Banking Law

We're All Doomed

Last November we asked, "Will The Be A Bank Implode-O-Meter?" In January, we received our answer and it was "Yes."

If you haven't checked it out, you should do so. Although commercial and investment bank failures haven't exactly skyrocketed and approached the lofty heights of failure scaled by the independent mortgage company industry segment, we're still working our way through the liquidity and credit mess, so there's time to add names to the list. As that happens (if it happens), all those liquidators and troubled bank workout specialists that the FDIC brought out of retirement and stuck in Dallas will have a lot more to do.

The banks listed aren't merely those who've gone out of business, however. As the site explains, the term "imploded" is used more expansively.

The "imploded" list contains banks which have gone through some sort of permanent adverse change. This of course includes regulator-declared "faiures" and conservatorships/receiverships, as well as private sector events such as "firesale" buyouts. While the financial entity may continue to operate, we post them here if they would not otherwise continue without some sort of "rescue". We focus on "implosions" since 2006.

The site also is a font of gloom-and-doom news about banking gleaned from news services around the globe. Any non-banker perusing the site would be tempted to stock up on rails, tar and feathers in case any unsuspecting bankers lope by, while any banker spending more than five minutes reading articles linked on the site will be tempted to stick a plastic bag over his head, borrow a dog collar from his faithful Fido, and pull it tight. Someone must be reading this site, because the traffic counter says that nearly 150,000 folks (and perhaps robots, spiders and other assorted non-humans) have visited since January 30, 2008. While that's a mere 1% of BLB's hourly traffic, it ain't bad if your goal is to attract potential ad-clickers.

For those who like to share their own thoughts on how bad or gloomy all things bank-related might be (and we've certainly run into a plethora of those people lately), there are forums where individuals can trade comments and, perhaps, insults, about the bad, bad banking biz. One of our favorites is "No Beating Around The Bush - Banks Are All Bankrupt."

So, for that little ray of sunshine that brightens your banking day, don't forget to stop by "Bank Implode-O-Meter" and bask in the warmth of the power of positive thinking.

Full post as published by Bank Lawyers Blog on May 27, 2008 (boomark / email).