Monday 29 October 2007

Will Stan O’Neal retrain as a financial shaman?

Stan O'Neal will probably leave Merrill Lynch today, due to recent losses at the bank brought on by the turmoil in the credit market.

I have been speaking to Arthur Simmons about Mr O'Neal and he told me, 'I would like to see Stan retrain as a financial shaman. It would send out a powerful message to Wall Street that financial shamanism has come of age. We need a big player from the mainstream banking world to show the Americans that there is no need for them to be afraid of mystical capitalism.'

While I agree with Arthur that we certainly need a big player to come on board, I don't think it will happen in America yet. If it happens anywhere, it will probably happen in London's Canary Wharf first. As we all know, Canary Wharf is the most mystical financial centre in the world, and that won't change anytime soon.