Trump quer despedir responsável de estatísticas laborais dos EUA após fortes revisões em baixa

[acintra]

November 23, 2007

Rock refugees help to double monthly level of deposits at NationwideChristine Seib
Almost £2 billion poured into the coffers of Nationwide in September — double the normal monthly take — as panicked savers transferred their cash from Northern Rock to the UK’s biggest building society.

However, Graham Beale, Nationwide chief executive, yesterday hit out at Britain’s handling of the credit crisis that caused Northern Rock’s funding problems. He said that the tripartite (Treasury, Bank of England and Financial Services Authority) responsible for the country’s financial health had failed to act decisively in the face of a global liquidity freeze. “When this happens in continental Europe, or the US, it is dealt with quickly and decisively and life goes on,” Mr Beale said.

“What I’d like to see is greater clarity on where accountability and responsibility lies between the Bank of England, the Treasury and the FSA. If we get another crisis like this, I’d like to see it dealt with in a more professional way.”

Yesterday, it emerged that Northern Rock’s borrowing from the Bank of England could have risen to £26 billion, up £1.1 billion on the previous week. Northern Rock’s board is considering offers for all, or part, of the company. The bank’s board is speaking daily and a decision could be made within a fortnight, even by the weekend.

Fresh details of the Northern Rock proposal from Alfred Gooding, the Welsh businessman, emerged yesterday. His Tyne Consortium is thought to include Chip Kruger, the American who once ran Greenwich Capital, Royal Bank of Scotland’s aggressive wholesale bank in the US. Other directors are Robert Morris of US private equity group Olympus Partners, Bruce Fireman, a past managing director of Investec Securities, and Christopher Yates, director of Credit Lyonnais Securities.

Announcing its interim results yesterday, Nationwide said it took £4.1 billion in deposits in the six months to September 30, a 96 per cent increase on the same period last year. Much of the cash is thought to be money stripped from Northern Rock during Britain’s first bank run in more than a century. “I’ve got no way of showing that, but anecdotally we did have a lot of customers from Northern Rock coming in who were shaken by events and looking for a safe haven,” Mr Beale said.

The huge savings inflow meant that Nationwide had more than enough cash to fund its mortgage lending for the first six months of the year. The building society’s net lending hit £3.6 billion in the half-year. This was down from £5.6 billion in 2006 but Mr Beale attributed this to a tightening of lending criteria.

Mr Beale said that he would not be tempted to pick up books of mortgages from Northern Rock should they come up. He said Northern Rock’s mortgages were, on average, sold at too high a loan-to-value to be attractive to Nationwide. The political element of the bank’s sale was an additional deterrent. “I’m not going to get involved in any form of auction,” he said. “I don’t need the conflict and the aggravation.”

Retail deposits pay for 71 per cent of Nationwide’s lending, with the remainder borrowed from other banks. Mr Beale expected the interbank market to be volatile at least until February. “In the last couple of weeks it has got quite difficult again on the back of US investment banks and UK clearing banks starting to announce writedowns,” he said. “Until we get to the year-end cycle we are going to have an unsettled market.”

Underlying pre-tax profits rose 29 per cent to £394.4 million and pre-tax profits, which include the cost of the merger with Portman Building Society and subsequent disposals, were up 1 per cent to £338.3 million.

[acintra]

No news, is good news!
Hoje está tudo muito calado quanto a Northern Rock.

[acintra]

Firm Interests In Northern Rock
Updated:07:28, Wednesday November 21, 2007

At least two more firm bids for beleaguered mortgage lender Northern Rock have emerged.
But taxpayers could still end up propping up the company for up to three years.

An offer from private equity firm JC Flowers would see the estimated £24bn borrowed from the Bank of England paid back by the end of 2010.

A second bid - revealed first Sky News - emerged late on Tuesday from American private equity firm Cerberus - it had been believed to have pulled out of the race.

News of Cerberus's reported exit pushed Northern Rock shares to record lows.

The details of the bid remain unclear, but could involve a bid for part of the firm.

Shares in the north-east based mortgage lender closed under £1 for the first time yesterday at 97p, a fall of nearly 7%.

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The share price values the company at around £407m, a fraction of its worth earlier this year.

JC Flowers is backed by £15bn from banks, but it could take until the end of 2010 to repay the rest of the estimated £24bn borrowed by the group, sources said.

New York-based JC Flowers has a strong record of snapping up stricken financial companies and reviving them - often for big profits.

But shareholders are set to lose out if the offer goes ahead as Flowers will only pay a "nominal" amount for the business.

JC Flowers is run by Chris Flowers, a former partner of investment bank Goldman Sachs who has built up an estimated £1bn fortune.

If successful, the private equity firm plans to run the business as a going concern, keep the Northern Rock name and invest £1bn in reviving the company's balance sheet.

[acintra]

November 21, 2007

JC Flowers to repay £24bn Bank loan in three yearsSiobhan Kennedy and Christine Seib
JC Flowers emerged as a serious contender to buy Northern Rock yesterday as the American private equity group submitted a bid for the bank and said that it would immediately repay £15 billion of taxpayers’ money.

The US group is believed to be the only suitor to have made an offer for the whole of the bank, although sources said that the bid attributed only a “nominal value” to the bank’s battered share price. Instead, JC Flowers will be hoping its offer to repay a lump sum of the £24 billion already lent to the Rock by the Bank of England will give it a leg up over rival bidders.

The rest of the Government debt would be paid off by 2010, sources said, while JC Flowers would throw in £1.1 billion to refinance the balance sheet and restructure the business.

The offer comes after it emerged this week that taxpayers could face a multi-million-pound bill for the rescue of Northern Rock after Alistair Darling, the Chancellor, refused to give a guarantee that the £24 billion Bank of England loan will ever be repaid. Other bidders known to have submitted offers for the Rock include Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Group, which wants to merge the Rock with its Virgin Money business. Sir Richard wants to inject about £1.25 billion of equity in return for a majority share-holding in the troubled bank.

Related Links
Taxpayers to foot the bill for Northern Rock
Flowers ‘leads’ Branson in quest for Northern Rock
Luqman Arnold, the former Abbey National boss, is also understood to have made an offer to acquire a stake in the Rock, as has Cerberus, which submitted a bid by last week’s Friday deadline, sources said.

Shares of Northern Rock fell further yesterday, closing down nearly 7 per cent at 97p. The shares were suspended earlier in the day after heavy volumes of trading caused imbalances in the stock.

Investors have been fleeing Northern Rock shares since the bank said that bids submitted last week materially undervalued the company.

It is understood that JC Flowers intends to run Nothern Rock as an ongoing concern, keeping the brand name for its mortgage business but renaming the banking business.

[acintra]

Lá vou ter de colocar uma nova OC bem cá em baixo para ver se entregam.
Voltaram as más noticias em toda a linha.

Update: Northern Rock gets bid from JC Flowers
Date: Tuesday 20 Nov 2007

LONDON (ShareCast) - Northern Rock retraced some of its earlier losses on reports that private equity group JC Flowers has submitted an offer, although it is unlikely to be of much value for the shareholders of the beleaguered mortgage lender.

The rumoured bid includes an offer to its shareholders at a “nominal value”, market sources suggest, which could be as low as 10p a share against the current price of about 90p.

The offer is said to include only a £1bn cash injection for new investment and a new business plan, while the bulk of £15bn is intended for the repayment of emergency loans to the Bank of England and about £10bn of other borrowing.

The board of Northern Rock confirmed on Friday that indicative expressions of interest in the bank have valued it at a level “materially below” £559m.

There is no confirmation of the offer yet from either party.

[acintra]

November 20, 2007

The priorities are clear for Northern RockJames Harding: Business Editor
Here are the seven people and principles that the Government should be seeking to safeguard in its handling of Northern Rock. In order of importance:

1. Depositors. Banks are different from other businesses, where customers shop at their own risk. The people who have placed their savings in Northern Rock need to know that their money is safe, not only to prevent another run on the bank but to ensure confidence in the banking system. It is in the general public’s interest that the depositors sleep easy at night.

2. Financial stability. The Government’s job is to address systemic risk. The chaotic collapse of a bank could easily prompt a run on others, paralysing the financial system and damaging the economy. Jobs and prosperity well beyond Tyneside are at stake.

3. Taxpayer funds. British citizens did not sign up to Northern Rock’s foolish business model, nor should they underwrite it. While Treasury money is not sacrosanct – i.e. the Exchequer’s balance sheet and, conceivably, limited funds may be made available to reassure depositors and prevent systemic collapse – the British people did not elect members of parliament to be bank managers. Taxes should be spent on healthcare, education and defence, not FTSE bailouts.

4. Market precedent. Business must, ultimately, be governed by market risk. If the Government nationalises Northern Rock, it implicitly takes on responsibility for businesses that fail in the future. If the Government orchestrates an industry bailout and asks successful banks to pay for Northern Rock’s failure, then it punishes prudence and rewards recklessness.

5. The employees. Northern Rock’s management underestimated the possibility of a seizure in the credit markets that put a stop to the bank’s essential funding. The people who work at the Newcastle bank, though, were following orders, not setting the strategy. As far as is possible, their futures should be assisted, either by securing a private sector solution to the problem or by helping them make the transition to other employment. It is not the job of government to protect jobs in failed ventures.

6. The creditors. Financial institutions who provide loans are taking a risk. Their debts may need to be honoured in the short term to keep the business operational, while its future is decided. In the longer term, lenders who lose out because they extend loans to failed businesses are not the responsibility of the general public.

7. The shareholders. Investors took a decision of their own free will to put money behind the business. The public would not have shared in their profits. They are not responsible for their losses.

Having prioritised the seven groups and ideas that should shape the Government’s thinking, the options for Alistair Darling are clear.

Ideally, the Chancellor will preside over a banking sector solution to a bank problem. Either Northern Rock will, as it so desperately hopes, find a lender who will put it back on its feet and enable it to operate once again as a standalone bank. Or an investor such as Luqman Arnold, the former Abbey boss, will buy a 10-15 per cent stake, take control of the business, line up new borrowing facilities and steer the bank back from the brink. Or there will be a work-out, which would see the likes of the Virgin consortium or the JC Flowers team recapitalise the business by buying the shares at a knockdown price, lining up more than £20 billion in loans, covering the Treasury’s potential exposure and, ultimately, earning a fortune from the Rock’s profitable mortgage book. These options would all safeguard depositors, ensure financial stability, minimise taxpayer exposure and set viable market precedents. Employees, creditors and shareholders would suffer.

The second best option is to liquidate the bank, preferably slowly.

The worst option is to nationalise it. This would not only put taxpayers on the hook for many years, but would set the worst possible precedent.

Northern Rock has gone from posing a financial risk to a political one. It is threatening to expose the Labour Government’s penchant for kneejerk nationalisations, the Conservative’s tendency towards political opportunism and the Liberal Democrats’ love of wishful thinking.

But there are 6,500 employees at Northern Rock, there are investors holding half a billion pounds worth of shares and there is a nation of nervous taxpayers. This is not a time for politicking, but for practical decision-making.

Ministers should explicitly rule out the third option and concentrate minds on the first by setting itself and potential rescuers a firm deadline. The elasticity of last Friday’s deadline was not an encouraging start.

[acintra]

Ouch. The Chancellor is caught between a crock and hard placeAnn Treneman: Parliamentary Sketch
The Chancellor’s statement on Northern Rock seemed, at first, to be pointless. He said that he wanted to “update” us on the bank’s current position. But then he couldn’t tell us anything about the current position because it’s all top secret. His only update was to tell us that he would be updating us in future.

He reminded me of one of those commuters who calls home every night to say: “I’m on the train.” This surprises no one, because the only surprise would be if the caller wasn’t on the train. It’s a holding call, an attempt to reach out and touch someone, a way to let people know you are alive. This, too, seemed to be what Mr Darling was trying to do. This statement was Alistair Darling ringing up all the taxpayers to say: “I’m on the train.”

So now you know: he’s on the train. All of us have a stake in this journey because Mr Darling has taken the liberty of “investing” £900 for each of us in Northern Rock. There are some who now believe that we may not get all our money back. Is Mr Darling among them? It was almost impossible to tell. The only thing for sure is that, in the interest of accuracy, Northern Rock now should be renamed Northern Hard Place.

Commuters everywhere will recognise the flat, non-emotional tone in Mr Darling’s voice. The journey is not going to plan. The Northern Hard Place express has been diverted to God knows where. There are the wrong sort of loans on the line. Mr Darling is sitting somewhere unknown (possibly near Crewe – it so often is). He’s weary and they’ve run out of even remotely edible sandwiches. He may be Chancellor but he has no control.

It is not a “quiet carriage”. Indeed, from what I heard yesterday, it was a “shouting carriage”. Right across from him was a man with jet-black hair who was being extremely rude. It was the Shadow Chancellor and Mr Darling sorely wished he would move. “This is a tale of incompetence and weak leadership!” cried George Osborne. “We have a Chancellor whose job is now on the line!”

Mr Darling sighed. He wanted to say “shush” but, because he is Chancellor, he cannot say something so easily understood. So instead he said: “I’m sorry that you aren’t able to put forward any constructive proposals.” He then settled back and tried to close his eyes but, because his eyebrows have a life of their own, this is always quite hard to do.

His reverie was interrupted by the nasal whine that is the voice of Vince Cable, the acting leader of the Lib Dems. “Tony Blair was criticised for providing £800 million for the Millennium Dome. In the last few weeks this Government has provided the equivalent of 30 Millennium Domes to this bank without even the prospect of a decent pop concert at the end of it,” Vince noted. Mr Darling’s face was set in stone now. How dare the Lib Dems accuse him of failing to organise a pop concert. He was dealing with Northern Rock, not Northern Rock Band. He couldn’t believe that everyone else on the train didn’t already know that.

The carriage was in chaos now, with everyone demanding he do something. Labour passengers (sorry, customers) wanted him to safeguard all Northern Rock jobs. Others wanted him to give details about that tiny £24 billion loan. It was all very tedious. In true commuter tradition, he said as little as possible. He wished that he had brought his iPod.

[acintra]

November 20, 2007

Four options, but none of them appealingChristine Seib
There are four main options facing Northern Rock – none of them attractive to small shareholders, nor to the Government. The bank’s future must be decided by February, when the emergency funding will be reviewed.

Put the bank into receivership

A creditor can call in a receiver if a debtor breaches the conditions of a loan. The Bank of England is Northern Rock’s senior secured creditor, which means that it has first call on any assets, should the bank default on its loan. The precise terms of the Government’s loan to Northern Rock, and how they might be breached, have never been spelt out. But the Chancellor made clear yesterday that the Treasury was playing a big part in deciding the bank’s future. It could, in theory, order the bank into receivership but is unlikely to do so because of the unattractive political ramifications such as the thousands of jobs lost and the outrage of small shareholders who would receive nothing in a liquidation. It would also call into question the Chancellor’s original decision to prop up the bank with emergency funding.

The liquidation of a bank can take years, particularly since there is no current market for some of Northern Rock’s assets.

Related Links
Taxpayers to foot the bill for Northern Rock
Darling caught between a crock and hard place
Shareholders take a hit as bids fall short
Sell all or part of the bank

Northern Rock said yesterday that it had received expressions of interest from companies or consortiums that might like to buy all or part of the bank. So far none is thought to have offered to buy the whole bank. This is in part because bidders have had difficulty valuing the bank, because of the volatility of its share price and uncertainty about the banking environment next year, and also because bidders have struggled to raise money to fund the purchase.

Northern Rock said yesterday that the offers it had received so far had undervalued the company, but that it expected more bids to come in this week.

There is a chance that Northern Rock could secure sufficient funding from other banks to remain as a stand-alone company. Although this option has not been discounted, it looks unlikely.

Nationalise the bank

This is not a simple option because Northern Rock has not gone bust. The Government could make an offer for all the outstanding shares in Northern Rock in order to turn it into a state-controlled company, but that could result in litigation from shareholders over the correct price for their shares. The present Government has no previous experience in nationalising a bank. But it has nationalised other companies, most recently Railtrack and British Energy.

Put the bank into run-off

The Treasury could decide in partnership with Northern Rock’s board that none of the current bidders for the bank offers a good prospect for Northern Rock customers, or that a bidder cannot be found without what the Government considers to be an unattractive extension of the bank’s emergency borrowing. In this case, Northern Rock may be put into run-off. This means that it would continue to service its existing customers but it would stop taking on new business, gradually reducing in size over a number of years. There is a small chance that the run-off could be done profitably, but it would also leave the Government exposed for many years to come.



Have your say

I presume that when the Government gave a loan to Northern Rock it was secured against assets. I also assume that the Government properly checked the value of those assets and accounting for risk offered a loan to ensure full security on the assets with a view to their possible future values. In doing so they would have accounted for how the assets could be properly realised if the need came about (firesale value being the worst situation). Or did they? Was it purely a political decision without any thought for the real risks they were taking on. At the time the real issue was the savings that people had in Northern Rock. That value should have been the only thing to protect. Shareholders gamble, they won when the society was made into a Bank and now they are losing. Ignorance of the risks that you take as a Shareholder are your own responsibility. "Caveat emptor".

mike, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Is it really that big a problem?. The taxpayer is lending Northern Rock funds at a high interest rate on sound mortgage assets. Mortgage assets are not that long term these days. A restriction on the Rock selling any new mortgages at a rate less than their SVR would result in their customers remortgaging elsewhere as their fixed / discount deals come to an end. (There is actually a market for the Rock's mortgage assets). Over a reasonably short period of time the repayment of these mortgage assets will reduce the debt owed to the Bank of England. Within the next nine months Northern Rock will also be able to sell mortgage portfolios at a fair price on the market to other lenders as the credit squeeze eases and confidence returns (especailly with England winning Euro 2008 and Steve McClaren then becoming Chief Executive of the Rock). Downsized and with debts paid off they can start growing again in 2009 only to then suffer with everyone else as house prices finally crash by 40%.

[acintra]

Northern Rock: US Firm Makes Offer
Updated:19:06, Tuesday November 20, 2007

US investment firm Cerberus has made an offer for embattled mortgage lender Northern Rock, say Sky News sources.

Crisis caused run on bankThe hedge fund is spearheading a consortium eyeing a possible takeover of the bank.

It came after private equity firm JC Flowers also made an offer.

With Virgin Money also interested, there are now known to be three suitors for the crisis-hit business.

Northern Rock shares have continued to slide amid the ongoing uncertainty over its future.

Opposition parties are raising the pressure on Chancellor Alistair Darling over the crisis as the company continues its search for a potential buyer.

[nunofaustino]

20% de lucro num trade não foi nada mau... poderia ter sido melhor, mas foi melhor do que pensaste qdo compraste a 80...

Um abr
Nuno

[acintra]

Parece que deu sorte, pois o mínimo foi mesmo 60...

Neste momento já recuperou para os 91...

Um abr
Nuno

Infelizmente ou não, a unica oportunidade que tive de ir ao computador estava a 85,50 Gbp e vendi. Sei que esteve a bem mais e a bem menos através do histórico, mas realizei mais do que o 2º objectivo delineado após o reforço a 60,00 Gbp. (valor médio 69,58)
Eu tb pensei que o número ia dar sorte, mas como estão os mercados...

[nunofaustino]

Parece que deu sorte, pois o mínimo foi mesmo 60...

Neste momento já recuperou para os 91...

Um abr
Nuno

[scpnuno]

Inacrediável. Após entregarem a 80 Gbp, coloquei outra OC a 60 Gbp só para ver e entregaram tb.
Vamos lá ver o que dá com valor médio 69Gbp.

Bem, como diria um afamado analista do nosso caldeirão, o Elias, é um "curioso ponto medio"

O Quico (outro famoso grafiqueiro) ficaria escandalizado.

Pode ser que dê sorte

Abraços

P.S. Não tarda o salto de um gato, eu estou a ser expulsa por mau comportamento.

[acintra]

Inacrediável. Após entregarem a 80 Gbp, coloquei outra OC a 60 Gbp só para ver e entregaram tb.
Vamos lá ver o que dá com valor médio 69Gbp.

[acintra]

Atenção ao que está a Bold!
Hoje vou colocar uma OC a 80 Gbp, com a mesma intenção de ontem. Para ter algumas acções do NR para fazer intraday só assim é que as compro.

Northern Rock: Darling Feels Heat
Updated:07:30, Tuesday November 20, 2007

Opposition parties are raising the pressure on Chancellor Alistair Darling over the Northern Rock crisis as the company continues its search for a potential buyer.
The Bank of England has lent the beleaguered bank more than £24bn in emergency funding and Mr Darling pledged to give it breathing space to resolve its future.

He insists the support "was the right thing to do" but the Tories and Liberal Democrats questioned whether the taxpayer would end up paying the bill.

The outcome depends on the content of bids submitted to the UK's fifth biggest mortgage lender.

Shares in the Newcastle-based company plummeted more than 20% yesterday after it emerged current bids were "materially below" the stock market value of the company.

Mr Darling on Monday promised to retain guarantees over savers' deposits and to protect taxpayers' interests.

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The Chancellor said that the Government would have a veto over any rescue plans for the mortgage lender, which was at the centre of the UK's first bank run for nearly 150 years in September.

Northern Rock has confirmed that there was no interest so far in a bid for the entire company, with would-be buyers interested in parts of the business or investing in the group.

And the Treasury warned that interested parties "should not assume" that the Bank of England's emergency funding facility would be in place after February.

It also warned that bidders dependent on any extra public funding would be likely to breach EU rules on state aid and "would represent a potential risk to value and execution".

The company, which was valued at more than £5bn in February, is now worth around £440m.

[acintra]

From The TimesNovember 20, 2007


Implosion countdown

Feb 7 First hint of sub-prime crisis emerges as HSBC announces that it has dismissed its head of North American operations, after its bad debt rose to $6.8 billion

Aug 9 Northern Rock’s funding problems grow

Aug 13 Northern Rock informs the FSA; begins seeking cash elsewhere

Aug 16 Matt Ridley, chairman, discusses loan with Bank of England; puts the Newcastle-based bank up for sale

Aug 30 Board members asked if they would tender resignations

Sept 13 Northern Rock applies to the Bank of England for emergency support. Bank of England holds discussions with the Treasury and the FSA to agree a rescue package

Sept 14,15 Savers withdraw money in what is the first run on a British bank in 141 years

Sept 17 Alistair Darling, guarantees accounts

Sept 20 Mervyn King, Governor of the Bank of England, denies he failed to be sufficiently alert to the dangers in the financial system that all but destroyed Rock

Sept 21 Rock confirms that it has borrowed £3 billion from the Bank of England. By November this has risen to £24 billion

Oct 9 FSA tells Parliament that Rock had not been subjected to a thorough supervisory healthcheck for 18 months when it imploded

Oct 11 Mr Darling tells MPs that he will introduce legislation in the new year that will guarantee the savings and deposits in all banks and building society accounts

Oct 19 Mr Ridley resigns

Nov 6 Mr King discloses that Darling blocked a Lloyds TSB rescue and new financial facts before he publicly intervened to protect savers and borrowers

Nov 16 rescue proposals submitted which are materially below Rock’s market value

[acintra]

From The TimesNovember 20, 2007

Market turmoil forces Cerberus to abandon Northern Rock moveChristine Seib and Siobhan Kennedy
Cerberus, the US private equity firm, has dropped plans to table a bid for Northern Rock, dealing another blow for the beleaguered bank, it emerged last night.

Talks with interested bidders for Northern Rock are likely to go on until February, sources said yesterday, as the troubled bank admitted that the bids it had received so far were too low to satisfy shareholders.

Cerberus was one of four parties thought to be considering serious offers for the bank but it is believed to have been put off by continued turmoil in global financial markets. Its interest is also thought to have been affected by credit-related losses at GMAC, the former financing arm of General Motors that is now 51 per cent owned by Cerberus. GMAC was expected to part-fund a Cerberus offer for Northern Rock.

Advisers to Northern Rock are likely to continue discussions with potential suitors until the Government’s deadline for the cut-off of emergency funding to the bank, sources said. To conclude a deal any quicker could result in accusations that they had not explored every option for extracting value from Northern Rock, they said.

Related Links
British Government seeks European green light
Q&A: Northern Rock
Taxpayers face payout on Northern Rock deal
The bank is expected to settle on what it feels is the best offer, then talk to leading shareholders before recommending a bid. “It doesn’t matter what the board recommends - if shareholders think they’ll get a better offer elsewhere, they’ll hold out for it,” a source close to the company said. “There’s a long road to go.”

The Government said yesterday that the line of credit that the Bank of England had extended to Northern Rock could not continue beyond February, because it would then contravene European rules on state aid.

Sources close to the sale were sceptical yesterday that the Chancellor would cut off the bank because a sudden withdrawal of finance would force Northern Rock into a fire sale of its assets. The Government, which has first call on some of the assets as collateral for its emergency funding, would lose money as a result, they said. “In practice, everyone knows that they’re going to have to extend until things have picked up,” a source said.

The Bank of England demanded that Northern Rock provide assets with a greater value than the £24 billion that it had lent the bank. It is thought that the Bank is keeping track of the value of the assets on a daily basis to ensure that market changes do not erode the quality of its collateral.

Northern Rock said yesterday that it had received two types of proposal after last Friday’s deadline for expressions of interest: to invest in the company through an injection of assets and new capital; or to buy parts of the business or its assets.

In a statement to the market yesterday, Northern Rock said that the value of the existing equity implied by the offers was “materially below” the company’s market capitalisation of £559 million at the end of last Friday.

[acintra]

Darling On The Ropes Over Northern Rock
By Sky News Political Staff
Updated:17:22, Monday November 19, 2007

The Tories have warned that Chancellor Alistair Darling's job is "on the line" over the Northern Rock crisis.

Chancellor Alistair DarlingThe Chancellor has been responding, in the House of Commons, to concerns about the huge amount of public money currently tied up in the bank.

Around £24bn in taxpayers' money is helping prop the business up.

Shadow chancellor George Osborne told MPs that the episode had been "a tale of incompetent and weak leadership," and called for more information on the risk to taxpayers.

He asked Mr Darling: "Have you been honest with taxpayers about the risks they face and have you told the whole truth?"

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But the Chancellor insisted revealing the extent of help provided by the taxpayer would risk undermining efforts, but claimed all lending was secured against "quality" assets.

He told the Commons Bank of England intervention had given Northern Rock time to assess its "strategic options".

Mr Darling said "further expressions of interest" of potential investors in Northern Rock were expected in the coming days.

The signs are that bidders currently weighing up whether to take on the bank expect some form of government aid to continue.


The crisis provoked a run on the bank in SeptemberThe Treasury has made it clear that it is willing to discuss extending funding subject to the agreement of European competition regulators and on the basis that the deal represents value for money for the taxpayer.

The problem for the Government is that ministers are now locked into a situation that is far from ideal... and it is not just the stability of the banking sector that is threatened, but the reputations of Chancellor and Prime Minister alike.

In an ideal world, Alistair Darling might hope for someone to come in, pay a fair price for Northern Rock and get on with running the business.

But the bank itself issued a statement this morning indicating that bids now on the table materially undervalue the business.

Some form of ongoing government security now seems to be the central condition for any proposed deal.

And that means Alistair Darling and Gordon Brown are likely to stay associated with a shaky-looking bank for many months to come.

[acintra]

Cada noticia que sai, enterra ainda mais o NR.

Taxpayers face payout on Darling's Northern Rock deal
The Chancellor admits to an interest rate agreement on Northern Rock debt as shares fall to an all-time low
(Ben Gurr/The Times)
Shares in Northern Rock closed down 21.4 per cent at 104.2p after the developments today

Dearbail Jordan
The Northern Rock debacle could end up costing UK taxpayers hundreds of millions of pounds after the Chancellor was forced to confirm a previously undisclosed agreement between the Government, the company and the Bank of England.

Alistair Darling was speaking before Parliament on the Northern Rock crisis, which has so far seen the Newcastle-based mortgage lender borrow £24 billion in emergency funding from the Bank of England.

The Chancellor talked about the importance of protecting the interests of taxpayers, as well as Northern Rock's savers and British consumers.

But Mr Darling was forced to admit that the Treasury had a previously undisclosed agreement in place concerning the emergency funding that the Bank of England is lending Northern Rock to keep it afloat.

Related Links
Q&A: Northern Rock
Tempus comment: Play-acting
Treasury to bypass Northern Rock rules
Under the emergency funding facility, Northern Rock is being charged a punitive interest rate of 7 per cent.

It has now emerged that 5.75 per cent of the interest rate is being paid to the Bank of England and the remaining 1.25 per cent is being paid to the Treasury, reportedly over five years.

If a Northern Rock rescue fails to materialise, the Treasury will be one of the last lenders to be repaid as part of the structure of the agreement, meaning that taxpayers will be left out of pocket.

Mr Darling denied the sum could reach as high as the £500 million estimated by the BBC. He said: “The sum concerned is nothing like that being speculated by (the BBC), it was a very small amount of money and that money too would be recovered from Northern Rock.”

Mr Darling attempted to reassure Northern Rock savers today when he said: "We have made it clear that the guarantee arrangements already announced for depositors in order to safeguard their position will remain in place during the current instability in the financial markets."

However shares in Northern Rock closed down 21.4 per cent at 104.2p after Mr Darling failed to arrest early morning declines when the bank admitted that rescue proposals submitted last Friday were "materially below" its market value.

The Chancellor admitted that the Government has the right to veto any rescue proposals put forward for Northern Rock but added that "it would be wrong to dismiss any proposal now".

Northern Rock said today that it "currently expects to receive further expressions of interest in the next few days".

On the proposals it has already received, Northern Rock said: "While further analysis and discussion of the proposals is required, based on the information it has so far, the board of Northern Rock believes that the range of values for the existing equity implied by the proposals is materially below the market price at the close of business on Friday, 16 November, 2007."

Mr Darling has been under increasing pressure to clarify whether the Government will continue to bail out Northern Rock past a February deadline, and thereby breach European Union rules on state aid.

The Treasury said today that "interested parties should not assume at this stage that the current Bank of England loan facilities will be available beyond either any sale or the expiry of the facilities in February".

But it said: "The Authorities are willing to discuss any proposals made." It also said: "... the Authorities will view favourably proposals that minimise any residual involvement or funding from the public sector."

If the Government wants to continue funding Northern Rock past February — when the present strategic review of the bank is expected to be completed — it will need to gain approval from the European Commission.

Last week, on the same day that Northern Rock began accepting proposals, Adam Applegarth, the Northern Rock chief executive, announced his resignation.

He will stay on until the end of January — the second phase of the Northern Rock rescue, when a firm decision on the bank's future is expected to be made.

Northern Rock is being run by Bryan Sanderson, the former chairman of the international bank Standard Chartered, who replaced Matt Ridley, the former chairman of Northern Rock, who resigned on October 18.

Virgin Money was among last week's bidders, along with JC Flowers, Cerberus and Luqman Arnold, the former chief executive at Abbey National, who is hoping to parachute in and work with the present management to turn Northern Rock around.

Northern Rock said today that as well as holding talks with bidders, "Northern Rock and its advisors continue to be engaged in discussions with refinanciers to explore refinancing and/or reorganisation solutions for the company."

As well as Merrill Lunch, Northern Rock is also being advised by Blackstone, the private equity firm, and Citigroup.

[acintra]

é impressionante como um banco que vale 450M libras, tenha conseguido pedir emprestado 24B de libras (cerca de 50 x mais)...

um abr
nuno

Exacto ... apesar de ter entrado neste titulo com perspectiva de longo prazo, com as noticias que foram saindo comecei a perguntar-me se ele valeria realmente alguma coisa, ou se por outro lado, com os empréstimos monstruosos e a fuga de clientes o valor real não seria 0, ou perto disso.

Felizmente que a minha teimosia só foi até certo ponto e acabei por sair, só lamento não o ter feito mais cedo.
Acredito que possa ir até aos 0.80 (valor oferecido pelo dono da Virgin).
Resta saber se ainda estão dispostos a oferecer isso...
Por outro lado também é possível que estejam todos a tentar comprar ao preço da chuva, e que depois no fim subam a parada, mas está com mau aspecto.

Neste momento, para além de oferecerem muito pouco pelo banco, já fazem exigençias para que o empréstimo de 24 bn# seja pago numa eternidade, mas io BoE está a ser vigiado pela UE e pelos concorrentes.
Penso que está com o destino muito negro e que vai acabar por ser nacionalizado.

[Machado]

é impressionante como um banco que vale 450M libras, tenha conseguido pedir emprestado 24B de libras (cerca de 50 x mais)...

um abr
nuno

Exacto ... apesar de ter entrado neste titulo com perspectiva de longo prazo, com as noticias que foram saindo comecei a perguntar-me se ele valeria realmente alguma coisa, ou se por outro lado, com os empréstimos monstruosos e a fuga de clientes o valor real não seria 0, ou perto disso.

Felizmente que a minha teimosia só foi até certo ponto e acabei por sair, só lamento não o ter feito mais cedo.
Acredito que possa ir até aos 0.80 (valor oferecido pelo dono da Virgin).
Resta saber se ainda estão dispostos a oferecer isso...
Por outro lado também é possível que estejam todos a tentar comprar ao preço da chuva, e que depois no fim subam a parada, mas está com mau aspecto.

[nunofaustino]

é impressionante como um banco que vale 450M libras, tenha conseguido pedir emprestado 24B de libras (cerca de 50 x mais)...

um abr
nuno

[acintra]

Darling Defends Northern Rock Action
Updated:16:20, Monday November 19, 2007

Chancellor Alistair Darling has insisted that he will only approve an option for Northern Rock that safeguards taxpayers' money.
He defended his handling of the recent bank crisis, amid fears taxpayers may foot part of the bill for the company's rescue package.

The Chancellor has assured taxpayersMr Darling told the House of Commons all money loaned from the Bank of England by the struggling bank would be re-paid "at an appropriate time and rate", by whoever ends up owning it.

Shadow chancellor George Osborne accused his opposite number of weak leadership, describing the Government's handling of the crisis as a "tale of incompetence".

Mr Darling told the House more interest in the bank was expected over the next few days, as he defended the government's decision-making to date.

He said: "I believe that what I did in respect of Northern Rock at the start was right and I believe it is right now to give the bank the space it needs to consider its strategic options."

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But shadow chancellor George Osborne said: "This is a tale of incompetence, and weak leadership from a government that now reels from one disaster to another.

"We have a Chancellor who appears to have made secret loans from the Treasury. He has made guarantees to the taxpayer (which he) cannot be sure of honouring, and his weakness is contributing to the instability of the financial system."

The bank itself is also under increasing pressure, with shareholders seeing the value of their holdings plummet once again as it was revealed rescue plans received so far are "materially below" the value of the company.

The Chancellor also confirmed the on-going Northern Rock consultation will end on December 15.

Teams who have so far expressed interest in Northern Rock include a consortium led by Sir Richard Branson's Virgin, and Olivant, an investment firm headed by former Abbey Chief Executive Luqman Arnold.

[acintra]

Acabei de retirar a minha OC a 100Gbp. Acreditava que fosse a este valor e fizesse uma recuperação para ganhar cerca de 10%. Foi mo que aconteceu mas só foi aos 101Gbp. Acredito que agora/amanhã vai dar um tombo muito maior, porque vão ser divulgadas as propostas.

[acintra]

Empréstimo do Banco de Inglaterra ao Northern Rock não é eterno


19/11/2007


O governo britânico afirmou que o empréstimo e 25 mil milhões de libras concedido pelo Banco de Inglaterra ao Northern Rock não será estendido indefinidamente. Ou seja, o banco terá de pagar esta dívida, um anuncio que poderá afectar o interesse de aquisição expressado por alguns consórcios.

"As partes interessadas não devem assumir [que as condições mais acessíveis] do actual empréstimo do Banco de Inglaterra vão estar disponíveis depois de qualquer venda" ou do prazo em que expira este empréstimo, que é em Fevereiro, anunciou o Tesouro.

O Northern Rock, o quarto maior banco britânico na concessão de empréstimos à habitação, teve de recorrer aos fundos de emergência do Banco de Inglaterra para travar um aperto de liquidez originado pela crise de crédito de elevado risco.

A 15 de Outubro o Northern Rock, confirmou a existência de conversações sobre uma possível venda. Existiam, alegadamente, vários potenciais interessados. E, na sexta-feira, um consórcio, liderado por Richard Branson, dono do grupo Virgin, apresentou uma proposta formal para comprar o banco, segundo a BBC, que adiantou que além do empresário há outros consórcios interessados e a consultar as contas do Northern Rock com vista a decidir se lançam uma oferta ou não.

Hoje, o Governo veio afirmar que o empréstimo concedido para evitar a falência do banco não tem termo ilimitado.

Os interessados no Northern Rock, como o grupo Virgin e a J.C. Flowers, têm pedido ao Governo que continue a apoiar mesmo que estes interessados apresentem uma proposta de compra.

De qualquer forma, o Tesouro diz que "as autoridades estão dispostas para discutir quaisquer propostas".