Today is a big day — yet most people might not realize it.
See, today is the 10-year anniversary of when the financial crisis went haywire. Exactly a decade ago, a credit crunch slammed the world further into crisis when Lehman Brothers collapsed.
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The 158-year-old firm was on its own. England wouldn’t let Barclays buy Lehman and absorb its financial woes. Bank of America refused to save it without support from the government. And Uncle Sam decided maybe it wasn’t such a great idea to hand out another hated bailout.
So on September 15, 2008 — at precisely 1:45 a.m. — Lehman declared bankruptcy, unleashing the scariest economic storm in American history since the Great Depression.
Panic flooded the markets. The Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 508 points (which is equal to about 1,300 points these days). The S&P 500 Index closed down 4.7%.
The headlines declared things like this from the New York Times:
We all remember the global recession that followed — and the personal struggles we faced as a result.
However, a decade later, I wonder if the Lehman Brothers lesson is starting to fade.
I sometimes sense that “can’t fail” mentality bleeding back into Wall Street’s consciousness. Bankers are once again getting bonuses the likes of which they saw before the Great Recession.
At $184,220, the average bonus for Wall Street employees is the highest since 2006. Commercial banks are raking in record-high profits.
We’re now in the longest bull market in history, and it seems like the party might never end.
Deregulation and tax cuts are making many businesses ecstatic. And last week, the government reported that wages shot up at their fastest pace since the end of the recession. Plus our job creation streak notched up to 95 months.
All seems golden in the land of America.
But it’s during these moments that it pays to start thinking ahead — to be cautious while others are still in la-la land.
After all, economist Ann Pettifor, who predicted the financial crisis in 2006, is now ringing the alarm bells. She says that thanks to huge corporate debt and the prospect of rising U.S. interest rates, the global economy is in danger once again.
Global debt is now more than triple the level of global gross domestic product.
So, today, on the 10-year anniversary of Lehman Brothers’ bankruptcy, I urge caution.
Start looking into ways to increase and protect your wealth now while there’s still plenty of time. One way to do that is by learning as much as possible about successful trading strategies — the ones proven to win no matter what the market is doing.
You can easily do that by tuning into Banyan Hill’s Total Wealth Symposium next week. From September 20 to 22, all of our experts are gathering in Las Vegas for our biggest event of the year. There, they’ll give presentations geared toward putting $1 million in your pocket in the next year.
For example, Wall Street legend Paul is recommending his top stock pick for 2019. That’s significant considering he’s recommended stocks that are up 127%, 139%, 147%, 151%, 176% and even 524% in the past year.
If you’re not able to join us in person, that’s perfectly fine! I know everyone can’t make it. So we’re livestreaming the event for your convenience.
To those who can make it, I look forward to seeing you! Be sure to say hello if you see me. I’ll be the one running around taking notes at the presentations.
I want to make sure to get all of our experts’ advice down so I can start preparing my portfolio for the storm ahead.
Regards,
Jessica Cohn-Kleinberg
Managing Editor, Banyan Hill Publishing