Fear and loathing, and a hint of hope

摘要

As gags go, it was cheap. But irresist-ible. As a banker from Citigroup placed his chips on the roulette table, a watching wise-guy sniggered: "There goes another $15 billion." Even though it was held (as usual) in Las Vegas, this year's conference of the American Securitisation Forum (asf), between February 3rd and 6th, was a subdued affair. First staged only in 2004, the event has become a mecca for those whose job it is to spin mortgages, credit-card debt and other bread-and-butter financial assets into tradable securities.