ZenInvestor

Writedowns and Capital Raised by Financial Firms

What conclusions did you draw from this? Comparing write downs to 'current' market cap only tells me that some stocks may well be 'beaten down' more than they should have, or is that some companies have taken more write downs and therefore are safer from further write downs?

The facts as you have presented them are well known, and thanks for compiling them, but opining on their meaning would have added something to the bare recitation of facts you have presented for us to ponder on our own.

The Current Market Atmosphere: Easy Money Hard to Come by

Well, I got my post censored. I guess if you really LIKE something it stays, but if you simply post anything contrary it disappears. Hmmm. I restate that this is not insightful, just a 'rehash' of old information. Is that so harsh it need to be censored?

Metrics, Mortgages and Analysts

The other obvious from the 'investment banks' is that E*Trade bank is FDIC regulated. They have a layer of reasonableness tests that no Lehman or Bear Stearns ever had to adhere to, and the E*Trade Bank call reports and capital levels are strongly into the well capitalized side.

The reason the 'street' does not see it is fear, and part of that is well founded since many regulated banks were able to hid portfolio issues from regulators through their sheer size and the complexity of the deals. Cindy's point about 'first in, first out' of the crises is well founded. The fact that E*Trade owned up quickly and sold the sub prime to Citadel for a deep discount has set them up to exit the credit crunch early. Q2 will be the real sign that their recovery, if not complete, is well down that road.