Do you need a reason for why we are in financial meltdown? Are you puzzled how expert banking professionals got it wrong? Do you wonder how fat cats get their jobs?
Chairman of Lloyds Victor Blank (was his mother Cheque by any chance??)was interviewed by Sky News's Jeff Randall this morning and in a staggering video interview (see this part way down the link page)he tried to explain his position.
His responses are unbelievable and blood boiling. This is a man who is not used to having to justify anything to anybody. In a series of vague claims and astonishingly out of touch utterances he suggests that Bankers are clearly better than government at running the Banks!, that they can sell us more products (thanks! you mean like loan insurance etc?), they are a better bet for employees (oh? so nobody is being made redundant then)
What is clear from this interview is that this man has never had to justify himself and the value he adds in terms of 'value' for other people like customers and society he has only ever had to justify his 'value'in terms of financial return to shareholders. He has never had to think 'value' through before and therefore his vaccuous claims demonstrate a stupefying arrogance and closed mindedness.
This is a very poor show. The hypocrisy of the man is jaw dropping. They don't want to be nationalised because they don't want outsiders on their boards. Have you ever borrowed money as business from a bank? I have! Over £30m to be precise as a management buyout, and the first thing they insist is that they have 'one of theirs' on the board.
This arrogance and abuse of power runs right down to branch level, where banking administrators have themsleves pegged as commercial experts and start telling you how to run your business. They are not good advisors. They are pen pushing bean counters with a slight flair for math and a keen eye for the short term.
So my view is that he should 'Blank' right off and let a new breed of holistic manager do his job. The senior managers of banks like Lloyds TSB are the same types as the Generals of the first world war. We are the lions led by these donkeys.
I had read somewhere yesterday that the UK's economy is rapidly taking a dump just as quickly as it has in the US. And regards to Randall's beliefs? Those candid beliefs of his are very common knowledge in that money equals power. Additionally speaking, in any business, it isn't what you know, it's who you blow.
ReplyDeleteIt's a real pisser yet until the customers of the banks hold the bank's board accountable and responsible for its business tactics, this is what the customers will need to accept.
[Take note: Board members of any business whether a business of profit or non-profit are never held accountable. Contractually speaking, this is a given.] (Perform a business law search contracts and see for yourself.)