Deutsche Bank: rated most exposed by Japanese Regulator

While Deutsche Bank has performed admirably (at least on a comparative basis) during the financial Crash we kept being concerned about the slender margin of safety that is provided by the equity capital basis. DB may be less exposed to sovereign loans in the Eurozone and corporate loans may also be a lower part of its portfolio than in other institutions but that means that the bank is more exposed to financial assets and counter party credits. And the purchase of supposedly 'safe' businesses such as Deutsche Postbank and Oppenheim are by no means guaranteed to provide the high returns that management continues to aim for. News that Deutsche Bank is the lucky (?) owner of the most recent addition to the Las Vegas hotel scene does little to inspire confidence in the bank's risk management skills. Maybe the bank should pay its bonuses in the form of free hotel vouchers until the full extent of its exposure has been recouped.

UBS dress code memo

UBS was (and is?) known for fast-tracking officers of the Swiss Army Militia through its management ranks. We are not sure that the 'new UBS' (post SBC 'Merger') adheres to the same management principles. But given the fact that banks worldwide are inundated with more or less sensible regulations it is amazing that someone in the - still vast - bureaucracy of a large bank finds the time to devise such a detailed prescriptive paper. Rulebooks such as this tome certainly would not surprise anyone if it would be given to fresh recruits in an army barrack. I wonder what it does to promote morale at the workplace?

Deutsche Boerse: another Euro 450 mio written off on ISE

In 2007 the German Stock Exchange (Deutsche Boerse) acquired the International Stock Exchange ISE for more than Euro 2 billion. This write-off follows a provision of Euro 420 million in the last quarter of 2009. Acquisitions are minefields for the unwary and should only undertaken after careful analysis and after consulting advisers that give objective advice based on long financial and markets experience.