The ECB Admits It Is Bankrupt; No One Notices

Or maybe no one cares.

Draghi just now: ECB exposure to Greek debt is €130 billion.

In other words, out of the ~300ish outstanding, the European Central Bank has roughly half of it and is thus exposed to a 100% loss on the entire sum should Greece walk off.

How did they wind up with that exposure?  That’s simple: Post the first two bailouts they “bought” it from the commercial banks that formerly had it, transferring the risk from private concerns that had taken it on with the intent to make a profit to the entirety of the EU citizenry.

I remind you that the ECB has single-digit billions in capital; their leverage on this debt alone is well over 10:1 without any exposure to anything else.

Given that everyone says that Greece cannot pay the ECB is factually bankrupt right here, right now.

And this is why the market is up wildly on this now-admitted, in-your-face, fact.

The Market-Ticker