Citibank and Bank of America: The Struggling Giants

Have you noticed what is happening to Citibank and Bank of America? Do you think they are still two of the world's biggest banks? They aren't any more. So, what happened so fast? Weren't they the two most powerful banks as little as 18 months ago? These two mega-banks were fighting to take over and dominate many of the smaller, but where has their money gone?

I will tell you where their money has gone. Simply, nowhere. They did not have the staggering amounts of money in the first place. Surprised? No need to be. What these banks relied on was useless financial papers of supposed value. Please don't be fooled: this is not a sudden revelation that took the industry by surprise. Management knew they had no money. The industry knew they had no money. The money movers knew they had no money.

Sadly, the banks presented to the investing public balance sheets with "fuzzy value" in a scheme to deceive and cash in on the hard earned cash of the middle class who thought they had real, or literal, value in their 401Ks.

Suddenly, these high priced, falsely inflated stocks became "penny stocks". They fell like the fabled Humpty Dumpty, being destroyed and useless in the process. The consequences: tragic. Baby boomers are left without their pension dollars. These same baby boomers now have to forfeit their retirement, and those who have retired are now working part-time. What's truly sad is that these same baby boomers, who have a lifetime of useful work behind them, now compete with high school students for low paying jobs.

I often wonder about the logic that some of the high-profile, big banks CEOs use. Are they so ill-informed, and therefore incompetent to run a business, or is it arrogance? How could they making choices that bring the economy to a screeching halt, celebrate with excessive bonuses, and buy private jets, all while asking taxpayers to bail them out of their financial mess?

—Wesley Palmer, MBA
http://www.wezpa.com

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Citibank and Bank of America: The Struggling Giant

Just what is happening to Citibank and Bank of America? Are they still two of the world's biggest banks? not any more. So, what happened so fast, weren't they the two most powerful banks not long ago; say lest that 18 months ago they were fighting to take over, and dominate small banks, so what happened? Where are all the money gone?

Listen, I will tell you where, no where, they had no money, so what did they got? useless financial papers with suppose value; oh, and don't be fooled management knew it. They present to the investing public balance sheets with "fuzzy value" in a scheme to deceive and cash in the hard earned cash of the middle class who thought they have real value in their 401Ks.

Suddenly, these high priced, falsely inflated stock became penny stocks, they fell like humpty dumpty, thus, leaving baby boomers without their pension dollars. Furthermore, baby boomers, have to forfeit their retirement; and those who have retired are now working part- time competing with high school kids for low paid jobs.

I wonder, are big banks CEOs dumb or are they just arrogant, how could they be buying private jets while asking taxpayers to bail them out of their financial mess? I don't get it, what's the logic?

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