AIG, Tarp and Goldman Sachs

NOTE: I received the post below via email as a repost from another blog.

Goldman Slept Comfortably

As I am sure you saw yesterday, AIG's Bank Payments Probed By TARP Inspector, Mr. Neal Barofsky, special inspector general for TARP is auditing the AIG bailout and the subsequent funneling of TARP money to AIG CDS counterparties, of whom Goldman Sachs was the biggest recipient. The fact that collateral was posted on CDS, CDOs were purchased at par and securities lending counterparties were made whole, dollar for dollar, has begun to chaff a few butts. Personally, my butt is so chaffed by this that I have completely discontinued my Goldman Superheroes cartoon series, until we come out with the book of course (which is coming by the way).

Anywhoo, in response to this "probe", Goldman CEO Lloyd Blankfein said yesterday,

“We spent over $100 million protecting our shareholders against a default by AIG,” Blankfein said in Washington. “So at the end of the day, we were sleeping very comfortably from a credit risk point of view with AIG.”

Lloyd, Lloyd, Lloyd, you've grown complacent haven't you? The problem that you are going to face now is people are starting to wake up to this farce. Sure you spent $100 million by buying credit protection on AIG. That's not the point. The point is, would any of that protection be worth ANYTHING if AIG failed? If AIG went down would you have been able to collect from the counterparties who sold you protection on AIG? I'm going to say........no. In 2008 Goldman was essentially allowed to win and win. They had Uncle Sammy make sure that the protection AIG sold against Goldman's CDO book held up AND the CDS they bought on AIG, probably in late 2007, skyrocketed in value as AIG went from AAA to doggie poop.

This ain't stochastic calculus folks. It's addition and common sense. Goldman cleaned our clocks on this one.