Backs to the Wall Street - The Crucial 72 Hours

I can only imagine the potentially dramatic events that might unfold on Monday if the global financial system is allowed to enter meltdown…

I fear that we are all becoming a little de-sensitised to the dramatic and serious developments taking place in the financial markets. But perhaps the most dramatic moments are just around the corner.

Lehman Bros, AIG, Merrill Lynch, HBOS…who would have guessed what could have happened to these institutions less than two weeks ago.

Just last night, the US experienced its biggest banking collapse - Washington Mutual (WaMu) is no more. Bradford & Bingley shares are under severe pressure again today as the FSA tries to find a potential white knight.

Politicians in the US have started their shouting match over the Wall Street bailout - and the intensity of the arguments can only increase as the weekend arrives. Who knows whether John McCain will have the balls to turn up to the Presidential debate with Obama tonight - but at least the financial crisis has demonstrated beyond doubt that he is totally unsuitable as a potential leader. The complications of the Presidential Race make the bailout negotiations tougher still.

In times of crisis like this, the “go to” blogger has to be Robert Peston. The man has journalistic stamina (he needs it) - reeling off a succession of insightful posts that cut through the financial fog. If you want to follow the momentous events of the next 72 hours, then it has to be Pestons Picks.

Hold on tight, things might be about to get very nasty…