It’s different this time, or is it? The US Federal Reserve, the Bank of England, and the European Central Bank have become gargantuan, out-of-control, rogue hedge funds. Global central banks have magicked-up hundreds of trillions of dollars in debt and guarantees. Global stock market valuations are stratospheric—buoyed by stock buybacks, funded by record corporate […]

Henry Paulson. “Hank”. Remember him? Lean, balding, the flared nostrils of a man perpetually haunted by the memory of having to clean dog’s mess from the shoes of his neighbour’s children. Of the crisis in 2008, he said, “Where I come from, if someone takes a risk and they’re going to make the profit from […]

There’s a lot of talk about Europe at the moment, but it’s kind of the way you talk about flooding when the waters don’t reach your house. Sure, it must be real tough for the poor saps whose couches are bobbing around in their living rooms — but meantime, what’s for dinner? Unfortunately, that European […]

About four weeks ago, I wrote on my blog that Facebook was heading for a ridiculous valuation when it was launched on the stockmarket. That wasn’t because I think it’s a bad company – pretty clearly a company that makes a billion dollars in profits after only a few years of life is a remarkable […]

      Facebook is a phenomenal company. Mark Zuckerberg is a remarkable man and an astonishing entrepreneur. He’s created something sensational — something genuinely world-changing — and he’s young enough to be my son. But Facebook the company is one thing. The mooted valuation of Facebook is quite another. I admire the first, and […]