Lehman Brothers

[Ladygooner]

Just wondered if anyone in East Dulwich area has been affected jobwise? My commiserations if you have.

[jumpinjackflash]

AIG next, rumour has it..

[SteveT]

Lehman are apparantly the third largest, who is one and two?

[Moos]

Just wondered if anyone in East Dulwich area has been affected jobwise? My commiserations if you have.

...and Merrill's of course.

[Ladygooner]

I guess Morgan Stanley and CSFB must be near the top of the list?

[candj]

Goldman Sachs, Citicorp, probably up towards the top.

A real disaster - we know a few people at Lehmans - not so much losing the job, but losing the stocks/savings. My heart goes out to those families.

[Moos]

Lehman are apparantly the third largest, who is one and two?

3rd largest what, Steve?

There's been a bit of guff in the press about 3 of the 5 largest US investment banks tumbling - meaning Lehman's, ML and Bear Stearns.

[hibbs]

My flatmate was due to start work there today, I felt so sorry for her when she switched on the news this morning.

[Azul]

I'm glad I didn't take a job there a couple of years ago,

can't imagine myself jobless and wearing a tie

[ChavWivaLawDegree]

Haha - Azul that's class!

[macker]

SteveT Wrote:

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> Lehman are apparantly the third largest, who is

> one and two?

They mean institutions that are largely and solely investment banks. One year ago:

1. Goldman Sachs

2. Morgan Stanley

3. Merrill Lynch

4. Lehman Brothers

5. Bear Sterns.

4 and 5 are gone, and Bank of America has bought Merrill, thus leaving only the top two.

[SteveT]

Good on yer macker, did you read in private eye where the biggest council estate in the world is in USA since the government bought up fanny and johnny plus jenny and freddie (or some names like that) the two biggest mortgage brokers.

I can't understand how they are all going to the wall when the US borrowed 150 billion from china a few weeks ago.

[jaybee82]

A good friend of mine worked at Lehman's in Canary Wharf. Got in for work on Monday morning, got handed a memo basically saying clear your desk immediately. The LSE has frozen any dealing so they couldn't work even if they wanted to. Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are absolutely enormous in comparison, I'm sure they're in a pretty bad place at the moment but I cant see them collapsing anytime soon. More concerned about AIG to be honest...!

[SteveT]

What does AIG stand for?

[Floating Onion]

American Internation Group, insurance, not investment banking. They should be ok for now, but if they went the knock on effects would be huge.

[SteveT]

Thank you for that useful piece of info, FO.

[AcedOut]

macker - No mention of JP Morgan, Citigroup, Barclays? They all have large IB operations too.

As for size - it depends on how you measure it. Capitalisation, employees, revenue, profit???

[AcedOut]

I've quite a few friends at Lehman and know a lot that moved over there this year (recently). One of my friends now has to move back to Moscow due to her working VISA. Many others will also have to leave the country. It's a pretty sorry situation in the city at the moment...

[Peckhamgatecrasher]

I spent this morning helping a friend clear out her spare room so she can let it. She is 64, has temped as a telephonist at Lehman's for a long time (didn't accept a permanent position due to her late husband going in and out of hospital) and has no prospect of another job.

Her immediate supervisor asked the telephonists to stay on but they had no briefing; 'phones were going 19 to the dozen from the media, and no head honchos in sight.

All a bit pants for her.

[snorky]

As a company, Lehmans were always up their own arses IME.Though the vast majority of staff are 9-5 workers doing clerical stuff and they are the ones that will feel the pinch, not the big bonus boys - I take no pleasure in seeing the majority of its workforce having their pensions screwed and being dumped onto broadgate with their careers in a cardboard box - Loyalty ?

I would like to see Goldmans go under - they have a certain greasy smugness about them that makes my teeth grind - if Goldmans were an actor, it would be Tom Cruise in full on scientology mode - On Fleet street , they have occupied one of the most beautiful 20th century buildings in London - what a travesty.

Still, in defence of global capital, they have had a good few years caning it & churning out illiquid and opaque shite relentlessly for a while now - they will lose a few names, there will be some mergers and things will go on.in half a decade people will speak of 2008 in revered terms , business school automatons will write essays on it and the city employees will likely forget how bad it felt.

its just another blip.

Move on

nothing to see here

[snorky]

Azul Wrote:

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> I'm glad I didn't take a job there a couple of

> years ago,

> can't imagine myself jobless and wearing a tie

Very good - I will use that line

[Michael Palaeologus]

If AIG went down, that would be serious. They insure may of the financial deals that the banks have done with each other, if that insurance cover disappears, then those dodgy but sustainable deals will suddenly lose what little credibility they have.

[tommy]

Actually v good news for Merrills - BoA have v little presence in Europe so apart from investment banking there will limited job losses

Unfortunately, just a matter of time for AIG now I think.

[Dulwich_ Park_ Fairy]

Actually v good news for Merrills - BoA have v little presence in Europe so apart from investment banking there will limited job losses

Yeah, there won't be much of a cull in London because BoA are such a dollar house. They've been trying to get into the Euro Market for the last 10yrs without any real success.

Snorky

Completely agree about Goldmans, it would be worth being dragged back into the stone-age just to see them go under.

[snorky]

thsts a surprise - I post something that I think in hindsight will get be cyber lynched,and someone agrees....