The irony of Citi’s request of a Democratic government
There is a high degree of irony in this story. We have a bastion of capitalism, Citi requesting a 40% government ownership, accompanied by a Democratic US government stating its belief in private ownership.
The impossible inevitability will meet the inevitable impossibility … eventually.
Citi presses officials to take 40% stake | ft.com
Citigroup is pressing the US government to agree on a new capital injection that would increase the authorities’ stake in the troubled bank to about 40 per cent but stop short of an outright nationalisation
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They (US Government) apparently believe that the market response to White House and Treasury statements on Friday reaffirming the administration’s commitment to private ownership of financial institutions buys them some time to come up with a way forward.
The Treasury said secretary Tim Geithner would “preserve a financial system that is owned and managed by the private sector”.
