32 quotes
Acknowledging Delays in Critical Situations
Henry Paulson
We're late. We've been late on everything.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Negotiations on Preferred Shares and Dividends
Joe Gregory
You heard anything from Buffett?
Erin Callan
He's asking for preferred shares at 40, with a dividend of nine percent.
Dick Fuld
We were just at 66! What-the-fuck?
Joe Gregory
Maybe it's just an opening gambit, Dick.
Richard Fuld
Sounds more like a goddamn insult!
Erin Callan
Dick, we're at 36 right now. We haven't been anywhere near 66 in months. The markets like Buffett. His name will push the price up overnight.
Dick Fuld
You know, I don't care who he is. I am not spending $360 million a year for the pleasure of doing business with him.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Government's Role in Financial Crisis Management
The U.S. Government
] - ], Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs
[[w:Cynthia Nixon|Cynthia Nixon; [w:Michele Davis|Michele Davis]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Understanding Economic Tension During Crisis
Ben Bernanke
I don't really understand why there needs to be so much tension about this. The country is facing the worst economy since the Great Depression. If the financial system collapses, it will take every one of you down.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Government's Role in Financial Crisis Management
The U.S. Government
] - ], President of the New York Federal Reserve
[[w:Billy Crudup|Billy Crudup; [Timothy Geithner]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Economic Crisis and Political Dynamics Unfold
Jim Wilkinson
(watching Paulson's conversation with ]) He's not... threatening the Republican Presidential nominee, is he?
[[John McCain]
Nancy Pelosi
(when Paulson kneels down in front of her) Hank, I didn't know you were Catholic.
Michele Davis
They almost bring down the U.S. economy as we know it, but we can't put restrictions on how they spend the $125 billion we're giving them because... they might not take it?
Timothy Geithner
I'm on the Street, Hank, and people are just going about their business. They have no idea the whole thing is about to fall down.
Congressman Barney Frank
(reviewing the first draft of TARP) It's all for the banks. You don't want a penny for the average Joe that's about to lose his house?
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
The Burden of Financial Responsibility
Wall Street
] - ], CEO, Lehman Brothers
[[w:James Woods|James Woods; [w:Richard Fuld|Richard "Dick" Fuld]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Accountability in Housing Market Decisions
Dick Fuld
You know, people act like we're crack dealers. Nobody put a gun to anybody's head and said, "Hey, nimrod, buy a house you can't afford, and you know what? While you're at it, put a line of credit on that baby and buy yourself a boat.
[on the housing crisis]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Emergency Measures for AIG's Financial Crisis
Henry Paulson
Tim thinks we need to do something big. Ben agrees, and so do I.
Jim Wilkinson
What can we do? AIG's not even a bank.
Henry Paulson
The Fed can lend to non-banks under "unusual and exigent circumstances". We're thinking of taking over 80% of the company.
Jim Wilkinson
Hank, we can't! This morning we were lecturing the entire country on ].
[[w:moral hazard|moral hazard]
Henry Paulson
AIG has collateral, they have assets, Lehman didn't. We couldn't lend into a hole, it's not the same story!
Jim Wilkinson
Nobody is going to care, it's another bailout! With no legislation, the Hill is gonna go crazy, the country is gonna go crazy-
Henry Paulson
The plane we flew in on this morning, leased from AIG. Construction downtown, AIG. Life insurance, 81 million policies, with a face value of $1.9 trillion. Billions of dollars in teachers pensions! It's everywhere! You want "]", here it is! You got a better idea, the suggestion box is wide open!
[[w:too big to fail|too big to fail]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Crisis Communication Amid Financial Turmoil
Michele Davis
I hate to do this right now, but I'm going to have to have a press call first thing, and I really don't know what I'm going to tell them.
Neel Kashkari
Tell them Lehman exacerbated AIG. The simultaneous payouts of CDOs and credit default swaps put catastrophic pressure...
Henry Paulson
Go back further.
Neel Kashkari
The global pool of investment capital...
Henry Paulson
She has to do this in English! Start with the homeowners.
Jim Wilkinson
Okay, okay, here's how you explain it. Wall Street started bundling home loans together - ] - and selling slices of those bundles to investors, and they were making big money. So they started pushing the lenders saying, "come on, we need more loans.
[clears throat; [w:mortgage-backed securities|mortgage-backed securities]
Henry Paulson
The lenders had already given loans to borrowers with good credit, so they go bottom-feeding, they lower their criteria.
Neel Kashkari
Before, you needed a credit score of 620 and a down payment of 20%; now they'll settle for 500, no money down.
Jim Wilkinson
And the buyer, the regular guy on the street assumes that the experts know what they're doing. He's saying to himself, "if the bank's willing to loan me money, I must be able to afford it." So he reaches for the American Dream, he buys that house.
Neel Kashkari
The banks knew securities based on shitbag mortgages were risky...
Henry Paulson
You'll work on "shitbag"...
Neel Kashkari
...So to control their downside, the banks started buying a kind of insurance. If mortgages default, insurance company pays. ]. The banks insure their potential losses to move the risk off their books, so they can invest more, make more money.
[[w:Credit default swap|Default swap]
Henry Paulson
And while a lot of companies insured their stuff, one was dumb enough to take on an almost unbelievable amount of risk.
Michele Davis
AIG.
Jim Wilkinson
And you'll work on "dumb.
Michele Davis
And when they ask me why they did that?
Jim Wilkinson
Fees!
Neel Kashkari
Hundreds of millions in fees.
Henry Paulson
AIG figures the housing market would just keep going up. But then the unexpected happens...
Jim Wilkinson
].
[[w:Subprime mortgage crisis|Housing prices go down]
Neel Kashkari
The poor bastard who bought his dream house? The teaser rate on his mortgage runs out, his payments go up, he defaults.
Henry Paulson
Mortgage-backed securities tank. AIG has to pay off the swaps. All of them. All over the world. At the same time.
Neel Kashkari
AIG can't pay. AIG goes under. Every bank they insure books massive losses on the same day. And then they all go under. It all comes down.
Michele Davis
The whole financial system? And what do I say when they ask me why it wasn't regulated?
[horrified; Wilkinson nods]
Henry Paulson
No one wanted to. We were making too much money.
Jim Wilkinson
You'll work on, "we were making too much money.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Misunderstanding of Crisis Management in Legislation
Jim Wilkinson
They're blowing it up.
Neel Kaskhari
What happened?
Jim Wilkinson
McCain wanted to swoop in and save the day, but doesn't have any idea how to do it.
Neel Kashkari
It's a 100-page piece of legislation we've been carefully negotiating for days. What, did he think they were gonna sit around and spitball?
Jim Wilkinson
Yeah, when McCain got here and found out that the deal was basically done, he went apeshit. The Republicans fell in behind their guy. They wanna start all over again. Democrats flipped out. Republicans dug in.
Jim Wilkinson/Neel Kashkari
Clusterfuck.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Government's Role in Financial Crisis Management
The U.S. Government
] - ], Chairman of the Federal Reserve
[[w:Paul Giamatti|Paul Giamatti; [Ben Bernanke]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Oatmeal as a Strategy in Crisis Management
Ben Bernanke
Lehman's down another 10%.
Henry Paulson
You are not gonna let me get down a single bite, are you?
Ben Bernanke
This is why I have oatmeal.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Regulatory Challenges During Financial Crisis
Hank Paulson
You are their regulator. Call the Lehman board now.
Christopher Cox
Hank, it's a complicated situation where...
Hank Paulson
Asia's opening. They don't announce, the market goes in the toilet.
Christopher Cox
We have to consider the appropriate role of government here. Can I, as Chairman of SEC, move forward and...?
Hank Paulson
You guys are like the gang that can't shoot straight. This is your job. Make the damn phone call.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Decision-Making Amidst Financial Crisis
Ben Bernanke
It was the right thing.
Hank Paulson
Absolutely.
Ben Bernanke
I was prepared for more blowback.
Hank Paulson
They didn't have a choice. They knew that.
Ben Bernanke
I certainly hope that they...
Hank Paulson
What?
Ben Bernanke
I hope they use the money the way we're asking them to. They will lend it out, won't they?
Hank Paulson
Of course they will... of course they will.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
The Critical Role of Credit in Economy
Ben Bernanke
I spent my entire academic career studying the ]. The depression may have started because of a stock market crash, but what hit the general economy was a disruption of credit. Average citizens unable to borrow money, to do anything. To buy a home, start a business, stock their shelves. Credit has the ability to build a modern economy, but lack of credit has the ability to destroy it, swiftly and absolutely. If we do not act, boldly and immediately, we will replay the depression of the 1930s, only this time it will be... far, far worse. We don't do this now, we won't have an economy on Monday.
[[Great Depression]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Concerns Over Investments Amid Market Instability
Chinese Official
Hank, I must ask you about ] and ]. We have hundreds of billions invested. You've assured us the investment is safe.
[[w:Fannie Mae|Fannie; [w:Freddie Mac|Freddie]
Hank Paulson
And it is, absolutely.
Chinese Official
We're watching a great deal of our money disappear. Share prices have dropped 60% in the last two months. Carrying your bazooka around has not helped matters. Congress gave you the power. Perhaps it is time to use it.
Hank Paulson
The market will stabilize. We just have to give it some time.
Chinese Official
There was an approach last month from Russia. They have considerable holdings in Fannie and Freddie as well. They suggested we coordinate and, without warning, dump hundreds of billions of Fannie and Freddie's bonds onto the market.
Henry Paulson
That would be...
[flabbergasted]
Chinese Official
Chaos. The amount of debt your country carries is a terrible vulnerability.
Henry Paulson
But you...
Chinese Official
We declined. Respectfully. Even in the U.S., it seems the relationship between the government and private industry isn't so simple.
[smiles]
Ben Bernanke
Was it a threat?
Hank Paulson
No, no, a friendly reminder... that with one phone call to Moscow they could take down the entire U.S. economy.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Negotiations and Trust in Crisis
Bart McDade
Min, I'm so sorry.
Min Euoo Sung
We have negotiated in good faith, now all of a sudden we are going backward?
Bart McDade
We can work with you on the price.
Min Euoo Sung
It is not about the price. It is about the way you have conducted this.
Min Euoo Sung
I'd like to thank you, all of you, but I don't think we have a structure that works.
Dick Fuld
What, that's it? You're just gonna pack up and go back to Korea?
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Government's Role in Economic Crisis Management
The U.S. Government
] - ], Assistant Secretary for International Economics and Development
[[w:Ayad Akhtar|Ayad Akhtar; [w:Neel Kashkari|Neel Kashkari]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Navigating Difficult Decisions in Business
Neel Kashkari
Look, I'm just speaking for myself here, but I think you need to do what's right for the firm.
Dick Fuld
Do what's right? What is that supposed to mean?
Neel Kashkari
If your stock price keeps sliding, you may get an offer at a price that doesn't look all that compelling, but you may have to take it just to keep the company intact.
Dick Fuld
What kind of price are you talking about?
Neel Kashkari
Could be... I mean, it might be low single digits.
Dick Fuld
Last February, we were at 66 a share. ] is not ]. We have a great business. Real estate will come back. I am not fucking giving this company away!
[[w:Lehman Brothers|Lehman Brothers; [w:Bear Stearns|Bear Stearns; slams down the phone]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Government's Response to Financial Crisis
The U.S. Government
] - Dan Jester
[[w:Joey Slotnick|Joey Slotnick]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Facing Fear in Financial Crisis
Hank Paulson
The only way to get them to agree to this is to scare them shitless.
Ben Bernanke
That shouldn't be too hard. I'm scared shitless myself.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Corporate Responsibility and Financial Accountability
Wall Street
] - ], CEO, Berkshire Hathaway
[[w:Edward Asner|Edward Asner; [Warren Buffett]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
The Weight of Financial Responsibility
Wall Street
] - Erin Callan, CFO, Lehman Brothers
[[w:Amy Carlson|Amy Carlson]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
The Urgency of Unforeseen Circumstances
Nancy Pelosi
How is it possible you didn't see this coming?
Hank Paulson
If you want to rewind the tape, we can do that. But right now, the one thing we don't have is time.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
The Burden of Financial Decision-Making
Wall Street
] - Joe Gregory, COO, Lehman Brothers
[[w:John Heard|John Heard]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Trust and Crisis in Banking System
Wendy Paulson
P., you can't put this all on your own shoulders.
Hank Paulson
We're running out of options.
Wendy Paulson
Then you just keep trying. That's what you do. Eventually something's gonna work.
Hank Paulson
I'm not sure that that is true anymore. There is not a bank in the world that has enough money in its vault to pay its depositors. It's all built on trust. And, Wendy, we are so very close. Morgan Stanley, Goldman are an inch away. If the other banks stop trusting them, if they pull back on interbank lending, it's over in a matter of hours. And from there it goes too fast to stop, a run, and not just on one bank, I mean on the whole system. And average people wondering, "Is my money safe?" They start pulling their cash. And after that, lines outside the banks, smashed ATMs. A couple of weeks, there's no milk in the store.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Government Response to Financial Crisis
The U.S. Government
] - ], U.S. Secretary of the Treasury
[[w:William Hurt|William Hurt; [w:Henry Paulson|Henry Paulson]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Confidence Amidst Financial Turmoil
Dick Fuld
I've seen this before: CEOs panic and they sell out cheap. Right now, the Street's running around with its hair on fire, but the storm always passes. We stand strong, and on the other side, we'll eat ]'s lunch.
[[w:Goldman Sachs|Goldman]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Accountability in Financial Crisis Management
John Mack
Paulson's got 100,000 employees. Geithner has 200 lawyers. Frigging Chris Cox has 3,000 people. Not a single one of those assholes could pick up a phone, call the British, find out if there was a deal to be made before they spend the weekend sweating us for cash?
Jamie Dimon
Somebody dropped the ball.
John Mack
They didn't drop the ball. They dropped the ball, kicked the coach in the nuts and took a crap in the quarterback's mouth.
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Government's Role in Financial Crisis Management
The U.S. Government
] - ], U.S. Treasury Chief of Staff
[[w:Topher Grace|Topher Grace; [w:Jim Wilkinson (communications)|Jim Wilkinson]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.
Government Oversight in Financial Crisis
The U.S. Government
] - ], Chairman, Securities and Exchange Commission
[[w:Peter Hermann (actor)|Peter Hermann; [w:Christopher Cox|Christopher Cox]
Quotes sourced from Wikiquote (© Wikiquote contributors), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Modified for formatting/length.