A Seer on Banks Raises a Furor on Bonds

Those with vision 'see' while those without point fingers. The turmoil in the bond stems from market foces that supercede the power of centralized control. The bond market has been deteriorating in real terms for years.

Ms. Whitney is also drawing scrutiny from Washington, where a Congressional panel will meet on Wednesday to examine the turmoil in the muni bond market, including whether Ms. Whitney’s call has fed the volatility and allowed some investors to profit unfairly

If one stock-picker emerged intact from the wreckage of the financial crisis, it was Meredith Whitney. With a prescient warning about bank stocks in 2007 — as well as a gift for the perfect sound bite — she became a media darling, celebrated in a Fortune cover article and in frequent television appearances as a market seer.

Until now, that is. These days, Ms. Whitney, 41, finds herself pilloried in the news media and by colleagues for predicting a calamity in municipal bonds. Critics say the call is overstated, but it has alarmed investors in that usually sleepy market.

Ms. Whitney is also drawing scrutiny from Washington, where a Congressional panel will meet on Wednesday to examine the turmoil in the muni bond market, including whether Ms. Whitney’s call has fed the volatility and allowed some investors to profit unfairly.

Source: finance.yahoo.com