Sarkozy: Banks Need Tough Regulation

[pandora's box]

The French president launched into a broadside accusing financiers of behaviour that he said had caused the crisis.

"The world has paid with tens of millions of unemployed, who were in no way to blame and who paid for everything," Sarkozy said to Dimon. "It caused a lot of anger."

"The world was stupefied to see one of five biggest U.S. banks collapse like a house of cards," he told a plenary session of the Davos Forum.

"We saw that for the last 10 years, major institutions in which we thought we could trust had done things which had nothing to do with simple common sense. That's what happened."

Sarkozy said bankers were wrong to resist tough rules. "There is an ocean between flexibility and the scandal we saw," he said. "So if people present me as obsessed with regulation, it's because there is a need for regulation.

"I don't contest the principle of securitisation, but when one offshore country guaranteed 700 times its GDP, are we in the market economy or in a madhouse?"

Finally, the French president took aim at bank bonuses.

"Bonuses don't bother me, provided there are also ... draw-downs when there are losses. When things don't work, you can never find anyone responsible. Those who got bumper bonuses for seven years should have made losses in 2008 when things collapsed."

Reuters link

[Charlie The Tramp Returns]

If Sarky had spent more time before the crisis taking action instead of pulling up his zip every 5 minutes I would take him seriously.

[ralphmalph]

If Sarky had spent more time before the crisis taking action instead of pulling up his zip every 5 minutes I would take him seriously.

To be fair he did/does have a very good reason to pull his zip down.

[@contradevian]

Hill walking for Sarky, the Bildeburgers will not like that!

[Charlie The Tramp Returns]

To be fair he did/does have a very good reason to pull his zip down.

I was not aware he suffered bladder problems, I do apologise to the great man.

[pandora's box]