the only big investment banks standing. But the turmoil isn’t simply the result of complex trading...

Both Campaigns See Risk, Reward in Wobbly Wall Street

Neither candidate is solid on market crisis, but each can spin it to his strengths

(Newser) - Wall Street’s troubles pose a challenge for both candidates, though because his party hasn’t held the White House for nearly 8 years, Barack Obama has a slight leg up, writes Gerald Seib in the Wall Street Journal. Neither ticket has a strong market background, with John McCain more...

New York, New York, That Teetering Town

Masters of Universe tighten their belts as Wall Street quakes

(Newser) - Amid the financial fallout, even Manhattan's wealthiest consumers are beginning to curb their spending, Reuters reports. Wall Street tremors and belt-tightening by the rich are bound to hit New York City especially hard, and will rock stores, restaurants—and even charities. "We still have not hit the bottom...

Dow Ends Ugly Day Down 504
 Dow Ends Ugly Day Down 504 
MARKETS

Dow Ends Ugly Day Down 504

Lehman bankruptcy swamps week's first trading day

(Newser) - After a midday lull, stocks plummeted again late today as traders adjusted to the failure of Lehman Brothers and the acquisition of Merrill Lynch by Bank of America, Bloomberg reports. Lehman’s stock alone was down 94.9%. The Dow fell 504.48 to 10,917.51. The S&P...

After Big Drop, Stocks Hold
 After Big Drop, Stocks Hold 
MARKETS

After Big Drop, Stocks Hold

Dow takes 300-point tumble early, but market remaining stable

(Newser) - Stocks have taken a beating today, with the Dow off more than 300 points early, the Wall Street Journal reports, but there’s been a noticeable lack of panic among traders. If the current loss holds steady, it will represent just the sixth-worst day this year, despite the massive upheaval...

Bank of America CEO Lands His Biggest Fish Yet
Bank of America CEO Lands His Biggest Fish Yet
ANALYSIS

Bank of America CEO Lands His Biggest Fish Yet

Merrill bid puts bold Lewis over $150B in acquisitions

(Newser) - Like predecessor Hugh McColl, Bank of America CEO Kenneth Lewis loves enormous deals. His 7-year reign has seen flashy conquests adding up to more than $150 billion, but never has he bagged a bigger trophy than Merrill Lynch, Reuters reports. The deal should fulfill Lewis’ oft-frustrated ambition to make BofA,...

European Banks Loosen Purse Strings
European
Banks Loosen Purse Strings

European Banks Loosen Purse Strings

Inject billions into markets; offer more to keep crisis at bay

(Newser) - The weekend’s storm on Wall Street has prompted Europe’s central bankers to make billions of dollars available on the cheap to global money markets as a levee against a rising flood of fresh turmoil, the New York Times reports. The European Central Bank has pledged $43 billion and...

Markdown Sparked Lehman Meltdown; More to Come
Markdown Sparked Lehman Meltdown; More to Come
analysis

Markdown Sparked Lehman Meltdown; More to Come

Other firms could follow suit, meaning widespread losses

(Newser) - What caused two venerable investment banks to implode this weekend, and how much more damage can we expect? It started when Lehman Bros. surprised markets by slashing the valuation of its mortgage holdings last week, making downward revisions so steep that "even longtime bears on the stock thought the...

Wall Street Rumbling Means Little on Main Street

Financial meltdown has small effect on 'real economy': Kaletsky

(Newser) - Fannie and Freddie have been nationalized, Lehman has collapsed, Merrill Lynch has been bought out—an economic disaster, right? Not really, Anatole Kaletsky writes in the Times of London: The US economy is actually showing signs of improvement. More than ever, "there is no contradiction between expecting a recovery,...

Stocks Plunge at Open
 Stocks Plunge at Open 
MARKETS

Stocks Plunge at Open

AIG, Lehman take huge hits, but Merrill takeover stabilizes market slightly

(Newser) - Stocks tumbled at the opening bell this morning, with the Dow dropping more than 300 points after a weekend that turned the financial industry on its head. Lehman Brothers’ collapse and AIG’s request for $40 billion from the Federal Reserve “are causing a major financial panic this morning,...

Lehman Files Biggest Chapter 11 Ever

Bankruptcy sends shockwaves through financial world

(Newser) - Lehman Brothers gasped its last breath this morning, filing for Chapter 11 protection in Manhattan under a crushing $613 billion in debt, the largest—and potentially most frightening—bankruptcy in US history, reports Bloomberg. Experts say the filing is likely to trigger a domino effect in the US economy.

Still Standing, Morgan Stanley, Goldman Face Bleak Times

Survivors will need to belatedly downsize

(Newser) - With Bank of America buying Merrill Lynch, and Lehman brothers heading into Chapter 11, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are the last major independent investment banks standing on Wall Street. But having survived as the fittest doesn't guarantee an easy ride, reports the Wall Street Journal, as both will have...

10 Banks Form $70B Fund to Stave Off Crash

Paulson brokers twin public-private liquidity measures

(Newser) - Ten of the world's largest banks have formed a massive liquidity fund to mitigate the effects of the Lehman Brothers meltdown, reports the Financial Times. All the investment banks will be able to borrow up to a third of the $70 billion fund in order to reduce volatility and stay...

Staggering Wall Street Job Market Takes Another Big Hit

Banks' collapse means loss of 50,000 more jobs

(Newser) - A Wall Street job market that’s already hemorrhaged 100,000 jobs this year now must steel for the loss of 50,000 more as Lehman Brothers and Merrill Lynch—two of its four pillars—tumble at once. “The resume flow will start today like there's no tomorrow,”...

Bank of America to Buy Merrill Lynch for $44B

(Newser) - In a day of toppling dominoes on Wall Street, Bank of America agreed to buy Merrill Lynch for $44 billion, or $29 a share—about two-thirds of what it was worth a year ago and 50% of its highest value in 2007, the Wall Street Journal reports. The deal, struck...

Get Set for Disorderly Lehman Liquidation
Get Set for Disorderly Lehman Liquidation
markets

Get Set for Disorderly Lehman Liquidation

(Newser) - Barclay's dropping out of a Lehman deal means that the Feds lost a game of chicken with the big banks holding Lehman mortgages, and now there will be a disorderly liquidation of Lehman assets, instead of the orderly liquidation that would have been possible with a real buyer, James Cramer...

Stocks Mixed; Down For Week
 Stocks Mixed; Down For Week 
MARKETS

Stocks Mixed; Down For Week

Sliding oil again fails to move markets worried over unemployment

(Newser) - Stocks finished the week with a mixed session today, managing to mostly recover from an early sell-off in reaction to a 5-year high in monthly unemployment, MarketWatch reports. The Dow rose 32.73 to close at 11,220.96. The Nasdaq fell 3.16 to 2,255.88, while the...

Banks Bracing as Their Own Debts Come Due

Billions in shorter-term, floating rate notes likely to prolong credit woes

(Newser) - Billions of dollars worth of floating rate notes—vehicles used by banks to borrow money—taken out in 2006 are coming due in the next few months, and the industry is bracing for a wave of bank failures and asset sales as institutions struggle to pay off obligations, the Wall ...

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