"Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, the last big independent investment banks on Wall Street, will transform themselves into bank holding companies subject to far greater regulation, the Federal Reserve said Sunday night, a move that fundamentally reshapes an era of high finance that defined the modern Gilded Age."
So this means no more US investment banks. The big 5 has turned into the big nothing! This is huge news. This means they will be conventional banks now with investing arms, but it also means greater regulation and disclosure, less risk and less of the high-flying lifestyle for Investment Bankers (boo?). Will this translate over to their branches overseas such as Australia? Will Macquarie and other home-grown investment banks follow suit? At least this will definitely save the market!
Gulf Daily News:
"PLANNERS are already mapping out possible rail routes from Bahrain and other GCC states to Europe, via Turkey, thanks to a proposal by His Majesty King Hamad.
A proposed GCC rail link to Turkey could become a reality "in the next five to six years", Turkish Ambassador Osman Haldun said yesterday.
It would ultimately lead to the Gulf region being connected to Europe by rail, he told the GDN."
This is pretty amazing news. I'm not sure if this will materialise but a rail link from the GCC to Europe would be such an amazing opportunity for financial investment, cross-cultural learning and sharing between the two regions and an important cultural bridge between Arabs, "Islam" and "The West". Immediate questions that spring to mind are... will anyone use it? Gulf Arabs generally prefer to travel in comfort, not on 20 hour train rides, and will Gulf women use it? Will this result in a further influx of European backpackers into the region? Will this even materialise, as many of the plans announced by GCC Governments never did... Wow... so cool to imagine though.Labels: bahrain, finance, world happenings
posted by LX @ 6:24 PM
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