Rubens Morse

Don't Expect Other Bidders for Bear - Certainly Not Buffett

I never expected Buffett to bid for Bear. It appears that no other U.S. institution was big or fast enough to swallow Bear. European ones, especially Deutsche Bank, considered bidding, the problem is that the Fed would not give to non-U.S. firms the 'support' ($30 billion non-recourse loan on mortgage securities) it gave to JP Morgan. And of course, absent that 'support', no European could make a bid more competitive that the one from JP Morgan.