Current mood:

confused

Part of the Financial Bailout: Cap One Buys Chevy Chase Bank
So the Post reports this morning that Capital One is set to buy Chevy Chase Bank, which was apparently falling on hard times like so many other banks because of bad mortgages.

Capital One took over $3.5 billion in bailout money from the Treasury. Today they're buying Chevy Chase Bank - which, while it does have a serious problem with mortgage defaults, does have $11 billion in deposits. Capital One wants access to those deposits.

Perhaps this all means that it will allow Capital One to continue to lend, thus spurring spending by consumers and other banks to which it lends.

But here's the flip-side: As Capital One gobbles up banks like Chevy Chase, growing quickly, aren't they pushing themselves further and further into the "too big to fail" territory that has taxpayers even further on the hook if Cap One falters?