Quantum Fund co-founder George Soros had it right on Monday, when he said the U.S. recovery would be held back by “basically bankrupt” banks and companies.

Kenneth D. Lewis There are many ways to view Kenneth Lewis’ eight-year reign as Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) chief executive, but two seem to hold the most landscape.

Investment banks have gotten fat off the land since 1982, when the great U.S. bull market got its start. Their business has multiplied many-fold, and their earnings have soared into the stratosphere, to a level far higher than any other sector.

The FDIC is considering tapping its emergency line of credit with the Treasury. FDIC Chair Sheila Bair recently hinted after a speech at Georgetown University that all options are on the table when it comes time to replenish the dwindling Deposit Insurance Fund. We’ll find out more in the next few weeks after the FDIC board of directors meets.

Is the government creating another subprime-mortgage bubble?

Asian economies are recovering faster than previously thought and will lead the charge out of the worst global downturn since the 1930s, according to new forecasts by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) – a Manila-based institution that promotes economic and social progress in the Asia-Pacific region.

It was more than a year ago – Sept. 14, 2008 – that Lehman Bros. Holding Co. (OTC: LEHMQ) finally collapsed under the weight of its own bad investments.

The dark cloud of commercial real estate loan defaults is inching closer, threatening to shutter more banks, even as the U.S. Federal Reserve declares the recession to be over.

It’s official: You can reduce your investment risk simply by chucking darts at a list of stocks, then buying them.

This week marks the one-year anniversary of the Lehman bankruptcy. The media struggles to say something meaningful about it. Here at the Daily Reckoning we will not even attempt meaningfulness. We’ll be satisfied with a few snide remarks.