Crisis Anniversary

The Exchange: Kevin Rudd

23 Oct 2018

Australia's prime minister in 2008 told Breakingviews how his government decided to spend some 6 pct of GDP on tax breaks, infrastructure and cash payments to citizens. That helped the country heavily exposed to China, commodities, finance and housing avoid a recession – just.

The Exchange: Anshu Jain

15 Oct 2018

Deutsche Bank was credited with coming through the 2008 crisis in better shape than many of its rivals. Jain, who rose from running the German lender’s global markets business to eventually become CEO, stopped by Times Square to speak with Rob Cox about the state of finance.

The Exchange: Howard Marks

11 Oct 2018

The founder of Oaktree Capital, with $120 bln of assets, doesn’t see signs of an imminent correction or crisis. But investors, particularly in the credit markets, are acting bullish in ways they’ll inevitably regret when the cycle turns, Marks told Rob Cox earlier in October.

The Exchange: Jeff Lacker

9 Oct 2018

The presidency of the Richmond Fed, whose territory included two top U.S. banks, offered a unique window on the financial crisis. Wachovia needed rescuing and BofA’s deal to buy Merrill Lynch nearly collapsed. Lacker reflects on what went down and where finance is headed.

The Exchange: Neel Kashkari

4 Oct 2018

Even before Lehman Brothers went belly-up, the U.S. Treasury was hatching a contingency plan. Kashkari was one of the architects of the Troubled Asset Relief Program, which plugged some $250 bln into banks. He joins Rob Cox from his current perch running the Minneapolis Fed.

The Exchange: Sheila Bair

28 Sep 2018

The chair of U.S. bank regulator FDIC in 2008 recalls how competition and disagreements between watchdogs contributed to the crash. A decade later, despite leaving the industry, she still feels an obligation to warn of the dangers of rolling back some post-crisis reforms.

China is feeling the aftershocks of 2008, again

28 Sep 2018

Wall Street’s implosion taught Beijing to rue reliance on a rival. Yet officials, gloating over U.S. failures, neglected reform. Despite a decade trying to wean itself from American consumers, cash and currency, complacency has left China exposed to bad policies in Washington.

The Exchange: Vikram Pandit

26 Sep 2018

As the chief executive of Citigroup, Pandit engineered the bank’s rescue and recovery from the crisis ten years ago. He swung by Times Square to discuss lessons learned, the things that still worry him and where he’s placing his bets on the future of the financial industry.

E-book: Ten Years After

21 Sep 2018

A decade since Lehman’s collapse, Breakingviews presents a multimedia collection reflecting on the 2008 financial crisis and what’s changed, including new columns and graphics as well as audio and video interviews with key figures like Gary Cohn, Barney Frank and Sheila Bair.

Banks were first to fall in decade of lost trust

21 Sep 2018

The failures and bailouts of 2008 swept away the notion that bank executives could be relied upon to safely run their firms. Since then central bankers, politicians and the media have all grappled with growing public scepticism. The institutional malaise shows no sign of lifting.

Hadas: Economists trapped in pre-crisis fogs

19 Sep 2018

The 2008 crash proved professionals can deal with a big bank failure. Other questions raised by the slump remain open: Are hedge funds and derivatives evil? What drives inflation? Are big current-account deficits dangerous? Why has the recovery been so slow? No one really knows.

The Exchange: A chat with Gary Cohn

18 Sep 2018

President Trump’s first National Economic Council director and former Goldman Sachs No. 2 discusses the financial crisis and its aftermath with Gina Chon. He also gives his take on tax cuts and trade, and explains why JPMorgan boss Jamie Dimon would make a “phenomenal” president.

Financial crisis mostly put “D” in dealmaking

18 Sep 2018

Many of the bank investments and takeovers inked as markets cratered a decade ago brought at least as much pain as progress to the instigators. Think JPMorgan buying Bear and WaMu. Breakingviews looks back at some of the flops – and a couple of high-flyers.

The Exchange: Congresswoman Maxine Waters

17 Sep 2018

The senior Democrat on the U.S. House Financial Services Committee recalls the lack of answers that lawmakers had in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis. The Exchange went to Congress to discuss that period and find out her priorities if she takes over the banking committee.

U.S. Congress requires banking boot camp

17 Sep 2018

More than 60 pct of lawmakers were first elected after the 2008 financial crisis, and a good chunk after Dodd-Frank was passed. So the meltdown’s causes are lost on many, as is how banking works. With regulatory change on the docket, Breakingviews has drawn up a bluffer’s guide.

Chancellor: Lehman’s easy money extends to China

17 Sep 2018

The last in a series of essays marking the 10th anniversary of the crisis argues the ultralow rates that inflated assets and led to widespread capital misallocation, wealth inequality, financial instability and other risks in advanced economies are even more evident in China.

Chancellor: The carry trade that followed Lehman

14 Sep 2018

The subprime crisis was born from yield-chasing in the Greenspan easy-money era. Even lower interest rates since the Lehman bust revived the global carry trade. Another maelstrom will be hard to avoid.

The Exchange: Greg Fleming

13 Sep 2018

On the day Lehman Brothers went belly-up, Merrill Lynch sold itself to Bank of America. As president of the “Thundering Herd,” Fleming was the architect of that transaction. In conversation with Rob Cox, he defends the deal, reminisces on the crisis and discusses his new venture.

AIG’s lost decade is not yet behind it

13 Sep 2018

The insurer, rescued with a controversial $182 billion bailout in the 2008 crisis, has sold assets like AIA, rejigged operations, repaid the U.S. government, worked through CEOs and even started making acquisitions again. A new direction is emerging, but investors remain wary.

Chancellor: “Haves” enriched most from Lehman bust

13 Sep 2018

Ultralow interest rates after the crisis may have lifted many boats, but the yachts of the wealthiest have been buoyed above all. Wall Street and the CEO class particularly benefited. This has come at the expense of the less fortunate, who are making their displeasure known.