Comments on: Rethinking The Ratings Agency Scandal, Part II: Cui Bono?

By: Bulging Bracket

Bulging Bracket — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 09:09:35 +0000

@Anal_yst anayone read BusinessWeek? No, noone has, unless their flight was delayed to hell or their doctor royally screwed them waiting for the appointment. I have yet to see a BW article that isn’t obvious and/or stupid. I sometimes buy it on weekends because their covers deceive me into believing they might have insight, but they have yet to reward my hungover naivete.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 15:44:51 +0000

Agreed, rating agency actually did not pay any attention to market pricing on these things, not their job, but they’d better start because they are going to be wall street’s fall guy on this issue

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 15:27:06 +0000

Rating agencies were heavy data dependent especially backward looking data and when people/mortgage brokers committed fraud in the paperwork, it is hard to quantify human factors. Also, Rating agencies are used to get an assessment of default risk, not market or pricing risk.

By: Turkey Hunter

Turkey Hunter — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 14:38:51 +0000

Read this: http://www.house.gov/apps/list/hearing/financialsvcs_dem/bass.pdf Mezz CDOs, CDO Squared - the very fact that these things could be rated AAA show the ratings process were flawed. Did any of them put any thought at all into correlation assumptions?

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 14:16:55 +0000

@9:03 … and? you’re about a year late with this blinding insight

By: nm

nm — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 14:14:55 +0000

the early bird may get the worm, but the late cat get’s the early bird.

By: french

french — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 14:13:11 +0000

at least municipalities won’t be too screwed because of monolines playing with shit cdo’s

By: Anal_yst

Anal_yst — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 14:11:26 +0000

Anyone read the Business Week article about FICO scores/Fair Issaic’s involvment in this debacle?

By: Eliminate All Lawyers

Eliminate All Lawyers — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 14:03:13 +0000

Everyone knew these assets were riskier than normal investments. BB paper was issued at 100+ bps higher yield than normal BB corporate debt. There was a reason, it was more risky than normal BB debt. Everyone knew it.

By: The Second Mouse

The Second Mouse — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 13:55:09 +0000

The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 13:45:35 +0000

taking ‘adverse selection’ to an all time extreme.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 13:19:26 +0000

buffett what a freakin joke. oh yeah please, take my only profitable business off my hands and leave me with just a bad loan book. ooooh, thank you SO much for your help you old goat.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 13:14:50 +0000

It is guaranteed that every dealer knew the CDO products were over-rated, the only question is were the people responsible smart enough not to put it in writing/on email this time around? If they can keep their mouths shut, they will ride this out. But beware the disgruntled former CDO banker-turned-informant.

By: Noonan

Noonan — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 13:11:07 +0000

Grandpa Warren is going to make it all better. Crazy old coot.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 13:09:47 +0000

early bird catches the worm carney!