Banking, finance, and taxes
Merrill Lynch (MER) Caves In On Auction Rates
Published:
Last Updated:
Merrill Lynch (MER), pole-axed by the Citigroup (C) decision to buy back all of the auction-rate securities it has sold to individual investors, buckled and said it will purchase up to $12 billion of the paper on the same basis.
MER said that effective January 15, 2009, and through January 15, 2010, it will offer to buy at par auction rate securities sold by it to its retail clients.
The news further cripple’s Merrill’s balance sheet and reputation. The firm did say it does not expect its purchase of auction rate securities in 2009 through 2010 to have a materially adverse impact on its capital ratios, liquidity, or consolidated financial performance.
Based on management’s forecasts over the last six months, Wall St. will take that with a grain of salt.
Douglas A. McIntyre
Finding a qualified financial advisor doesn’t have to be hard. SmartAsset’s free tool matches you with up to 3 fiduciary financial advisors in your area in 5 minutes. Each advisor has been vetted by SmartAsset and is held to a fiduciary standard to act in your best interests. If you’re ready to be matched with local advisors that can help you achieve your financial goals, get started now.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.