Wednesday, December 30, 2009, 9:07PM ET - U.S. Markets Closed.

Fill or Kill: Strong Case We Don't Need Geithner's Toxic Debt Scheme

Posted Jul 01, 2009 07:00am EDT by Aaron Task
Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner will announce long-awaited details on the PPIP plan Wednesday or Thursday this week, according to CNBC.

PPIP, the Public-Private Investment Program, is the government's controversial plan to spur buying of banks' toxic debt. Since Geithner first floated the scheme in late March, bank stocks have rallied sharply and most big financial services firms have raised capital via equity sales - thanks, in part, to optimism about the PPIP.

The irony, of course, is the plan hasn't gotten off the ground and is hamstrung, most notably, by banks' reluctance to sell their "assets" at what they consider rock-bottom prices.

There's a strong case to be made we don't need the PPIP anymore, says Dan Greenhaus, an analyst in Miller Tabak's strategy group. At the same time, banks are going to be even less willing to participate now, since they've raised capital and the economy has shown signs of stabilizing.

If Geithner's goal was simply to inject confidence into the system so banks could raise capital, then PPIP really was "the greatest program that never occurred," as Goldman managing director Scott Romanoff described it, according to The WSJ. Viewed in this light, Geithner might be wise to kill the program altogether. 

But if Geithner's goal was really to get toxic assets off the banks' balance sheets, the program has failed completely - or merits an incomplete at best. Against that backdrop, it will be interesting to see what Geithner says about PPIP this week, if anything; as of Tuesday evening, a Treasury spokesman had not responded to my requests for comment on the CNBC report, which also states the program is going to be shrunk dramatically from its originally $1 trillion goal.

74 Comments

james b
james b - Wednesday July 01, 2009 09:19AM EDT

let the banks work their own probs out, what a novel idea, wait till this fall and we see what happens then. the gov will probably want to bail them out again then

Ted
Ted - Wednesday July 01, 2009 09:19AM EDT

What would you pay for a defaulted loan on a shopping center with negative income BEFORE debt service when retenanting will cost $30psf? Remember, you will be dealing with with courts for a while just to get the property.

will
will - Wednesday July 01, 2009 09:22AM EDT

It's tragic that the majority of the voting public couldn't see through the flim-flam man!!! Maybe we can turn it around in the next presidential election, if it isn't too late.

Leo
Leo - Wednesday July 01, 2009 09:29AM EDT

Where's the birth certificate? (Johnny Ike's)

I'm Just saying
I'm Just saying - Wednesday July 01, 2009 09:30AM EDT

Read the spin on the Challenger Job Report. And this is "good news" such that the market will go up today? Now, correlate this spin with the toxic assets and find that relationship ... no job, higher probability mortgage payments may be late and/or not available.... higher probaility for foreclosure.... These new foreclosures are not impacting the people that were the subprimers. These new entrants in the foreclosure rodeo are people that lost their jobs due to a crap economy. Now, all things considered, where is the that glimmer of hope, those green shoots??? Anyone? Can someone from the Hope and Change agenda answer this simple question?

Suzanne
Suzanne - Wednesday July 01, 2009 09:34AM EDT

I LOVE IT...."let the markets work"....LOL....the "markets" are there for the wealthy....if they "worked"....the wealthy would be losing their shirts....and we know THAT AINT GONNA HAPPEN....so, pay your taxes, get back to work, because those 8 bathroom homes don't clean themselves.....the "2 parties" is a scam....YOUTUBE RALPH NADER....he was right....but he wore a wrinkled gray suit, so "you can't listen to him drone on about what's really happening"....xxooo

Yahoo! Finance User
Yahoo! Finance User - Wednesday July 01, 2009 09:41AM EDT

Did all the Enron traders go to the street? The more I watch the market, the more I'm reminded of their trading schemes.

Yahoo! Finance User
Yahoo! Finance User - Wednesday July 01, 2009 09:44AM EDT

What can you expect from an administration that is siding with Hugo Chavez regarding Honduras? The president's spin is that what took place there was a military coup and his messangers the media puts out the same spin. Nothing could be further from the truth, according to friends from there the ousted president wanted to pull a Hugo Chavez, the country has 4 year term limits for its presidents, the guy wanted to extend it and was turned down by the nations congress as well as the supreme court. However, when the president refused to vacate the office, the Honduran congress called in the military to remove him, which they did, and then turned the power over to the congress who electec an interim. You won't get this side of the story in most of your media outlets - So consider who the perpetrators of the one world order will be when you see the UN, Hugo Chaves and O Barry taking the same stand!

Yahoo! Finance User
Yahoo! Finance User - Wednesday July 01, 2009 09:45AM EDT

What can you expect from an administration that is siding with Hugo Chavez regarding Honduras? The president's spin is that what took place there was a military coup and his messengers the media puts out the same spin. Nothing could be further from the truth, according to friends from there the ousted president wanted to pull a Hugo Chavez, the country has 4 year term limits for its presidents, the guy wanted to extend it and was turned down by the nations congress as well as the supreme court. However, when the president refused to vacate the office, the Honduran congress called in the military to remove him, which they did, and then turned the power over to the congress who electec an interim. You won't get this side of the story in most of your media outlets - So consider who the perpetrators of the one world order will be when you see the UN, Hugo Chaves and O Barry taking the same stand

Yahoo! Finance User
Yahoo! Finance User - Wednesday July 01, 2009 09:46AM EDT

What can you expect from an administration that is siding with Hugo Chavez regarding Honduras? The president's spin is that what took place there was a military coup and his messengers the media puts out the same spin. Nothing could be further from the truth, according to friends from there the ousted president wanted to pull a Hugo Chavez, the country has 4 year term limits for its presidents, the guy wanted to extend it and was turned down by the nations congress as well as the supreme court. However, when the president refused to vacate the office, the Honduran congress called in the military to remove him, which they did, and then turned the power over to the congress who electec an interim. You won't get this side of the story in most of your media outlets - So consider who the perpetrators of the one world order will be when you see the UN, Hugo Chaves and O Barry taking the same stand

Yahoo! Finance User
Yahoo! Finance User - Wednesday July 01, 2009 09:47AM EDT

Don't re-elect any of them..........................................

Chris
Chris - Wednesday July 01, 2009 09:50AM EDT

Lisalipps Don't you mean 12 21 2013 or have they changed it and not told me.

dale
dale - Wednesday July 01, 2009 09:52AM EDT

Well, you voted for change and now you're getting it. Too bad you weren't smart enough to ask what that change was going to be.

- Wednesday July 01, 2009 09:57AM EDT

Lee Rogers June 9, 2008 Fresh off of the 2008 Bilderberg Meeting, it looks as if New York Federal Reserve president Timothy Geithner is set to push a new agenda in the world of central banking that was likely decided upon at Bilderberg. Geithner yesterday, wrote an article in the Financial Times calling for a global regulatory banking framework. In addition, Geithner called for the Federal Reserve to have an instrumental role in this new framework. Geithner cites all of the problems that were actually created by the central bankers in the first place as the rationale for having greater centralized power. It is interesting Geithner decides to write this piece right after the Bilderberg Meeting where some of the most powerful figures in the world of central banking attended. Not only did Geithner attend, but the attendee list included Ben Bernanke the Federal Reserve Chairman, Henry Paulson the U.S. Treasury Secretary, Jean-Claude Trichet the president of the European Central Bank, Robert Zoellick the president of the World Bank and other high profile bankers. What Geithner is proposing is entirely insane but this is the same tactic that the financial elites used to establish the Federal Reserve back in 1913. They created a crisis and said that the crisis happened because they didn’t have enough power to prevent it. Geithner is using the excuse of the current financial crisis that was caused by the Federal Reserve and the world’s assorted central banks in order to again consolidate more power for the banking cartel.

dale
dale - Wednesday July 01, 2009 09:57AM EDT

Welcome !!!! to Trickle Down Poverty

Yahoo! Finance User
Yahoo! Finance User - Wednesday July 01, 2009 10:01AM EDT

Audit the Federal Reserve- they surely have nothing to hide. Only Madoffs are afraid of audits

Aidan
Aidan - Wednesday July 01, 2009 10:03AM EDT

You voted them in, and this is your reward.

Leo
Leo - Wednesday July 01, 2009 10:06AM EDT

Everything's fantastic! We're still having huge net loses of jobs, our manufacturing base has been shipped overseas or is in BK, we had to "loan" Freddie Mac another 6+ billion, our nation's future unfunded liabilities are between 75-100 TRILLION dollars, the BRiC nations are divesting themselves of the USD, and the market LOVES it! You longs are insane. The will be a day of reconning for all this nonsense. (Diclosure: I just shorted PHM 33K shares @ 8.97.)

franck s
franck s - Wednesday July 01, 2009 10:15AM EDT

Freddie Mac just got some toxic asset cash today...6.1 billion worth. Got to get rid of the toxic ground so that green shoots may flourish. The soil is so rich, and so full of fresh fertilizer. A little hard on the nose however.

lisalipps
lisalipps - Wednesday July 01, 2009 10:15AM EDT

Thanks marx @ 8:44AM! Will check out. Already called them regarding the "Cap and Tax" bill in Congress.

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