Showing posts with label swaps. Show all posts
Showing posts with label swaps. Show all posts

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Let There be cleanup.

Euro Crisis: Derivatives Cloud the Possible Fallout From a Greek Default - CNBC

In years past, when financial crises in Argentina and Russia left those countries unable to make good on their government debts, they simply defaulted. But this time around, swaps and other sorts of contracts have become so common and so intertwined in the financial markets that there are fears among regulators and financial players about how a Greek default would play out among derivatives holders.
The looming uncertainties are whether these contracts — which insure against possibilities like a Greek default — are concentrated in the hands of a few companies, and if these companies will be able to pay out billions of dollars to cover losses during a default.