The Reasons for "America's Current Financial Crisis" is laid down by retired CPA Edward Binns in an 8 part , 1 hour, video of his FREE lecture. The lecture is a result of a "desk audit" of the national financial crisis, the October "bailout" and suspension of accounting rules, and statements by public officials and responsible media from a professional, insider view.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0pUIZgJ ... playnext=1
This article: http://www.slate.com/id/2202263/ helps explains the concept of notional value of derivatives.
So... now look at the third quarter of 2010 i.e. the latest data:
http://www.occ.gov/topics/capital-marke ... /dq310.pdf
Executive Summary
The notional value of derivatives held by U.S. commercial banks increased $11.3 trillion in the third quarter, or 5%, to $234.7 trillion.
U.S. commercial banks reported trading revenues of $4.2 billion in the third quarter, 27% lower than $5.7 billion in the third quarter of 2009.
Credit exposure from derivatives increased in the third quarter. Net current credit exposure increased 11%, or $43 billion, to $440 billion.
Derivative contracts remain concentrated in interest rate products, which comprise 84% of total derivative notional values. The notional value of credit derivative contracts, at $14.5 trillion, represents 6.2% of total notionals. Credit derivatives increased by 4.3% during the quarter.
Derivatives contracts are concentrated in a small number of institutions, the OCC said,
noting that the top five banks — JPMorgan Chase, Citibank, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs and HSBC Bank — account for 96 percent of the total notional amount of derivatives.
The largest 25 banks hold nearly 100 percent, the agency added.
