The decision by JP Morgan Chase to buy Bear Stearns for $236m (â¬150m) raises important questions about the health of the global economy, the likelihood of a recession, banking supervision, the role of the US Federal reserve and the sustainability of investment banking business models. But the really big question remains unanswered: which rival bankers might be tempted to use their own personal wealth and throw their hats into the ring in the hope of picking up a bargain?
In December we revealed that Goldman Sachsâ staff remuneration for last year ($20.2bn) was so large that their employees could, at the time, afford to club together and buy the whole of Bear Stearns, leaving them with enough spare change to pick up a couple of boutique M&A advisers as well.
