The Institutional Risk Analyst

New York | Did Goldman Sachs (GS) and Apple Inc. (AAPL) discriminate against women in the provision of credit on the new accounts for the Apple Card? Probably not deliberately, but credit scoring systems generally see women as being inferior credit risks – both internal and external to the actual underwriting process. When you apply for consumer credit, your individual score and credit utilization history are the primary criteria considered. “Several husbands — including Ap

New York | People keep asking what we think of the 10-year anniversary of the collapse of Lehman Brothers. Our answer is that not much has changed. Lehman once had the best performing bank in the US and then it was gone. Why? Fraud on loans and securities. Fraud in different forms still prevails in the world of investing, but has migrated from banks to non-banks like funds and BDCs, and of course structured securities. Derivatives are the enablers of fraud. That is the c

In this issue of The Institutional Risk Analyst, we feature a comment from our fellow fisherman David Kotok, Chairman & Chief Investment Officer of Cumberland Advisors (www.cumber.com), which was published earlier this week. A number of people have asked about the widening spread between LIBOR and the comparable rate in the US. The short answer is that, yes, it is a structural problem and may be a warning of future contagion ahead. Questions? Join us Thursday at the Univer

New York | Next week we launch the first paid product for The Institutional Risk Analyst, "The IRA Bank Book," which will feature our concise thoughts on the US banking industry and credit markets, along with some pretty charts to illuminate the discussion. More on this soon. This week the markets await the first press conference of Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell, a tribal ritual that brings together the media, investors and policy makers in a shared experience