Singapore Home Loan: Global Finance world's 50 Safest Banks? Oh really?

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GLOBAL FINANCE WORLD's 50 SAFEST BANKS, REALLY???

1. KfW
(Germany)
2. Caisse des Depots et Consignations (CDC)
(France)
3. Bank Nederlands Gemeenten (BNG)
(Netherlands)
4. Landwirtschaftliche Rentenbank
(Germany)
5. Rabobank
(Netherlands)
6. Landeskreditbank Baden-Wuerttemberg-
Foerderbank
(Germany)
7. NRW. Bank
(Germany)
8. BNP Paribas
(France)
9. Banco Santander
(Spain)
10. Royal Bank of Canada
(Canada)
11. National Australia Bank
(Australia)
12. Commonwealth Bank of Australia
(Australia)
13. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA)
(Spain)
14. Toronto-Dominion Bank
(Canada)
15. Australia & New Zealand Banking Group
(Australia)
16. Westpac Banking Corporation
(Australia)
17. Banco Espanol de Credito S.A. (Banesto)
(Spain)
18. ASB Bank Limited
(New Zealand)
19. HSBC
(United Kingdom)
20. Credit Agricole
(France)
21. Wells Fargo
(United States)
22. Nordea Bank
(Sweden)
23. Scotiabank
(Canada)
24. La Caixa
(Spain)
25. Svenska Handelsbanken
(Sweden)
26. US Bancorp
(United States)
27. Banco Popular Espanol
(Spain)
28. DBS Bank
(Singapore)
29. Pohjola Bank
(Finland)
30. Deutsche Bank
(Germany)
31. Société Générale
(France)
32. Intesa Sanpaolo
(Italy)
33. Bank of Montreal
(Canada)
34. DnB NOR Bank
(Norway)
35. The Bank of New York Mellon
(United States)
36. Caixa Geral de Depositos
(Portugal)
37. United Overseas Bank
(Singapore)
38. OCBC
(Singapore)
39. Axa Bank Europe
(Belgium)
40. Credit Suisse Group
(Switzerland)
41. Landesbank Baden-Wuerttemberg
(Germany)
42. Nationwide Building Society
(United Kingdom)
43. CIBC
(Canada)
44. National Bank Of Kuwait
(Kuwait)
45. Barclays
(United Kingdom)
46. UBS
(Switzerland)
47. JPMorgan Chase
(United States)
48. Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ
(Japan)
49. Banque Federative du Credit Mutuel (BFCM)
(France)
50. Credit Industriel et Commercial (CIC)
(France)
Global Finance magazine February 25, 2009

OH REALLY?

Here are the list of the world's 50 Safest banks. However, we would take it

with a pinch of salt as many of the same rating agencies did not spot the

problem with sub-prime mortgages and Collaterized Debt Obligations

(CDO).

OUR DOUBTS

We have doubts as to how much ability the rating agencies have with

regards to estimating off balance sheet risks.


We also have doubts as to how much ability the rating agencies has, to assess

the exposure of each one of the complicated derivatives that each bank

holds and it's liabilities and valuation, as the trading volume is so thin,

derivatives are mostly mark to model. But in times of credit crisis, the

derivatives can be useless and worthless if it is mark-to-market. That could

mean that banks who dabble in derivatives are technically insolvent if they

are Marked-to-market.


CONSOLATION PRIZE

The only consolation we have is, the world's leaders are sitting up and

nobody wants another bank to fail. Many banks who take excessive risks,

will be nationalized, the shareholders will be punished for their faith in the

banks.


CLAW BACK THE BONUSES OF GREEDY BANKERS

Previous CEOs of banks will get away with all the big fat bonuses for taking

the excessive risks and bring the banks to their knees for their greed.


We strongly feel that banks who are currently in trouble, there is a record to

trace back to the time when they first take excessive risks. Executives who

received big fat bonuses and share option plans, should be liable to repay

most of their bonuses. They should not be let off easily.

We quote a section from NYT
"
Arthur Levitt, the former chairman of the Securities and Exchange

Commission, charges that “the credit-rating agencies suffer from a conflict of

interest — perceived and apparent — that may have distorted their

judgment, especially when it came to complex structured financial products.”

Frank Partnoy, a professor at the University of San Diego School of Law

who has written extensively about the credit-rating industry, says that the

conflict is a serious problem. Thanks to the industry’s close relationship with

the banks whose securities it rates, Partnoy says, the agencies have

behaved less like gatekeepers than gate openers. Last year, Moody’s had to

downgrade more than 5,000 mortgage securities — a tacit acknowledgment

that the mortgage bubble was abetted by its overly generous ratings.

Mortgage securities rated by Standard & Poor’s and Fitch have suffered a

similar wave of downgrades."


We are independent mortgage consultants for home loans in Singapore.


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