Out of Ashes, An Opportunity!

The rate-fixing scandal is quite simply a systemic cultural failure. London burns and the ramifications are difficult to quantify. Even so, you cannot deny the gift-wrapped opportunity for the US. Opportune US regulators can now, at last, justify / demand or fix associated trade in US dollars. The expected shift in trading and jobs away from London to New York should, if nothing else, convince the global community that Europe's star has waned.

As for the individuals specifically implicated in the so-called rate-fixing scandal, whether they emanate out of Whitehall, the BOE or from the formal financial community only, there are a range of criminal sanctions and punitive guidelines covered by legislation. Deliberate attempts to rig or manipulate interest rates allow for little justification and although there is evidence of unsubstantiated mudslinging, the ramifications for the individuals so implicated, are dire.

In a remarkable quirk of timing, today's testimony by a US-born ex-CEO of a UK bank could denote a banking shift away from London to the US. Free at last?

Wishing our US friends a safe and Happy 4th of July. 

London loses its 'Global best practice' tag!

It's not surprising that Barclay's Diamond has resigned. Even so, further scrutiny and full disclosure could well vindicate or indeed confirm his fall from grace. Time will tell. What was a surprise was the reinstatement of Agius as Chairman. It's difficult to comprehend and cynically symptomatic of the financial services industry generally. Then again it would be wholly irresponsible for Barclay's to continue to function without both its CEO and Chairman.

Complicity or collusion is by definition inclusive of other parties which raises a number of important questions. Aside from the corrosive taint hanging over the UK's arcane banking and regulatory industries and the associated reputational risk to London's claim of 'global best practice', the threat to the UK's economic prospects cannot be discounted. Endemic complicity is never victimless. In practice, as a consequence, retail investor abuse is both systematic and common.

If complicity is confirmed, the 'Barclay's-event' mutates into an industry-wide issue which opens up the industry, rather than the company or the individual, to civil claim. The threat of a civil claim must, as a consequence, threaten the balance sheets of the banks involved. You could argue that the banks involved, protecting their cash reserves in fearful anticipation of a fine and or a general civil claim, might not be INCLINED to function appropriately in the retail lending markets. The stifling effect on an already unstable economy in desperate need of stimulus cannot be denied.

THIS IS NOT HOW YOU SUPPORT ECONOMIC GROWTH and or REPAIR the reputational damage to the global financial services industry post the events of 2008.

Shoddy mistreatment of clients & shareholders

It's time and past time to FIRE / DISMISS the executives who either directly or indirectly contribute to market manipulation in any or all its forms and who by virtue of their appointment only hold a mandate from shareholders / clients to exercise oversight with due care and vigilance. Accepting the resignations of these individuals offers an avenue of escape which avoids the social blight they clearly fear most. It's a tacit acceptance of flagrant misconduct and or blatant incompetence both disgraceful and an insult to the market and the service-ethos at large.

A Savile-row tailored suit and a disproportionately high wage does not absolve any individual from negligence, INTERBANK-COLLUSION, malfeasance, misconduct, incompetence or blatant stupidity!

By the way Diamond, Dimon and Agius, aside from your obligations prescribed under fiduciary duty, it's your job to exercise due care, oversight and control! It's time to institute an international civil claim against these (b)ankers directly.  

Murdoch, The Media & The Art of War

Success demands an understanding and practical application of the pian (chapters) proposed in Sun Tzu's 孫子兵法. Mr. Murdoch (herein after 'the Master') is obviously a studied practitioner of the Art.

1. Plan- Having been given a lengthy time to assess the allegations and apply due consideration, the Master has had the latitude / leeway to calculate his best chances of victory. 
2. The Challenge- the Master's successful campaign requires the limitation of  the cost of competition and conflict. Accepting personal blame limits further conflict / interrogation / discovery and deflects conflict away from the business. 
3. Attack by Stratagem- Powerful 'friends' pursuing personal interests openly support the Master, a definition of 'independent' opinion and the epitome of unity rather than defiance via legal strong-arm tactics pillared by limitless company funding.
4. Positioning- In the first hearing the Master defends & denies, successfully buying time to consider his options before advancing in relative safety (ie: for the Company). The Master has recognized and seized a strategic opportunity, deflated the "enemy's" contention through a process of self-imposed blame and squashed any further opportunities of attack - conflict averted.
5. Directing- Who can credit the Master's (hitherto bombastic and arrogant) creativity and timing  in shameful acquiescence of personal blame. By anyone's definition completely out of character.
6. Illusion and Reality- having diverted the conflict away from the Company by assuming personal blame, the Master creates the illusion of personally-imposed regulatory deviance rather than Company non-compliance. This cleverly engineered change of environment* provides the Company the legitimacy it doesn't necessarily deserve. (*Who will discredit the Master's intended illusion of Company-innocence given his undisputed history of interference. The Master's age wraps the illusion nicely for only an old dog loses the will to bite..)
7. Manoeuvering- the Master has understood the dangers to the Company and has avoided further conflict by interposing himself between the process of discovery and the Company. 
8. Variation in Tactics- the Master's flexibility and change of tactic from outright denial to an unexpected, unequivocal acceptance of personal blame is wholly successful. The Company remains intact.  
9. Moving The Force- the Master currently waits for the 'enemy's' next move. Any new allegations will be carefully evaluated and referred back to 'Planning' for response. 
10. The Use of Intelligence - the Master will CONTINUE to develop good sources of information / intelligence for, one reason and one reason only; Success depends upon it.

Global corporate management is full of artful deflection. Knowing why is the key to your own success...

Trickle-down innovation & your Apple iPad / iPhone...

Very rarely companies 'beat-the-street' (ie: profits exceed expectations) significantly on the upside. Last night Apple Inc. did just that. It's testament to brand strength and the dedication of the 'post-Jobs' management team. What does this mean for the price of Apple stock?

Market participants have been less inclined to hold onto their Apple investments lately which isn't surprising given the stock's astronomical price-rise in the last few years. Additionally, the untimely passing of Steve Jobs, Apple's innovation-genius, adds some credence to the 'sell-your-Apple' call. Has Apple reached its zenith in terms of product-development / product-innovation?

It doesn't take too much digging to reveal a sales-strategy so diabolically clever that, if true, consigns the premise that 'the iPod was Steve Jobs' greatest achievement' to the trash-bin. It's a sales-strategy so ephemeral, so revolutionary that it rewrites marketing theory. 'Those in the know' will tell you Apple's future is bright, very bright and it's Jobs' real legacy. It's a legacy not necessarily beneficial for Apple-users but it certainly will be for Apple shareholders, at large, around the globe.

'Those in the know', if pushed, will tell you that long before the release of the iPad2, Apple's engineers had already developed the iPad 5, 6 and 7. (similarly the iPod & the iPhone). In a perfect world we'd believe the truth of 'what they've said'. We'd accept that Apple spared us the iPad10 because we were, quite frankly. not quite ready for it. We'd admire Apple's redefinition of reverse-engineering or trickle-down innovation and accept, at face-value, Apple's strategy to reveal it's revelation to us 1 version at a time, each version 'advancing' a small step or two. We'd understand that brand-push pressure would have us reaching for our wallets at each 'new release'. We'd understand, accept and admire! We'd also be mesmerised by the brand; we'd buy; we'd replace; we'd replace again and we'd spend some more. It's a lasting, innovative and admirable legacy built to drive Apple's profits well into the future.

Then again, this is the real world and 'what they say' is hardly ever based in reality.

Europe's next World War is one of ECONOMIC relevance

Speak to an educated, politically astute European and don't be surprised when he / she tells you that Europe is embroiled in a war so bitter that subsequent social divides will take generations to bridge. 

An influential colleague contends that Europe is in a fight to the death and the enemy is none other than Britain and the United States! 

Why have the Europeans been so slow to respond to the EU crisis?  It’s a function of an outdated institutional structure and cumbersome Legislative, Judicial & Administrative bodies.

These are just a few of the institutional bodies / individuals responsible for the well-being of the European Union:

1. Ministers and parliamentary secretary generals.
2. Commissions / Committee of regions, economic and social council-BEI (European Bank of Investments)
3. FEOGA-(European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Funds).
4. (EMCF) -European Monetary Cooperation Funds.
5. Secretary General of the Council of Europe
6. Parliament
7. W.E.U (Western European Union)
8. EUROCORPS 
9. E.C.B (European Central Bank)
10. O.E.E.C (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development)
11. The Council of Europe
12. NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation)
13. CSCE (Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe)
14. The legislative council has powers.
15. The commissions and the legislature and the executive for the E.C.S.C. 
16. E.I.B (European Investment Bank)
17. E.B.R.D (European Bank for Reconstruction And Development) 

It’s understandable why Europe has responded so slowly to a deliberate, well-coordinated economic attack and why the consequences have been devastating. Germany has alluded to this fact and is demanding structural reforms.

Britain is the enemy… 

(A simple example) - Britain proposed the purchase of significantly subsidised New Zealand sheep in exchange for British-made vehicles offered cheaply. The sheep are sold to France at excessively inflated prices and the commission shared…It's open to scrutiny and is a tangible and deliberate attempt by Britain to collapse the EAGGF. 

The United States is the enemy… 

(A simple example) - European banks have been driven to the cusp of bankruptcy by a co-ordinated attack by US banks intent on creating problems where there are none in an effort to destroy the Euro. Interbank rates are open to scrutiny and confirm the intent.

Whichever way you look at it it's certainly a refreshing take on the European Crisis and perhaps an opinion we should not dismiss too lightly. 

Your country doesn't need you!

At it's core Globalisation feeds on Cheap Labour. It's undeniable and it's entrenched..

Read the History of the United States and it’s obvious that the early days were indeed the ‘land-of-the-free’ not in freedom of spirit but rather a catch-all phrase for the going hourly wage of the average labourer. Cry foul and say it isn’t so but whichever way you want it ‘Free’ (cheap) migrant labour from Ireland, Italy, China and others built what is, today, the world’s largest economy. Today’s shift in ‘economic strength’ away from the West is based ONLY on the glut of cheap labour offered in China, South East Asia and India and is the ONLY advantage the 'East' has over the 'West'.

Paradoxically the proposed move to the political right in both France and Germany suggests, now more than ever, that The Citizens, in their demands for a decent living from the countries of their birth, have little grasp of the economic side-effects of globalisation. Unless the citizens concede the point and join the masses in the eastern sweatshops, their economic days are numbered. Social instability is here to stay. By extrapolation, politicians who promise 'work for our people' will become more popular in mature economies but the promises are nothing more than an economic dream in countries which face economic obsolescence.

Where material wealth defines the person why should we care that the people-of-the-west are accelerating towards a state of beggared poverty? Perhaps in a fuzzy sort of way and somewhere embedded in our warped sense of right & wrong we can’t help but feel sorry for the ‘strugglers’; a sentiment which, perversely, led to globalisation in the first place.