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The Institutional Risk Analyst
© 2003-2025 | Whalen Global Advisors LLC All Rights Reserved in All Media | ISSN 2692-1812
Banks | Markets | Finance


R. Christopher Whalen
2 days ago7 min read
Silicon Valley and the Large Bank Dead Pool
When you see a bank with more than 10% of total assets in MBS, that's a big red flag in our book.
388 views


R. Christopher Whalen
6 days ago7 min read
Trading Points: Trump, Housing & Private Credit
President Trump is using the threat of tariffs to change the behavior of some of our trading partners, particularly Canada and Mexico.Â
330 views


R. Christopher Whalen
Mar 35 min read
Trump, Trade Deficits & the Dollar
But what happens if the US simply picks up the proverbial football and goes home?
442 views


R. Christopher Whalen
Feb 207 min read
Trumpian Wave Threatens Key Markets
Fed Chairman Jerome Powell now reports up to National Economic Council head Kevin Hassett.
636 views


R. Christopher Whalen
Feb 188 min read
Powell Fed Dithers on Inflation as the Trump Rally Fizzles
Kevin Hasset is now effectively Powell’s boss on everything other than monetary policy.
347 views

R. Christopher Whalen
Feb 115 min read
QT + Lower Federal Outlays = ?
Banks continue to show a strong preference for late vintage loans over securities, a fact which may cause loan yields to continue falling
358 views

R. Christopher Whalen
Feb 67 min read
The Bottom Quartile: FLG, KEY, LOB & TCBI
A look at the bottom quarter of WGA Bank Top 100 Index. We view TCBI as a work in progress. But kudos to KEY...
182 views

R. Christopher Whalen
Feb 46 min read
Trump, Musk & the Dollar
The real threat of tariffs announced by Trump is not inflation, but rather a LT decline in the dollar as the global reserve currency
500 views

R. Christopher Whalen
Jan 294 min read
WGA Bank Top 100 Index | Q1 2025
GS had not appeared in the top 25 since we began the indices a year ago, while MS had made it three times.
175 views


R. Christopher Whalen
Jan 237 min read
The Fed & GSEs: Questions Asked and Unanswered in Washington
In the strange world of Washington, speaking truth in public is a capital crime. Truth is often revealed accidentally.
534 views

R. Christopher Whalen
Jan 225 min read
Update: Charles Schwab | SCHW
The SVB duration management from 2020 onward was recklessly negligent by any reasonable standard
335 views


R. Christopher Whalen
Jan 136 min read
Big Losses in Commercial Real Estate & PE in 2025?
Private equity portfolio companies are about 10 times as likely to go bankrupt as non-PE-owned companies.
1,104 views

R. Christopher Whalen
Jan 87 min read
Trump, Risk and Liquidity
With Gov Michael Barr stepping down from bank supervision, perhaps Fed Chairman Jerome Powell is more willing to test liquidity lower bound
173 views

R. Christopher Whalen
Dec 30, 20248 min read
Update: Top Bank Asset Managers
As and when GS can exit the loss leading credit card relationship with AAPL, the performance of the business should improve significantly.
228 views


R. Christopher Whalen
Dec 27, 202411 min read
Four Big Risks Ahead in 2025
Indeed, if President Trump wants to be rid of Jerome Powell he can simply impeach him for violations of the Federal Reserve Act
843 views


R. Christopher Whalen
Dec 23, 20247 min read
Liquidity & Rates Fall as Trump Trades Beckon
What does the upsurge in repo rates at the end of September suggest? None of the media who supposedly cover the Fed seem able to ask.
448 views

R. Christopher Whalen
Dec 4, 20246 min read
The Trump Trade & Sovereign Ratings
What happens to the Trump Trade and the broader equity markets if the FOMC passes on a December rate cut?
600 views


R. Christopher Whalen
Nov 26, 20248 min read
Fed Fiddles as Liquidity Risk Looms
Our bet is that the Bessent "3-3-3" plan likewise will be a failure and that the Fed will be forced to restart QE sooner rather than later
1,206 views

R. Christopher Whalen
Nov 20, 20246 min read
Profile: Bank of Hawaii & QE
The asset returns of BOH are substandard vs its peers. We cannot discern any reason for this save management lapses.
438 views

R. Christopher Whalen
Nov 18, 20247 min read
Trump, Deficits & Credit Default Swaps
As a practical matter, no Fed chairman or governor can function without the support of the White House and the US Treasury.
942 views
Christopher Whalen
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