Blasphemer!! We all know UK is worse than the US

HelpWhereIcan

http://www.citywire.co.uk/personal/-/news/markets-companies-and-funds/content.aspx?ID=330540&re=4805&ea=188540&Page=1

Why UK banks are in better health than their US peers

25 February 2009

UK banking stocks have been closely tracking their US peers, but Sanford Bernstein analyst Bruno Paulson said the two groups of stocks are not really comparable.

Paulson says that the US banking sector is currently under pressure due to anxieties about the 'stress test' element of the Treasury secretary Geithner's plans, alongside concerns about the low levels of tangible common equity in some of the US banks. This is infecting the UK stocks, Paulson says.
'The issues facing troubled US banks are rather different than those facing their UK peers – although the core problem of huge potential loan impairments over the next couple of years is clearly shared,' he said

He said the difference in capital structure is shown clearly by the difference in Core Tier 1 ratios, which are 6-7% in the UK but as low as 3-4% in the US at Citigroup and Bank of America.

While he concedes the ever growing size of the UK toxic asset scheme will likely come with a heavy bill for UK players, and may contain some dilution, he does not believe the impact will be anything like as serious as the common equity injections of October and in the case of Royal Bank of Scotland, January.

There is some good news from this poisonous VI though

Paulson thinks current prices in the UK sector still imply a 60-70% likelihood of nationalisation and said they are trading at a discount to most of the strugglers among their US peers, which he thinks is a poor reflection of their relative strength

Cannot help being a bit flippant given where I am posting this, but found the article interesting and cannot help but wonder if Darling's calls for pri vate investors to buy bank shares may have some mileage

http://www.citywire.co.uk/adviser/-/news/other/content.aspx?ID=330600

Darling says investors should retain a stake in banks

25 February 2009

Darling, who has overseen the full nationalisation of Northern Rock and Bradford & Bingley while taking a 68% chunk of Royal Bank of Scotland and 43% in Lloyds, said that ‘it is important that the banks’ equity will continue to be owned by institutional and individual investors as well as by the government.’

or am I being taken in by the Boredon Goon VI spin?


or am I part of the Darling VI Spin machine?

are they just trying to talk sense into me or are they trying to steal what's left of my money without having the bother of having to collect it as taxes?

I'll have the blue pill please.