Citigroup Triage

Citgroup (C) was bailed out and had to give up a preferred share issue to stay afloat. In addition the Fed, Treasury and every assistant deputy dog in the financial world are pretty well guarantying anything that looks like a problem. The common stock dividend all but disappears. So where does the board stand in all of this. They have helped steer the ship onto the rocks and have essentially proven they were not a good board. There are other banks in much better shape than Citi.

From a governance point of view the board will do what they are told to do by the regulator. So why keep them? The Fed and treasury have made what may become Warren Buffet like investments. So where does the Saudi Prince stand. (Prince Alaweed) His previous investment looks shaky. He went in and bought significantly more just before the announcement. Was he negotiating in some fashion? His purchase was on the open market and therefore was not new capital to Citi and therefore did not help solve any of the current problems.

Emergency room triage is a fast pace process even when performed on corporate boardroom tables. Who bears responsibility for the reasons why it had to be done?