So we are hearing that cyprus was blackmailed into the plundering of the citizens deposits by threats that
- the ATMs would not work
- the banks would close
- there would be national bankruptcy
there would be a plague of locusts o’er the land
All very reminiscent of Ireland 2008 when our bankers rucked up to the then ministers and said …ATMsbankruptcylocustszombiesbailoutzombiesATMS or whatever…And that worked well didnt it children.
The threat that seems to have tipped it was the ECB suggesting that they would cut off cyprus. Yes, because expelling cyprus from the Euro would surely save it.
Its ugly germanic hegmeonic bullying. And its not the EU I campaigned for. Oh nein. …
I have more tomorrow in the Irish Examiner
Brian M. Lucey 
There is currently a plague of locusts in Egypt just across the sea 😉
It is in fact the EU you campaigned for. But you were under other illusions.
i wish i could rebut that… i really do….
Martin Armstrongs Blog is worth following. It is an amazing fact that 70% of all taxes collected go to pay interest on borrowings. How stupid is the idea that National Debts need never be paid off/written off?
http://armstrongeconomics.com/2012/11/20/liquidity/
I always suspected the Irish bank bailout was a really just a bailout of German banks. But what’s happened in Cyprus is ap transparent – surely voters across Europe won’t be able to ignore it. Surely.
Do they seriously think the Russians will leave their remaining funds in Cyprus after this? Do they think all the British servicemen and retirees with money there won’t take every cent and put it in banks in Blighty? Or how about all those Chinese investing in Cyprus – will they hang around? In which case, the Cyprus banking system won’t last very long. They’ve just turned Cyprus into another Greece.
Welcome to the next installment of the downfall of the eurozone. Or of the EU.
Do they care? Cyprus, from Berlin, is a small country far away of which they know little…
Indeed. From that perspective, Ireland is Craggy Island West, Cyprus is Craggy Island East.
Professor, your post is polemic and inappropriate for a man with your education. You are lecturing at and representing the best academic institution this country has to offer. Please bear this in mind.
First of all, your punctuation is horrible and makes it difficult to read your post.
Second, “germanic [sic!] bullying” is an incorrect assumption. Wolfgang Schäuble, Finance Minister of Germany, as well as the IMF were lobbying for exempting any funds not exceeding €100k in accordance with the European deposit insurance. However, the EU realized that savings are not exempt from taxes as they would be introduced in Cyprus. Having said that, the German government does not agree with the proposed introduction of a tax affecting those savings not exceeding €100k.
Third, you are a finance lecturer and should know that there is no risk-free asset. Therefore, the assumption that deposits at a bank are risk-free is false.
Fourth, expelling Cyprus from the EMU would have the similar effects as the proposed tax. The new Cyprian currency would be devalued to the Euro and thus decrease purchasing power. Cyprus is still an island and depending on imports.
So please do us all a favour and do your research before publishing bullshit.