Wie sicher sind US-Broker?

Einige US-Broker (für Kleinanleger) wie ETrade haben Finanzprobleme, die dazu führen, dass Kunden teils kein Geld mehr von ihren Verrechnungskonten abheben können. Einlagen sind bei US-Brokern zwar bis 500.000 Dollar durch die SIPC versichert, davon maximal 100.000 Dollar in Cash...

moneyanalyst.blogspot.com/2007/07/...r-insurance-coverage.html

... Trotzdem ist es nicht gerade vertrauenserweckend, wenn der Broker selber zahlungsunfähig würde. Zum Ärger kommen womöglich lange Wartezeiten hinzu, bis man sein Geld zurück hat. Außerdem gibt es ja die Obergrenze, ab der kein Versicherungsschutz nach SIPC mehr besteht.

Wer bei einem US-Broker zu 100 % in Aktien investiert ist, ist paradoxerweise weniger gefährdet als jemand, der zu 100 % in Cash ist: Die Aktien bleiben in jedem Fall Eigentum des Depotinhabers, egal wie es dem Broker ergeht. Bei Cash-Einlagen hingegen wird es brenzliger. ETrade soll nicht investierte Kundengelder auf andere Konten "swappen", darunter auch in riskante (?) Geldmarkt- und Hypothekenfonds. Diese Fonds wiederum sind häufig in Anleihen aus dem US-Hypothekensektor investiert - darunter jenen tendenziell wertlosen Mist, den Rating-Agenturen mit einer künstlichen AA+-Bewertung "adelten". ETrade hat dem Bericht unten zufolge selber direkt 10 Milliarden Dollar in MBS (mortgage backed securities = hypthekenbesicherte Anleihen) investiert.

Wer also einen US-Broker hat und aus dem gefährlichen US-Aktienmarkt in Cash geflohen ist, um den Folgen der Hypothekenkrise zu entkommen, könnte zumindest bei ETrade mit Beelzebub den Teufel ausgetrieben haben, da Etrade dann mit dem geparkten Geld in ebendiesem Sektor weiter spekuliert.

Den Ernst der Lage erkennt man auch am Chart von Etrade (unten).

Auch an deutschen Retail-Brokern ist die US-Subprime-Krise nicht spurlos vorübergegangen. So hat Paribas, die französische Mutter von CortalConsors, 1,6 Milliarden mit drei Hedgefonds in den Sand gesetzt, die in Subprime-Schrott "investiert" hatten.

Disclaimer: Ich hab Konten bei CortalConsors und bei ETrade, hab aber auf das ETrade-Konto bislang noch nie was eingezahlt (es liegt brach).

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E-Trade snuffs out liquidity rumors

Discount broker refutes rumors that customers struggled to withdraw cash

By Alistair Barr, MarketWatch
Last Update: 6:50 PM ET Aug 17, 2007


SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- E-Trade Financial has spent the past 24 hours trying to snuff out rumors that the discount broker was not letting customers withdraw cash from their accounts, E-Trade President Jarrett Lilien said in an interview on Friday.

E-Trade shares slumped more than 28% to $9.92 at one point on Thursday as investors worried about possible losses in the company's portfolio of mortgage securities and how that might affect its ability to get cash to customers that requested it.

But the stock rallied after E-Trade said there'd been no big changes to its access to borrowing [klingt nicht gerade vertrauenserweckend - A.L.] and added that market fears were unfounded. By the close of trading on Thursday, the company's shares were down just 2.6% at $13.55. On Friday, the stock gained 7% to close at $14.50, above its closing price on Wednesday, before the rumors emerged.

"Yesterday we had a situation where there were rumors that we were not letting people withdraw cash," Lilien said. "That's the kind of market this is. Those rumors are completely unfounded."

Troubles in the mortgage market have spread across other credit markets in recent weeks, disrupting some companies' access to borrowing. While E-Trade (ETFC) isn't a mortgage company, it holds a portfolio of mortgage-backed securities worth more than $10 billion. The company also originates some home loans.

But Lilien said on Friday that E-Trade is different from mortgage lenders. The company operates a bank and offers money market accounts and certificates of deposit. It also holds cash for its trading customers who are waiting to invest that money. All those services provide cash that E-Trade can use. A lot of mortgage companies don't have that, and have to tap capital markets to borrow money instead, Lilien explained. "We're not a mortgage company," he said. "Over 60% of our funding comes from our own customers."

E-Trade also disclosed more information about its mortgage holdings late Thursday. The company's $15.7 billion first-lien mortgage portfolio contains home loans with high credit scores [AA+-veredelter Schrott? - A.L.] and low loan-to-value ratios, plus private mortgage insurance, E-Trade explained.

The company noted that $9.2 billion, or 74%, of its home equity portfolio is tied to loan to borrowers with credit scores of at least 700. E-Trade also disclosed that $12.6 billion, or 99%, of its mortgage-backed securities are rated AAA.

Some analysts responded positively to E-Trade's new disclosures on Friday.
"The recent pressure on the stock related to concerns surrounding the company's liquidity is unwarranted," Matt Snowling, an analyst at Friedman, Billings, Ramsey, wrote in a note to clients. "E-Trade is well funded and maintains access to several sources of liquidity."

Richard Repetto, an analyst at Sandler O'Neill, reiterated his buy rating on E-Trade and his 12-month price target of $28.

Alistair Barr is a reporter for MarketWatch in San Francisco.

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Trauerspiel: Der Chart des (Kleinanleger-)Brokers Etrade ähnelt den Charts amerikanischer Subprime-Hypothekenverleiher...

Die "important message" (unten) findet sich auf dieser Seite:
us.etrade.com/e/t/home  (dann weiterklicken auf "important message")

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AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE TO E*TRADE CUSTOMERS

Dear E*TRADE FINANCIAL customer
August 17, 2007

The last few days have been unlike any that the market has seen in many years. And if you have been watching the financial news, you are undoubtedly hearing rumors circulating about many financial services companies, including E*TRADE FINANCIAL.

I'm here to separate fact from fiction and provide you with reliable — and accountable — information about the strength of E*TRADE's business. I want to assure you that your accounts and your assets are safe with us, and that we put the utmost value on our relationship with you.

   * E*TRADE is a financially healthy organization. We have disclosed in great detail our limited exposure to credit risk in sub-prime mortgages — less than one fifth of one percent of E*TRADE's overall mortgage portfolio. The vast majority of financial analysts who monitor our business applauded our proactive efforts to add transparency, and are indicating that market concerns about our portfolio are exaggerated.

   * E*TRADE has ample liquidity to manage its way through the current credit environment. For our customers, this means we are well capitalized, have strong cash flow, high cash reserves and significant excess borrowing capacity. In addition, E*TRADE Securities customers are protected by SIPC coverage, while E*TRADE Bank customers benefit from FDIC coverage, with up to three times the amount of FDIC coverage for sweep deposit accounts.

   * E*TRADE's business fundamentals are firmly on track. The second quarter ended June 30, 2007 was one of the best quarters in the company's history in terms of revenue, new trading/investing account activity, net new customers and deposit growth. Our July metrics show continued strength and record customer engagement.

   * E*TRADE continues to adhere to our strict discipline with respect to risk mitigation. For as long as we've run the balance sheet, we've focused on prime and super-prime loans. Our approach is conservative, as reflected in the fact that 97% of the first mortgages we hold have high FICO scores and combined loan-to-value ratios below 80%.

Currently, volatility in the mortgage industry is impacting the entire financial services industry. The E*TRADE franchise is strong and growing, producing new and innovative products and services to best serve you. We will continue to work diligently to prove to you every day that we are deserving of your business.

Countrywide (CFC), the largest mortgage lender in the United States, has been hit hard by turmoil in home loan markets that's spread across other credit markets in recent days. On Thursday, Countrywide borrowed $11.5 billion from a group of 40 banks because the company struggled to get financing in the secondary mortgage market or the commercial paper market. The company's debt may also be cut to junk status, rating agency Moody's warned.

That's sparked concern among customers of Countrywide Bank, the company's banking business. People jammed the phone lines and Web site of the bank on Thursday and crowded into branches to pull out their savings, the Los Angeles Times reported on Friday.

William Ashmore, president of Impac Mortgage Holdings (IMH), another struggling mortgage firm, pulled $500,000 from a Countrywide Bank branch on Thursday to put it in an account at Bank of America Corp, the newspaper said. "It's because of the fear of the bankruptcy," Ashmore told the L.A. Times. "I don't care if it's FDIC-insured -- I just want out."

[d.h. große US-Kunden trauen nicht mal mehr der FDIC - einer Institution, die dem deutschen Einlagensicherungsfond entspricht! - A.L.]

Countrywide tried to head off more withdrawals on Friday by highlighting that problems in the mortgage market don't impact the safety of deposits at its bank. Those deposits are insured by the government-run Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
A recording left on the FDIC's call center on Friday immediately redirected people with questions about Countrywide Bank to a specific message. The FDIC said in the phone message that the bank has been an FDIC-insured institution since Aug. 30, 1990, and noted that deposits are insured to at least $100,000.

That covers lots of different types of deposits, including checking accounts, money-market deposits and certificates of deposit, the FDIC said in its message.
"It is important for Countrywide Bank's valued customers to know that the highly publicized issues related to the mortgage market do not impact the safety of FDIC-insured deposits at Countrywide Bank," said Tim Wennes, president of Countrywide Bank, in a statement Friday.

Countrywide Bank has more than $107 billion in assets, the company also announced. "Earlier in the day, there were rumors of a run on the bank," said Erin Swanson, an equity analyst at Morningstar. Countrywide's statement "was an effort to calm fears and settle things down."

The health of Countrywide's bank is crucial to the company's efforts to weather the current credit storm. To reduce its reliance on credit markets further, the lender said Thursday that it will try to originate almost all mortgages through its bank by the end of September. At the moment, the company originates more than 70% of its home loans through the bank. Banks oversee deposits for customers, so have a steadier source of money to lend than other finance companies that rely more on credit markets.

It's not clear whether Countrywide's statement on Friday will stop customers of its bank withdrawing money, especially those with more than $100,000 deposited.
"There will always be people who are concerned and want to put their money somewhere else," said Christopher Wolfe, an analyst at Fitch Ratings. Countrywide is "trying to let people know that their deposits are insured -- and they are up to FDIC limits." So if customers have a $200,000 deposit, they would be made good on $100,000 of that if anything goes wrong, Wolfe commented. If customers have $20,000 at Countrywide's bank, they would be totally covered, he added.

A bigger concern is if speculation of customer withdrawals from Countrywide's bank start to encourage others to pull out their money too, according to Wolfe. "If the headlines scream about this, it can create a self-fulfilling prophecy. These kinds of concerns can feed on themselves."

Countrywide shares rallied 13% to $21.43 on Friday. The stock is still down by roughly half so far in 2007.

Alistair Barr is a reporter for MarketWatch in San Francisco.
Murray Coleman is a reporter for MarketWatch in San Francisco

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Der Chart von Countrywide (CFC) ähnelt stark dem von ETrade (ETFC) im Eingangsposting...

einem kleinen betrag,hier in deutschland, sind die kriterien anders,hier arbeiten sie mit der saxobank zusammen....... aber die margins haben sie extrem erhöht bis zu 10 proz. und höher, je nachdem was es ist.... begründung, die turbulenzen an den finanzmärkten.......

Sollte ETrade USA vor die Hunde gehen, würde wohl auch ETrade Deutschland liquidiert. Nicht investierte Gelder auf den Konten würden die Kunden dann zwar voraussichtlich vom Einlagensicherungsfond zurückerhalten, die Frage ist nur, wann. Wenn das Geld erst in ein paar Monaten (in USA dauert es bei der FDIC zuweilen Jahre!) wieder erstattet ist, verpasst man womöglich die Chance, am vermuteten Höhepunkt der Krise im Oktober long gehen zu können.

Kurz gesagt: Man kann mit Geld, auf das man nur einen Anspruch hat, das man aber nicht in Händen hält, nicht arbeiten.

Im Zweifelsfall ist es einfacher, zu Zeiten, da die Liquidität noch vorhanden ist, sein Geld abzuziehen, als sich später in langwierige Papierkriege mit den "Nachlass-Bürokraten" zu begeben, die Nerven, Zeit und verpasste Investment-Chancen kosten.

Ich habe den Bericht hier eingestellt:

http://www.ariva.de/..._den_Anfang_einer_weltweiten_Rezession_t299774

In den USA unterhalte ich lediglich ein Konto bei der BofA. Auf diesem Konto lagern allerdings auch nie große Beträge. Einige Tausend Dollar um bei Reisen in die USA Bargeld zu haben. Ebenso werden einige Transaktionen über das Konto abgewickelt.

Meine Aktiendepots unterhalte ich in Deutschland und dem europäischen Ausland.

Die Entwicklung bei E-Trade war mir so nicht bekannt. Ein weiterer Schritt Richtung Abschwung.

Gruß

Permanent

 

ist sicher, Permanent, auch andere große US-Banken wie Citibank usw. Selbst wenn es gravierende Probleme gäbe, würde die Fed solche Dickschiffe nicht absaufen lassen.

Greetings

arbeite mit&für etrade (US)
habe die o.a; Nachricht weder erhalten noch sonst was (habe heute Geld abgehoben..als test 2000$ kein problem)
allerdings etrade bietet Global trading an (ua für D und Hong Kong)und obschon ich nicht in D allerdings auch nicht (mehr) in den US lebe, darf ich momentan diesen service nicht nutzen
denke etrade ist nicht sooo verwickelt
Freitag (wie alle..)14.50 +0.95 (+7.01%)

viel Glück

Offiziell werden natürlich ganz andere Motive genannt:

'WSJ': Online-Broker Ameritrade und E-Trade verhandeln über Fusion

       NEW YORK (dpa-AFX) - Die beiden Online-Broker Ameritrade und E-Trade   verhandeln einem Pressebericht zufolge über einen Zusammenschluss. Es würden schon seit Wochen Gespräche geführt. Derzeit gehe es aber noch darum, sich auf eine gemeinsame Strategie zu einigen, berichtete das "Wall Street Journal" (Mittwoch) unter Berufung auf Kreise. Ein Abschluss stünde noch nicht unmittelbar bevor.



   "Wir haben und werden weiterhin Gespräche mit unseren Mitbewerbern führen", sagte eine Ameritrade-Sprecherin der Zeitung. Eine Sprecherin von E-Trade sagte, das Unternehmen glaube an ein enormes auf Konsolidierungspotenzial in der Branche. Beide Broker haben dem "WSJ" zufolge bereits früher schon verhandelt, sich aber auf keine Fusion einigen können.



   Dieses Mal käme aber mehr Druck aus den Reihen zweier Hedge-Fonds, die sich an Ameritrade beteiligt haben. Jana Partners LLC und S.A.C. Capital Advisors, die zusammen 8,7 Prozent hielten, hätten Ameritrade aufgefordert, einen Zusammenschluss mit einem Konkurrenten wie E-Trade oder Charles Schwab   zu sondieren./FX/she/wiz
Datum d. Meldung: 22.8.07 (kopiert von finanzen.net)
VG, Isc.

gerade erst gelesen

Vermutest Du, dass, wie bei der Übernahme der SachsenLB durch die Landesbank Baden-W., hier auch ein Lahmer dem anderen Halbtoten die Hand reichte?

ETrade gibt ja selber zu, nicht investierte Kundengelder in Geldmarktfonds mit Subprime-Anleihen und in anderen Vehikeln des maroden US-Immo-Markt "geparkt" zu haben. Der AAA-Trick zieht weite Kreise...

He added that the insurance does not protect against losses due to market drops, but it does protect against brokers going out of business or not being able to supply the investments on demand.

Shares of E-Trade (ETFC) lost more than half their value Monday, plunging as the company faces more subprime-related write-downs and as analysts at Citigroup suggest a possible bankruptcy for the online broker.

The SIPC is the Securities Investor Protection Corporation. It is the first line of defense in the event a brokerage fails owing customers cash and securities missing from customer accounts.

E-Trade is a member of the SIPC, and as such, its protections cover securities customers up to $500,000, including $100,000 for claims for cash, E-Trade said Monday.

"SIPC does not cover individuals who are sold worthless stocks and other securities," according to the company's Web site. Rather, "SIPC helps individuals whose money, stocks and other securities are stolen by a broker or put at risk when a brokerage fails for other reasons."

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation insures deposits at E-Trade Bank to at least $100,000, the company added.

E-Trade also said that its E-Trade Clearing LLC unit has insurance from London insurers that provides additional protection, with an aggregate limit of $600 million, to pay amounts in addition to those returned in a SIPC liquidation under certain circumstances. This coverage does not protect against loss of the market value of securities, E-Trade disclosed.

On Sunday, Citigroup downgraded the online broker's shares to sell and raised the specter of bankruptcy, and now retail investors may be wondering what they should do with their E-Trade accounts. "Bankruptcy risk cannot be ruled out," Citi analysts wrote in a note Sunday. They also lowered E-Trade's rating to sell.

Citi's Prashant Bhatia, in a move criticized by E-Trade as irresponsible, cautioned that there is a higher probability that customers will start a run on the firm's bank, given the worries that it may be beyond repair.

Clients have other options, such as moving assets to competing brokerages, Bhatia said.

The analyst added that active traders, who are a segment that is in tune with daily market events, generate a large proportion of E-Trade's activity and earnings
"The continued negative news flow could be a catalyst to transfer assets out of E-Trade," according to Bhatia.

Greg Morcroft is MarketWatch's financial editor in New York.

Am trübseligsten sind Blicke ins eigene Depot, wenn es sich wegen einer Pleite des Brokers in Luft auflöst...

die Onlinebroker hängen nicht in der Subprime Krise drin, da sie ja keine Immo Kredite geben. Aber die armen Seelen haben keine Moneten mehr zum traden.

Also ariva Jungs schön weiter zocken

lebt E-Trade noch?

One possible buyer is rival TD Ameritrade (AMTD); market chatter this spring indicated it was in discussions with E*Trade over a possible merger. TD Ameritrade has been pressured by two big activist hedge funds to merge with an industry peer -- namely E*Trade or Charles Schwab (SCHW) .

Even without a sale, TD Ameritrade, Schwab and Fidelity could benefit from E*Trade's troubles by picking up retail brokerage clients. A spokeswoman for TD Ameritrade did not return requests for comment.

E*Trade said in a statement responding to the Citi downgrade that it is "well capitalized" and "capable of adapting to shifting market trends."

A spokeswoman did not respond to requests seeking comment about the possibility of a sale or other strategic options.

David Trone, an analyst at Fox-Pitt Kelton, says despite E*Trade's problems, there would be buyers of the company and at a premium to its current price of around $4, "even assuming fire-sale impairment," he wrote in a note Monday, when E*Trade's stock plunged 59% to $3.55 as a result of the bad news.

But Citi analyst Prashant Bhatia, who set off the decline after suggesting in his note that E*Trade's bank could fail, says neither consolidation nor a cash infusion would create "any meaningful value" for the company's shareholders.

"In its current form, burdened with a significant and deteriorating $42 billion mortgage portfolio, this franchise is an extremely unattractive acquisition candidate," Bhatia wrote in the same note.

[42 Mrd. in Hypotheken hören sich ganz anders an als ETrades Behauptung, kaum von der Subprime-Krise betroffen zu sein - A.L.]

Banking issues aside, E*Trade does have good momentum in its retail brokerage operations. The company's daily average retail trades rose 23% in October from a month earlier to 227,344 trades. It had a total of $227 billion in retail client assets as of the end of October.

Still, analysts worry that the positive retail brokerage momentum may not be sustainable as E*Trade struggles with its mortgage and other asset-backed securities and other negative news flow coming from the company.

The online broker on late Friday disclosed it plans to take further writedowns on its $3 billion securities portfolio. It also said that Dennis Webb, E*Trade's president of its capital markets unit, was leaving the company.

E*Trade is also facing a Securities and Exchange Commission investigation into its loan and securities portfolios, according to its quarterly filing on Friday.

E*Trade has seen declines in the fair value of asset-backed collateralized debt obligations, or CDOs, and second-lien, or home equity-backed, securities as a result of recent rating agency downgrades of asset-backed securities, it said. The securities portfolio held approximately $450 million in asset-backed CDOs and second-lien securities as of the end of the third quarter.

The company, which provides online banking, brokerage and lending to retail and institutional customers, joined the likes of Countrywide Financial (CFC) , Washington Mutual (WM) and other smaller lenders hit hard by the housing downturn and mortgage deterioration, particularly as the secondary market for mortgages ground to a halt. The stock is down more than 80% this year.

E*Trade said in September that it was restructuring the business to eliminate its wholesale mortgage operations and streamlining its direct mortgage lending business to focus on the retail franchise, among other things.

It also said at the time that it was shifting its balance sheet to focus on retail assets and liabilities.

Still, E*Trade reported a third-quarter loss of $58 million, or 14 cents a share, last month. It ended up setting aside an extra $187 million for loans gone bad and taking $197 million in securities writedowns. E*Trade said that it expected to take the writedowns both this year and next year.

Aside from a sale, other options for E*Trade include a sale of certain bank assets or some sort of financial investment or capital infusion, much like Bank of America's (BAC) $2 billion investment into troubled mortgage lender Countrywide through the purchase of its preferred stock in August, analysts say.

Matt Snowling, an analyst at Friedman, Billings, Ramsey, speculates that the company is exploring the sale of its home equity or second lien portfolio in order to "remove the overhang" on the stock, he says. He also downgraded the stock to market perform from outperform in a note.

"There are two options," says Snowling. "One is always the obvious -- to sell. TD Ameritrade would have to be looking. The ability to pick up these accounts that are highly profitable at a fire sale -- they have to be looking."

But what is a more likely outcome is that the company will look to sell its home equity portfolio at a loss, which would require them "to raise a little bit of capital," according to Snowling.

He suggests that among other potential buyers, private equity firms could be interested in buying the distressed portfolio and acquiring a stake in the brokerage firm at the same time.

kundeneinlagen bei etrade germany sind doch gesichert und das weit besser als in den staaten?! sicherung liegt bei 2,1 mio pro kunde und konto
des weiteren sind wertpapiere, seien es anleihen, aktien o.ä.  ohnehin nicht betroffen - einzig und allein cash und der ist bei uns hier in D höher abgesichert als für kunden in USA

welche sorgen plagen dich also noch?

vergessen dürfen wir auch nicht dass etrade ein ordentlicher platzhirsch in der brokingszene ist und weit über 5 mio kunden in 40 ländern dieser erde sein eigen nennt. darüberhinaus verwaltet sie weit über 200 milliarden (vielleicht sind es auch schon fantastzilliarden) kundengelder.

aufgrund der Übernahmespekulation gestern um 50 % gestiegen

For Further Details
Investor Relations page
Press Releases
Customer Service
1-800-ETRADE-1


To All E*TRADE Customers:

The old adage "there is no such thing as bad publicity" does not apply to E*TRADE FINANCIAL this week. Seemingly by the stroke of a pen... or a few clicks from a keyboard... a Company with a core business that has generated impressive growth quarter after quarter has been bombarded by rumored reports of its imminent demise.

Well, we want customers to know that the entire E*TRADE team has come together with resolve and commitment, taking appropriate and decisive action to manage through this issue and to ensure that E*TRADE FINANCIAL continues to deliver the best value in the marketplace for our customers.

I have spoken with scores of customers over the past week. Many of you have openly expressed your confidence in E*TRADE. It is genuinely gratifying to know that our retail customers—the heart of our business—understand the value in our model and the strength of the franchise.

Many of you have also asked me about asset protection, so to be clear—your money is safe at E*TRADE FINANCIAL. Here are the facts:


FDIC insures all E*TRADE Bank accounts to at least $100,000 and Extended Insurance Sweep Deposit Accounts to $500,000.

SIPC protects E*TRADE Securities customers up to $500,000 (including $100,000 for claims for cash).

Additional E*TRADE Securities protection provides up to $150 million per brokerage account, underwritten by London insurers (aggregate $600 million).

E*TRADE is well-capitalized by regulatory standards.

E*TRADE was founded on the concept of empowering the individual investor. This value is still at the heart of our business. We look forward to continuing to provide you with the products, pricing, service and functionality you have come to expect in order to help you manage your financial world.

We haven't lost focus on our customers, our business or our future. The credit crunch has had a tremendous impact, but we are taking appropriate and decisive action to manage through it.


Thank you for your continued business,

—Jarrett Lilien
President, COO and Director, E*TRADE FINANCIAL

E*Trade Financial Corp (ETFC) shares dropped as much as 11.4 percent on Wednesday after an analyst sharply reduced the online brokerage's estimated book value, citing new details from its recent deal with hedge fund Citadel Investment Group.

In a Wednesday note, titled "More icing on cake for Citadel in an already sweet deal," Banc of America Securities analyst Michael Hecht estimated that E*Trade's tangible book value will decline to $1.04 per share, or 71 percent dilution, at the end of 2007. On Monday, Hecht had estimated year-end tangible book value at $1.98 a share.

Hecht issued the lower estimate after E*Trade, in a regulatory filing late Tuesday, disclosed more details of its $2.55 billion deal with Citadel last week that included a $1.75 billion cash infusion and the discounted sale of its $3 billion asset-backed securities portfolio, the source of its biggest financial woes.

Among the latest details was a three-year deal to route E*Trade's equity and options trades to Citadel, and a $50 million transaction fee to be paid to the hedge fund and another investor in the deal, BlackRock Inc (BLK.N: Quote, Profile, Research), the largest publicly traded U.S. money manager.

Under the agreement with Citadel, E*Trade also ended a $250 million revolving line of credit it had with JPMorgan Chase Bank and Morgan Stanley, which it said it is now looking to replace.

"Post the Citadel transaction we estimate (E*Trade's) tangible book declines to $1.04 per share, or 71 percent dilution, and then by year-end 2008 to $0.73, or 80 percent below current levels," Hecht said in the note.

He added that the deal to route trades to Citadel was another sweetener for the hedge fund, but a blow for E*Trade.

"A nice bonus for Citadel & another negative for (E*Trade) and their own market-making (business) which captures a lot of that order flow today," Hecht said.

E*Trade shares closed down 15 cents, or 3.8 percent, at $3.79 per share, more than 85 percent below where the shares were trading in January. The stock fell as low as $3.49 during the Wednesday session

EK 3,41 Dollar. Die Position ist wegen der hohen Risiken aber so klein (ca. 1 % meines Depotwertes), dass man sie mit dem Kauf eines Optionsscheins vergleichen könnte. Es gibt daher auch keinen SL. Eine Pleite und der damit einhergehende Totalverlust sind von Vornherein als Möglichkeit ins Kalkül gezogen. Das ist beim jetzigen Kurs aber nicht anders, als wäre man z. B. bereits Anfang Nov. zu 9,41 Dollar eingestiegen und dann bei 6 Dollar (nach dem Down-Gap) per SL rausgeflogen.

Wegen der Übernahmephantasien - Etrade ist wegen 3 Mrd. Subprime-Verlusten schwer angeschlagen und braucht vermutlich Außenstehende zum Überleben, hat aber andererseits ein gut laufendes und profitables Kerngeschäft - gibt es aber auch Chancen für Anstiege bzw. für einen Übernahmepreis deutlich über meinem EK.

Fazit: Ein hochspekulativer Zockerwert mit entsprechendem Potenzial nach oben ODER unten.

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Der Chart zeigt Abverkäufe bei riesigem Volumen im Nov., die Kapitulationszüge aufweisen.
Zurzeit läuft er bei abflauendem Volumen seitwärts, zeigt aber noch keine Erholungtendenzen. Weitere Erwartung von mir ist ein scharfer (und charttechnisch nicht vorhersehbarer) Sprung nach oben (Übernahme für z. B. 6 Dollar) oder Absturz nach unten (Pleitemeldung nach Chapter 11). Selbst unter Chapter 11 würde man die Aktie vermutlich noch für Preise um 1 Dollar an Hirnamputierte (oder covernde Shorts) weiterreichen können.   Sollte sich der Laden aus eigener Kraft wieder fangen - Wunder geschehen ja immer wieder - wäre auch eine Kursvervielfachung möglich. Dazu müsste man allerdings einige Jährchen Geduld mitbringen (als Aktionär hat man, anders als Optionsscheinhalter, keinen Zeitwertverlust).

Citadel, well-known for being an opportunistic financier of last resort to companies in distress, agreed to inject $1.75 billion into E*Trade in exchange for notes, stock equal to just under 20% of E*Trade's current total and a board seat.

The hedge fund also agreed to pay $800 million to relieve E*Trade of a $3 billion portfolio of mortgage-linked securities the company says has scared away other potential investors. The purchase, at just 27 cents on the dollar, shows how toxic such securities have become but signaled there is a market somewhere for mortgage-related debt.

E*Trade will take a $2.2 billion charge to reflect its loss on the sale, hurting its earnings, and shareholders will be diluted by the stock issued to Citadel.

The Citadel deal puts a bookend of sorts on the disastrous foray that Caplan led into mortgage lending. His aim was to diversify the firm's sources of revenue, but the plan backfired badly when mortgage markets cratered. Citigroup analysts warned Nov. 12 that E*Trade's mortgage exposure could prompt a run on the bank and a bankruptcy filing.

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Wenn Citadel 1,75 Mrd. für 20 % neu auszugebender Aktien für ETrade bezahlt hat, sollte der Gesamtwert bei dem Sechsfachen liegen (die 20 % kommen ja Kursverwässernd hinzu).
Das wären insgesamt 10,5 Mrd. Dollar.

Die MK bei Etrade liegt zurzeit bei 1,5 Mrd. Dollar:

Market cap:   $ 1.49B
Shares out: 461.77M

Darin sind die 20 % Anteil von Citadel vermutlich noch nicht enthalten. Rechnet man inkl. diesem Anteil 2 Mrd. MK, könnte sich ETrade langfristig als Verfünffacher entpuppen. Allerdings dürften einige Jährchen ins Land gehen, bis die Schulden aus dem laufenden Geschäft abgezahlt sind.

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Die Insider-Verkäufe Caplans stehen vermutlich mit seinem Abgang in Verbindung. Zuvor hatten ETrade-Insider gekauft - oft zu Kursen um 23 Dollar:

Solidaritätsposi... 500 ST. ~ kk 2,23€; in den US kaufen lohnt sich für mich nicht.

Interessante Idee AL, bisschen russisches Roulette, aber viel Platz nach unten ist da ja nicht wirklich... nur 2,23€, dann sollte der Boden erreicht sein :) Bei der Positionsgröße jedenfalls nicht so tragisch.

Auf ETrade-Boards bei Yahoo wird vermutet, dass die Negativität von Citigroup u. a. darauf zurückgeht, dass ETrade als filial-lose Online-Bank mit günstigen Konditionen den klassischen Filialbanken wie Citi unliebsame Konkurrenz macht. Daher sollen nun mit der Downgrade-Kampagne und Geshorte die Kunden von Etrade vergrault werden.

Die Formulierung des Citi-Downgrades bestätigt dies, dort wird eine angebliche Abwanderung von 30 Mrd. an Kunden-Einlagen (Depotwechsler) verwirrend so formuliert, als hätte ETrade 30 Mrd. VERLUSTE im Hypo-Geschäft gemacht.

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Heute (9.1.) meldet ETrade:

E*Trade Financial sells $3 billion mortgage securities
Wed Jan 9, 2008 6:26am EST

Jan 9 (Reuters) - E*Trade Financial Corp (ETFC), the online brokerage crippled by mounting losses at its mortgage business, said it sold about $3 billion in mortgage-backed securities and reduced wholesale borrowing levels by about $3.5 billion.

The company said it ended the year with $190 billion in client assets and $33 billion in cash.

E*Trade on Tuesday told Reuters that it will exit the U.S. institutional sales business eliminating about 30 jobs. (Reporting by Dinesh Nair; Editing by Derek Caney)

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Financial Services
E*Trade Hits Low on Cash Concerns
By Laurie Kulikowski
TheStreet.com Staff Reporter
1/8/2008 5:31 PM EST
URL: www.thestreet.com/newsanalysis/financial-services/10397670.html

E*Trade Financial (ETFC) sank 26% to an all-time low Tuesday after investors ran from the stock on fears the online broker will have to raise more capital.

Ratings agency Egan-Jones said E*Trade is in "dire need" of fresh financial support, according to a note published Monday.

"The company is in desperate need of more support which, if it does not receive shortly, might render it unsalvageable," the note said. "Our concern remains about adequate capitalization and unrealistic valuations of the $47 billion in mortgages and loan receivables."

The company is also closing its U.S. institutional sales business and will eliminate approximately 30 positions from the firm, according to the company.

E*Trade said in September that as part of a plan to focus on the retail business it was restructuring its institutional sales trading business, which was related to its international institutional business.

E*Trade shares, already beaten up over the past year by the ongoing credit crisis and deterioration of the housing market, closed Tuesday down 58 cents, or 20.5%, to $2.25.

A spokeswoman declined to comment on concerns about E*Trade's capital.

In late November, the New York-based online brokerage firm announced a $2.55 billion cash infusion from hedge fund Citadel Investments, which provided much-needed liquidity for the troubled company while it struggled to right the ship as its mortgage business crumbled.

Citadel paid $1.6 billion of capital in exchange for roughly 20% of E*Trade stock, as well as senior unsecured notes. Upon closing, expected by Jan. 15, Citadel will provide an additional $150 million.

E*Trade was forced to take writedowns on its $3 billion asset-backed securities portfolio, primarily within collateralized debt obligations, or CDOs, and second-lien securities. Citadel ended up purchasing the portfolio for just $800 million.

In addition, Mitch Caplan resigned as CEO. Caplan has become one of many top executives in the financial space to bid farewell as a result of the credit crunch.

...

Elsewhere in the financial sector, Countrywide Financial (CFC) also slumped to a 52-week low on Tuesday. Rumors swirled that the nation's mortgage largest lender was about to file for bankruptcy, sending shares tumbling 27% lower. Countrywide denied the rumors.

Subsequent to the November 29 sale of its $3.0 billion asset-backed securities portfolio, the Company successfully completed the orderly sale of additional available-for-sale securities totaling approximately $3.0 billion, including a combination of mortgage-backed securities and municipal bonds. These assets were sold through a series of transactions at a realized loss of less than $5 million. A portion of the transactions settled prior to December 31, 2007, and the remainder will settle in January/February 2008. In addition, the Company's home equity loan portfolio continued to run off as anticipated, ending the year with under $12 billion in balances.

Along with the asset sales and reduction in home equity loans, the Company also reduced wholesale borrowing levels at the Bank by eliminating an aggregate of approximately $3.5 billion in Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) advances and repurchase agreements quarter over quarter. ETRADE Bank ended the year with $10.5 billion of excess borrowing capacity from FHLB. The Company expects 2007 year-end tier I and risk-based Bank capital to be equal to or better than 5.9 percent and 11.1 percent respectively, as reported on November 29.

“We have taken important steps in the execution of our turnaround plan by reducing balance sheet-related risk and maintaining strong Bank capital levels,“ said R. Jarrett Lilien, acting CEO and President, ERADE FINANCIAL Corporation.

As part of management's assessment of its operating expense base, the Company announced today the decision to fully exit the institutional trading business by closing its remaining institutional trading desk which will impact fewer than 30 employees. This move follows the decision to exit the international institutional business, which was disclosed on September 17. The business does not align with the core retail business and has not met the financial expectations set forth by the Company.

Management also reported today that they continue to see turnaround momentum with regard to customer behavior. Total client assets ended the year at $190 billion, with $33 billion in cash. This compares to $192 billion and $33 billion, respectively as reported on November 29. [= vor Citadel. Die Citi-Behauptung, 30 Mrd. seien abgeflossen, scheint daher aus der Luft gegriffen]. The strength of the Company's value proposition and marketing initiatives continue to attract new customers, with 87,000 gross new accounts opened in December.


Additionally, ERADE announced the formation of a special committee tasked with aggressively reducing the risk of the Company's real estate portfolio. The special committee will be led by mortgage industry veteran Robert V. Burton, who recently joined the Company and has been appointed ERADE Bank's Chief Operating Officer.

“With over 25 years experience in mortgage and banking finance, Mr. Burton's expertise is perfectly aligned with this critically important part of the Company's turnaround plan,“ said Mr. Lilien.

Prior to joining ERADE, Mr. Burton served as Executive Vice President and Head of Retail Credit Businesses and Products at Wachovia Corporation where he was responsible for mortgage banking and home equity lending. Mr. Burton has also served as Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer at PNC Bank and as Senior Vice President and Group Finance Officer at Bank of America.


Quelle: Etrade - zitiert nach www.finanznachrichten.de