Lie #1: The Stress Tests Provided Transparency in the Banks


Lie #1 -- The stress tests provided transparency in the banks"The effect of this capital assessment will be to help replace uncertainty with transparency. ... We chose a strategy to lift the fog of uncertainty over bank balance sheets and to help ensure that the major banks, individually and collectively, had the capital to continue lending even in a worse-than-expected recession." -- Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, May 2009

These tests did NOT bring transparency to the banking sector. They were practically designed to prove the banks were fine, and simply ignored off-balance-sheet and other dodgy assets. It was as if they were saying, "We will do whatever it takes (even lie) to make sure the big banks do not fail since Congress won't give us more money to fix them."

Since this "new wave of transparency," the banks have only raised a small portion of the capital they really need. What's more, the "worse-than-expected recession" Geithner spoke of assumed 8.4% unemployment. We are now looking at 10%.

Lesson for investors in 2010: The banking system is still, by historical norms, insolvent, led by big money-center banks such as Citigroup (C) and Wells Fargo (WFC).

Next: Lie #2: New Accounting Rules Show Banks Are All Right

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Symbol Lookup
IndexesChangePrice
DJIA+6.5112,890.46
NASDAQ0.002,927.23
S&P 5000.001,351.95

Last updated: February 10, 2012: 09:28 AM

Hot Stocks

General Electric

19.130.00(0.00)

Alcoa

10.640.00(0.00)

Apple Inc

493.170.00(0.00)

Google Inc 'A'

611.460.00(0.00)

Bank of America

8.180.00(0.00)

Wal-Mart Stores

61.960.00(0.00)

Exxon Mobil Corp

84.880.00(0.00)

Ford

12.690.00(0.00)

Citigroup

33.660.00(0.00)

IBM

193.130.00(0.00)

Yahoo

16.000.00(0.00)

Starbucks

49.200.00(0.00)

Microsoft

30.770.00(0.00)

Home Depot

45.270.00(0.00)

DailyFinance Headlines

Benzinga Headlines

TheFlyOnTheWall.com Headlines

BioHealth Investor Headlines

WalletPop Headlines

DailyFinance BlackBerry App

My Portfolios

Track your stocks here!

Find out why more people track their portfolios on AOL Money & Finance then anywhere else.

BloggingStocks Partners

More from AOL Money & Finance

BioHealth Investor Headlines

Page Loaded in 1328884082215 ms.