Big Bank Exec Blows Whistle (Anonymously) To HuffingtonPost
HuffingtonPost’s top headline screams today: Confessions Of A Mega-Banker. The story is an anonymous interview with an exec at a top 10 bank, where he reveals the following: (1) he’s merely a cog in a deep and extensive money culture where any unprofitable suggestions are brushed aside, (2) lending guidelines are tighter, (3) the traditional ‘savings and loan’ model is no longer the core focus of a large global bank and more sophisticated trading activities take precedence.
Nothing too surprising, especially if you take it as a standalone piece. But you’ve got to hand it to HuffingtonPost for their ability to package and sell a story. This story alone—with it’s overstated headline, placement and Huff marketing muscle—surely ranks among the most popular on the web on a given day like today. And also since Christmas 2009, HuffPo has been pushing their Move Your Money campaign which a series of stories encouraging people to move to smaller banks, so they can continually move these stories—and I can certainly get behind that as a small banker whose core focus is on the traditional ‘savings and loan’ model … who ever would have thought such a basic approach would come back into favor?! As for the ‘mega-bank’ whistle blower, he’s got a blog called the Fourteenth Banker that’s also worth checking out.