Major Banks Not Guilty of Libor Manipilation (So Far...)

The court system has decided that only some of the private claims against the large banks be allowed to continue litigation suing the banks that allegedly manipulated the LIBOR index.  Although some banks have admitted guilt and paid penalties, most of the alleged offenders have yet to pay any penalties. Yet again, the major players that created the current worldwide recession escape responsibility.

 

It's almost like we are in the rabbit hole - what's up is down and what's down is up.  Thing just don't make any sense.  The responsible parties have been identified.  We now know culprits - this financial bust did not happen by accident.  It was manufactured by the ones who gained the most from it's tragic results.  And they go unpunished.

Too Big to Jail...

I have not blogged in couple of months now.  But I had to come out of hiding for this one...The current U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder let the cat out of the bag.  Or should I say he said something that all of us already know - you cannot prosecute high finance.  The reason ?  The possibility of causing a world wide financial panic, where global markets freeze because of an indictment of a CEO at a major financial firm.

Today's upper echelon of financial institutions are the modern day rulers of society.  They own everything, including the law.  They cannot be controlled.  They cannot be punished.  They are above the law.  And they are without flaw.

LIBOR Deception...Is Finance Today's Wild Wild West ?

During the housing boom, borrowers constantly tried to get as much house as they could afford.  They wanted Interest Only loans, Adjustable Rate Mortgages, Limited Documentation, Stated Documentation, NO Documentation.  Whatever the lenders were offering that would get them into that house, get them approved for that mortgage - they went after it. 

Adjustable Rate Mortgages (or ARMs - any mortgage that the interest rate of the loan is not fixed), along with Student Loans, financial derivatives and a lot of other financial products were tied to the LIBOR index, or the London Interbank Offered Rate.  This is the interest rate one bank will loan money to another. LIBOR is used around the world as a signature index.

INTRODUCTION - Or Why I Started This Blog...

 

The idea for this blog came to me some time ago, but I never really seemed to have the time or the guts to do it. What's different now ? Well, not much, and a lot. I do have the time (I always did, it seems), but I did not have the nerve to really blog about the current mortgage, finance, or real estate industries.  It's been a rough four years for the financial sector of the U.S. economy, especially for mortgages and real estate.

They have all taken a beating, and public opinion has rightfully been very negative. I'm not saying the public isn't correct  in feeling the way they do. I agree with them whole heartily.