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When I heard the recent news that Bear Stearns (NYSE: BSC) was the first, and hopefully only, major financial institution that was going under as a result of the recent credit fiasco, I wondered just how fast the company would be ripped apart and sold off in chunks. Well, the deal is not even finalized yet, and we are already seeing parts of the company up for sale -- just not the parts one would imagine. It seems that some Bear Stearns workers are quickly looking to cash in with some creative eBay Inc. (NASDAQ: EBAY) auctions.
If you head over to eBay's auction site and search for Bear Stearns, you will currently find 201 items listed for auction. Items include all sorts of memorabilia of the soon to be devoured financial institution. You can pick up t-shirts, coffee mugs, stuffed animals, and even a nice lunch with a friendly Bear Stearns employee (current bid only $1.99, reserve not yet met)!
The lunch really caught my attention, and if I lived in New York I think I would be willing to bid up to at least $10 for this adventure. The seller is also including in the deal a menu and souvenir cafeteria card. Not a bad deal if you are the lucky winner. The seller promises "Huddled whispering, shell-shocked expressions and dazed employees." Of course the buyer will be responsible for transportation to and from Bear Stearns.
If you want to get in on the action, you really just need anything with the Bear Stearns name on it. I found one story of a woman that sold her husbands workout t-shirt on the site for an amazing $151.76, simply because it had the Bear Stearns logo.
While I find it crazy, I also am not too surprised to see people flocking to own a little piece of the soon to be defunct Bear Stearns. So dig through your closets, you may have a hidden gold mine in there!
Michael Fowlkes has worked as a stock trader for seven years and spent the last four years working as an analyst for the online investment advisory service Investor's Observer.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
3-26-2008 @ 4:05PM
feroze said...
Be aware that the Fed has chosen a course of guaranteeing junk paper instruments to buoy securities firms that would otherwise be under water . . . or out of business. You should not be surprised that many journalists ''report'' that this is fixing the economic crisis.
Certainly, the stock holders of Bear Stearns are happy about the federal handout. What we are witnessing now is a publicly traded stock -- which otherwise would be worth pennies -- is now magically worth ten dollars, because of a government edict (which is also known as a fiat).
Considering that our fiat-currency Dollar is a piece of paper backed by the ''full faith and credit of the United States,'' then this new paper should rightfully be called ''fiat-securities.''
Unfortunately, the general public is not cognizant that government intervention in the free market is ultimately at the expense of the Tax Payers. Let us hope that ten dollars does not become worth as much as a penny stock, which is basically what the government is suggesting.
3-26-2008 @ 4:01PM
frank said...
Be aware that the Fed has chosen a course of guaranteeing junk paper instruments to buoy securities firms that would otherwise be under water . . . or out of business. You should not be surprised that many journalists ''report'' that this is fixing the economic crisis.
Certainly, the stock holders of Bear Stearns are happy about the federal handout. What we are witnessing now is a publicly traded stock -- which otherwise would be worth pennies -- is now magically worth ten dollars, because of a government edict (which is also known as a fiat).
Considering that our fiat-currency Dollar is a piece of paper backed by the ''full faith and credit of the United States,'' then this new paper should rightfully be called ''fiat-securities.''
Unfortunately, the general public is not cognizant that government intervention in the free market is ultimately at the expense of the Tax Payers. Let us hope that ten dollars does not become worth as much as a penny stock, which is basically what the government is suggesting.
3-26-2008 @ 6:10PM
Marc said...
Makes me want to go find my Ace Greenberg 50th Anniversary Yo-Yo. Now that's some good schwag!
3-27-2008 @ 8:51AM
Mike said...
This same thing happened to Enron memorabilia.
About this time last year, the website www.powersellersunite.com posted a link to a then-active Ebay auction for a new, sealed, still in the shrink-wrap Enron ethics manual.
The winning bid was in the $250-$300 range.
These manuals still pop up from time to time on Ebay.