2012-09-28

Spain's Banking Sector is Rock Solid. No, Really. Oliver Wyman Says It's So

From The NY Times:
[T]he number was within the range of previous estimates and well below the potential 100 billion euros, or $128.8 billion, in bailout money Spain negotiated with the other members of the euro zone union in June.
And of the 14 banks assessed by the consulting firm Oliver Wyman, half are not in need of any emergency funds, including Santander, BBVA and La Caixa — the country’s three largest financial institutions.
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and the European Commission both issued statements Friday, applauding the audit and expressing support for Spain. “This is a major step in implementing the financial assistance program and toward strengthening the viability of and confidence in the Spanish banking sector,” the commission, the administrative arm of the European Union, said in a statement.
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The independent report, which Oliver Wyman based on its own work...
 
But wait. Let's check out some other results from Oliver Wyman:

It was reported that Oliver Wyman was the unnamed consulting firm that in 2005 recommended to Citigroup's "senior-most management" to expand parts of its fixed income business, including in collateralised debt obligations (CDO), which led to more than US$50 billion in losses and ultimately a rescue by the U.S. government.
 
[O]n the eve of the World Economic Forum in the Swiss resort of Davos in January 2007, financial consultants Oliver Wyman named Anglo Irish Bank the best bank in the world.
 
ANGLO IRISH BANK HAS published the worst set of results in corporate history in Ireland, outdoing its own record in confirming losses of €17.5bn for the last year.
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Anglo also said it was wholly government owned and relies on continuing state support.
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The bank’s CEO Mike Ainsley earned €974,000 last year.
 
Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, the company formerly called Anglo Irish Bank, has reported a pre-tax loss of €743m for the first six months of 2012 and warned that the eurozone debt crisis continued to weigh on the group.
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IBRC reported a pre-tax loss of €743m for the first half of 2012, compared with a loss of €101m in the same period in 2011.
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Anglo Irish was at the centre of Ireland’s property bubble. Initially a small commercial lender the bank transformed itself into an aggressive lender to property developers by injecting tens of millions of euros into projects in Ireland, the UK and elsewhere. At the height of the Celtic Tiger economy in 2007, the Anglo Irish share price peaked at €17, giving the bank a market capitalisation of €13bn.
Sean Fitzpatrick, former chairman and chief executive of Anglo Irish, and the man who oversaw the bank’s rapid expansion, was last month charged with manipulating the company’s share price as investors lost confidence in the lender when the financial crisis struck.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/4f3b57d2-edc0-11e1-a9d7-00144feab49a.html#axzz27o9rcipF
 
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