Last week, I was at US Bank; a CD had matured. I asked the banker,
does US Bank have money to lend? Could I get a loan if I needed one? He
said, Yes, it was no problem. (I have a good credit score.)
A local car dealer last week said they had money for financing too.
So we see, not every bank is short on available cash. And now this: Wells Fargo acquiring Wachovia for $15.1 billion! (My emphasis)
In an abrupt change, Wachovia said Friday it agreed to be acquired by
San Francisco-based Wells Fargo & Co. in a $15.1 billion all-stock
deal that trumps Citigroup's plan to acquire Wachovia's banking
operations and avoids government assistance.
The Citigroup deal would have been done with the help of the Federal
Deposit Insurance Corp., but the Wells Fargo deal for Wachovia will be
done without it. Shares of Wachovia and Wells rose in morning trading,
while Citigroup shares fell.
Today, all eyes are on the House, seeing if the bailout bill passes there. I am hoping it doesn't since it contains too much pork and not enough reform. Loads of Pork, Little Accountability in Senate Bailout Bill: Will the House Balk?
The House rejected the original bill on Monday
but the revised bill contains a lot of "sweeteners" designed to garner
enough votes, including $100 billion in tax relief, a widening of the
FDIC insurance cap to $250,000 and aid to rural schools.
But the Senate bill is also laden with pork, including:
- $223M for Alaskan fisherman
- $192M for rum producers in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands
- $128M for auto racing
- $33M for companies operating in American Samoa
- $10M for film & TV production
- $6M for producers of wooden arrows
In the meantime, the private market is working, buying up bargains and expanding their market share.
UPDATE: New development. Wells and Citi are fighting over who gets to buy Wachovia! Wells Fargo, Citigroup in tug of war over Wachovia
Please, comment content should relate to the subject of the post. Although I try to respond to many, do not interpret my lack of a response as agreement.
Links:
Brookfield7, Fairly Conservative, Betterbrookfield, Jay Weber, Mark Levin, Vicki Mckenna
