Thursday, October 09, 2008

Canada to rescue U.S. banks?

When Stephen Harper suggested on Tuesday that the market sell-off would present an excellent buying opportunity for investors, is this what he was referring to?

Fin. Post : Fed trolls Canada to rescue U.S. banks
"In a desperate bid to help U.S. banks recapitalize, Washington is dropping its inhibitions and reaching out to Canadian financial institutions to gauge their willingness to participate in rescue operations.
The Federal Reserve has activated a back channel that puts the central bank in direct contact with chief executives at Canada's largest banks and insurers, according to a person familiar with the dialogue.
They are approaching "banks with major assets in the U.S. like [Toronto-Dominion Bank] and Royal [Bank of Canada]"
A lobbyist for a Canadian bank said the political climate in Washington had changed markedly since the passage of a $700-billion bailout and that this country is now seen as a potential source of support.
It was not clear how deeply involved Canadian authorities were in the discussions."

G-7 finance ministers are due to meet in Washington this weekend.

In its June 2008 report, Compete to Win, the federal government’s Competition Review Panel recommended scrapping the ban on bank mergers and "harmonizing its expectations with those of the U.S."

h/t Anon in comments

1 comment:

West End Bob said...

This will get ugly.

Very ugly . . . .

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