German Sharks?

German banks and insurance companies are fighting for an appropriate portion of the multi-billion dollar US Government emergency bail out plan. On the weekend, the government confirmed its plan to expropriate at least US $700 billion from American taxpayers to prop up bankrupt private US institutions. This announcement included a restriction: Only US financial enterprises should benefit from these $700 billion. Foreign investors that have also been affected, through their deposits in US institutions, among them prominent German businesses, are initially excluded. Through the crash on Wall Street, they suffered a loss in the three digit millions. In Germany these losses led to serious capital shortage in regional banks, which in turn are canceling credits for medium sized companies. Insolvency and layoffs are resulting. Up to this moment, the government circles of several western allies have been intervening in Washington, demanding an equal share in the expropriated funds for their private national banks...

Germany Calling