Small US banks may have Chinese owners

Life has indeed come a full circle for the Chinese. It was only a few years back that they were snubbed by the US authorities when its home grown oil giant CNOOC made a bold US$ 19 bn bid to acquire the California based US oil giant Unocal. But that was 2005 and this is 2009. While four years may not appear too much, a lot has indeed happened on the global financial landscape. The Empire of debt that was the US has seen its power erode considerably and at the same time, China, the largest holder of its debt has gone from strength to strength.





Also, with voices getting louder in the US to stop forking out any more taxpayers' money to bail out ailing banks, it only makes sense that they get acquired by bigger entities. But since most US financial institutions in the US are not in the best of health themselves, the cash rich Chinese banks obviously seem as one of the best fit. Thus, a pact is being negotiated between the Chinese and US regulators whereby Chinese financial institutions will be given the permission to buy into small and medium sized banks in the United States.



By inviting China, the US authorities are trying to kill two birds with one stone. Helping turnaround the sick banks and at the same time sending out the message to the communists that they are indeed not averse to see a red flag fluttering at the headquarters of few of their financial institutions. After all, now is not the time to peeve one of your biggest lenders.