implode-explode.com - Implosion News Pick-ups: Buying IndyMac at a Bargain Price

The F.D.I.C. says the deal allows it to rid itself of hard-to-sell assets, including IndyMac’s portfolio of troublesome Alt-A mortgages. The agency had already sunk about $9 billion from its insurance fund into IndyMac, so while it did shop the bank to a range of possible buyers, it may have understandably been in a hurry to return it to private hands. Perhaps that justifies some of F.D.I.C.’s concessions. But assuming no one steps in with a better offer this time, the agency should aim to strike a harder bargain next time.