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Open Thread . Wachovia Bank Bought By Citibank

By NancyA on September 29, 2008 at 1:45 PM in Current Affairs, Economy, Open Thread

wach.jpgThis is an open thread on the House vote today, and more. Among the hottest stories today — Drudge Report titles it “CITI EATS WACHOVIA” — from Fox News:

This morning, further financial disaster was averted with the intervention of Citigroup. They agreed to buy the assets of Wachovia Bank. With Washington Mutual failing last week, the economy did not need another bank to fail.

The U.S. Treasury Department Office of Public Affairs released this statement by Secretary Paulson:

Washington – Treasury issued the following statement by Secretary Henry M. Paulson, Jr. on the sale of Wachovia Bank:

I commend the action taken by Chairman Bair and the FDIC today to facilitate the sale of Wachovia Bank to Citigroup in an orderly fashion to mitigate potential market disruptions. I agree with the FDIC and the Federal Reserve that a failure of Wachovia would have posed a systemic risk. As a result of this transaction, all Wachovia depositors will be protected and Wachovias senior and subordinated debt will be assumed by Citigroup. The FDICs actions help to mitigate potential systemic risk to our financial system. As I have said before, in this period of market stress, we are committed to taking all actions necessary to protect our financial system and our economy.

There should be no question whether we need a bailout bill or not.

And, if Wachovia Bank had been allowed to close, this would have affected everyone with accounts in the bank. Deposits up to $100,000 dollars are covered by the FDIC, but if the bank had failed, it would have interrupted customers’ ability to access funds.

If there are readers who have money in Wachovia Bank, please share your personal stories with us.