"They all know!"

Sant, who hung up the phone, did not pause for a moment, and went directly to his boss, the director of the British Financial Services Agency, Callum. Mccarthy. When he said this, Sant, who was already extremely panicked, didn't even notice that his voice had been distorted.

64-year-old Callum. McCarthy's hair was half white, his face was full of furrows, his body was swollen, and his fierce appearance made him look completely vicious. If it weren't for his neat face and expensive suit, he would have looked no different from those butchers in the Leeds countryside.

It's just that such a person has served three terms in the position of the Financial Services Bureau. Both the Labour Party and the Conservative Party came to power, and they all favored this "butcher", which also shows that he is capable. But in a week, he will be completely retired.

"Who? Got it? Who sued them? ”

McCarthy, who was sitting firmly in the boss's chair, did not change in the slightest, except that a ray of light burst out of his cloudy eyes and disappeared. He raised his eyebrows slightly, then asked seemingly nonchalantly.

"I don't know the specific list, but some institutions definitely do, and one of them is the Tianyu Fund." Sant gasped for two breaths, gradually calmed down his agitated heart, and began to analyze it seriously, "I don't know what the hell is going on, and who else leaked the news. But according to the people at the Tianyu Fund, they may have known that the Royal Bank of Scotland was in trouble, and that they were responsible for the turmoil in the market on Friday. ”

"Do they know about the Halifax Bank?"

McCarthy raised an eyebrow, not commenting on Sante's words, and asked another question.

Halifax Bank is the largest mortgage bank in the UK. Since the outbreak of the subprime mortgage crisis, the financial situation of Halifax Bank has deteriorated. It has reached the brink of danger. However, this qiē was not announced to the public, and although there was speculation that the bank might be in danger, it was far from being expected that the bank had already appealed to the Financial Services Authority and the British Treasury for help.

Like his American counterparts, McCarthy and his colleagues are closely monitoring changes in financial markets. Although the subprime mortgage crisis erupted and the region that suffered the most was in the United States, no country in this highly integrated financial market was immune to this systemic risk. The British Isles are no exception.

Because of the North Rock Bank, Halifax Bank and other incidents, the British side is highly vigilant against the subprime mortgage crisis, and even to the point of making a noise. They fear that their financial system will be in the same turbulence and unrest as the United States on the other side of the ocean.

"They didn't mention it!" Sant pondered for a long time, still not sure if any agency knew about this, "But according to my personal judgment, they know that it should be sooner or later." At that time, the financial institutions that do mortgage business will be affected first, then it may be investment banks, and finally large commercial banks may also be affected. ”

"If Barclays did buy the Rehmen brothers......" McCarthy hesitated. For a long time, he did not say the following words.

Prior to this, he and his colleagues had repeatedly discussed the possibilities of Barclays' acquisition of the Rehmen Brothers. But the assumptions of these possibilities do not include anomalies like those that happened on Friday. In his opinion, the problems of the Royal Bank of Scotland and Barclays can be looked at separately and independently, because the nature of the two is completely different. However, judging from the feedback from the market, institutions, especially short-selling institutions, do not pay attention to this "difference" at all, as long as it can be destroyed, they will rush to it.

If this is the case, Barclays' takeover of Remon Brothers is likely to put the entire British financial system at risk. The Royal Bank of Scotland is a case in point.

"Pick me up at 10 Downing Street."

McCarthy made a quick decision. It was immediately decided to report to the Prime Minister. At such times, it is important to let the highest decision-makers know about these things and the dangers they may bring. Then give professional advice to help the prime minister make a decision.

In fact, McCarthy already has an idea in his heart, but the stakes are so big that he can't make the decision alone, so he can only let the prime minister make the final decision. Because on the part of the central bank, on the part of the Ministry of Finance, they will follow the decisions of the prime minister.

"Just received the message. Bank of America withdrew from the Kaminmen Brothers' bid, and now only Barclays remains. At this moment, the staff member in charge of liaison with the American side walked in and told the two men of the unexpected news.

"Got it!"

After looking at each other for a moment, McCarthy waved the staff out first. Then he said meaningfully, "The prime minister should be made aware of this issue." ”

……

Half an hour earlier, a secret conversation had unfolded between Paulson and Geithner.

"Bank of America is going to pull out, and they're not buying Kaminmon." Geithner was the first to start the conversation, "Ken. Lewis has always been interested in Merrill Lynch, and I think they might turn to Merrill Lynch. ”

"Really?" Paulson glanced thoughtfully at Geithner, not showing much surprise.

Since Ken. After Lewis proposed to reduce the core capital margin, Paulson was keenly aware that Bank of America did not really want to do this business, but they just wanted to use this business to bargain with the Federal Reserve and the Treasury. While their goal has not been achieved so far, they have succeeded in getting the Treasury and the Federal Reserve to step forward and find liquidity guarantees for Bank of America and Barclays.

Paulson didn't know whether Bank of America was interested in Merrill Lynch out of heart or because of his own account. But at this time, he no longer had the heart to pursue these things. Geithner was right, and now Paulson is accountable to the taxpayers, the market. As for the temporary change of course of the Bank of America, it is not at all the time to pursue it.

It is difficult to pursue it even after the fact, if the other party really buys Merrill Lynch.

"So now there's only one buyer left at Barclays?" Paulson's index finger tapped on the mahogany table and asked slowly, "Bob. How's the talk between Dimon and the Remon brothers? Dick. Is Fude willing to accept the other party's offer? ”

Because Paulson and Geithner will be Dick. Fude, McDaunt, and others were excluded from the entire rescue team, so the management of the Kaminari Brothers was particularly angry. But beyond the anger is a deep sorrow, including Dick. Fude, including the Kaminari people, felt a sense of powerlessness.

At this time Bob. Dimon showed up with his negotiating team. Negotiate with the Kaminari Brothers. On the one hand, he was instructed by Paulson to take the initiative to contact the Kaminari brothers. On the other hand, it is natural to take the opportunity to lower the purchase price.

"Now, it's not something he can resist." Geithner was confident and said it very easily, "If he doesn't want the Kaminari brothers to go bankrupt, he can only accept the other party's terms." Fortunately, Dimon decided to let him continue as chairman of the Kaminate brothers after the acquisition. So there won't be much of a problem in this regard. ”

"Not too much of a problem?" Paulson was keenly aware of Geithner's words, frowned, and asked in displeasure, "So, there are still big problems?" ”

"Yes, there is a big problem with the Kaminari brothers' financial statements, and the liquidity guarantee required is far greater than imagined!" Geithner's eyelids twitched twice rapidly, then he smiled wryly and spread his hands. "Bank of America is estimated at $40 billion, but now it's at least $50 billion or more." The CEOs don't seem willing to pay anymore. ”

"Really? Damn these guys, let's go see what the hell they think! Paulson snorted coldly, and his face instantly collapsed. At this time, if anyone dares to leave anything to chance, he doesn't mind teaching the other party a lesson.

The conference room on the fifth floor was full of CEOs. For the past two days, they have basically stayed here, waiting for the analysts upstairs to report all kinds of numbers. As the review of Kaminari Brothers' balance sheet progressed to a deeper level. Most of them are also becoming more and more ugly.

After an initial analysis of assets, liabilities, derivatives, accounts receivable, accounts payable, buybacks and long-term liabilities, analysts found that the quality of the assets held by Kaminari was extremely poor, but the figures shown on the financial statements were not.

In the case of commercial real estate and related assets, Kaminmen Brothers assessed these assets at $40 billion on their financial statements, but after a rough estimate. Analysts were surprised to find that this part of the asset was only $24 billion. If we go deeper, I'm afraid it won't even be $20 billion, less than half of the Kaminari brothers' own estimates.

A similar situation occurs not only in commercial real estate, but also in various assets such as mortgages and long-term and short-term notes. The Kaminari Brothers' assets continued to shrink, and their liabilities remained unchanged. Under the mutual offset, it is natural that more capital is needed for the acquisition.

This also means that the CEOs here will have to take out more funds, and naturally they will not have a good face.

"Gentlemen, it's time for us to make a choice!"

Jamie. Dimon stood up and was the first to appeal, "If we are asked to contribute, then we can't just play the role of giving money without asking for anything in return." Gentlemen, our money does not fall from the sky, and since we are asked to contribute, then we must be given a proper return. ”

"Yes!"

"Well done Jamie! We need to reciprocate too! ”

"Paulson and Geithner should be let know that we can't do this for nothing."

For a while, the crowd in the conference room was excited, and the CEOs shouted loudly regardless of their demeanor.

As the true situation of the Kaminari brothers was peeled back step by step, and the share of funds required was also raised step by step, the CEOs gradually accumulated resentment in their hearts. Originally dissatisfied with their sponsors, they took the opportunity to shout out their anger in the absence of Paulson himself.

"Gentlemen, since this is the case, why don't we discuss a plan to turn our funds into investments, at least in the future, we can get a good return." Jamie. Damon hits the railroad while it's hot.

"It can't be!" Barclays' Michael. Klein stood up and said categorically, "Gentlemen, according to our previous acquisition plan, we at Barclays will acquire the new Rehman Brothers after the reorganization. The liquidity guarantee that you have paid will support the assets spun off from Kaminman Brothers, that is, the new asset management company. ”

"What?"

Like five thunderbolts, everyone except Barclays' bankers was shocked by this statement. Previously, they were required to provide a liquidity guarantee for the transaction, which was equivalent to borrowing money, and it was not a big deal.

But for now, Barclays will buy the best assets of Rehman Brothers, and the less qualified assets will be divested into new companies, and the liquidity of the CEOs in this room will support the operation of these assets.

It's still borrowing money, but the other party lending is different, and that's the biggest problem. They are not worried about Barclays' ability to repay, but they have no confidence in the new company after the split. (To be continued......)

PS: Thank you book friend James Five Wukong for voting for the monthly pass! I hope you will continue to cheer up and support this book, thank you very much~!