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Are we nearing another Lehman Brothers moment?

In September 2008 the entire world banking system nearly melted down with the collapse of Lehman Brothers, the AIG insurance giant, and other institutions. They managed to save the world at the time, but they never fixed the systemic causes of the problem. So now it appears that we are finally heading back into the same problem—only this time, it is doubtful if they will be able to fix it.

I have long watched Deutsche Bank, the largest bank in Europe, whose stock prices have steadily declined since 2009 (in the wake of the Lehman Brothers collapse in late 2008). They seemed to be the most vulnerable. However, now it seems that Credit Suisse—the second largest bank in Europe—might be the first to go.

https://www.cryptopolitan.com/whats-going-on-with-credit-suisse/

As the Federal Reserve intensifies its efforts to manage inflation, sending the currency soaring and bonds and stocks into a tailspin, there is growing concern that the central bank’s campaign could have unanticipated and perhaps severe repercussions.

In the past week, the markets entered a risky new phase in which statistically abnormal movements across asset classes have become frequent. Trouble is brewing in the gyrations and interactions of the vastly larger global markets for currencies and bonds, not in the stock market’s decline.

Credit Suisse is one of the organizations caught up in this financial insanity…

The market capitalization of Credit Suisse was $22.3 billion a year ago. Its current market worth is only $10,4 billion. Credit Suisse’s stock price decreased by 56.2% in a single year to $3.98.

Bankers and economists are nervous, because they see a direct correlation between Lehman Brothers and Credit Suisse. In another article posted October 3, 2022, we read this:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/dereksaul/2022/10/03/credit-suisse-shares-tank-as-capital-concerns-spark-reminders-of-lehman-brothers-failure-heres-what-we-know/?sh=33b2aaee55bc

Shares of Credit Suisse plunged to an all-time low Monday as investors traded on concerns about the Swiss banking giant’s financial health and management’s ability to restructure the institution in a manner that would satisfy skeptics who believe the bank’s capital position is at great risk–which is sparking whispers of a so-called ‘Lehman Brothers moment….’

Making matter worse more difficult are a series of unverified reports linked to Credit Suisse sent social media into a frenzy over the weekend, with an unnamed large investor in the bank telling Fox Business reporter Charles Gasparino Saturday the bank is a “disaster” and ABC Australia reporter David Taylor tweeting a source told him a major investment bank was on the brink.

Taylor deleted the tweet Monday, but not before it went viral and was linked to Credit Suisse and Germany’s Deutsche Bank, while several other tweets playing up comparisons between Lehman and the European banks racked up tens of thousands of likes on Twitter.

Investors probably remember how Lehman Brothers—just before its default—issued a memo assuring everyone that the bank was doing just fine. That is what they all say just before they crash. And when the crash occurs, it can take down everyone around them, because the banks are all tied together.

Centuries ago, ships were often tied together when facing a storm. The combined ships were more stable and less likely to sink, but if one of them sank, it would drag all them down together. That is the situation that the banking system faces today.

Meanwhile, in the US, investors are watching the slow demise of Facebook and its parent company, Meta.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/09/30/facebook-scrambles-to-escape-death-spiral-as-users-flee-sales-drop.html

A year ago, before Facebook had turned Meta, the social media company was sporting a market cap of $1 trillion, putting it in rarefied territory with a handful of U.S. technology giants.

Today the view looks much different. Meta has lost about two-thirds of its value since peaking in September 2021. The stock is trading at its lowest since January 2019 and is about to close out its third straight quarter of double-digit percentage losses. Only four stocks in the S&P 500 are having a worse year.

Facebook’s value has plummeted ever since it began its censorship policy in 2016-2017. I myself do not use Facebook, because I don’t want to suppress truth just to remain on the platform. It seems that many others feel the same way, including those that Facebook have driven away. Yet Facebook continued to grow until 2022, when the roof caved in on them.

But in 2022, the cycle has reversed. Users are jumping ship and advertisers are reducing their spending, leaving Meta poised to report its second straight drop in quarterly revenue. Businesses are removing Facebook’s once-ubiquitous social login button from their websites. 

So Facebook is quietly laying off thousands of employees—some say that as much as 15 percent of its employees will be gone soon.

https://nypost.com/2022/10/04/facebook-to-purge-thousands-of-workers-in-quiet-layoffs/

Facebook executives are in the process of executing “quiet layoffs” of underperforming workers that could lead to thousands of employees getting pink slips, according to a report.

Several employees told the news site Insider that as much as 15% of the company’s workforce could be slashed within the next few weeks.

One employee told Insider that managers throughout the company were told to select at least 15% of their teams who are categorized as “needs support.”

There are many pressures on the economies of the world. The US has fewer problems than most, because we are largely self-sufficient. But after sending most of our manufacturing to China in the past 25 years, we are certainly vulnerable. Trump made America oil independent, but Biden reversed that on this first day in office in favor of the “Green New Deal.”

The US-led sanctions on Russia have probably done more to destroy Europe’s economy than any other policy in history. Bank failures in Europe would no doubt spread to America within 2 or 3 weeks, if not immediately. It appears that we may reach a crisis point in the next 6 weeks. Then we will see if Klaus Schwab’s “Great Reset” will be implemented, or if an alternative will prevail. Either way, I believe that we are watching the fall of modern Babylon. We may see some hardship for a time, but in the long run, God wins.