Easy Street is Marketplace’s daily roundup of the most interesting news stories and commentary about Wall Street, Washington and the curious world of finance.
Banking
Goldman Sachs: No one here but us trading chickens. Net Net’s John Carney explains.
Related: Goldman is starting to show signs of mortality. Wall Street is worried, very worried.
How quaint: England discovers the no-doc mortgage. Welcome to the big leagues, guys.
Investing
Bank of America: Bank of America Merrill Lynch has a team of investors who decide what to do with the firm’s own money. They’ve had big hits like hospital operator HCA. Now they’re leaving the bank and going off to invest on their own.
Twitter: What becomes of a Silicon Valley darling when it has to grow up?
Related: Fortune’s cover story this week on Trouble @ Twitter.
Bond Markets
Bond rally: Yesterday S&P said America might get downgraded. So Treasury bonds rallied and had a great day. Huh? For clues to how this works, picture Treasurys as Miss America.
Hedge Funds
Madoff Cleanup: Irving Picard, the trustee devoted to getting back all the money Bernie Madoff stole, wants $43 million for four months of work. Did Madoff make that kind of cash? Probably not. Remember kids: it pays to stay on the right side of the law.
The Washington Matrix
Geithner Stumps: The Treasury Secretary is convinced S&P won’t downgrade the U.S., ever. And he just can’t stop talking about it.
Around the Web
Wikimaps: Google allows people to edit its Maps feature now.
Thomson Reuters announced that it is the new Wall Street Journal. Just kidding. The news company actually announced it had hired a passel of new editors, many of whom made their names at the WSJ and Dow Jones.
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