the inner voice

Last week has been a watershed week in many ways. So overwhelming have been the events that all of us have been taken in by surprise and shock. This will definitely serve as turning point in the history of finance. Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley have been converted to banks, WaMu seized, Wachovia disappeared, Money market funds at below par and the saviour $700BN package getting rejected by senate. It’s tough to digest so much so quickly. Haven’t added the European seizures. For sure it will get real nasty before it gets any better. The crisis is not only the crisis of credit and liquidity, but of trust and confidence as well. Corporates and Individuals both are in bad shape. Corporates are not getting money to run their day-to-day operations, forget long term, where borrowing costs are touching the sky. Return hurdles for lenders have gone up. One wants to lend very very safe. Individuals are in bad shape, with retirement savings, education savings and health savings gone. Shares ar...

There are some events that happen once in a lifetime and they leave their mark forever.  This week saw one such event in the world of finance - the stunning collapse of Lehmann Brothers and Meryll Lynch and AIG teetering and can drown anytime unless Fed steps in. Wall St, never had it so bad and raging bull in front of it, watching it helplessly.  The decline started with the collapse and fire sale of Bear Stearns. The tsunami of sub-prime has swept away everyone on its way. The top five investment banks have been reduced to two and who knows how long will even they survive. Goldman Sachs, which looked stronger till recently, suddenly looks vulnerable. Rumours are that even Morgan Stanley is not safe and may merge with GS. These firms were the mecca of high finance and every MBA worth his salt dreamt to work there. The collapse has sent the world markets into a tizzy. Every country has been affected. Markets opened with trepidation and fear.  Central banks of all natio...

Exercise is a great addiction – and this one, I am sure we don’t mind getting hooked to. These days, in addition to gym routine – treadmill, cross trainer, 4 station, abs machine, and bench,  I have take a liking to running. Me and my pal Aman recently participated in community running. This was organized by ‘running and living ’, a group which promotes running. I somehow managed to complete the 5 Km run leaving my muscles stretched and cramped. To our surprise couple of days later, we found ourselves splashed in an Indian Express article on ‘running for fitness’ in living section of the daily. I was quite surprised but liked it.  That we appeared in the newspaper, we had to clear the ‘newspaper test’. A month of preparation, I felt extremely proud yesterday when I ran full 5 Kms, non-stop in 30 mins. What an experience and the elation of achieving it. It reinforces my belief that it’s all about setting up a goal and working towards it. It’s achievable. This one took ju...