A seven year slog - but no-one's telling
Word on the street is that it'll take the banks another seven years to get themselves in shape. So why aren't we being told, asks Dougal Paver.
A good client told me over a pint the other night that he'd enjoyed a round of golf with the chairman of one of the world's largest banks.
Amidst the banter and chit-chat there were patches of more robust conversation: the economy, politics and the banks themselves.
And the most compelling part? The bit where said chairman said it would take another seven years for the banks to work all the rubbish out of their systems and tidy up their balance sheets.
That's right: seven years. And if you believe that then it suggests we've all got a good bit of psychological readjustment to get through to enable us to put our businesses and strategies in the right shape to survive and thrive.
At Paver Smith LLP we've got our restructuring out of the way and it's paying dividends already. Many others have, too. But I suspect that the thought of another seven years of slog will take others by surprise.
The only remaining question, then, is why the banks and the media aren't levelling with us on this? Do they think we're not capable of thinking in such timeframes? Or that we're just not responsible enough? I suspect we'll never know.
COMMENTS
No comments added for this entry.
POST A COMMENT
