Friday 5 September 2008

 

The latest culture as recommended by our staff

Clemency Burton-Hill
Clemency Burton-Hill

Clemency suggests


Are markets becoming part of the problem?

Wednesday, 9th January 2008

Martin Vander Weyer wonders whether 'City spivs' are responsible for the current economic turbulence.

‘Should we blame it all on City spivs?’ I asked a managing director of a famous investment bank at a pre-Christmas party.

He had just told me – with the smile of a man who can look forward to yet another seven-figure bonus in a few weeks’ time – that his firm was still doing very nicely thank you. It was doing so, he continued in the same breath despite the fact that the economy was going to hell – and his forecast for the state of the nation’s, rather than his own, wealth in 2008 was as startlingly downbeat and bluntly phrased as any I have yet heard in this winter of doomsaying. Adapting the famous words of the senior civil servant Sir Richard Mottram at the time of the debacle over ‘burying bad news’ at the Department of Transport on the day of 9/11, my banker friend said: ‘I'm f***ed. You're f***ed. We're all completely f***ed.’

1 | 2 | 3  Next page 

More articles from: Martin Vander Weyer | this section

Subscribe now

Post this entry to:   del.icio.us | Digg | Newsvine | NowPublic | Reddit

Comments

Post a comment


Your comment:*

Your name:*

Your email address:*
(We won't publish this)

*Required information

Please click the button only once - your comment will not be published immediately


In this section

King coal prepares for a comeback

Neil Barnett

Neil Barnett says the miners’ union that took on Margaret Thatcher and lost is now talking surprisingly good sense about Britain’s future energy security

Nice pork, pity about the pizza

Judi Bevan

Judi Bevan finds her local Lidl discount store full of bargains — but not Boden-clad middle-class shoppers

Related articles

Confessions of a travelling non-dom

O`ar Pali

O’ar Pali says it isn’t easy being on planes next to strangers all the time — and you quickly find there are a series of character types, dying to tell you about themselves

Economic recovery plan? Forget it, Gordon

Martin Vander Weyer

The Prime Minister’s survival is pinned on a September ‘relaunch’ to ease the voters’ economic woes. But, says Martin Vander Weyer, each door through which Brown tries to escape his predicament slams in his face. His room for manoeuvre is negligible

Behind closed doors with the maestro

Clemency Burton-Hill

As a Proms presenter, Clemency Burton-Hill had unique access to Daniel Barenboim last week: she reports on his private remarks about music and his rage for excellence

The market’s favourite scapegoat

Christopher Fildes

Christopher Fildes on short selling

Time to start putting clients first again

Simon Nixon

Simon Nixon says trust in the City is at rock-bottom but he sees a glimmer of hope in the rise of boutique banks

Spectator recommends

Sky TV, Broadband & Talk from £16 a Month

Sky TV & free broadband packages available from £16 a month. Choose from a standard free sky box, sky plus...


Spectator classifieds

ROME CENTRE

PORTA METRONIA, ROME Standing high on the top of one of the seven hills of Rome- the Coelian- this unique

City Breaks. ROME and PARIS

ROME and PARIS: over 350 holiday rentals apartments listed: visit  www.romanreference.com  and  www.parisreference.com or call +39 0648 903612.

Jewellery. RUFFS (Estd. 1904).

Goldsmiths by Design Welcome to Ruffs!  You have found a company of Goldsmiths that specialises in the manufacture, amongst other