Lehman Goes Coyote Ugly

Posted by John Carney, Sep 06, 2007, 4:18pm

layoffsatbearstearns.jpgMore layoffs hitting very far from reaches of Wall Street banks. Lehman Brothers is showing the door to 850 lost souls, as it takes a step back from its global mortgage lending business and considers going coyote ugly.

(You know that one right? It’s where you wake up next to someone after a late night and consider chewing off your arm to get out of the apartment without waking him or her up. Like a coyote stuck in a trap.)

The cuts are hitting all over. The South Korean mortgage business is donzo. People are totally fired in the US and UK. And its not just subprime this time. It’s much broader mortgage business.

Lehman is one of the largest underwriters and traders of mortgage debt on Wall Street. It was basically running its own show until now, originating the mortgages, chopping them up into structured products, selling and trading the bonds. Well, that didn’t work out.

Despite the continued layoffs, everyone we talk to on Wall Street is totally sure that their own jobs are safe.

Except, you know, those media, retail and tech analysts at Merrill who just lost their jobs.

Lehman Brothers To Make Further Mortgage Layoffs [Wall Street Journal]

0Recommend this! 8Comments
Posted in: Banks, Layoffs, Lehman

Comments

Posted by rfg, Sep 06, 2007 5:34PM

What is the Merrill analyst job loss talk?

Any articles yet? Or has this not hit print?

Thanks

Posted by John Carney, Sep 06, 2007 5:37PM

A few Merill analysts have been shown the door. Experienced people. Well liked. Pink slips.

Posted by rfg, Sep 06, 2007 5:39PM

Thanks. I'm not at Merrill, but I hope I'm not next.

-a lowly tech associate

Posted by Merrill Analyst, Sep 06, 2007 5:49PM

Research or Ibanking analyst?

Posted by rfg, Sep 06, 2007 5:54PM

You should write a story about the Merrill analysts. It is generating more interest than the Lehman layoffs.

Posted by John Carney, Sep 06, 2007 6:13PM

Research. Full story tomorrow, hopefully.

Posted by Dave Chappelle, Sep 06, 2007 9:15PM

Sorry if this is stating the obvious (I'm only able to surface every so often, so I miss some things), but EVERY analyst should be concerned. All the banks have made lists of top to bottom rank order of analysts. So at each wave of coming cuts, HR etc. already has the names and serial #s of "expendable" analysts.

Quit your models and bottles boys and girls. It's going to be a bumpy ride.

Posted by anonymous, Sep 07, 2007 5:39AM

As with the merrills analysts, I know a senior retail analyst in London got shown the door - but he lost his job b/c the sales team lost confidence in him - seems the salesman have mad power over research and merrills has been donking their calls of late.

Post Your Comment