De noodlijdende landen in Europa zijn druk in de weer om onorthodoxe methodes uit te voeren om hun banken te redden. De constructies worden steeds ingewikkelder om de bailouts te financieren met belastingsgeld. Via WSJ:

In Italy, for example, the government is encouraging banks to buy public properties that the banks then can use to borrow money. As part of a broader deficit-reduction program in Portugal, the government essentially is borrowing money from bank pension funds and could use some of the funds to help state-owned companies repay bank loans. Governments in Germany and Spain also are using unorthodox measures to support their ailing banks. The Italian government has been among the most innovative at finding ways to help its banks conserve capital or come up with fresh funds. The country’s five top banks were holding a total of €156 billion ($202.8 billion) of Italian government debt as of Sept. 30, and the plunging values of those bonds have raised concerns about the banks’ viability. As a result, banks have struggled to borrow money from traditional sources, which are now wary of lending to the banks.

De nationale overheden proberen de problemen weer te verbergen en anders voor te stellen dan ze in werkelijkheid zijn. Dit is precies waar het ooit verkeerd ging in Europa. De Europese beleidsmakers hebben blijkbaar geen lessen getrokken uit de recente financiële rampen. Dat belooft… h/t Dirk