So the silly season seems to have crept up on us and all of a sudden another year has almost flown by. It’s been a funny old year really, tough for most, with a lot of anger and frustration directed at our “leaders”. The Iraq War enquiry is in full swing, strike news abounds, war has been declared on everyone from MP’s and bankers to company directors, (see BA and Consignia for further details), and especially dear old Simon Cowell.
Last week I found myself on stage as part of a panel addressing 50 of Australia’s top mortgage brokers who were interested in how their own impending regulation will impact them. What they soon realised, a year after Lehman’s went, (a year tomorrow 15th actually), was just how lucky they have been and how hard things have been here.
As I am sure you can imagine, the Aussies were not shy in coming forward and the questions were fast, furious, incisive and intelligent. I was very grateful to have met such a great bunch of people and whilst I left with visions of answering the phone Coreco Sydney in my beach wear and thongs it was a sharp reminder how a year ago we all seemed to fall off a cliff with no parachute.
It seems to me that we are entering a crucial phase in our personal and economical development after the seemingly cataclysmic events of the past couple of years. It is time for us all to mature and move on, to accept the harsh lessons learnt, to let bygones be bygones if you like.
The blame game that has been going on for a while has now seen everyone from the government, the bankers, credit agencies, regulators, mortgage brokers, estate agents, the press, the general public, the Americans, the French!, or just men in general bearing the brunt for the credit crunch and ensuing recession.
There has been a wave of euphoric headlines over the last few days including “Investors bet that worst of recession is over and predict new bull market” in The Times and other commentators suggesting house prices will now stabilise and even rise by the end of the year.
Whilst on the other side of these headlines we also get The Guardian suggesting that “Bank of England braced for third wave of financial crises”, with the new £50b cash injection being used to avert further disaster as banks struggle to increase lending and keep a lid on bad debts.
I heard the news today, (oh boy), that the Government are planning to sell off Northern Rock by the end of the year after splitting it up. One of these parts would stay with the Government and would be, in essence, a “bad bank”. I understand further that head-hunters were out looking to find someone to run this bad bank, which got me thinking.
Question. How do you run a “bad bank”? Oh, and also, who would be best to run a “bad bank”?
Presumably it can’t be a hard job running a bad bank. At the end of the year you go for your annual revue with Gordon / Darling:-
Andrew Montlake, Communications Director at Coreco and ‘Mortgage Personality of the Year 2008’, gives his views — honest and no holds barred — on the latest developments within the mortgage and property markets.
